Appletree Honors:
Named to the 2004-2008 list of Philadelphia 100 fastest growing, privately held companies in the Greater Philadelphia area.

About:
The Philadelphia 100® is an annual program conducted by the Entrepreneurs' Forum of Greater Philadelphia, Philadelphia Business Journal and Wharton Small Business Development Center.  By tracking the fastest growing, privately held companies in the Greater Philadelphia area, we

• help to spread the word about the economic vitality of the Greater Philadelphia region to spawn, support and grow a diverse group of businesses,
• place a spotlight on the 100 fastest growing, privately held companies which forms the backbone of the region's economy,
• develop the business acumen of the region by sharing success stories,
• measure the impact these companies have on the economy, and
• collect vital information that can help elected officials and regional planners to meet the economics needs of the region and to provide an intelligent infrastructure to enhance growth.

The program culminates at a prestigious Awards Ceremony and Dinner honoring the fastest growing, privately held companies.  The 2008 Philadelphia 100® marks the 20th anniversary of this event.  It is one of the region's premier events.
The companies that comprised 2007 Philadelphia 100 had a median growth rate of 114%, an average of 100 employees, revenues of $10 million and an average life of 11 years. With statistics like that there is no doubt of their economic contribution to our economy.

History:
In 1988, a group of entrepreneurial supporters and professional service providers gathered at the Entrepreneurs’ Forum of Greater Philadelphia to brainstorm about how to highlight the contribution of entrepreneurial companies to the region. The result of this brainstorm was the birth of the Philadelphia 100®, a yearly research project to identify the fastest growing, privately held companies.           

The original architects of this project included business researcher, Bill Madway, David Thornburgh of the Wharton Small Business Development Center, local venture capitalists, Terry Collison and Tom Penn, and attorney Bill Scari.           

The Philadelphia 100 has been an inspiration to other cities and regions throughout the United States. Approximately 10 other cities/regions have consulted with the Philadelphia 100 about how they could start their own 100 list.

In 1998, The Philadelphia 100 compiled a list of the Top 25 companies all-time performers for the first 10 years (based on revenues). At that time, that list of performers were contributing $4.4 billion and employing over 35,000 people.            

When these results are juxtaposed against the performance of the Fortune 500 (which have lost 5 million jobs since 1980 according to the National Commission on Entrepreneurism), the importance of Philadelphia 100 companies to the vibrancy and vitality of the region is readily understood.

In 2004, the Philadelphia 100 Hall of Fame was created as a way of honoring those winners who repeatedly made the list. The criteria for this honor is: any company which makes the Philadelphia 100 list of fastest, growing privately held companies five times or more or any person who holds the position of CEO for two or more Philadelphia 100 companies at the time they appeared on the Philadelphia 100 list of fastest growing, privately held companies five times or more. To date, 43 companies and CEOs into the Philadelphia 100 Hall of Fame have been inducted

Mission:
The Philadelphia 100® is an annual project conducted by the Entrepreneurs' Forum of Greater Philadelphia, Philadelphia Business Journal and Wharton Small Business Development Center.  By tracking the fastest growing, privately held companies in the Greater Philadelphia, we

• help to spread the word about the economic vitality of the Greater Philadelphia region to spawn, support and grow a diverse group of businesses,
• place a spotlight on the 100 fastest growing, privately held companies which forms the backbone of the region's economy
• develop the business acumen of the region by sharing success stories,
• measure the economic impact these companies have on the economy, and collect vital information that can help elected officials and regional planners to meet the economics needs of the region and to provide an intelligent infrastructure to enhance growth.

Website:
http://www.philadelphia100.com/