Warrington alumna at the top of the seventh annual Gator100

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The University of Florida recognized the 2021 Gator100 honorees on Friday, April 23 during a special virtual ceremony, including 44 Warrington alumni who were represented on the list.

Presented by the UF Alumni Association, the Gator100 honors the 100 fastest-growing Gator-owned or Gator-led businesses in the world. The event serves not only as a setting where UF’s elite entrepreneurs can gather and share their talents and wisdom, but as an inspiration to fellow Gators to be a part of this exclusive group.

Even after the many challenges presented in 2020, the Gator100 honorees totaled $6.4 billion in earned revenues and have an average growth rate of 38.4%. For the first time, 47 new companies earned a spot on the list. More than 24% of alumni on the list hold two or more degrees from UF. The earliest class year represented on the list is 1969 and the most recent is 2018. There are 75 companies in Florida represented on the list, with Texas, Georgia and Colorado being the home to many other businesses on the Gator100.   

Gator100 companies have been in business for at least five years and have annual revenues of $250,000 or more. The Gator100 is ranked by compound annual growth rate (CAGR), which is used to determine year- over-year growth over the past three years. CAGR is determined by global accounting firm Ernst & Young, which ensures confidentiality of financial submissions and the integrity of the Gator100. View the complete list of Gator100 honorees here.

Titanium Wireless, founded and led by Warrington College of Business alumna Jessica Rhodes (MBA ’14), was the top-ranked company. The Gulf Breeze-based company is disrupting the business mobility experience by providing concierge level service and support to small businesses and large enterprises throughout the United States.

Engineered Design Services, led by agricultural and biological engineering alumnus Craig McKenzie, came in second. Onicx, led by College of Design Construction and Planning alumnus Dhvanit Patel, came in third.

BHRS Companies, led by Warrington alumnus Brandon Hurd (BSBA ’15), came in fourth place, and Nationwide Pharmaceutical, led by College of Pharmacy alumnus Joseph Lawrence, rounded out the top 5. The compound annual growth rates for the top five companies ranged between 166.58% – 139.18%.

Warrington alumni Jane Sun (BSAc ’92) and Keith Koenig (BSBA ’73, MBA ’75) were presented with the S. Clark Butler Pinnacle Award, which recognizes established business leaders who have demonstrated sustained success and leadership in their industry.

Sun is the CEO of Trip.com Group and joined the company as CFO in 2005. She helped it grow from a small tech company into a one-stop shop for travel services sought by 400 million users worldwide. She is the only female CEO in China’s high-tech industry.

Koenig is CEO and owner of City Furniture, which he co-founded with his late brother. Today, their enterprise includes 19 City Furniture and 14 Ashley Furniture HomeStores in South and Central Florida, a distribution facility and headquarters in Tamarac, as well as a subsidiary, Kevin Charles Fine Upholstery, in Mississippi.

Warrington alumni represent a solid portion of the companies on the 2021 Gator100, with 38 of the 100 companies on the list led or owned by Business Gators. Since the Gator100 was founded in 2015, more than 150 companies led or owned by Warrington alumni have been included on the Gator100.

Four of the companies in the top 10 are led by Warrington alumni. In addition to Jessica Rhodes and Brandon Hurd, Fattmerchant’s Suneera Madhani (BSBA ’09) and Sal Rehmetullah (BSBA ’10) and JWB Real Estate Capital’s Alex Sifakis (BSBA ’05), Adam Rigel (BSBA ’05, MS ’06), Adam Eiseman (BSBA ’03, MA ’05) and Gregg Cohen (BSBA ’05) were among the top 10 Gator100 companies.

In addition, seven of the top 20 are led or owned by Warrington alumni including Flipstone Technology (#14), Vitrazza (#15) and Passport (#18).  

To qualify for the Gator100, companies must have been in business for five years or more as of Oct. 30, 2020 and have had verifiable annual revenues of $250,000 or more every year since 2017.

Additionally, a UF alumnus or alumni must have met one of the following three leadership criteria:

• Owned 50 percent or more of the company from Jan. 1, 2017, through Oct. 30, 2020; or   
• Served as the company’s chief executive from Jan. 1, 2017, through Oct. 30, 2020; or  
• Founded the company and been active as a member of the most senior management team from Jan. 1, 2017, through Oct. 30, 2020.

You can watch the exciting countdown to No. 1 in the recorded Gator100 event on YouTube.