Big Book of Business 2023 by The Observer Group Inc.

BIG BOOK OF BUSINESS 2023

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NUMBERS DON’T LIE

Executive Editor and COO Kat Wingert | KWingert@BusinessObserverFL.com

Managing Editor Mark Gordon | MGordon@BusinessObserverFL.com

Commercial Real Estate Editor Louis Llovio | LLlovio@BusinessObserverFL.com

MARK GORDON MANAGING EDITOR

The world (and the internet) is full of lines and quotes that, in some way, are designed to caution people about using, or overusing, statistics.

There’s the famous one from Mark Twain, who attributed it to British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli: “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics.” Or this gem, from college football coach Woody Hayes: “Statistics always remind me of a fellow who drowned in a river where the average depth was only three feet.”

The message, of course, is numbers, figures and data can be used to prove or show a variety of theories and trends. Yet statistics, data and the like are essential for anyone in business to get a grip on the barrage of challenges, threats and opportunities coming at organizations. The key: Use the information wisely.

It’s with that backdrop — to help make you wiser in business — the Business Observer presents its third annual Big Book of Business. This is a 76-page book of valuable data, from beermakers and builders to bankers and balloons. That last one can be bought at Publix, the region’s largest company; see P. 26.

For well over a decade the Business Observer published the Top 500 — the largest companies in the region,

ranked by revenue. But in our postCovid shift we decided to go high, wide and deep. That line is also taken from this book, in the change maker profile of Lilah Taha-Rippett on P. 62. A senior vice president of supply chain for Manatee County-based restaurant company First Watch, Taha-Rippett often tells her team and colleagues to “go high, go wide and go deep” when interacting with vendors and suppliers.

This issue goes deeper and wider than the Top 500, we believe. Like in the past, there’s plenty of essential data. And plenty of lists. There’s also nine stories on what we call change makers. These are notable people facilitating significant change in their organizations, industry or both. The list ranges from Bealls CEO Matt Beall to St. Petersburg College President Tonja Williams.

Picking out some data as a taste of what’s to come in this book reveals something else about statistics: even with confirmation bias, when you use data to prove something you already believed, it’s good to be open to being surprised. Some examples:

n Collier County isn’t just a wealthy county in the region — it’s the wealthiest in the state by one measure, with a per capita county personal income of $117,980, according to Florida TaxWatch. But when broken down by ZIP codes, Hillsborough County has the three wealthiest spots in the region, based on median annual income.

n The Sunshine State’s growth boom is having an outsized impact on the west coast of Florida. While the six counties in Florida with more than 1 million people are mostly well known, including Hillsborough, the three largest counties under 1 million are all

in this region: Pinellas, Lee and Polk.

n Large credit unions in Florida continue to grow rapidly. While bankers, who lament that the nonprofit financial services entities don’t pay federal taxes might not be surprised, the growth is certainly notable. Membership at three of the largest credit unions in the region increased 10% from 2021 to 2022, and one, Grown Financial Credit Union, grew 15.42%.

There are hundreds more data points and statistics throughout this book. We hope this issue helps you make better decisions, be better informed and be better at business. As always, we welcome comments and suggestions on how we can be better in 2024. Please email me at MGordon@BusinessObserverFl.com.

Tampa Bay Editor Jim Stinson | JStinson@BusinessObserverFL.com

Sarasota-Manatee Writer Amanda Postma | APostma@BusinessObserverFL.com

Editorial Design / Jess Eng, Nicole Thompson

Associate Publishers / Kathleen O’Hara | KOHara@BusinessObserverFL.com; Diane Schaefer | DSchaefer@BusinessObserverFL.com

Director of Legal Advertising / Kristen Boothroyd KBoothroyd@BusinessObserverFL.com

Director of Creative Services / Caleb Stanton | CStanton@YourObserver.com

Chief Financial Officer / Laura Strickland |LStrickland@YourObserver.com

Director of Distribution and Subscriptions Sales / Diana Ewing | DEwing@BusinessObserverFL.com

POSTAL INFORMATION

The Business Observer (ISSN#1539-9184) is published weekly on Fridays by the Gulf Coast Review Inc., 1970 Main St., Sarasota, FL 34236; 941362-4848. Periodicals postage paid at Sarasota, FL, and at additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Please send changes of address to The Business Observer, P.O. Box 3169, Sarasota, FL 34230.

AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 5

EDITOR TABLE

CONTENTS THE DATA Jobs 6 Population 8 Banking 8 Commercial real estate 10 Airports, seaports 12 Business formation 13 Housing 14 Residential real estate 15 County comparisons 16 THE LISTS Zip codes by income 20 Largest public companies 21 Top 50 private companies 26 Banks 32 SBA lenders 34 Credit unions 36 Top employers by county 41 FDOT projects 42 Doc stamps 44 Patents 44 Colleges 46 Breweries 47 Top 50 contractors 48 Florida 2030 50 THE CHANGE MAKERS Tonjua Williams 54 Matt Beall 56 Marie Grasmeier 58 Brian Auld 60 Lilah Taha-Rippet 62 Marc Devisse 64 Devaney Iglesias 66 Stuart Haniff 68 Ken LaRoe 70

LETTER FROM THE

The third annual Big Book of Business has even more data, information and statistics — all designed to help executives and entrepreneurs make better decisions.

To subscribe: Call 877-231-8834, or visit BusinessObserverFL.com. Special Section Published August 2023

SPECIAL THANKS Business Observer

phers Mark Wemple

Pifferi took the images seen in this book, at locations spread from Tampa to Naples.

Publisher and President Emily Walsh, EWalsh@YourObserver.com

photogra-

and Stefania

JOBS

The jobs numbers look good for Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Employment in the construction industry is up about 6% over the last year, with about 190,000 jobs supported across the Gulf Coast’s major metro areas. And leisure and hospitality employment is — finally — back above pre-pandemic levels, if only slightly, with 298,200 jobs today against an estimated 293,300 at the start of 2020. The unemployment rate is either at or below 3% for each metro area, and continued claims of unemployment insurance are back to normal, between 35,000 and 40,000 claims per week, after peaking at more than 1 million claims per week in May 2020.

—Alex Walsh

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE

CONTINUED CLAIMS*

CONSTRUCTION JOBS

LEISURE AND HOSPITALITY JOBS

*Continued claims, also referred to as insured unemployment, is the number of people who have already filed an initial claim and who have experienced a week of unemployment and then filed a continued claim to claim benefits for that week of unemployment. Continued claims data are based on the week of unemployment, not the week when the initial claim was filed.

6 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

May 1, 2018 May 1, 2019 May 1, 2020 May 1, 2021 May 1, 2022 May 1, 2023 Nov. 1, 2018 Nov. 1, 2019 Nov. 1, 2020 Nov. 1, 2021 Nov. 1, 2022 3% 6% 9% 12% 15% Tampa-St.Petersburg-Clearwater North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton Punta Gorda Cape Coral-Fort Myers Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island KEY 5/1/18 1/1/191/1/201/1/21 1/1/221/1/23 20 40 60 80 100 5/1/18 1/1/191/1/20 1/1/211/1/221/1/23 50 100 150 200 5/1/18 5/1/19 5/1/20 5/1/21 5/1/225/1/23 200,000 400,000 600,000 800,000 1,000,000 5/1/20: 1,062,593 5/1/23: 37,656

THE DATA

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POPULATION

TOTAL COUNTY POPULATION

POPULATION OF LARGEST CITIES IN REGION

5. Clearwater: 119,208

7. Largo: 84,286

12. Pinellas Park: 55,092

2. St. Petersburg: 264,220

8. North Port: 81,823

4. Lakeland: 120,279

13. Winter Haven: 55,311

1. Tampa: 401,512

9. Bradenton: 56,957

10. Sarasota: 56,494

3. Cape Coral: 208,053

Source: Florida TaxWatch, Florida’s 70 largest cities; Florida Legislature, Office of Economic and Demographic Research

BANKING

Key indicators for Florida’s banking industry improved in the first quarter of 2023 relative to the end of last year.

Total assets increased by 1% to $287 billion. The median net inter-

est margin among Florida-based banks improved nearly 50 basis points to 3.67%. The median return on assets improved by 4 basis points to 0.97%, and the median ratio of net loans to assets improved

to 63.22%, according to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data.

The FDIC’s quarterly profile for Florida also includes deposit data for each of the state’s largest metro areas. It shows that the total amount

RETURN ON ASSETS

6. Fort Myers: 96,755

11. Bonita Springs: 55,502

of deposits held by banks in Miami ($352 billion) is about 170% larger than the amount in Tampa ($131 billion), and more than 10 times the amount in Sarasota ($32 billion).

—Alex Walsh

TO ASSETS

8 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

DATA

THE

Pinellas Hillsborough Pasco Manatee Sarasota Polk Collier Lee Charlotte 1,520,529 972,852 802,178 770,019 592,669 452,378 421,768 390,912 196,742

TOTAL ASSETS (MILLIONS) NET INTEREST MARGIN (MEDIAN %)

(MEDIAN %) NET LOANS

(MEDIAN %)

Source: Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Note: The FDIC report didn’t include specific data for the Fort Myers and Naples markets.

Florida Total: 22,276,132 $50,000 $100,000 $150,000 $200,000 $250,000 $300,000 20212022Q1 2023 $286,996 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 20212022Q1 2023 3.67 20212022Q1 2023 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 0.97 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 20212022Q1 2023 63.22

Source: Florida Legislature, Office of Economic and Demographic Research

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COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE

AVAILABLE

10 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

OFFICE SQUARE FEET AVAILABLE RETAIL SQUARE FEET

INDUSTRIAL SQUARE FEET AVAILABLE MULTIFAMILY SQUARE FEET HillsboroughPinellasPascoPolkManateeSarasotaCharlotteLeeCollier 2017 2022 KEY 2,000,000 4,000,000 6,000,000 10,000,000 12,000,000 8,000,000 HillsboroughPinellasPascoPolkManateeSarasotaCharlotteLeeCollier 2017 2022 KEY 500,000 2,000,000 1,000,000 2,500,000 1,500,000 3,500,000 4,000,000 3,000,000 HillsboroughPinellasPascoPolkManateeSarasotaCharlotteLeeCollier 2017 2022 KEY 4,000 6,000 2,000 10,000 12,000 8,000 HillsboroughPinellasPascoPolkManateeSarasotaCharlotteLeeCollier 2017 2022 KEY 1,000,000 4,000,000 2,000,000 5,000,000 3,000,000 7,000,000 8,000,000 6,000,000 Source: CoStar THE DATA

AVAILABLE

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AIRPORTS SEAPORTS

Port activity in the region picked up, even the slightest bit, last year in terms of cargo.

SeaPort Manatee posted a 5%

increase of cargo tons, but the most impressive feat for the port was 20-foot equivalent units, with a 30% increase over 2021.

SeaPort Manatee almost matched

Port Tampa Bay’s volume of TEUs. The big difference in 2022 for Port Tampa Bay was the resumption of cruising, which had taken a pause in 2021 due to the pandemic.

Overall, the port saw over 418,000 cruise passengers last year.

NOTE: Cruises were shut down fiscal 2021 due to pandemic TEUS are 20-foot equivalent units

12 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 THE DATA DEPLANINGS CARGO TONS

TEUs FREIGHT CRUISE

18.81% 17.48% 20.52% 21.50%  0.04% Southwest Florida International *Tampa International Punta Gorda Airport St. PeteClearwater International SarasotaBradenton International 2 mil.4 mil.6 mil.8 mil.10 million 500,0000

35,000,000 SeaPort Manatee Port Tampa Bay 5.54% 3.12% 5 mil.10 mil.15 mil.20 million  0.21% 17.6% 20.12% 21.62% 18.84% Southwest Florida International Tampa International Punta Gorda Airport St. PeteClearwater International SarasotaBradenton International SeaPort Manatee Port Tampa Bay 30.55% 1.71% 50,000 100,000 150,000 200,000 100 mil. 200 mil. 300 mil. 400 million 7.62% Southwest Florida International Tampa International 4.31% SeaPort Manatee Port Tampa Bay 300,000 200,000 100,000 400,000 500,000 N/A 0 N/A

PASSENGERS

10,000,000 15,000,000 20,000,000 25,000,000 30,000,000

— Amanda Postma *Tampa International doesn't record passenger deplaning data, which is data that reflects the number of passengers disembarking from an aircraft. Instead the numbers above are recorded as inbound passengers, which reflect the number of passengers who arrived in Tampa each year. Punta Gorda, St.Pete-Clearwater and SarasotaBradenton don’t handle freight cargo.

2021 2022

Source: Individual Airports Source: Individual ports

BUSINESS CREATION

Florida’s entrepreneurs created hundreds of thousands of new businesses in 2022, continuing a trend from the previous year.

From 2015 to 2019, those entrepreneurs created about a dozen new businesses per thousand Florida residents, according to data provided by the Florida Division of Corporations. But in 2020, that number went up to 18.5 new domestic LLCs per thousand residents.

In each of the past two years, entrepreneurs across Florida have created roughly 24 new LLCs for every thousand people living in the state.

— Louis Llovio

DOMESTIC LIMITED LIABILITY COS.LLCS CREATED PER CAPITA

BANKRUPTCIES

AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 13 THE DATA

100,000 200,000 300,000 400,000 500,000 600,000 533,137 2015’16’17’18’19’20’21’22 5 10 15 20 25 24.0 2015’16’17’18’19’20’21’22

Source: Florida Department of State, Division of Corporations

Chapter 11 Business Chapter 7 Personal Chapter 11 Personal Chapter 13 Personal Chapter 7 Business KEY 2018 Total Business Cases: 941 Total Personal Cases: 23,371 Total Business Cases: 1,073 Total Personal Cases: 25,120 Total Business Cases: 882 Total Personal Cases: 19,956 Total Business Cases: 713 Total Personal Cases: 13,278 Total Business Cases: 719 Total Personal Cases: 13,204 2019 2020 2021 2022

HOUSING

Have Gulf Coast home prices hit a short-term peak?

At the very least, price growth appears to have slowed from the blistering pace seen starting in 2021 and going into 2022.

Across Gulf Coast metros in June, median list prices were lower than a year ago — with one exception, the Naples-ImmokaleeMarco Island area, where the recent median was up a whopping 11% compared with last year.

Unsurprisingly, this slowing of price gains is occurring in concert with increases in inventory.

Across the Gulf Coast’s major metro areas, more than 23,000 homes were listed for sale in June 2023, up 50% from last year (about 15,000 listings) and 160% from two years ago (about 9,000).

The increase in inventory is likely being driven by existing homeowners thinking more about selling, because the number of permits being issued for new construction hasn’t changed much in recent years.

—Alex Walsh

PERMITS ISSUED

MEDIAN HOME PRICE INDEX

INVENTORY

14 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

6/1/1812/1/186/1/1912/1/19 6/1/2012/1/206/1/2112/1/216/1/22 6/1/23 12/1/22 500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500 3,000 Tampa-St.Petersburg-Clearwater North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton Punta Gorda Cape Coral-Fort Myers Naples-ImmokaleeMarco Island

200,000 400,000 600,000 800,000 1,000,000 6/1/1812/1/186/1/1912/1/19 6/1/2012/1/206/1/2112/1/216/1/22 6/1/23 12/1/22

6/1/1812/1/186/1/1912/1/19 6/1/2012/1/206/1/2112/1/216/1/22 6/1/23 12/1/22 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000

THE DATA

AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 15 RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE $200,000$400,000$600,000$800,000 Naples Tampa 7.10% 10.90% 33.90% 0.00% 20.20% 0.46% 23.10% 35.10% 0.20% 19.30% 17.90% 9.13% St. Petersburg Clearwater Bradenton Sarasota Fort Myers Condos/Co-Ops Townhomes KEY Single-family homes 20.60% 28.50% 0.02% 14.30% 8.90% 17.00% 3.40% 0.10% 1.90% Naples Tampa 0.00% 0.00% St. Petersburg Clearwater Bradenton Sarasota Fort Myers 6.3% 9.00% 14.70% 16.70% 18.10% 18.90% 11.90% 28.10% 100200300400500 Condos/Co-Ops Townhomes KEY 51.40% 44.80% 19.70% 25.00% 60.00% 28.60% 34.40% 16.10% 26.30% 29.60% 14.30% Single-family homes 2023 Median price, %Change (April ’22-April ’23)2023 Sales, %Change (April ’22-April ’23) CONDOS/CO-OPS, TOWNHOMES AND SINGLE-FAMILY HOMES THE DATA ® FEDER AL CRE DIT UNION USF USF Federal Credit Union recently donated 1 million dollars to support USF students, staff and faculty with scholarships and sponsorships. Tampa, New Tampa, Odessa, St. Pete, Sarasota • 813.569.2000 Great rates / Exceptional service / Positive impact Savings • Money Markets • Share Certificates • Checking Federally insured by NCUA Giving back to our community Help us give back by joining USF FCU at usffcu.com/join today! 400284-1

COUNTY COMPARISONS

PER CAPITA TOTAL PROPERTY TAX LEVIES (FISCAL YEAR 2022-2023)

GROWTH IN TOTAL PROPERTY TAX LEVIES (FISCAL YEAR 2012-2013 TO FY 2022-2023)

PER

Source: Florida TaxWatch, Florida Department of Revenue

Note: Reflects growth when statewide property tax levies began rising again following five straight years of decline. TaxWatch reports. Source: Florida TaxWatch, Florida Department of Revenue

PER CAPITA COUNTY PERSONAL INCOME

Note: These fees are regulatory fees imposed by both cities and counties, TaxWatch reports. The fees should not exceed the regulated activity’s cost and are generally required to be applied solely to the regulated activity’s cost for which the fee is imposed. Source: Florida TaxWatch, Florida Department of Revenue

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Board of Economic Analysis, Florida TaxWatch

16 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 Hillsborough Manatee Pasco Collier Charlotte Sarasota Polk Pinellas Lee Statewide: 85.6% 117% 96.4% 97.6% 101.5% 104.5% 104.2% 80.7% 81.3% 94.1%

THE

DATA

Sarasota Collier Pinellas Manatee Charlotte Hillsborough Lee Polk Pasco Statewide: $2,013.47 $3,528.12 $2,015.01 $2,126.30 $2,171.34 $2,194.28 $2,532.63 $1,110.99 $1,165.98 $1,746.10 Sarasota Collier Charlotte Manatee Lee Pinellas Polk Hillsborough Pasco Statewide: $44.61 $103.34 $68.13 $54.94 $30.40 $25.58 $23.57 $38.46 $35.12 $34.55

CAPITA COUNTY

MUNICIPAL BUILDING PERMIT FEES (FISCAL YEAR 2020-21) Sarasota Collier Pinellas Hillsborough Manatee Charlotte Lee Polk Pasco Statewide: $62,270 $117,984 $78,815 $65,936 $51,677 $50,479 $43,556 $62,885 $59,152 $58,152

AND

AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 17 407684-1 Thinking of selling your business? JIM ALBERTSON 941-720-8956 | JALBERTSON@GREENANDCO.BIZ DAMIAN KOSEMPA 941-993-2557 | DKOSEMPA@GREENANDCO.BIZ We can help! 64 SARASOTA CENTER BLVD., SARASOTA, FL 34240 | WWW.GREENANDCO.BIZ Charges for Services 31.7% Property Taxes 26.6% Other Sources 10.2% Other Taxes 9.7% Permits, Fees, Special Assessments 5.8% Intergov. Revenue 16.1% Charges for Services 31.7% Property Taxes 13.1% Other Taxes 7.9% Other Sources 32.1% Intergov. Revenue 9.1% Permits, Fees, Special Assessments 6.2% THE DATA GOVERNMENT DATA COUNTY GOVERNMENT REVENUE BY SOURCE MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT REVENUE BY SOURCE

GOVERNMENT DATA

COUNTY GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURES BY SOURCE

MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURES BY SOURCE

Source: Florida TaxWatch: 2023 How Counties Compare. Figures may not equal 100% due to rounding

THE DATA

Culture & Recreation 4.0% Economic Environment 4.0% General Government 21.6% Transportation 12.5% Public Safety & Courts 29.9% Other 5.8% Human Services 10.3% Physical Environment 11.6% Culture & Recreation 6.7% Economic Environment: 3.0% General Government 28.4% Transportation: 6.3% Public Safety & Courts 24.3% Other 2.8% Human Services: 0.9% Physical Environment 27.7%

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TOP & BOTTOM ZIP CODES THE LISTS

Alook at the top and bottom ZIP codes in the region based on median income reveal multiple findings — some expected, while others more surprising.

A mild surprise? The top three ZIP codes are all in Hillsborough County. No. 1, with a $139,158 median income, is 33629. That includes most of South Tampa, Palma Ceia West, Bayshore Gardens and Sunset Park. No. 2 in Hillsborough is Odessa and No. 3 is Lutz.

That’s not to say there aren’t plenty of other sixfigure median incomes in the region. To wit, there are at least 20. The ZIP closest to the Hillsborough big three is 34228. That one, Longboat Key, is No. 1 in Sarasota

County and No. 4 in the region, at $121,797. The only counties in the region without any ZIP codes that have median incomes over $100,000 are Charlotte and Polk counties.

The ZIP with the lowest median income in the region, $22,117 in Polk County, is 33858. That’s Loughman, a town south of Celebration and closer to Orlando than it is to Lakeland. Data is from the Florida Chamber of Commerce’s Gap Map. (flchamber.com/floridagapmap/)

LEE

Top median income

33921: $120,208

34134 ; $111,258

33957: $103,413

Lowest median income

33916: $39,477

33936 : $41,634

33901: $43,565

20 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 CHARLOTTE Top median income 33946: $90,625 33954 : $73,098 33955 : $69,461 Lowest median income 33952: $48,992 33982: $50,654 33980 : $54,011 HILLSBOROUGH Top median income 33629: $139,158 33556 : $128,333 33548 : $123,060 Lowest median income 33605: $28,219 33612: $38,023 33613 : $38,085 PASCO Top median income 34638: $104,038 34637: $104,004 33543: $93,289 Top median income 34690: $39,235 34668: $39,682 34691: $39,891 POLK Top median income 33813: $89,774 33812: $87,885 33811: $75,483 Lowest median income 33858: $22,117 33856: $24,538 33849: $28,810

COLLIER Top median income 34108: $106,290 34103 : $104,309 34102: $101,944 Lowest median income 34142: $45,870 34104 : $58,333 34116 : $62,366 PINELLAS Top median income 33786: $106,250 34688: $103,997 33715: $96,250 Lowest median income 33714: $41,239 33763: $45,589 33709: $46,290

MANATEE Top median income 34211: $111,952 34201: $106,014 34202: $104,907 Lowest median income 33834: $41,981 34207: $42,846 34215: $45,125 SARASOTA

median income 34228: $121,797 34242: $116,033 34240

$110,143

median income 34234: $46,772 34224 ; $49,637 34287: $52,641

Top

Lowest

PUBLIC COMPANIES

AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 21 404154-1

THE LISTS Company 2022 Revenue 2021 Revenue Change Top Executive Industry Line of Business 1 TD Synnex (SNX) 16202 Bay Vista Drive, Bay Vista Business Park, Clearwater, FL 33760 510-656-3333; TDSynnex.com $62,343,810,000 $31,614,169,000 97.20% Rich Hume, CEO Technology leading distributor and solutions aggregator for the IT ecosystem 2 Jabil Inc. (JBL) 10800 Roosevelt Blvd. N., St. Petersburg, FL 33716 727-577-9749; Jabil.com $33,478,000,000 $29,285,000,000 14.32% Mark T. Mondello, CEO Manufacturing global manufacturing, engineering and supply chain solutions provider 3 The Mosaic Co. (MOS) 101 E. Kennedy Blvd. #2500, Tampa, FL 33602 800-918-8270; MosaicCo.com $19,125,200,000 $12,357,400,000 54.77% Joc O’Rourke, CEO, President and Director Agriculture concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrient mining

Raymond James Financial Inc. (RJF) 880 Carillon Parkway, St. Petersburg, FL 33716 407-451-3827; RaymondJames.com $11,003,000,000 $9,760,000,000 12.74% Paul C. Reilly, Chairman and CEO Banking/finance/ investment wealth management

Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (HTZ) 8501 Williams Road, Estero, FL 33928 239-301-7000; Hertz.com $8,685,000,000 $7,336,000,000 18.39% Stephen M. Scherr, CEO Business/consumer services leases vehicles and equipment

Roper Technologies Inc. (ROP) 6901 Professional Parkway, Suite 200, Sarasota, FL 34240 941-556-2601; RoperTech.com $5,371,800,000 $4,833,800,000 11.13% L. Neil Hunn, President and CEO Technology software and engineered products and solutions

Bloomin’ Brands Inc. (BLMN) 2202 N. West Shore Blvd., Suite 500, Tampa, FL 33607 813-282-1225; BloominBrands.com $4,416,508,000 $4,122,385,000 7.13% David Deno, CEO Hospitality/restaurant casual dining restaurant chain owner

Masonite International Corp. (DOOR)

E. Fifth Ave., Tampa, FL 33605 813-877-2726; Masonite.com $2,891,687,000 $2,596,920,000 11.35% Howard C. Heckes, President, CEO and Director Manufacturing door manufacturer

1242

Primo Water Corp. (PRMW) 1150 Assembly Drive, Suite 800, Tampa, FL 33607 813-313-1732; Cott.com $2,215,100,000 $2,073,300,000 6.84% Thomas Harrington, CEO Manufacturing beverage products, packages and distribution

TOP PUBLIC COMPANIES BIG BOOK OF BUSINESS

22 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 Company 2022 Revenue 2021 Revenue Change Top Executive Industry Line of Business 10 Herc Holdings (HRI) 27500 Riverview Center Blvd., Suite 100, Bonita Springs, FL 34134 239-301-1000; HercRentals.com $2,738,800,000 $2,073,100,000 32.11% Lawrence H. Silber, President, CEO and Director Business/consumer services equipment rental supplier 11 MarineMax Inc. (HZO) 2600 McCormick Drive, Clearwater, FL 33759 727-531-1700; MarineMax.com $2,308,098,000 $2,063,257,000 11.87% William Brett McGill, CEO, President and Director Retailers boat retailer 12 Chico’s FAS Inc. (CHS) 11215 Metro Parkway, Fort Myers, FL 33966 239-277-6200; Chicos.com $2,142,020,000 $1,809,927,000 18.35% Molly Langenstein, CEO, President and Director Retailers specialty women’s clothing, accessories and gifts retailer 13 SouthState Bank (SSB) 1101 First St. S., Winter Haven, FL 33880 800-277-2175; SouthStateBank.com $1,735,213,000 $1,468,758,000 18.14% John C. Corbett, CEO and Director Banking/finance/ investment Loans and other financial services 14 Kforce Inc. (KFRC) 1150 Assembly Drive,

500, Tampa, FL 33607 877-453-6723; KForce.com $1,710,765,000 $1,579,922,000 8.28% Joseph J. Liberatore, President and CEO Business/consumer services professional staffing and solutions firm providing strategic partnership in technology and finance and accounting services

Lazydays

6130

813-246-4999; Lazydays.com $1,326,961,000 $1,235,048,000 7.44% John North, CEO and Director Retailers RV sales, service, parts, accessories financing and insurance and RV campground

PGT Innovations (PGTO) 1070 Technology Drive, North Venice, FL 34275 941-480-1600; PGTInnovations.com $1,491,954,000 $1,161,464,000 28.45% Jeff Jackson, President and CEO Manufacturing manufactures and supplies premium windows and doors

Suite

(LAZY)

Lazy Days Blvd., Seffner, FL 33584

Helios Technologies

7456

941-362-1200; SunHydraulics.com $885,400,000 $869,200,000 1.86% Josef Matosevic, President, CEO and Director Manufacturing designer and manufacturer of hydraulic-cartridge valve 407246-1

(HLIO)

16th St. E., Sarasota, FL 34243

THE LISTS

406981-1

TOP PUBLIC COMPANIES BIG BOOK OF BUSINESS

22 BRP Group Inc. (BRP) 4211 W. Boy Scout Blvd., Tampa, FL 33607 866-279-0698; BaldwinRiskPartners.com

23 Superior Group of Cos. (SGC) 200 Central Ave., Suite 2000, St. Petersburg, FL 33701 727-397-9611; SuperiorUniformGroup.com

24 NeoGenomics Inc. (NEO) 9490 NeoGenomics Way, Fort Myers, FL 33912 239-768-0600; NeoGenomics.com

32 Cryo-Cell International Inc. (CCEL)

Brooker Creek Road, Suite 1800, Oldsmar, FL 34677 813-749-2100; Cryo-Cell.com

Naples Soap Co. (NASO) 14601 Jetport Loop, #180, Fort Myers, FL 33913 239-325-8263; NaplesSoap.com

34 OriginClear (OCLN)

58th St. N., Suite 200, Clearwater, FL 33760 727-440-4603; OriginClear.com

Deanna Wallin, founder and CEO Retailers

T. Riggs Eckelberry, CEO, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Secretary, Treasurer, and President

risk

LM Funding America (LMFA) 1200 Platt St., Suite 100 Tampa, FL 33602 813-222-8996; LMFunding.com

$4,842,433

$900,000 88.89%

Invo Bioscience (INVO) 5582 Broadcast Court, Sarasota, FL, 34240 978-878-9505; INVOBioscience.com $4,160,116 -80.24%

Justice W. Anderson, Director and CEO

Bruce M. Rodgers, Chairman, CEO and President

Steve Shum, CEO

Health care

Banking/finance/ investment

Health care

producer of more than 300 bath, body and personal care products sold at the company’s 11 Florida retail locations

self-reliant water revolution, connecting investors with water projects, commercializes modular, prefabricated, filter-free advanced systems for sanitation

manufactures and markets skin and wound care supplies

technology-based specialty finance company offering unique funding solutions to community associations

medical device company focused on creating simplified, lower cost treatments for patients diagnosed with infertility

Four public companies were acquired in 2022: Nicholas Financial; Welbilt; Intertape Polymer Group; and KnowBe4.

24 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

THE LISTS Company 2022 Revenue 2021 Revenue Change Top Executive Industry Line of Business 18 UPC Insurance (UIHC) 800 Second Ave. S., St. Petersburg, FL 33701 727-895-7737; UPCInsurance.com $455,422,000 $634,527,000 -28.23% R. Daniel Peed, Chairman and CEO Banking/finance/ investment property and casualty insurance 19 Heritage Insurance Holdings Inc. (HRTG) 1401 N. Westshore Blvd., Tampa, FL 33607 727-362-7200; HeritagePCI.com $662,460,000 $631,561,000 4.89% Ernesto Garateix, CEO Banking/finance/ investment provides home, condominium, rental and commercial residential insurance 20 First Watch (FWRG) 8725 Pendery Place, Suite 201, Bradenton, FL 34201 941-907-9800; FirstWatch.com $719,181,000 $592,343,000 21.41% Christopher A. Tomasso, President, Chief Executive Officer and Director Hospitality/restaurant daytime cafe serving breakfast and brunch 21 HCI Group Inc. (HCI) 3802 Coconut Palm Drive, Tampa, FL 33619 813- 849-9500; HCIGroup.com $724,716,000 $577,044,000 25.59% Paresh Patel, CEO and Chairman Business/consumer services InsurTech company with operations in insurance, software development and real estate

$980,720,000 $567,290,000 72.88% Trevor Baldwin, CEO Other private

protection

risk management, personal insurance, Medicare, family office, commercial

management, employee benefits, asset and income

$578,831,000 $536,986,000 7.79% Michael Benstock, CEO Manufacturing designs, manufactures

uniforms and apparel

and sells

$509,728,000 $484,329,000 5.24% Christopher M. Smith,

and CEO Health care cancer genetic testing laboratory

Director

Digital

$391,148,000 $427,935,000 -8.60% Joe Marinucci, President, CEO and Director Technology adtech company leveraging innovative, performance-driven brand and marketplace solutions to connect consumers and advertisers 26 Overseas

302

OSG.com $466,800,000 $359,062,000 30.01% Samuel H. Norton, President and CEO Other energy transportation services company, delivering crude oil and petroleum products worldwide 27 Beasley Media Group Inc. (BBGI) 3033 Riviera Drive, Suite 200, Naples, FL 34103 239-263-5000; BBGI.com $256,400,000 $241,426,308 6.20% Caroline Beasley, CEO and Director Entertainment/ media/publishing radio broadcasting group 28 Alico (ALCO) 10070 Daniels Interstate Court, Suite 200, Fort Myers, FL 33913 239-226-2000; AlicoInc.com $91,947,000 $108,564,000 -15.31% John E. Kiernan, President and CEO Agriculture land management, agriculture, mining and development 29 Innovative Food Holdings (IVFH) 28411 Race Track Road, Bonita Springs, FL 34135 239-596-0204; IVFH.com $80,102,964 $62,212,148 28.76% Bill Bennett, CEO and Director Distributor/ wholesalers wholesaler and retailer of perishables and specialty food products 30 BayFirst National Bank (BAFN) 700 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, FL 33701 727-440-6848; FirstHomeBank.com $70,050,000 $165,096,000 -57.57% Anthony N. Leo, CEO Banking/finance/ investment Loans and other financial services 31 Apyx Medical Corp. (APYX) 5115 Ulmerton Road, Clearwater, FL 33760 727-384-2323; ApyxMedical.com $44,510,000 $48,517,000 -8.26% Charles Goodwin, CEO and Director Technology, health care Helium plasma technology

Media Solutions, Inc. (DMS) 4800 140th Ave. N., Suite 101, Clearwater, FL 33762 727-287-0426; DigitalMediaSolutions.com

Shipholding Group Inc. (OSG)

Knights Run Ave., Suite 1200, Tampa, FL 33602 813-209-0600;

$30,336,749 $28,884,902 5.03% David Portnoy, Chairman and Co-CEO Health care stem cell blood bank and

research

700

$11,100,000 $10,884,000 1.98%

13575

$10,376,573 $4,143,744 150.42%

Other

35 Procyon Corp. (PCYN) 164 Douglas Road, Oldsmar, FL 34677 727-447-2998; ProcyonCorp.com $4,719,672 2.60%

$1,700,000

$822,196

Member FDIC 941.248.1830 thebankoftampa.com THE BANK OF TAMPA I RELATIONSHIP BANKING DEFINED At The Bank of Tampa, we take pride in developing deep, personal relationships. Over 39 years, The Bank of Tampa has grown to $3.2 billion in assets with 13 offices between Hillsborough, Pinellas, Sarasota and Manatee counties, with a loan production office in Pasco County. While we are uniquely positioned to be the largest community bank serving the greater Tampa Bay area, one thing that never waivers is our commitment and dedication to our clients and community. What is a relationship?

Amy Stumbo Service Assistant Manager, Lakewood Ranch Office

397719-1

Bryan Boudreaux Senior Vice President, Manatee Market Director

1 Publix Super Markets Inc. 3300 Publix Corporate Parkway, Lakeland,

863-688-7407; Publix.com

2 Morgan Automotive Group 3031 N. Rocky Point Drive, Suite 770 Tampa, FL 33607 813-434-1982; MorganAutoGroup.com

3 FrankCrum 100 S. Missouri Ave., Clearwater, FL 33756 727-799-1229; FrankCrum.com

4 Bealls Inc. 1806 38th Ave. E., Bradenton, FL 34208 941-744-4309; BeallsFlorida.com

5 Manhattan Construction

26 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 Rank Company 2022 Revenue 2021 Revenue Change Staff Year Founded Top Executive Industry Line of Business

54,500,000,000 48,000,000,000 13.54% 240,0001930 Todd Jones, CEO Retailers retail grocery

FL 33802

7,034,000,000 5,410,000,000 30.02% 5,6772005 Brett Morgan, CEO Retailers automotive sales and service

2,790,000,000 2,504,000,000 11.42% 4501981 Frank Crum, Founder and CEO Other professional employer organization offering human

services, including payroll, benefits and workers’ compensation insurance

resources

1,874,000,000 1,650,000,000 13.58% 15,9551915 Robert Matthews Beall III, CEO Retailers retail apparel, home goods and gifts

Group 3705-1 Westview Drive, Naples, FL 34104 239-435-3827; ManhattanConstructionGroup.com 1,480,000,000 1,150,000,000 28.70% 1,4881896 Larry Rooney, president Contractors construction management, general building, design-build, preconstruction, concrete, road and bridge, specialty construction 6 Gettel Automotive Inc. 5959 E. State Road 64, Bradenton, FL 34208 941-417-5003; Gettel.com 1,462,000,000 1,386,000,000 5.48% 1,1681998 James Gettel, president Retailers automotive dealer 7 Automated Petroleum & Energy Co. Inc. 1201 Oakfield Drive, Brandon, FL 33511 813-681-4279; AutomatedPetroleum.com 1,294,000,000 1,084,000,000 19.37% 491981 Bill McKnight, president Retailers petroleum distributor 8 Gulfeagle Supply Inc. 2900 E. Seventh Ave., Tampa, FL 33605 813-636-9808; GulfeagleSupply.com 1,148,000,000 817,000,000 40.51% 1,2001973 Brad Resch, president Distributor/ Wholesalers distributor of roofing and building material products 9 Ferman Automotive Group 1306 W. Kennedy Blvd., Tampa, FL 33606 813-251-2765; Ferman.com 1,141,000,000 1,102,000,000 3.54% 1,2601895 James Ferman, president Retailers automobile and motorcycle dealerships 10 FCCI Insurance Group 6300 University Parkway, Sarasota, FL 34240 941-907-3224; FCCI-Group.com 937,000,000 1,000,000,000 -6.30% 8281959 Christina “Cina” Welch, president and CEO Business/ Consumer Services property and casualty insurance 11 Power Design Inc. 11600 Ninth St. N., St. Petersburg, FL 33716 727-210-0492; PowerDesignInc.us 925,000,000 880,000,000 5.11% 2,7001989 Frank Musolino, CEO Contractors electrical contractor 12 BlueGrace Logistics LLC 2846 S. Falkenburg Road, Riverview, FL 33578 800-697-4477; MyBlueGrace.com 894,310,000 749,000,000 19.40% 5862009 Bobby Harris, Founder and CEO Other third-party logistics (3PL) provider 13 Dental Care Alliance 6240 Lake Osprey Drive, Sarasota, FL 34240 941-955-3150; DentalCareAlliance.com 790,000,000 700,000,000 12.86% 5,2951991 Jerry Rhodes, CEO Health Care dental support organization with more than 300 affiliated dental practices in 20 states 14 PSCU 560 Carillon Parkway, St. Petersburg, FL 33716 844-367-7728; PSCU.com 753,600,000 649,800,000 15.97% 3,4001977 Charles “Chuck” Fagan III, president and CEO Banking/ Finance/ Investment credit union service organization 15 Stock Development 2639 Professional Circle, Suite 101, Naples, FL 34119 239-292-2721; StockDevelopment.com 718,520,000 736,050,000 -2.38% 4212001 Brian Stock, CEO Homebuilders developer and homebuilder 16 Scotlynn USA Division 15671 San Carlos Blvd., Fort Myers, FL 33908 239-210-3000; Scotlynn.com 718,290,000 630,910,000 13.85% 3852010 Ryan Carter, President Otherlogistics 17 Sunz Holdings LLC 1301 Sixth Ave. W., Bradenton, FL 34205 941-306-3077; SunzInsurance.com 686,500,000 555,100,000 23.67% 4022013 Steven Herrig, CEO Business/ Consumer Services workers’ compensation insurance TOP PRIVATE COMPANIES THE LISTS

CEO Seagate Development Group

Seagate Development Group and Earth Tech Enterprises used financing from LMCU to purchase a 502-acre mine in Fort Myers which provides fill materials and aggregate for projects in Southwest Florida.

Our experienced, local lenders are ready to help finance your next project. Call Greg Barr at (239) 437-7038 to get started.

397766-1 Our commercial loans pave the way to success.

“LMCU’s great to work with. They really know the local market and provide financing to accommodate our terms and schedule so we can get moving on our development projects.”

– Matt Price,

THE LISTS

SCAN THIS CODE TO LEARN MORE! (239)-332-4646 BANDIFLORIDA.COM 399524-1

Rank Company 2022 Revenue 2021 Revenue Change Staff Year Founded Top Executive Industry Line of Business 18 Neal Communities of Southwest Florida LLC 5800 Lakewood Ranch Blvd. N., Lakewood Ranch, FL 34240 941-328-1111; NealCommunities.com 612,890,000 528,290,000 16.01% 2821970 Patrick Neal, Executive chairman Homebuilders land developer and homebuilder 19 HIT Promotional Products Inc. 7150 Bryan Dairy Road, Largo, FL 33777 727-541-5561; HITPromo.net 607,930,000 433,780,000 40.15% 3,7351981 C.J. Schmidt, president and CEO Business/ Consumer Services promotional products wholesale supplier 20 Homes by WestBay 4065 Crescent Park Drive, Riverview, FL 33578 813-938-1250; HomesByWestBay.com 594,150,000 391,000,000 51.96% 2022009 Willy Nunn, president Homebuilders new home builder 21 Ripa & Associates LLC 1409 Tech Blvd., Suite 1, Tampa, FL 33619 813-623-6777; RipaTampa.com 413,000,000 365,000,000 13.15% 8351998 Chris LaFace, president and CEO Contractors civil and utility construction services in central Florida 22 J.H. Williams Oil Co. Inc. 423 S. Hyde Park Ave., Tampa, FL 33606 813-228-7776; JHWOil.com 398,380,000 291,320,000 36.75% 141945 J. Hulon Williams III, president Retailers petroleum management 23 Owen-Ames-Kimball Co. 11941 Fairway Lakes Drive, Fort Myers, FL 33913 239-561-4141; Owen-Ames-Kimball.com 398,000,000 319,000,000 24.76% 491891 Matthew Zwack, president Contractors construction management, general contracting and design-build 24 DeAngelis Diamond 6635 Willow Park Drive, Naples, FL 34109 239-594-1994; DeAngelisDiamond.com 385,000,000 365,000,000 5.48% 1951996 John DeAngelis president Contractors construction management 25 Ajax Building Corp. 425 Commercial Court, Suite J, Venice, FL 34292 813-792-3900; AjaxBuilding.com 384,640,000 217,180,000 77.11% 2201958 William Byrne, president Contractors construction management 26 OMS Group Inc. 26 Lake Wire Drive, Lakeland, FL 33815 863-688-1751; OMSGroup.com 336,680,000 308,300,000 9.21% 301997 Jeffrey Miles, president Business/ Consumer Services insurance, payroll, human resources and staffing services 27 Florida Medical Clinic PA 38135 Market Square, Zephyrhills, FL 33542 813-780-8440; FloridaMedicalClinic.com 329,900,000 315,460,000 4.58% 1,9651993 Joe Delatorre, CEO Health Caremultispecialty physician group 28 Tibbetts Lumber Co. LLC 3300 Fairfield Ave. S., St. Petersburg, FL 33712 727-322-1403; TibbettsLumber.com 311,000,000 243,000,000 27.98% 4622009 Russ Hallenbeck, CEO Retailers lumber and building materials

TOP PRIVATE COMPANIES BIG BOOK OF BUSINESS

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THE LISTS

30 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 Visit BusinessObserverFL.com/big-book-of-business THE DATA Economic information to help business owners keep up with changing trends in our region and forecast what’s next. THE LISTS Rankings of the top companies and organizations by industry, size, influence and more. THE CHANGE MAKERS Profiles of the people who are changing and shaping the business landscape in your area. BOOK OF BUSINESS BIG 2023 The Business Observer’s Big Book of Business is filled with even more valuable information in 2023, including: GET YOURS TODAY $34.95 HOT OFF THE PRESS 406841-1 TOP PRIVATE COMPANIES BIG BOOK OF BUSINESS Rank Company 2022 Revenue 2021 Revenue Change Staff Year Founded Top Executive Industry Line of Business 29 McNichols Co. 2502 N. Rocky Point Drive, Suite 750, Tampa, FL 33607 813-282-3828; McNichols.com 305,000,000 275,000,000 10.91% 3201952 Eugene McNichols, CEO Distributor/ Wholesalers metal service centers supplying and fabricating perforated and expanded metal, wire mesh and gratings products 30 RNR Tire Express (SPF Management Co. LLC dba RNR Tire Express) 13922 Monroes Business Park, Tampa 33635 813-977-9800; RNRTires.com 270,180,000 243,800,000 10.82% 1,2002000 Larry Sutton, founder and CEO Retailers tire dealer franchisor 31 College HUNKS Hauling Junk & Moving 4411 W. Tampa Bay Blvd., Tampa, FL 33614 813-523-9003; CollegeHUNKSHaulingJunk.com 259,590,000 215,720,000 20.34% 2362005 Nick Friedman, president Business/ Consumer Services franchisor of moving and junk removal services 32 Pepin Distributing Co. 4121 N. 50th St., Tampa, FL 33610 813-626-6176; PepinDistributing.com 256,000,000 233,000,000 9.87% 3791967 Greg McLeod, President Distributor/ Wholesalers beer and beverage distributor 33 Brooks and Freund LLC 5661 Independence Circle, Suite 1, Fort Myers, FL 33912 239-939-5251; BrooksAndFreund.com 245,000,000 218,000,000 12.39% 612000 Richard Freund, manager Contractors general contractor and construction management 34 Premier Sotheby’s International Realty 4001 Tamiami Trail, Suite 350, Naples, FL 34103 239-262-4242; PremierSothebysRealty.com 238,350,000 293,980,000 -18.92% 1341983 Budge Huskey, president and CEO Real Estate real estate brokerage 35 Gold Coast Eagle Distributing 7051 Wireless Court, Sarasota, FL 34240 941-650-3139; GCEagle.com 227,000,000 222,000,000 2.25% 3401996 John Saputo, president and owner Distributor/ Wholesalers beer distribution 36 Hawkins Construction Inc. 1430 L&R Industrial Blvd., Tarpon Springs, FL 34689 727-938-9719; HawkinsNet.com 225,000,000 163,000,000 38.04% 961975 John McCaugherty, president Contractors commercial construction 37 Amscot Financial Inc. 600 N. Westshore Blvd., Suite 1200, Tampa, FL 33609 813-637-6205; Amscot.com 204,230,000 177,950,000 14.77% 1,7001989 Ian MacKechnie, CEO Banking/ Finance/ Investment financial services 38 Sun State International Trucks LLC 6020 E. Adamo Drive, Tampa, FL 33619 813-621-1331; SunStateIntl.com 201,000,000 160,800,000 25.00% 2101982 Oscar Horton, Chairman and CEO Business/ Consumer Services commercial transportation equipment sales, service, parts 39 S-One Holdings Corp. 1605 Main St., Suite 300, Sarasota, FL 34236 800-453-9538; SOne.com 190,350,000 176,800,000 7.66% 1991994 Ron Simkins, president and CEO Manufacturing provides materials, equipment, technical support in the printing industry

AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 31 407677-1 Thank you, builders of Southwest Florida, for 30 years of business! • Aluminum Railings • Screen Enclosures • Aluminum Fencing • Welded Gates & Grills • Decorative Louvers & Shutters • Canopies & Trellises • Glass & Cable Railing • Carports info@libertyaluminum.com 239-369-3000 Licensed & Insured, #CBC042372 CELEBRATING 30 YEARS TOP PRIVATE COMPANIES BIG BOOK OF BUSINESS THE LISTS Rank Company 2022 Revenue 2021 Revenue Change Staff Year Founded Top Executive Industry Line of Business 40 B&I Contractors Inc. 2701 Prince St., Fort Myers, FL 33916 239-332-4646; BAndIFlorida.com 168,620,000 166,580,000 1.22% 7501960 Gary Griffin, president Contractors mechanical, plumbing and electrical contractors and service provider 41 Connor & Gaskins Unlimited 1998 Trade Center Way, Suite 2, Naples, FL 34109 239-260-5068; CGUnlimited.com 162,030,000 147,000,000 10.22% 892010 Barry Connor, CEO Contractors developer and general contractor 42 Creative Contractors Inc. 620 Drew St., Clearwater, FL 33755 727-461-5522; CreativeContractors.com 144,000,000 155,000,000 -7.10% 871974 Alan Bomstein, CEO Contractors commercial construction 43 Willis A. Smith Construction 5001 Lakewood Ranch Blvd., Sarasota, FL 34240 941-366-3116; WillisSmith.com 137,900,000 95,000,000 45.16% 811972 David Sessions, CEO Contractors construction management 44 Stevens Construction 14541 Hope Center Loop, Suite 200, Fort Myers, FL 33912 239-936-9006; StevensBuilds.com $126,680,000 $70,880,000 78.72% 672003 Mark Stevens, President Contractors construction management, construction development 45 FineMark National Bank & Trust 8695 College Parkway, Fort Myers, FL 33919 877-461-5901; FineMarkBank.com $126,038,000 $108,557,000 16.10% 2602007 Joseph R. Catti, Chairman, CEO Banking/ Finance/ Investment financial services 46 KHS&S Contractors 5422 Bay Center Drive, Suite 200, Tampa, FL 33609 813-628-9330; KHSS.com 120,790,000 113,000,000 6.89% 2851984 Michael Cannon, CEO/chairman Construction Interior/exterior construction, themed construction, specialty finishes, rockwork, lean construction, design-assist, BIM and prefabrication. 47 The Bank of Tampa 601 Bayshore Blvd., Suite 100, Tampa, FL 33606 813-872-1200; BankOfTampa.com $111,403,000 $90,166,000 23.55% 2841973 T. Corey Neil, President, CEO Banking/ Finance/ Investment financial services 48 Park & Eleazer Construction LLC 2363 Gulf to Bay Blvd., Clearwater, FL 33765 727-216-6591; ParkEleazer.com $110,640,000 $40,610,000 172.45% 712010 Andrew Park and Forrest Eleazer, managing partners Contractors commercial construction 49 Michael Saunders & Co. 100 S. Washington Blvd., Sarasota, FL 34236 941-953-7900; MichaelSaunders.com 109,480,000 135,310,000 -19.09% 1281976 Michael Saunders, CEO/founder Real Estate residential and commercial sales 50 Crowther Roofing and Sheet Metal 2543 Rockfill Road, Fort Myers, FL 33916 239-337-1300; Crowther.net $105,000,000 $73,200,000 43.44% 7001974 Lee S. Crowther, CEO Contractors Roofing, sheet metal, light-gauge metal trusses, lightweight insulating concrete, and HVAC

LARGEST BANKS

1 SouthState Bank 1101 1st St. S., Winter Haven, FL 33880 800-277-2175; southstatebank.com

2 Raymond James Bank, National Association 710 Carillon Parkway, St. Petersburg, FL 33716 727-567-8000; raymondjamesbank.com

3 FineMark National Bank & Trust 8695 College Parkway, Fort Myers, FL 33919 877-461-5901; finemarkbank.com

4 The Bank of Tampa 601 Bayshore Boulevard, Suite 100, Tampa, FL 33606 813-872-1200; bankoftampa.com

5 BayFirst National Bank 700 Central Ave, St. Petersburg, FL 33701 727-440-6848; firsthomebank.com

6 TCM Bank, National Association 3501 E. Frontage Road, Tampa, FL 33607 800-242-4770; icbabancard.org

7 Citizens Bank and Trust 2 East Wall St., Frostproof, FL 33843 863-635-2244; citizens-bank.com

8 Sanibel Captiva Community Bank 2406 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel, FL 33957 239-472-6100; sancapbank.com

9 Bank of Central Florida 5015 South Florida Ave., Lakeland, FL 33813 863-701-2685; bankofcentralflorida.com

10 Members Trust Co. 14055 Riveredge Drive, Suite 525, Tampa, FL 33637 888-727-9191; memberstrust.com

11 Charlotte State Bank & Trust 1100 Tamiami Trail, Port Charlotte, FL 33953 888-624-5454; charlottestatebankandtrust.com

32 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023  407662-1 THE LISTS

Bank CEO Name 2022 revenue2021 revenue Growth

John C. Corbett, CEO and Director $1,735,213,000$1,468,758,000 18.14%

Steve Raney, CEO $1,313,687,000 $728,791,000 80.26%

Joseph R. Catti, Chairman and CEO $126,038,000 $108,557,000 16.10%

T. Corey Neil, President and CEO $111,403,000 $90,166,000 23.55%

Anthony N. Leo, CEO $70,050,000 $165,096,000 -57.57%

Damon Moorer, President and CEO $61,911,000 $51,700,000 19.75%

Greg Littleton, President and CEO $46,974,000 $40,671,000 15.50%

Kyle DeCicco, President and CEO $34,121,000 $30,767,000 10.90%

Paul J. Noris, Chairman and CEO $33,502,000 $23,545,000 42.29%

Kenneth E. Lako, President and CEO $29,052,000 $28,560,000 1.72%

Jake Crews, CEO $25,613,000 $21,818,000 17.39%

LARGEST BANKS

BIG BOOK OF BUSINESS

AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 33 Timekeeping Bookkeeping Payroll Administration Human Resources (941) 625-0623 | IntegrityEL.com Put a proactive partnership with Integrity Employee Leasing to work for YOU! Services Designed to Help Your Business Thrive: BOOK BIG with PEOple of Integrity Managing the “big books” of your business can weigh you down; fortunately, Integrity Employee Leasing can lighten your daily workload with our timekeeping and bookkeeping services. As your proactive partner, we can add hours back to your day with our streamlined time management solutions and tailored bookkeeping services. Put our more than 190 years of combined experience to work for your bottom line, so you can focus on growing your successful business. Workers’ Compensation Risk Management Online Payroll Processing 396734-1 Bank CEO Name 2022 revenue2021 revenue Growth 12 Flagship Bank 29750 US Highway 19 N., Clearwater, FL 33761 727-451-2020; FlagshipBank.com Robert B. McGivney, CEO and Vice Chairman $20,346,000 $12,982,000 56.72% 13 Englewood Bank & Trust 1111 South McCall Road, Englewood, FL 34223 941-475-6771; englewoodbankandtrust.com Jake Crews, CEO $17,807,000 $14,924,000 19.32% 14 Edison National Bank 13000 South Cleveland Ave., Fort Myers, FL 33907 239-466-1800; edisonnationalbank.com Geoffrey W. Roepstorff, CEO $13,541,000 $10,697,000 26.59% 15 Central Bank 20701 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., Tampa, FL 33647 813-929-4477; centralbankfl.com John Thompson, President and CEO $12,807,000 $13,859,000 -7.59% 16 First National Bank of Pasco 13315 US Highway 301 S., Dade City, FL 33525 352-521-0141; fnbpasco.com James Esry, President, CEO and Director $12,593,000 $11,378,000 10.68% 17 Gulfside Bank 333 North Orange Ave., Sarasota, FL 34236 941-303-4200; gulfsidebank.com Dennis B. Murphy, Jr., President and CEO $9,360,000 $5,737,000 63.15% 18 Climate First Bank 5301 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, FL 33710 727-335-0500; climatefirstbank.com Ken LaRoe, CEO, Chairman and Founder $8,606,000 $781,000*1,001.92% 19 Century Bank of Florida 716 West Fletcher Ave., Tampa, FL 33612 813-961-3300; centurybk.com Jose Vivero, Chairman and CEO $4,451,000 $4,064,000 9.52% 20 Waterfall Bank 500 Mclennan St., Clearwater, FL 33756 727-472-3599; waterfalllbank.com Kevin Darmody, President and CEO $3,241,000 $42,000*7,616.66% 21 Gulf Coast Business Bank 12205 Metro Parkway, Fort Myers FL 33966 239-345-2265; gcbbswfl.com Bill Blevins, President and CEO $726,000 N/A* N/A *Climate First Bank and Waterfall Bank were founded mid-year 2021; Gulf Coast Business Bank opened in 2022. Source: Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

THE LISTS

TOP 10 FLORIDA-BASED SBA LENDERS IN FLORIDA

34 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 Safe, Sound banking services . ” Top Priority is to provide In the current banking climate, you might wonder where to go for safe, sound banking services. We can assure you that Edison National Bank/Bank of the Islands is FDIC-insured and continues to earn the highest 5-Star Superior rating by BauerFinancial - the source for unbiased, independent analysis for financial institutions across the nation. Bank of the Islands is standing strong with money to lend, and with a history of long-term stability and resilience, we are absolutely committed to remaining well-positioned to honor our promises and protect our banking customers. Geoff Roepstorff, CEO and Robbie Roepstorff, President To learn more about our customer services and convenient locations, please visit EdisonNationalBank.com or call 239.466.1800. Equal Housing Lender | Member FDIC | Bank of the Islands is an office of Edison National Bank. 407746-1 SBA LENDERS THE LISTS TOP 10 NATIONWIDE SBA LENDERS IN FLORIDA TOTAL LOANS, FISCAL 2023 Lender Name, state Total loans approved 1 TD Bank, National Association, Delaware 495 2 BayFirst National Bank, St. Petersburg 217 3 Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, California 198 4 Newtek Small Business Finance Inc., New York 180 5 Bank of America, National Association, North Carolina 167 6 The Huntington National Bank, Ohio 165 7 JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association, New York 92 8 SouthState Bank, National Association, Winter Haven 84 9 Readycap Lending, LLC, New Jersey 72 10 Cadence Bank, Mississippi 68 Lender Name, headquarters Total loans approved 1 BayFirst National Bank, St. Petersburg 217 2 SouthState Bank, National Association, Winter Haven 84 3 Newtek Bank, National Association, Miami 29 4 The Bank of Tampa, Tampa 26 5 DFCU Financial CU, Tampa Bay 21 6 City National Bank of Florida, Miami 21 7 Paradise Bank, Boca Raton 20 8 Seacoast National Bank, Stuart 19 9 Cogent Bank, Orlando 17 10 First Federal Bank, Lake City 15 Note: DFCU Credit Union’s national headquarters is in Michigan Note: Newtek Bank and Newtek Small Business Finance are subsidiaries of NewtekOne Source: U.S. Small Business Administration Data is through June 9

TOTAL LOANS, FISCAL 2023 Lender Name, State Total amount approved 1 Newtek Small Business Finance Inc., New York $108,334,500 2 TD Bank, National Association, Delaware $62,327,600 3 Live Oak Banking Co., North Carolina $61,856,000 4 Bank of America, National Association, North Carolina $58,150,500 5 BayFirst National Bank, St. Petersburg $57,975,400 6 The Huntington National Bank, Ohio $51,128,300 7 SouthState Bank, National Association, Winter Haven $46,761,200 8 Berkshire Bank, Massachusetts $31,329,000 9 The Bank of Tampa, Tampa $30,619,500 10 First Internet Bank of Indiana, Indiana $29,350,000 Lender name, headquarters Total amount approved 1 BayFirst National Bank, St. Petersburg $57,975,400 2 SouthState Bank, National Association, Winter Haven $46,761,200 3 The Bank of Tampa, Tampa $30,619,500 4 Fund-Ex Solutions Group LLC, Davie $18,717,900 5 DFCU Financial CU, Tampa Bay $18,583,300 6 Cogent Bank, Orlando $18,556,000 7 U.S. Century Bank, Doral $13,300,000 8 Seacoast National Bank, Stuart $11,316,400 9 Fountainhead SBF LLC, Lake Mary $11,095,000 10 Bank United, National Association Miami Lakes $9,579,200 Note: DFCU Credit Union’s national headquarters is in Michigan Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, data is through June 9

10 FLORIDA-BASED SBA LENDERS IN FLORIDA TOTAL LOAN VOLUME, FISCAL 2023

TOP

NATIONWIDE SBA LENDERS IN FLORIDA TOTAL LOAN VOLUME, FISCAL 2023

TOP 10

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36 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 407248-1

Credit Union Headquarters 2022 Assets 2021 Assets Change 1 Suncoast Credit Union Tampa $16,217,374,489 $14,874,920,814 9.02% 2 MidFlorida Credit Union Lakeland $6,612,347,990 $6,049,933,825 9.30% 3 Grow Financial Federal Credit Union Tampa $3,490,308,325 $3,322,595,331 5.05% 4 GTE Financial Tampa $2,885,582,748 $2,797,869,815 3.13% 5 Achieva Credit Union Dunedin $2,666,717,333 $2,485,154,200 7.31% 6 Publix Employees Federal Credit Union Lakeland $1,390,546,569 $1,392,468,825 -0.14% 7 USF Federal Credit Union Temple Terrace $1,125,229,789 $1,028,668,495 9.39% 8 Florida Central Credit Union Tampa $591,722,445 $620,494,393 -4.64% 9 Trax Credit Union Tampa $483,121,062 $460,198,538 4.98% 10 Tampa Bay Federal Credit Union Tampa $407,365,730 $391,103,361 4.16% Credit Union Headquarters 2022 members 2021 members Growth 1 Suncoast Credit Union Tampa 1,105,101 1,003,373 10.14% 2 MidFlorida Credit Union Lakeland 460,243 421,180 9.27% 3 Grow Financial Federal Credit Union Tampa 255,412 221,287 15.42% 4 GTE Financial Tampa 231,992 229,959 0.88% 5 Achieva Credit Union Dunedin 179,227 161,810 10.76% 6 Publix Employees Federal Credit Union Lakeland 108,867 105,227 3.46% 7 USF Federal Credit Union Temple Terrace 73,085 68,160 7.23% 8 Florida Central Credit Union Tampa 50,268 51,171 -1.76% 9 Trax Credit Union Tampa 43,583 42,013 3.74% 10 Tampa Bay Federal Credit Union Tampa 34,252 32,505 5.37% Source: National Credit Union Administration THE LISTS

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TOP EMPLOYERS BY COUNTY

CHARLOTTE COUNTY COLLIER COUNTY LEE COUNTY

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY MANATEE COUNTY PASCO COUNTY

AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 41

THE LISTS Entity/company Employees 1 Charlotte County School Board 2,250 2 Publix 1,386 3 Charlotte County 1,264 4 Millennium Physicians Group 1,120 5 Shore Point Health Port Charlotte 1,050 6 Fawcett Memorial Hospital 850 7 Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office 752 8 Shore Point Health Punta Gorda 600 9 Cheney Brothers 550 10 Walmart 507 Entity/company Employees 1 Collier County Public Schools 5,704 2 NCH Health Care System 4,113 3 Arthrex 3,605 4 Publix 3,100 5 Collier County Government 2,455 6 Collier County Sheriff’s Office 1,446 7 JW Marriot 1,089 8 Ritz-Carlton 1,100 9 Seminole Casino 900 10 City of Naples 510 Entity/company Employees 1 Lee Health 14,028 2 Lee County School District 11,003 3 Publix 4,624 4 Walmart 3,467 5 Lee County 2,696 6 City of Cape Coral 1,858 7 Gartner 1,819 8 Lee County Sheriff’s Office 1,564 9 Chico’s FAS Inc. 1,532 10 McDonald’s 1,522

Entity/company Employees 1 MacDill Air Force Base 30,844 2 Hillsborough County School District 24,866 3 University of South Florida 15,678 4 Hillsborough County Government 11,073 5 Publix 9,286 6 Baycare Health System 8,556 7 Tampa General Hospital 8,207 8 H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center 7,868 9 James A. Haley VA Hospital 5,157 10 City of Tampa 4,764 Entity/company Employees 1 Manatee County School Board 5,626 2 Manatee Health Care System 2,489 3 Publix 2,381 4 Manatee County Government 2,155 5 Bealls Inc 1,996 6 Blake Medical Center 1,471 7 Manatee County Sheriff’s Department 1,239 8 Tropicana Products Inc. 988 9 IMG Academy 862 10 State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota 710 Entity/company Employees 1 Pasco County School District 12,755 2 Pasco County 3,190 3 HCA Healthcare 2,930 4 State of Florida 1,583 5 Advent Health, Dade City and Zephyrhills 1,510 6 Pasco County Sheriff 1,381 7 Morton Plant North Bay Hospital/Recovery Center 1,360 8 Florida Medical Clinic 1,278 9 Federal government 1,245 10 Advent Health, Wesley Chapel 966 Entity/company Employees 1 Baycare Health System 14,300 2 Pinellas County School Board 14,000 3 Publix 7,300 4 Raymond James Financial 6,000 5 Pinellas County Government 5,700 6 Walmart 4,000 7 Bay Pines VA Healthcare System 3,700 8 City of St. Petersburg 3,500 9 All Children’s Hospital 3,300 10 St. Petersburg College 2,500 Entity/company Employees 1 Publix 13,701 2 Polk County School Board 13,363 3 Lakeland Regional Health 5,888 4 Walmart 5,523 5 Amazon 5,000 6 Polk County 4,789 7 Geico 3,700 8 City of Lakeland 2,800 9 BayCare 2,614 10 Advent Health 2,466 Entity/company Employees 1 Sarasota Memorial Hospital 8,834 2 School Board of Sarasota County 5,937 3 Publix 4,282 4 Sarasota County 3,630 5 PGT Innovations 1,992 6 Walmart 1,633 7 City of Sarasota 811 8 City of North Port 777 9 Helios Technologies 718 10 Target 585

PINELLAS COUNTY POLK COUNTY SARASOTA COUNTY SOURCES: Annual and popular comprehensive financial reports from county clerk offices

FDOT PROJECTS

Florida Department of Transportation projects costing more than $20 million.

County Project value

COLLIER $161,507,885

HILLSBOROUGH $723,313,371

LEE $76,129,389

MANATEE $175,201,504

County Project value

PASCO $212,675,669 PINELLAS $1,727,324,855 POLK $517,746,276 SARASOTA $103,607,707 GRAND TOTAL $3,697,506,659

42 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 County Current Contract Amount Description/location Work mix Vendor name Start Date Est. Complete Date PINELLAS $866,456,180.74 Interstate 275 Howard Frankland Bridge replace and add lanes from State Road 687 to bridge Bridge-replace and add lanes Archer Western/Taylor Bros. 4/1/202012/4/2024 PINELLAS $595,281,194.45 Gateway Expressway & Interstate 275 new road construction New road constructionArcher Western/The de Moya Group 8/21/20174/10/2021 POLK $257,758,570.00 Central Polk Parkway New road constructionPrince Contracting 3/13/20236/12/2029 PINELLAS $242,553,920.26 State Road 55, new interchanges and roadway improvements Add lanes & reconstruct Johnson Bros. Corp., a Southland Co. 4/14/20236/4/2028 HILLSBOROUGH $223,496,609.00 Interstate 275 add lanes downtown Tampa interchange; safety and operational improvements Interchange - add lanesLane Construction Corp. 9/26/202212/2/2026 MANATEE $144,954,783.66 Interstate 75 at 301 interchange Interchange - add lanes Ajax/Leware 3/2/20211/28/2025 COLLIER $98,370,748.55 Interstate 75 interchange Interchange improvementThe de Moya Group Inc. 9/9/20221/19/2026 HILLSBOROUGH $92,976,385.58 Interstate 75 interchange, add lanes Interchange - add lanes PrinceAjax 8/19/20219/20/2024 HILLSBOROUGH $86,763,556.68 Interstate 275 lane addition and reconstructionAdd lanes & reconstructLane Construction Corp. 10/25/20213/6/2025 HILLSBOROUGH $82,611,410.94 Interstate 75 add lanes Interchange - add lanesSkanska USA Civil Southeast Inc. 8/9/20219/25/2024 PASCO $81,956,833.36 State Road 52 realignment and road constructionNew road construction Superior Construction Co., Southeast 11/12/20197/2/2023 POLK $70,701,231.40 Design build Interstate at State Road 557 Interchange improvementSkanska USA Civil Southeast Inc. 8/17/20207/31/2023 POLK $61,184,726.92 Widen and resurface Polk Parkway Add lanes & reconstructRanger Construction Industries Inc. 4/19/20214/29/2025 SARASOTA $55,319,739.29 Interstate 75 Interchange - add lanesSacyr Construction 10/15/20217/20/2023 LEE $53,237,216.66 Design build Interstate 75 at Colonial Interchange - add lanesAjax Paving Industries of Florida 8/17/20206/11/2023 PASCO $49,815,064.84 State Road 52 add and reconstruct lanes Add lanes & reconstructWestern Surety Co. 8/31/20191/10/2023 SARASOTA $48,287,968.04 Design build River Road to U.S. 41 Add lanes & reconstructThe de Moya Group Inc. 8/6/202112/16/2024 HILLSBOROUGH $45,544,236.85 Add lanes and rehabilitate pavement from Spruce Street to Memorial Highway Add lanes & rehabilitate pavement Cone & Graham Inc.. 8/11/202210/27/2024 POLK $45,244,552.03 Add lanes State Road 25 Interchange - add lanesPrince Contracting 9/8/20204/27/2024 PASCO $43,034,501.48 State Road 54 lanes and rehabilitate pavement Add lanes & rehabilitate pavement Western Surety Co. 11/27/201712/19/2020 COLLIER $40,936,136.88 Interstate 75 Resurfacing Asphalt Group Inc. 6/6/202211/16/2023 HILLSBOROUGH $40,864,619.83 Interstate 275 miscellaneous structure, causeway Seawall Mastec Civil 3/27/20231/19/2025 HILLSBOROUGH $38,534,960.46 Downtown Tampa signals Arterial traffic management Traffic Control Devices 4/30/20209/10/2023 PASCO $37,869,270.00 U.S. 98/Dade City Bypass add lanes Add lanes & reconstructCone & Graham Inc. 3/8/20232/18/2026 HILLSBOROUGH $35,735,835.83 Interstate 4 repaving Resurfacing Hubbard Construction Co. 2/23/20236/7/2024 POLK $31,698,393.62 Polk Parkway Electronic toll conversion Toll plaza C.W. Roberts Contracting Inc. 6/7/20216/25/2024 MANATEE $30,246,720.74 State Road 683 Resurfacing Superior Asphalt Inc. 2/24/20235/19/2024 HILLSBOROUGH $29,193,066.00 arterial traffic management and communication systems from Dale Mabry Highway to Interstate 275 Communication systemHighway Safety Devices Inc. 3/20/20231/16/2025 POLK $28,017,401.97 Interstate 4 Bridge replacementMastec Civil 4/1/20211/3/2024 HILLSBOROUGH $26,303,938.34 U.S. 41 from 15th Avenue to South of Bullfrog Creek Resurfacing Preferred Materials Inc. 11/29/202111/24/2023 POLK $23,141,400.12 U.S. 27 Resurfacing Ajax Paving Industries of Florida 10/12/202210/22/2024 PINELLAS $23,033,560.39 U.S. 19, from State Road 682 to 22nd Avenue Resurfacing Preferred Materials Inc. 3/6/20231/12/2025 LEE $22,892,172.90 U.S.

Resurfacing Ajax Paving Industries of Florida 12/10/20184/20/2022 COLLIER $22,200,999.71 Interstate

Resurfacing Ohla USA Inc. 1/30/20232/12/2024 HILLSBOROUGH $21,288,752.40 U.S.

Resurfacing Ajax Paving Industries of Florida 8/4/202111/25/2022 THE LISTS

75

30 and State Road 43

The Florida Department of Transportation is driving nearly $3.7 billion in spending across 35 major projects along Florida’s Gulf Coast. | As was true last year, a significant portion of that is being spent in the Tampa Bay area on a new bridge and a new tollway. The 5.8-mile Howard Frankland Bridge connecting Tampa and St. Petersburg will cost $866.5 million to build, according to the FDOT’s website, and the Gateway Expressway system in Pinellas will cost $595.3 million. While the bridge is expected to be completed at the end of 2024, the tollway is sure to miss its currently estimated completion date, which is listed on the FDOT website as April 10, 2021. | Across all projects with a contract value of at least $20 million, Pinellas and Hillsborough are benefitting from $1.7 billion and $723 million in spend, respectively. In Polk County, there are currently 7 FDOT projects worth at least $20 million underway, totaling $518 million in contract value.

COMMERCIAL DIVISION / JAN -APR 2023 405566-1

44 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 Company/Institution Headquarters Patents issued 2022Total patents held 1 Citrix Systems Fort Lauderdale 354 2,263 2 Magic Leap Inc Plantation 320 1,205 3 Carrier Corp Palm Beach 306 3,414 4 University of Florida Research Foundation Gainesville 135 1,878 5 University of South Florida Tampa 85 1,694 6 University of Central Florida Research Foundation Orlando 60 878 7 The Florida International University Board of Trustees Miami 60 395 8 Faro Technologies Evansdale 55 969 9 Strong Force IoT Portfolio 2016 Fort Lauderdale 55 170 10 Sensormatic Electronics Boca Raton 43 766 Company/Institution Based Patents issued 2017-2021Total Patents held 1 Citrix System Fort Lauderdale 1,070 2,263 2 Magic Leap Plantation 809 1,205 3 Carrier Corp Palm Beach Gardens 789 3,414 4 University of Florida Research Foundation Gainesville 743 1,878 5 University of South Florida Tampa 684 1,694 6 Faro Technologies Evansdale 490 969 7 Siemens Energy Orlando 453 1,290 8 Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Jacksonville 382 821 9 The Florida International University Board of Trustees Miami 307 395 10 University of Central Florida Research Foundation Orlando 300 878 County 2017-20182018-20192019-20202020-2021 2021-2022 5-year Growth 1 Collier $65,886,924$71,626,005$73,122,674.80$134,547,633.70$201,356,538.60101.38% 2 Polk $31,796,334$38,708,843$41,899,885.85$56,414,253.36$86,239,332.0592.25% 3 Charlotte $14,756,013$16,437,947$16,361,587.12$28,855,813.70$39,023,421.8190.25% 4 Lee $71,414,773$77,362,792$75,408,548.60$130,075,298.50$168,509,979.1080.94% 5 Pasco $33,420,872$33,546,938$36,744,859.20$53,385,731.71$73,877,020.0075.41% 6 Manatee $38,553,416$38,575,436$39,095,157.00$61,832,031.10$83,637,026.9073.79% 7 Florida $1,579,600,602$1,714,821,832$1,679,140,145$2,459,518,034$3,366,124,87472.25% 8 Hillsborough $93,019,161$114,929,926$106,542,266.60$132,527,389.05$189,117,733.6868.12% 9 Sarasota $51,890,716$50,190,666$54,475,772.90$89,316,410.00$103,947,882.3566.81% 10 Pinellas $70,299,205$88,372,574$79,046,613.70$111,150,581.20$137,591,691.3064.74%

THE LISTS Doc stamps are excise taxes imposed on certain documents executed, delivered or recorded in Florida. PATENTS, STATEWIDE

DOC STAMPS BY COUNTY

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46 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 I advertise, List with a Leader www.coracre.com 100 N Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, FL 34236 | 500 N. Westshore Dr., Suite 850, Tampa, FL 33609 MOUSA WAKILEH Certified International Property Specialist 407661-1 FOR LEASE/SALE I WILL ADVERTISE YOUR PROPERTY HERE Advertising gets results. I will list and advertise your property to get results by attracting the buyer(s) you seek. I am the “Get it Done” Commercial Realtor on the Gulf Coast. Call today. YOUR LISTING HERE Experience the Power of Results 941-960-9336 mobile Your property will be featured as a Signature Listing with our Marketing Partners THE LISTS LARGEST COLLEGES College City 2022-23 2021-22 Change University of South Florida Tampa, St. Petersburg and Sarasota-Manatee 49,76649,867-0.20% Hillsborough Community College Tampa 19,05518,7371.70% Florida Gulf Coast UniversityFort Myers 16,00415,8920.71% St. Petersburg College St. Petersburg 15,00115,311-2.03% St. Leo University St. Leo, Pasco County 14,19415,372-7.66% University of Tampa Tampa 10,56610,794-2.11% Southeastern University Lakeland 10,0449,3657.25% Florida SouthWestern State CollegeFort Myers 9,1279,299-1.85% Pasco-Hernando State CollegeNew Port Richey 6,0406,073-0.54% State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota Bradenton 6,0315,8443.20% Polk State College Winter Haven 5,1755,474-5.46% Eckerd College St. Petersburg 1,9502,0364.22% Florida Polytechnic University Lakeland 1,4281,3356.97% New College of Florida Sarasota 6896604.39% Florida Southern College Lakeland N/A3,386 Hodges University Fort Myers N/A638 Note: Data reflects total student enrollment in each of the past two years. Sources: Individual colleges and universities, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System and the Florida College System Enrollment Estimating Conference. Florida Southern College and Hodges University declined to provide data for 2022-23.

AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 47 Construction Management | General Contracting | Design-Build Fort Myers • Naples • 239-561-4141 • www.owen-ames-kimball.com • facebook.com/OwenAmesKimballCo OWEN-AMES-KIMBALL COMPANY EXCEPTIONAL CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT BY AN EXCEPTIONAL TEAM CGC1528725 407244-1 TOP BREWERIES THE LISTS Business Name City Gallons 3 Daughters BrewingSt. Petersburg 52,323.20 Fort Myers Brewing Co. Fort Myers 42826.75 Florida Avenue BrewingWesley Chapel 38,570.61 Cigar City Brewing Tampa 37,258.60 Big Top Brewers Collective Bradenton 36,702.67 Green Bench Brewing Co.St. Petersburg 36,384.31 Coppertail Brewing Co. Tampa 33,871.78 Calusa Brewing Co. Sarasota 32,504.41 House Of Beer Dunedin/Palm Harbor 30,345.54 Brew Hub Lakeland 29,323.15 Tampa Bay Brewing Co. Tampa 27,133.28 Motorworks Brewing Bradenton 26,607.94 Big Storm Brewing Co. Clearwater, Odessa, Cape Coral, and Ybor 24,983.37 Corporate Ladder Brewing Co. Palmetto 24,568.08 Bone Hook Brewing Co. Naples 21,416.71 Tampa Bay Brewing Co. Tampa 19,940.43 Dunedin Brewery Dunedin 19,822.49 Good Liquid Brewing Co. Sarasota 19,228.17 Grand Central BrewhouseSt. Petersburg 19,131.31 3 Keys Brewing Co. Bradenton 18,606.90 Business Name City Bulk Sales 3 Daughters BrewingSt. Petersburg $37,545.00 Big Top Brewers Collective Bradenton $30,664.00 House Of Beer Dunedin/Palm Harbor $30,346.00 Green Bench Brewing Co. St. Petersburg $29,022.00 Fort Myers Brewing Co. Fort Myers $27,365.00 Coppertail Brewing Co. Tampa $25,227.00 Florida Avenue BrewingWesley Chapel $24,475.00 Cigar City Brewing Tampa $23,443.00 Tampa Bay Brewing Company Tampa $21,080.00 Motorworks Brewing Bradenton $20,841.00 Big Storm Brewing Co. Clearwater, Odessa, Cape Coral, and Ybor $20,818.00 Dunedin Brewery Dunedin $19,312.00 Good Liquid Brewing Co. Sarasota $19,228.00 Grand Central BrewhouseSt. Petersburg $19,131.00 3 Keys Brewing Co. Bradenton $18,577.00 Tampa Bay Brewing Co. Tampa $18,322.00 Swan Brewing Lakeland $17,018.00 Grove Roots BrewingWinter Haven $16,230.00 Bone Hook Brewing Co. Naples $16,182.00 Brew Hub Lakeland $15,701.00 Business Name City Pints Sales Calusa Brewing Co. Sarasota $189,384.00 Fort Myers Brewing Co. Fort Myers $162,432.00 3 Daughters BrewingSt. Petersburg $157,632.00 Florida Avenue BrewingWesley Chapel $148,848.00 Brew Hub Lakeland $144,826.00 Cigar City Brewing Tampa $105,672.00 Coppertail Brewing Co. Tampa $92,208.00 The Florida Brewery Beer Garden Auburndale $92,088.00 Magnanimous Brewing Company Tampa $80,627.00 Green Bench Brewing Co.St. Petersburg $74,870.00 Tampa Bay Brewing Co. Tampa $64,572.00 Big Top Brewers Collective Bradenton $64,416.00 Motorworks Brewing Bradenton $56,484.00 Bone Hook Brewing Co. Naples $55,644.00 Corporate Ladder Brewing Co. Palmetto $53,458.00 Woven Water Brewing Co. Tampa $52,168.00 Palm City Brewing Co.Fort Myers $52,080.00 Big Storm Brewing Co. Clearwater, Odessa, Cape Coral, and Ybor $44,431.00 Arkane Aleworks Inc Largo $42,715.00 Hidden Springs Ale Works Tampa $32,840.00 Note: Data is for 2022. Source: Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation

TOP CONTRACTORS

48 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 Company Top Executive 2022 Revenue2021 Revenue 1 Manhattan Construction Group, Naples Larry Rooney, Craig Bryant, Mike Miller $1,480,296,195$1,157,739,040 2 Power Design (Projected for 2022), St. Petersburg Frank Musolino, Joe Micallef, Lauren Permuy $925,000,000$880,000,000 3 RIPA & Associates, Tampa Chris LaFace $413,000,000$365,000,000 4 O-A-K/Florida, Inc. DBA Owen-Ames-Kimball Co. , Fort Myers Matthew Zwack, Jan Conrad, Abel Natali, John LaBarge, Frank Stanek $398,000,000$319,000,000 5 DeAngelis Diamond Construction, Naples David Diamond, John DeAngelis $385,000,000$365,000,000 6 Ajax Building Corp., Midway William Byrne $384,648,898$217,186,980 7 Brooks & Freund, LLC, Fort Myers Richard Freund $245,000,000$200,000,000 8 Hawkins Construction, Inc., Tarpon Springs Miguel Leyva, Todd Mullins, Aaron Leech, Josh Spooner $225,000,000$163,000,000 9 B&I Contractors Inc., Fort Myers Gary Griffin, Jason Grabowski, Brian Kelly $168,625,196$166,583,104 10 Connor & Gaskins Unlimited LLC , Naples Barry Connor, Craig Gaskins $162,035,442$147,000,000 11 Creative Contractors, Clearwater Alan Bomstein, Josh Bomstein, Alan Holderith, Jerry Siminski $144,000,000$155,000,000 12 Willis A. Smith Construction, Inc., Sarasota David Sessions, John LaCivita $137,900,000$95,000,000 13 Stevens Construction Inc., Fort Myers Mark Stevens, Dan Adams, Terri Sobeck $126,689,258$70,884,938 14 KHS&S Contractors, Tampa Michael Cannon, Erik Santiago, Jess Robinson $120,793,911$112,854,050 15 Park & Eleazer Construction, LLC, Clearwater Andrew Park, Forrest Eleazer $110,641,661$40,612,283 16 Crowther Roofing and Sheet Metal, Fort Myers Lee Crowther, Kevin Callans, Daniel Mazon $105,000,000$73,200,000 17 Wright Construction Group, Inc., Fort Myers Fred Edman, Andy Powell, Mitch Bueltel $103,000,000$65,000,000 18APG, Clearwater Michael Henley, Christopher Johnson $93,879,670$89,026,144 19 McIntyre Elwell & Strammer General Contractors, Sarasota John McIntyre, Mark Freeman, Ryan McIntyre, Josh Tomlinson, Rich Fredd, Greg Elwell, Frederick Strammer $90,000,000$82,000,000 20 Bay to Bay Properties, Safety Harbor Joe Faw, Jerome Ciliento $85,000,000$80,000,000 21 TDS Construction Inc., Bradenton Christina Scherer Bock, Terri Scherer $82,500,000$78,500,000 22 iConstructors LLC, Tampa Michael Montecalvo, Kevin Murphy, Edward Smith, Brian Truglio, Robert Healy $80,000,000$87,930,769 23 Conditioned Air, Naples Greg Johnson $76,810,000$58,430,000 24 Bandes Construction Company, Inc., Dunedin Robert Bandes $69,200,000$67,300,000 25 Woodruff & Sons, Inc., Bradenton Donald Woodruff Bruce Woodruff, Linda Wakeman $67,000,000$70,000,000 26 Summit Design + Build, LLC, Tampa Adam Miller, Deanna Pegoraro, Victoria Auger $58,506,296$54,371,900 27 Florida Asphalt & Concrete, Tampa Chris LaFace $51,000,000$31,000,000 28 Gator Grading & Paving LLC, Palmetto Kevin Hicks, Ed Hicks $49,600,000$32,200,000 29 Sutter Roofing, Sarasota Doug Sutter, Brad Sutter $49,350,000$44,700,000 30 TLC Diversified Inc., Palmetto Dalas Lamberson $45,000,000$39,000,000 31 Heatherwood Construction Company, Bonita Springs Walter Crawford IV $45,000,000$32,000,000 32 Burgess Civil, Tampa Ben Burgess $44,000,000$41,450,000 33 R.E. Crawford Construction, LLC, Sarasota Jeffrey Smith, Utahna $41,000,000$36,957,000 34 Jon F. Swift Construction, Sarasota Jason Swift, Jon Swift, Ross Russo, Justin Williams $39,000,000$41,000,000 35 CFS Roofing Services LLC, Fort Myers David Crowther $38,000,000$32,000,000 THE LISTS

AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 49 40+ YEARS Connecting You To The Right People & Projects turnerbusinessdevelopment.com From land acquisition and architecture all the way through general contractors and checklists, Our clients have depended on Turner Business Development's expertise to keep them in the running for the best construction projects in SW Florida. darrell@turnerbusinessdevelopment.com 941-725-2671 407355-1 TOP CONTRACTORS BIG BOOK OF BUSINESS Company Top Executive 2022 Revenue2021 Revenue 36 My Shower Door/D3 Glass, Fort Myers Bill Daubmann $34,700,000$25,700,000 37 The Sinclair Group, Tampa Burk Clark, Graham Clark, Cameron Clark $34,000,000$27,000,000 38 Westfall Roofing, Tampa Kirk Westfall $32,274,179$23,907,954 39 J2 Solutions, inc, Venice David Fouche, Jess Fronckowiak $30,430,000$30,740,000 40 Adams Group, North Port Ethan Adams $29,000,000$26,000,000 41 Case Contracting Company, Plant City Timothy Walker $28,000,000$16,000,000 42 ArtisTree Landscape Maintenance & Design, Venice Joseph Gonzalez, Frank Fistner $27,015,000$25,111,675 43 PBS Contractors, Naples Tim Dupre, Russell Budd $25,522,871$18,345,036 44 Mark Williams Construction Co. Inc., Sarasota Mark Williams, Matt Allen $25,000,000$18,000,000 45 Diaz Fritz Group General Contractors, Temple Terrace Delvis (Del) Diaz, Tom Connella, Wayne Ismark $25,000,000$32,000,000 46 Superior Pools, Port Charlotte Jon Krawczyk $24,507,091$42,805,577 47 Springer Construction, Inc., Lakeland Jeremy Voss, Cole Springer $23,793,000$20,907,517 48 Stellar Development, Sarasota Maurice Opstal, Brian Ellis, Trey Arias $22,000,000$22,000,000 49 Masonry Builders Inc., Tampa Tom Bradley $20,500,000$20,200,000 50 Wallace Construction Group, St. Petersburg Charles Adair, Norris Cole Jr., Thomas LoCicero $19,030,000$18,500,000 Note: Manhattan Construction Group has a dual headquarters in Naples and Tulsa, Oklahoma,. Source: Individual companies; Business Observer Top 50 Contractors issue, March, 2023 THE LISTS

FLORIDA 2030

The Florida Chamber Foundation, to address the state’s rapid growth, has created a blueprint for the state’s future: Florida 2030. The two-year research program engaged business and community leaders in each of Florida’s 67 counties, say chamber officials. Some of the report’s findings are here and on P. 52 and P. 53. For more, or the full report, go to FLChamber.com/ Florida-2030.

FLORIDA’S DEMOGRAPHICS ARE CHANGING

50 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

Top projected increases 1. Miami-Dade 439,061 2. Orange 417,160 3. Hillsborough 381,826 4. Broward 312,725 5. Palm Beach 281,105 6. Lee 234,321 7. Duval 232,991 8. Polk 217,135 9. Osceola 179,540 10. Pasco 163,709 Top growth rates 1. Sumter 44.3% 2. Osceola 44.2% 3. St. Johns 43.1% 4. Walton 42.2% 5. Lake 35.9% 6. Flagler 35.6% 7. Nassau 33.0% 8. St. Lucie 30.4% 9. Santa Rosa 30.3% 10. Lee 29.9%

Florida’s next 3.5 million people Top number: estimated increase | Bottom number: Percent { Top 5: 51.8% Top 10: 81% DEMOGRAPHICS OF FLORIDA AND THE MOST IMPOVERISHED COMMUNITIES 60% 45% 30% 15% 0% 52.60% 17.90% 47.50% 54.30% 15.50% 26.40% White Hispanic/Latino Black THE LISTS Top projected increases 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

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FLORIDA 2030 BIG BOOK OF BUSINESS

NEVADA TENNESSEE SOUTH CAROLINA NORTH CAROLINA ARIZONA TEXAS It takes SIX states to equal Florida 3.5 TIMES NO. 2 TEXAS Figures in billions; most recent IRS statistics of income TheFloridaScorecard.org THE

HOMEOWNERS’ CLAIMS HOMEOWNERS’ LAWSUITS

LISTS

n Florida families now

$5,065

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to Florida’s

climate n 3.6% GDP is spent on Florida’s bottom-five legal climate Source: Rent.com, December 2020

rent

Total income of residents:

Florida’s bottom five legal climate in action

pay

each

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bottom-five legal

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AUGUST 2023 ■ BusinessObserverFL.com BUSINESS OBSERVER 53

2030

BOOK OF BUSINESS THE LISTS Florida voter registraton as of Dec. 31, 2022 (via ChamberHub, the Florida Chamber’s exclusive voter file) Florida voter registration as of Dec. 31, 2021 Rep +43,102 Florida voter registration as of Dec. 31, 2022 Rep +385,670 Newly registered voters Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2022 Rep +118,024 (Over Dem) Republican Democrat NPA/Other Republican Democrat NPA/Other Republican Democrat NPA/Other Total: 14,287,711 Total: 733,603 NOWIN NAPLES 999 Vanderbilt Beach Road, Suite 200 | Naples, Florida 34108 239-325-1800 uhy-us.com 397649-1 Total: 14,528,076

FLORIDA

BIG

As a young woman, St. Petersburg native Tonjua Williams got an opportunity and has turned it into a career and a calling.

homecoming queen and became a dorm monitor. And, most importantly, she became a student.

Williams graduated from Clearwater Christian in 1985 with a bachelor’s degree in humanities. Two years later, she earned her second bachelor’s from the college, this time in business administration. She would wind up getting a master’s degree in education from the USF in 1996 and a doctorate in higher education administration from Barry University in 2007.

Tonjua Williams

No one may be more surprised to learn that Tonjua Williams is the president of St. Petersburg College than her former high school teachers.

That may sound disparaging. But it’s not. In fact, it’s something Williams openly embraces, something that, in a way, she wears as a badge of honor.

The reason for this is that Williams’ poor academic record turned out to be a stepping stone that put her on a path to leading St. Petersburg College.

T he college, which offers classes at 12 campuses and centers, has a total enrollment of 39,540 students, according to its 2020/2021 factbook. Of those, some 15,000 were full-time equivalent students, data from the 2023 Florida College System Enrollment Estimating Conference shows. A four-year institution, it’s the sixth-largest community college in Florida and has 2,393 employees.

“My high school GPA was, I think, 2.0. It might have been less than that,” Williams says. “I was not a good high school student. Part of it

was helping my mom, a single mom, so I had opportunities to work at an early age and school wasn’t really my priority.”

Williams, 59, was raised in south St. Petersburg, one of three children to a single mother.

When she graduated high school in the early 1980s, she had no plans for college.

But her mother was in church one day when someone asked if there was anybody who had a student who could go to Clearwater Christian College.

The school, which closed in 2015, was then a small nondenominational college. When the opportunity, which included a partial scholarship, presented itself, Williams’ mother, Willie Harris, jumped at the chance. Education was important to Willie, whose impressive parental track record includes a son, Arvys Harris, who works in the intelligence industry and a daughter, Lyn H arris, who is an attorney, along with Williams.

Even though she wasn’t prepared, her daughter needed to go

to college.

At the time, Williams recalls, Clearwater Christian may have had as many as 200 students and she was the first Black one. It was strict, too. Women had to wear skirts, and there were white glove inspections. This was a different world from the south St. Pete neighborhood she grew up in, but it was what she needed right then.

Williams wound up taking 21 hours per semester to avoid having to take summer classes. She worked to help pay for school.

The experience turned out to be transformational.

She was elected Clearwater Christian’s equivalent of

BE THE CHANGE

Tonjua Williams started work in the accounting department at what was then St. Petersburg Junior College in 1986. At the time, she aspired to become a counselor. “That was it,” she says. Now, 37 years later, she is president of the college and working to create an educational institution that helps students find opportunities and grow despite any challenges they may face.

“I just really learned a lot about me during that time. I don’t think I would have made it anywhere else because I had so much to learn about higher education study habits,” Williams says. “And there were no big parties or anything. We were constantly learning there. It was good for me.”

Williams has brought the lessons to her work and for 37 years — starting as a senior accounting clerk and t hen moving into recruiting, administration, the classroom and t he provost’s office — she has been working to help make St. Petersburg College the kind of place Clearwater Christian was for her.

“At St. Petersburg College, we were born and developed to help people change their lives,” she says. The college, which until 2001 was St. Petersburg Junior College, is an open-door school. Williams says that means that all a person needs to gain admission is have a high school diploma or a GED high school equivalency diploma.

“And then it’s our turn as an institution to help you through and recognize who you can be and the opportunities,” she says. “We’re designed to help you unlock those opportunities and go from poverty to prosperity. And that’s what small colleges can do because they can pay attention to their students and give them what they need to succeed.”

— LOUIS LLOVIO

54 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

PRESIDENT, ST. PETERSBURG COLLEGE

THE CHANGE-MAKERS

TONJUA WILLIAMS grew up in St. Petersburg and today is the president of St. Petersburg College.

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CEO, BEALLS

Matt Beall THE CHANGE-MAKERS

It would be easy to think a family retail business launched during World War I that goes back four generations is reluctant to change — something must be working to last that long.

But Matt Beall, the fourth-generation leader of Bradenton-based Bealls, is guided, in part, by a lesson learned from his grandfather, Egbert “E.R.” Beall. “He told me if you’re still doing what you did last year today, then you will fall behind,” Matt Beall says.

T hat advice drives Beall, 44, forward. His tenure as CEO started in December 2019, and since then he’s overseen a multitude of changes, both big and small. Some are tangible, like in the names of the stores. O ther tangible changes are less visible to customers, like replacing the company’s 100-strong fleet of cars with electric vehicles, which is about two-thirds complete, and ending the use of pesticides for landscaping on the corporate campus. And other changes lean more intangible and internal, like increasing training opportunities and pushing employees to be more entrepreneurial — a big task with a payroll of 15,000.

T he most recent big change at Bealls, with $1.87 billion in revenue in 2022, is in store names. What was Bealls Outlet and Burkes Outlet, with more than 600 locations in 23 states, is now simply Bealls. And the 68 non-outlet stores in the Sunshine State are now under the name Bealls Florida. Those changes were announced in April, and by late June, stores that had undergone the changes were seeing a 9% increase in foot traffic, Beall says. Sales were

MATT BEALL joined the family run retailer in 2004 and was named CEO in 2019. up 5% at those locations. “It was a big investment, and we feel like it’s going really well,” Beall says.

One element of the brand name change Beall displayed behind the scenes was patience. He says he’d been thinking about a change that would simplify and connect the names better for at least a decade, as he worked his way up in the company. Upon being named CEO,

BE THE CHANGE

In a little less than four years as CEO of Bealls, Matt Beall has been part of some significant changes at the $1.87 billion Bradentonbased retailer. For starters, there were myriad disruptions caused by the pandemic. Other changes run from internal to external. One thing Beall says he won’t change? His undercover boss-like, incognito check-in on stores during his travels. He goes in in “regular clothes and a hat,” he says. “A lot of executives go through stores with an entourage. That’s not my style.”

he held a series of meetings and sessions with senior executives and others to discuss the pros and cons. Longtime executive Tianne Doyle, named president of the company in March, was on board. But Beall says for something that significant “we needed buy-in from the executive team and others.”

The Beall name has been a constant in the company since R.M. B eall opened a small-town fiveand-dime in Bradenton in 1915 with, according to the company’s website, “one single purpose: outfitting families for less.” R.M. Beall’s son, E.R. Beall, joined the business in 1940. And the third generation, Robert “Bob” Beall II, led the company as president from 1980 through 2006. In the time between Beall II left the CEO position a nd Matt Beall took over in 2019, the company was led by longtime executive Steve Knopik — the only non-Beall to oversee the business.

M att Beall, in seeking to make his own mark on the company, says it was critical to work his way up. That started in the stockroom of the Manatee Avenue Bealls store in Bradenton when he was in high school and college. “People see you are willing to do anything and they

know you are not above anyone,” says Beall, quipping that since his dad started as a janitor, he had a “step up.”

Beall had a short stint outside of Bealls after college, as an assistant buyer for Ross Stores. Then, starting in 2004 as a buyer for the outlets, Beall worked his way up in the business. His experience includes serving as a store manager and working in nearly every corporate function, including buying, planning, marketing, exclusive brands, finance, logistics and store operations.

B eall says five or 10 years ago, he put a lot of pressure on himself, given his name, spotlight and expectations. Some of that might go back to when he was a kid and teenager with his family out meeting people: They would ask the young Beall, ‘Are you going to be in the business someday?’ Beall recalls. “I would say yes, and they would say, ‘Don’t screw it up.’”

More recently, Beall says while the “legacy history of this company is extremely cool when I take the time to reflect on it,” he spends his time looking forward, not behind. Looking way into the future, Beall has four kids, and says he won’t pressure them to join the company. “I want them to decide on their own,” he says, adding there are 15 next-generation Bealls across the family, from three months to 22 years old, who could enter the business.

On his own future, Beall is excited about what technology can do to help Bealls become even more customer-centric. He also believes the company’s brands outside the spotlight from the department stores and outlets, specifically Home Centric and Earth Rugged Outfitters, are well-positioned to grow.

T hen there are the threats inherent in running a big and complex business in a fast-changing industry. “There’s always something to t hink about coming around next,” he says. “It’s retail. If you’re not thinking about what could happen next, you are failing as a leader.”

— MARK GORDON

56 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

MARK WEMPLE

In looking ahead, Matt Beall looks back to the advice of his grandfather: Changing up things is essential to any strong business model.

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THE CHANGE-MAKERS

Marie Grasmeier

Marie Grasmeier’s path to a Southwest Florida international accounting and consulting firm went through three continents before landing at Fort Myers.

Since she became an American and international accountant, Grasmeier has seen change not just in her career course, but in her global client base.

“I love it when my clients are growing,” says Grasmeier, 48. “It’s amazing how some businesses start as a ‘mom-and-pop,’ and they’re growing and expanding internationally.”

It’s that last part that is tricky. International businesses need to follow the various tax rules of the United States and the other nations, and that’s where Grasmeier comes in. Her accounting practice, Fort Myers-based Grasmeier Business Consulting, goes beyond numbers and advises international business clients on other issues, including recommending legal services.

Grasmeier herself had to get familiar with the United States as a 19-year-old student. Grasmeier was born in South Korea and adopted by a Swedish couple. Her father was an accountant, so when she headed to Florida Atlantic University as a foreign student, she decided to pick a career quite unlike that of her father: medicine. She studied pre-med for a while — but it was not quite catching.

Taking advice, with people noting accounting majors are highly s ought after, she switched fields. Her grades were great. And, as with most successful accounting majors, she was recruited even before she came into the job market, in 1999.

“(Accounting majors) were heavily recruited on campus,” says Grasmeier. “I got several job offers.”

Despite her advanced degree and her familiarity with Europe, Grasmeier never entertained serious notions of becoming a tax accountant i n some other part of the world. “I love this country,” says Grasmeier.

Thus, Grasmeier began working at a Southwest Florida firm that had many clients doing taxes from outside the United States. Florida was g rowing, and investors from Australia, Malaysia Singapore, Canada a nd Europe wanted in. But investment here meant taxes, and foreign i nvestors needed help.

A s her book of business grew, Grasmeier began to ponder more change: maybe she would start her own business.

But was the timing right? By 2009, the nation was in a deep recession. Grasmeier was a new mother, having given birth in 2007. It didn’t s eem like a good time to start her own business. But that’s exactly

BE THE CHANGE

Marie Grasmeier has lived a lifetime of change — always with a goal to better herself, and later, clients. The list for Grasmeier, born in South Korea, includes coming to America as a 19-year-old student; switching college majors from pre-med to accounting; launching an accounting business in the aftermath of the 2008 housing bust; and even running the New York City Marathon.

FOUNDER, GRASMEIER BUSINESS CONSULTING

MARIE GRASMEIER didn’t fret about starting an international tax accounting firm more than a decade ago.

what she decided to do — to change when change seemed against the odds.

Looking back, Grasmeier seems surprised she wasn’t swayed by the challenges of a poor economy or the recent advent of motherhood. But Grasmeier felt she could offer clients a better service. With less overhead, she was also able to offer lower prices, and that drew new customers, even during the downturn.

From the start, Grasmeier tried to change and innovate how her accounting-focused business worked. She declined to use paper until the final product was ready, preferring to use digital tools such as PDFs. She also began advising clients outside accounting, helping them establish U.S.-based LLCs and getting important tax ID numbers. Even property management has drawn requests to Grasmeier, which she easily could have eschewed, even as a tiny part of consulting. She instead embraced it, and gets

her clients the managers they need.

Much of the multiple needs come because Grasmeier’s clients do so much real estate investment in the United States (mostly Florida, she says). It brings up the needs for taxes, LLC creations and property management. It also brings up the differing priorities nations have.

Grasmeier says the United States and foreign nations will often have different tax goals and incentives. It’s just one reason why Grasmeier has expanded her network to CPAs in other nations — to talk and consult on various issues.

O ne example Grasmeier gives as to incentives is the drying up of margins in Australia, given taxation and regulation. In response, s he says, many Australians invest in Florida. Australians make up about 10% of her 1,500 clients. There are lots of Canadians too, as they also find their margins shrinking back home.

Demand for Grasmeier’s services is growing. In 2023, she projects $1 million in gross revenue, which would be more than double 2021. She has three employees, but that fluctuates given the tax season.

It’s a long way from where she started in 2009, partially on a blind dream. “I never thought of all the things that could go wrong,” says Grasmeier. “I do believe in God and believe everything happens for a reason.”

— JIM STINSON

58 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

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Brian Auld

CO-PRESIDENT, TAMPA BAY RAYS

From defensive shifts to openers, the Tampa Bay Rays are the undisputed change agents of Major League Baseball.

W ith a lower budget to work with than most other clubs, the Rays’ front office creativity has helped the team punch well above its weight on the field: The Rays have made the playoffs five times over the past decade, including in 2020, when they advanced to the World Series but lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers. In the 2020s, the team’s winning percentage is a stellar .589, with a cost-per-win ratio that’s one of the best in baseball.

A big part of the Rays’ brain trust is Brian Auld, an 18-year veteran of the organization. The Stanford University and Harvard Business School graduate was named co-president, along with Matt Silverman, nine years ago. The duo filled the void left by Andrew

Friedman, who departed in 2014 to become president of the Dodgers. In 2019, when the Rays bought the Tampa Bay Rowdies soccer franchise, Auld added another title to his business card: vice chairman of the Rowdies. A s opposed to many baseball “lif-

BE THE CHANGE

Tampa Bay Rays Co-President

Brian Auld has been with the team for nearly two decades, and in recent years he’s emerged as the face of the Major League Baseball franchise. His salesmanlike affability, however, overshadows his keen intellect and a dedication to community service that doesn’t always show up in news headlines.

ers” in similar positions for other MLB teams, Auld started his career as an elementary school teacher and administrator. He joined the Rays in 2005 at the behest of Silverman, with whom he attended high school in Texas.

“ While my colleagues were just getting started in the business world, when you have to be ‘on’ every single day and you’re responsible for 25 kids, you learn about planning, you learn about how to connect with people, no matter what,” Auld said in a 2019 interview with the Business Observer. “There’s something about trying to get an idea through to a 9-year-old that makes you realize that just yelling at them for not understanding is not going to be productive, so you have to try another route.”

Communication has been a double-edged sword for Auld. He’s been t he public face of the Rays over the past few years as the organization’s quest for a new stadium has grown more urgent. In late 2014, soon after his promotion to president, some business leaders accused him of arrogance and tone deafness during a St. Petersburg City Council

discussion about the future of the Tropicana Field site and whether the Rays should be free to explore other locations for a new stadium in the Tampa Bay region.

B emetra Simmons, CEO of the Tampa Bay Partnership — Auld was named chairman of the partnership in 2022 — says such occurrences could be viewed in another l ight: as an indicator of Auld’s high intelligence. “Brian is incredibly smart,” she says. “I think one of his biggest gifts is that he’s able to take complex things and give them back to you in an almost ‘FisherPrice’-type way, which is impressive. It almost comes across as if he’s w inging it, but that’s how you know you’re doing something right, when it looks effortless.”

A uld’s combination of intelligence, vision and communication skills has served him well over the past couple of years when he essentially served as head cheerleader for t he Rays’ controversial “Sister City” proposal, a plan that would’ve seen the team split its season between new open-air stadiums in St. Pete and Montreal. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred killed that potential deal, but not before Auld went on a charm offensive that convinced numerous local leaders and organizations it was the right plan for solving the Rays’ attendance woes and saving baseball in Tampa Bay.

G oing into the final month of the 2023 baseball season, the Rays’ situation with a new home had what seemed to be a path forward, with the massive historic Gas Plant Dis-

See AULD page 72

60 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2014

THE CHANGE-MAKERS

MARK WEMPLE Tampa Bay Rays Co-President BRIAN AULD has led the team to become one of the most innovative in Major League baseball.

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THE CHANGE-MAKERS

Lilah Taha-Rippett

SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF SUPPLY CHAIN, FIRST WATCH

First Watch Restaurant Group executive Lilah Taha-Rippett was in desperate need of truck drivers in August 2020.

She wasn’t moving. And she also wasn’t seeking to hire anyone at that time — at least not truckers. Instead, Taha-Rippett was trying to find some drivers hauling stuff for U.S. Foods. First Watch, one of the largest breakfast-brunchlunch chains in the country, with more than 500 locations, had just switched suppliers. And Taha-Rippett, who oversees supply chain for t he east Manatee County-based company, wanted to thank the people driving that switch with First Watch gift cards and appreciation.

So Taha-Rippett, 65, drove up and down Interstate 75 to track down the drivers. “I wanted them to know that what they were doing was important,” Taha-Rippett says.

T hat mindset, of including everyone in the process of change

a nd elevating the people around her in that process, is partly how Taha-Rippett has built such a successful career in supply chain management. At First Watch, where she’s been senior vice president of supply chain since 2017, Taha-Rippett, say company officials, created an efficient and proactive supply chain team amid the pandemic.

BE THE CHANGE

Longtime restaurant supply chain executive Lilah TahaRippett says changing a business model, strategy or approach, no matter the industry, usually falls back to taking the time to build better relationships. She regularly tells her team at First Watch to “go high, go wide and go deep,” when working with vendors, suppliers and others.

Taha-Rippett is also known among the First Watch leadership team as a get-stuff-done executive. Part of that is from growing up in Dearborn, Michigan, a firstgeneration American daughter of Lebanese parents who owned and ran a grocery store. Not only from a prove-yourself immigrant work ethic, but it’s also where TahaRippett discovered her spunk — and learned a valuable lesson in restaurant customer service.

T hat stems from when Taha-Rippett, frustrated with working for the f amily business without a salary, decided, at 16, to get a “real job,” at a McDonald’s. She and a friend both got gigs at the Golden Arches.

E arly into the job, a manager told the teens they had to clean the bathrooms. The friend balked. And then quit. But Taha-Rippett stayed. And she pressed the manager on why the newbies had to clean toilets. The manager answered with a question of his own. “I know people are coming here for the burgers and

shakes, but why do you think they come back?”

Taha-Rippett shrugged. “‘They come back,” she says the manager responded, “‘because the bathrooms are clean.’”

T hat lesson has resonated with Taha-Rippett, and she now often advises colleagues, mentees and others: “Don’t say no to something you hate; it could be good for you.”

She’s also parlayed that into multiple leadership positions with several restaurant companies, a big one being Tampa-based Bloomin’ Brands, where she was vice president of supply chain from 2003 to 2 014. Taha-Rippett has also held strategy, purchasing and operations positions with Uno Restaurants, Qdoba Mexican Grill and Benihana.

O ne of the core tasks TahaRippett took on when she joined First Watch six years ago was to make sure the food supply side of the business kept up with the rapid growth. Publicly traded First Watch, with $719.18 million in revenue in 2022, has come through on the growth side. It’s now a national leader in the breakfast-brunchlunch market, which it essentially created when it opened the first First Watch, in California, in 1983.

P art of Taha-Rippet’s strategy is to plan way ahead. In summer 2023 for instance, she and her First Watch supply chain team of seven, in conjunction with the company’s head chef, were already looking at ingredients and menu items for early 2025. The strategy also includes holding the supply chain department’s mission — “keep First Watch fi rst in line,” she says — close by.

While supply chain anxieties constantly linger, from hurricanes to avian flu, Taha-Rippett’s true up-at-night worry is having to tell one of the 12,000-plus First Watch employees working in one of the restaurants to “86” something — industry lingo for being out of an item. “If there’s a dishwasher in one of our restaurants who doesn’t have the right cleaning chemicals (then) we are making his job harder,” Taha-Rippett says. “And I take that personally.”

— MARK GORDON

62 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

MARK WEMPLE

Lilah Taha-Rippett says doing something you hate ‘could be good for you,’ and lead you to previously unseen career opportunities.

LILAH TAHA-RIPPETT has been a supply chain executive at First Watch since 2017.

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Marc Devisse

FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT, TRI-TOWN CONSTRUCTION

Marc Devisse personifies the axiom that in business, the only constant is change.

“ You have to be flexible and adaptable,” Devisse says. “You can’t be stuck in your ways when bad stuff happens.”

T he Fort Myers entrepreneur is most widely known around Southwest Florida for Tri-Town Construction, a luxury homebuilder and kitchen, bathroom and home renovation business he founded in 2006, when he was 23. But in the 17 years since then, Devisse has consistently sought avenues to do things differently. That includes opening a restaurant to diversify his revenue streams, and, more recently, launching a roofing business, Florida Roofing and Gutter, to meet a surge in postHurricane Ian demand.

It also includes making a significant investment in time and money on changing his business and personal mindset by working with, a mong others, self-improvement guru Tony Robbins. “If you’re in

with Tony Robbins,” Devisse says, “there’s no question you are becoming a better person.”

I n addition, Devisse has been part of an Apex entrepreneur group, traveling once a month to Dallas for sessions on mindset, relationships and more. “The last few years have been extremely big on selfimprovement,” says Devisse, 40.

“I’ve been working on myself and getting out of being in the business so I can work on the business.”

T he desire to start and run a business goes back to when Devisse w as growing up, first in Chicago and then when he was a teenager in Southwest Florida. His mom was in real estate and his dad owned a small business. He almost started a pet-sitting company when he was 12 or 13. And when he was 14, he took a job washing dishes at a Punta Gorda fish market.

T hat kind of hustle foreshadowed Devisse’s career. He launched TriTown, for starters, at the dawn of what became the 2008-09 housing bust and recession. Then a recent

graduate of Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, Devisse worked for local developer Rich Galvano. But that firm’s work, in houses and multifamily projects, soon dried up. “Rich said to me ‘I love you, but I can’t pay you,’” Devise says his boss and mentor told h im. “‘I can’t pay you to hang out.’”

That’s when Devisse embraced the opportunity to change directions, from working for someone to working for himself. He started with smaller jobs, as low as $1,000, working on soffits and gutters and painting a bedroom. One night, Devisse started talking to someone sitting next to him at a bar, and the conversation resulted in a $10,000 job renovating a lanai.

Other Tri-Town projects included building three Jimmy John’s sandwich shops in Southwest Florida and a condo renovation in Pelican Bay, a high-end community in Collier County. The latter project turned into a long-term win for Devisse: The condo owner hosted a wine and cheese party for him after the project, and other owners in the complex, impressed with Devisse’s work, called Tri-Town for jobs. “I’m still getting calls off that party 15 years later,” Devisse says.

Devisse led Tri-Town to become a $8 million business. Then, in 2019,

Devisse decided to open a restaurant. Over eight months he obtained an SBA loan and, combined w ith savings, invested $1 million to open the eatery, Seaside Bar & Grill in Bonita Springs. Opening night, though, turned out to be the worst possible day: March 17, 2020, when restaurants and bars across Florida were shuttered due to COVID-19.

Devisse again embraced change. He turned to takeout orders to make some money and build a brand. They ordered produce in bulk from Sysco and then sold groceries to customers. “Every day was something different,” he says.

Devisse was soon working 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Tri-Town followed by 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Seaside. After stabilizing the restaurant and building community support, Devisse, going back to personal change, found an exit strategy: He sold the restaurant in May.

Devisse has a “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” outlook on Seaside now that it’s in the rearview mirror.

“I learned a lot about how to be resilient,” he says. “If you’re able to get through that, it shows you have a lot of tenacity and a lot of creativity. I think if you could get through starting a restaurant in COVID, you can get through anything.”

— MARK GORDON

BE THE CHANGE

With the experience of starting businesses on the cusp of a recession and at the onset of the pandemic — and surviving — Fort Myers construction e ntrepreneur Marc Devisse now wants to pay it forward. He’s been counseling other business owners, both in and out of his field, to help them find ways to change and adapt to difficult circumstances. So far, Devisse has been doing it for free, but he hopes to build a leadership coaching business one day.

64 BUSINESS OBSERVER

STEFANIA PIFFERI

THE CHANGE-MAKERS

Marc Devisse overcame opening a restaurant during COVID, which now serves as a confidencebooster for other ventures — and his personal life.

Tri-Town Construction, founded by MARC DEVISSE, is working on a new homes project on post-Hurricane Ian Fort Myers Beach.

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THE CHANGE-MAKERS

Devaney Iglesias

EXTERNAL AFFAIRS MANAGER, FLORIDA POWER & LIGHT

One of the first big changes in Devaney Iglesias’ life was the geographical and culture shock of moving from Miami, her hometown, to Huntington, West Virginia. She relocated to the Mountaineer State in 2013 to attend graduate school at Marshall University. “I moved in the middle of a blizzard in January,” adds Iglesias, who goes by Dev.

B ut she quickly adapted to her new environment and pursued a career in sports communications. She was on her way, too. She was sports information director for Marshall for a stint and a project manager for an Atlanta-based high school event marketing firm.

“I wanted to be an agent,” she says, adding her favorite sport is baseball, and “I was going to be the agent for the next Miguel Cabrera.”

Only the excitement soon turned to a grind, and Iglesias got burned out. “I wanted to work for a company where I could have a long career

a nd lay down roots,” she says.

T he mom of a close friend from childhood had spent decades at Florida Power & Light. Iglesias reached out about a job there, and got one in marketing and communications, working out of the company’s Juno Beach headquarters. A subsidiary of NextEra Energy, FPL serves some 5.7 million customer accounts, or 12 million people, across Florida. NextEra and its other subsidiaries combined for nearly $ 21 billion in revenue in 2022.

Iglesias, 32, not only wanted to put down roots for an established business, but she also, in some ways, sought to find an environment like she had while growing u p in Hialeah. That’s where her large Cuban family, with dozens of cousins, aunts and uncles, not to mention her sisters and parents and grandparents, formed a loud and loving community, with many quinceaneras and backyard get-togethers. “I had the absolute greatest

BE THE CHANGE

childhood,” she says.

A relative in her grandfather’s generation was the first to make it to the U.S. from Cuba, and he started a business out of an efficiency a partment, making baby furniture. That business grew over the years, Iglesias says, and became a go-to spot for baby furniture and clothes around town. “I grew up climbing around all the boxes and making forts in the warehouse,” she says.

Iglesias’ new work home at FPL, which she joined in 2017, is like her family in that there’s always something happening, and sometimes, t o move ahead, you have to stick up for yourself. That’s how, at 29, in June 2020, she landed a big promotion: being named area manager for external affairs of FPL’s Sarasota-Manatee market, which encompasses some 640,000 commercial a nd residential accounts across five counties, including DeSoto, Highlands and Glades. She’s now the local face of FPL, from customer disputes to storm preparation and

Devaney Iglesias made a big change in her life in summer 2020, when she moved across Florida, from the east coast to Sarasota-Bradenton, to take on a leadership role with Florida Power & Light. The past three years have been something of a whirlwind as the energy provider strives to keep up with ever-increasing power demands as the state’s population continues to surge. One of the biggest changes on Iglesias’ mind going forward is, not surprisingly, helping FPL provide more solar power options and opportunities.

aftermath to serving on boards. (She’s the incoming chair of the Economic Development Corp. of Sarasota County, for one example.)

Iglesias replaced Rae Dowling, who held that role at FPL for 14 years and was well known around the region as a connector and problem solver. “She’s a legend,” Iglesias s ays. “It was really hard to fill her shoes.”

I n filling those shoes, and

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With the pandemic in its infancy in 2020, Devaney Iglesias took on a big task: taking over a high-profile position for a retiring FPL executive.

helping the team adapt to the change in leadership, Iglesias utilizes several key principles in change management. For one, she encourages the team to think differently on problems. “Just

because someone hasn’t done something,” she says, “doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t look into it.”

She also wants to keep employees focused on FPL’s north star — to

provide reliable, cost-effective and clean power for customers. “I want our people to see the bigger picture because sometimes they get buried in the day-to-day work at FPL,” she says. “My job is to make sure we all look up every once in awhile.”

And Iglesias says she aims to lead, and learn, by example. She won’t hesitate, she says, to call people she admires, for example, in any field, and ask to pick their brains. “I’m always interested in meeting people who are successful and are real change makers,” she says.

O ne element of her career, more than a decade in, that hasn’t changed is the significant role her immediate and extended family plays in her life. A mom of two young children, she loves to boast about her siblings and husband, and knows whenever she sees her relatives at family gatherings, she is bound to be asked some variation of: How’s work? Have you been promoted yet? What cool things are you doing?

“ Everything I am today is because of my grandparents and parents,” she says. “I want them to be proud of me.”

— MARK GORDON

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THE CHANGE-MAKERS

DEVANEY IGLESIAS was named external affairs manager for the SarasotaManatee market for Florida Power & Light in June 2020. MARK WEMPLE

Stuart Haniff

CHIEF DEVELOPMENT OFFICER, HARRY CHAPIN FOOD BANK

When Stuart Haniff was a young boy, his father, a pediatrician who offered services to low income patients, would go to the emergency room late at night to see patients who would pay him $5.

T his concept didn’t make sense to the young Haniff, who’s now in his early 50s, but the answer he received when he questioned it would stick with him. “He looked me in the eyes and said, ‘Because if I don’t, who will?’”

H aniff remembers the interaction with his father well. The newly appointed chief development officer at Harry Chapin Food Bank, a hunger-relief organization that serves Charlotte, Collier, Hendry, Glades and Lee counties, has applied that notion throughout the years since. “If we’re not here, what happens to the people who are depending on us?”

His career with food banks in general isn’t that extensive in terms of time. But the experiences he’s

BE THE CHANGE

had at the senior level makes him well seasoned.

A m entor of Haniff’s offered him a position at Feeding America Riverside-San Bernardino, California, as chief philanthropy officer 10 years ago. Then, in 2019, he became the CEO at The Food Bank of the Rio Grande Valley in Pharr, Texas.

I n the first 18 months of that job, Haniff led the food bank through the pandemic, one of the worst winter freezes to hit Texas and a hurricane that hit the food bank.

Amid all that, Haniff found ways to lift up employees — a nod to his leadership style. During the fall of the pandemic, for example, pumpkin patches were closed. Using the food banks’ farm and garden, Haniff found a way to build their own pumpkin patch, complete with hay bales.

“It was more than a pumpkin patch,” he says. “It (showed) everyone how powerful and vital they were.”

After putting together a charity event during a stint in the entertainment industry, Stuart Haniff realized how much good he could put out into the world. While he enjoyed being a part of the entertainment industry, it didn’t satisfy his soul like the work he’s done at several food banks. Without that work, the question, he says, of “who’s going to do it?” would go unanswered.

A s one might after three extremes, he needed a change of pace and took a role as vice president of philanthropy at Feeding South Florida last year. Still not finding the right fit, a recruiter for Harry Chapin reached out earlier this year. As he was familiar with the brand and the community, it was an easy yes.

“I was excited for the possibility of rebuilding a community after the hurricane,” he says.

Haniff says there’s a misconception about the food bank that because it’s named after well-known singer Harry Chapin that it’s well-

off and doesn’t need support. But just like other places across the region, Haniff says the food bank’s needs have skyrocketed. Last fiscal year, the food bank distributed over 35 million pounds of food.

C onversations surrounding a new facility to address demand are in the works. The current building in Fort Myers, he says, was designed as a warehouse with low ceilings, so making use out of racks is reduced.

I n the meantime, the food bank is unveiling a new program in August: a mobile grocery experience called Fresh Force, which will bring the groceries to the community.

H aniff says the vehicle — a grocery store in a trailer — will have a schedule for the two to three days a week it operates. Each stop is expected to serve 2040 families. Haniff says it took a couple hundred thousand dollars to get the program started.

Food banks haven’t always been Haniff’s career, as evidenced by his background as an entertainment publicist and event planner. But the time he spent organizing special events and galas for celebrity charities hasn’t gone to waste.

W hile in Southern California, where he was born and raised, one

68 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023 407247-1

THE CHANGE-MAKERS

a young age. If he doesn’t do it, then who will?

of the first events he organized was a gala to raise money for a mobile health clinic. Haniff remembers thinking a lot of visits to that clinic — bipolar disease, HIV, teen pregnancies — were similar to

daytime soap opera storylines. He came up with the idea of hosting a Daytime Emmy Awards gala on the West Coast. Until then, those shows had always been hosted in New York.

“We created so much buzz that ABC made the decision to move the Emmys to Hollywood,” Haniff says. More than 100 soap opera stars showed up and the gala raised $250,000.

W hile Haniff enjoyed his time in the spotlight, he doesn’t question his decision to become involved with food banks. Being in the entertainment industry made him happy, he says, but working at food banks “moves my heart.”

It also drives his push to bring some glitz and glamour to Harry Chapin. “I would love to bring a little Hollywood to Southwest Florida,” he says.

D espite his burning passion to help the less fortunate, Haniff has some days when he doesn’t want to get out of bed. But the drive Haniff learned from his father has also been instilled in his own daughter, Hilary, who’s 23, with Haniff r eceiving little reminders from her like, “‘If you don’t get up in the morning, how are other people going to get up in the morning?’

A nd, “‘Because you came here today, someone’s able to eat.’”

— AMANDA

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Stuart Haniff has been on a mission to end hunger after learning an important lesson from his father at

POSTMA STEFANIA PIFFERI STUART HANIFF says the Harry Chapin Food Bank feeds 250,000 people a month — about 3 million pounds of food.

Ken

Change — as in climate change — is at the core of Ken LaRoe’s latest banking venture.

C limate First Bank, the third community bank he’s founded, recently celebrated two years in business. Headquartered in St. Petersburg, it provides traditional banking services, but its lending ac-

LaRoe, however, is no cynical opportunist who merely talks the talk. E nvironmental sustainability and progressive values have long been part of his DNA as a businessman. For example, the bank he founded in 2009, Mount Dora-based First Green Bank, was the first bank in the eastern United States with an environmental and social responsibility mission statement. It provided low-interest commercial loans for solar energy projects and banking services to the medical marijuana industry.

P rior to its official opening in June 2021, Climate First Bank proved there was an appetite for its model, when it raised $44 million. Now entering the final year of its regulatory startup stage, LaRoe says the bank aspires to quickly expand its loan portfolio beyond Florida. “We’re encouraged not to lend outside of the state until we get out of de novo,” he says, “but if we’ve got a sponsor in Florida, we can do it.”

T hat provision has allowed Climate First Bank to finance projects generating large amounts of megawatts but also smaller ones that at fi rst glance might not fit the bank’s mission statement. Like with a gas station and convenience store loan LaRoe didn’t think the bank would approve.

“It was quite fascinating,” he says. “That was our first loan that went to our directors’ committee, because it was over a certain amount. It was big, like $5 million for new construction of a giant convenience store, similar to a Wawa. One of my directors was really opposed to it. Our sustainability officer was really opposed to it, saying, ‘It’s the last mile of dirty energy. It’s a convenience store. There’s nothing in there that’s good for humans.’”

LaRoe, however, saw an opportunity. The bank got the developers to agree to cover the convenience store’s roof with solar panels and install electric vehicle charging stations.

Ken LaRoe’s mission-driven bank is zeroing in on $400 million in assets and a new headquarters.

they’re not going to be pumping gas in 15 years.”

So far, LaRoe hasn’t noticed many banks in Florida following the lead of Climate First Bank, but on a national level, there’s been some traction. For example, Forbright Bank, a $6.4 billion Potomac, Maryland-based institution, is solely focused on reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. “They’re all over it,” LaRoe says. “There’s some cool stuff going on. It’s just, unfortunately, not in Florida.”

Still, the bank’s impact hasn’t gone unnoticed. In April, for example, it added a prominent board member: Jarred Fayson, who played wide receiver for the Florida Gators during the 2006 national championship season and today is a Nature Conservancy board member in addition to serving as chairman of the Fisheries Council’s Florida chapter.

The bank has also been aggressive in the fintech space, acquiring E countabl, a startup that created a way to index environmental, social and governance performance for more than 10,000 companies, allowing customers to track how brands from which they buy align with their personal values. Climate First Bank already had a similar system in place called OneEthos — a wholly owned subsidiary the bank credits with helping it reach more than $200 million in assets and exceed $140 million in loans within its fi rst 12 months in business — but

See LAROE page 72

tivity is heavily focused on financing solar-energy installations, electric vehicle charging stations and other green-based innovations. T he bank had $332.79 million in assets through March 31, according to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data. “It’s just like everything converged, now is the time, and it’s all paying off,” LaRoe says.

“ That’s a ‘just transition,’ in quotes,” he says. “You’ve probably heard that talked about. We have to have ‘just transitions.’” For example, “We can’t just leave everybody in Appalachia without jobs because there’s no more coal.”

T he loan won approval with just one director objecting, and the process makes it more likely similar future deals will be OK’d, because gas station developers and operators, LaRoe says, “know

BE THE CHANGE

Climate First Bank, led by Ken LaRoe, is at the forefront of values-based financial services. His St. Petersburgbased bank opened in 2021 and quickly made a name for itself as a lender that supports solar power installations, electric vehicle infrastructure and other sustainable energy solutions.

70 BUSINESS OBSERVER

THE CHANGE-MAKERS

JULIE FLETCHER PHOTOGRAPHY KEN LAROE founded Climate First Bank in 2021. LaRoe FOUNDER AND CEO, CLIMATE FIRST BANK

35 Mules is the first in-house innovation hub backed by a global energy leader. Learn more at 35Mules.com 407503-1

AULD from 60

trict redevelopment. In January, St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch chose the Rays and its Houston-based development partner, Hines, to remake the 86-acre Tropicana Field site in downtown St. Pete. The estimated $4 billion project includes a proposal for a new baseball stadium, in addition to more than 5,700 multifamily units; 600 senior living units; 700 hotel units and more.

Auld has also facilitated change in other ways through his position with the Rays, particularly off the field. In 2015, he led an effort to have the Rays file an amicus brief in

BIG BOOK OF BUSINESS THE CHANGE-MAKERS

jumped at the chance to merge it with an industry leader.

T he combined OneEthos/ Ecountabl platform hasn’t launched yet, but LaRoe anticipates it will resonate with a growing number of

support of Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court case that resulted in the federal legalization of same-sex marriage, making the Rays the first MLB team to officially support the measure. Under Auld’s leadership, the Rays have also raised the organization’s minimum wage to $15 per hour and instituted paid parental leave, adoption benefits and paid volunteer time, among other benefits.

In addition to his duties with the Rays and the Tampa Bay Partnership, Auld serves on the boards of t he Rays Baseball Foundation, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay and CEOs Against Cancer.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa

ethically minded consumers. (On the flip side, Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis and the state Legislature have enacted rules that would curb ESG policies, at least in official state business.)

B y the end of the year or in the first quarter of 2024, Climate First Bank will have a more prominent

Bay CEO Chris Letsos says in Auld’s role on the BBBS board, the baseball executive has facilitated multiple opportunities for underprivileged children to attend Rays and Rowdies games and meet players.

“ What you get with Brian, although he’s busy and all over the headlines, his time is intentional,” he says. “When you talk to him

location, as it’s currently building a new headquarters. It will be a certified LEED Platinum structure, at 182 37th Ave. N. in St. Pete, across from a Whole Foods grocery store also under construction. The existing building at that address has b een completely gutted, LaRoe says, but renovation work has been

How to face the ups and downs of your business.

about our mission, you feel like it’s all that matters. He asks all the right questions. He’s passionate about kids — their future, their opportunities. He believes that every single child has the potential to be big, and he does whatever it takes to help us get there.”

Letsos adds, “I think he understands that what he does is bigger than baseball. He understands we’re all a part of this community, and we all play a part in making Tampa Bay great for everyone.”

— BRIAN HARTZ

going “painfully slow.”

“It’s coming along,” LaRoe says. “It’s all approved and in construction, but this supply chain thing, t hey say it’s over, but it’s not even remotely over.”

BRIAN HARTZ

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72 BUSINESS OBSERVER BusinessObserverFL.com ■ AUGUST 2023

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LAROE from 70

Brian Auld does a lot of work that doesn’t necessarily make the sports, or news, headlines.

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As we celebrate 15 years of success, I would like to pause to thank our clients, trade partners and employees for 15 great years.

WE COULD NOT HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT YOU!

We built the foundation of our company on the belief that we could and would service our clients to a higher level. We wanted to do what’s in the best interest of our clients first and trusted that the reward would follow. Our tag line "Building Relationships" became our brand. We are grateful for the investment of trust and confidence our clients have placed in us. With help from our clients, trade partners and employees we have been able to build our city, build up the community for those in need and build a better tomorrow for our families.

Over the past 15 years we have grown into 9 states. We have become the largest locally owned minority General Contractor in the Tampa market but, our greatest accomplishment would be that we have put over 5 million dollars back into our community through local nonprofits.

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