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very year, the Inc.
team gathers the data,
crunches the numbers,
and compiles the Inc.
- And the Inc. 5000
is not a mere list of the fastest-growing private companies
in America. It’s the backbone of the U.S. economy. These
businesses generate hundreds of thousands of jobs, and
billions of dollars in revenue, in their home-
towns across the country.
While the Inc. 500 issue always focuses on
companies whose growth rates boggle the mind,
it also shines a light on the smart marketers who
work tirelessly to help these companies achieve
and maintain that level of growth year after year.
In doing so, these marketers walk side-by-side
with the founders, and share in the innovation
that drives their success.
This year, Inc. is celebrating its 40th birth-
day, and it continues to reinforce its position as
the only brand with a long and storied history
of celebrating the great ideas, determination,
and passion of the entrepreneurs who have
built companies that have changed the world.
Long before companies like Facebook, Chobani, and
Under Armour were iconic brands, they were on the Inc.
- Long before their founders were household names,
they graced Inc.’s pages and covers, because Inc. recognized
how big they would become. Over the years, we watched
many of these companies go public or get acquired. And
Inc. now celebrates those companies that choose to remain
private, with the new Inc. Private Titans initiative.
As Inc. 5000 founders continue to grow their companies
at incredible rates, they will keep needing new technologies
to keep pace with their business, new fi nancial partners
to advise them, new business and legal services as they add
to head count and expand operations—and, of course, some
time off now and then, to enjoy their many successes.
In October, nearly 2,000 founders and executives from
these fast-growing companies will come together in
Phoenix at the Inc. 5000 Conference & Gala. There, they
will network, share their stories, learn from other success-
ful business builders, and celebrate their successes in what
has been called the ultimate gathering of business owners.
(Or, as Joel McHale—the emcee of last year’s conference
Gala—put it: the “Workaholics’
Prom.”) They also get to interact
with the sponsors who provide the
products and services that have
helped them get there. These
include longtime Presenting and
Gold Level Inc. 5000 sponsors
Insperity and Mercedes-Benz
Vans. They’ll all be there, because
the Inc. community knows there is
no better event for helping them
as they continue to grow their
companies and better understand
the ideas and solutions they will
need along that path.
At Inc., we have always been
and will continue to be dedicated to helping business
builders start and scale their companies while leveraging
that passion and loyalty for marketers whose products and
services support that very growth.
Together, everybody wins.
Grit,
Growth,
and Great
Ideas
PUBLISHER’S LETTER
E
● ● ● ● ● ● SEPTEMBER 2019 ● INC. ● 13
CELEBRATED
Attendees in San Antonio
at last year’s Inc. 5000
conference, basking in their
hard-won success.
Rich Russey [email protected]