Confluence Garners Third in "Fast 50" Biz Journal Awards

Confluence Watersports Co. received recognition as the third-fastest growing company in the Triad area of North Carolina in this year’s Business Journal (www.triad.bcentral.com) “Fast 50” competition, published as a special insert in the Oct.12-18 edition.

According to Doug Copeland, publisher and president of the Business Journal, nominees had to be independent and privately held companies, have revenues of at least $3 million in 2000, and have completed three full fiscal years of operation. Once firms met those criteria, their revenue growth rate was evaluated and ranked by the accounting firm, BDO Seidman.

The article honoring Confluence reported the company’s 2000 revenues as $27 million with 215 employees located in the Triad headquarters and another 17 employees in three offices outside of the Triad region.

“We were the only ones at the award ceremony not wearing a coat and tie,” says Bill Medlin, Confluence CEO and president, who also told SNEWS® it was “a different kind of culture for us to see, and, in many ways, I’m sure the other company execs felt the same about us.”

Medlin added that the good times just continue to roll for Confluence.

“We are within a whisker of being at the same production levels we were at last year — about 96 percent of capacity with the last available oven into play,” says Medlin.

“We have been very, very pleased. Whitewater has simply gone bananas. We have shipped three times as many orders this year as we did last. Retailers hopped on product at the show, took earlier orders, and now are refilling.

“Internationally, we just received another container order from Japan, and we have shipped two already.

“Northeast sales for us are up over last year and that’s a pleasant surprise. In Florida, paddlesport sales are up 47 percent for as well.”

Medlin says the market isn’t growing that much really. In fact, he told SNEWS® he believes the paddlesport market is still somewhat flat and that Confluence’s sales increase has come at the expense of other suppliers.