Utah's one-hundred fastestgrowingcompanies: the star performers.

• Author: Wilhite, Brent

And the Oscar goes to ... ? Okay, they didn't win Oscars. But based on the dazzling performances given by these Utah businesses, they deserve to be honored, applauded and perhaps given standing ovations. Minus the red carpet, that's just what they were given at this year's Utah 100 Awards.

MountainWest Venture Group (MWVG) has been sponsoring this event for the past nine years to honor Utah's 100 fastest growing companies, top 15 revenue growth companies and 15 "Emerging Elite" companies. While you may not be familiar with the Utah 100 award, you're probably familiar with many of the winners. That's why they made the list. For at least five years these Utah-based companies have been gobbling up market share in their respective industries.

In order for small-and mid-sized companies to compete with behemoths, winners are selected by sales growth percentages. The envelope, please: This year's top honor goes to Overstock.com--a deserved distinction, as the company posted a sales increase of more than 10,000 percent from 1998 to 2002.

If you're focused solely on the bottom line, the Top Revenue Growth category honors companies based on total revenues. Zions Bancorporation garnered that top position--for the fourth consecutive year.

Only three companies have been in the winner's circle since 1995, when the awards began. Dentrix Dental Systems, Inc. has nine Utah 100 awards, while The Layton Companies and R.C. Willey have been a fixture in the Top 15 Revenue Growth category every year. Other Utah 100 longevity awards go to Christopherson Travel Group, an eight-time winner, and Body Firm Aerobics, Inc., a seven-time winner. Consistent Revenue Growth companies include Zions Bancorporation and Macey's Inc., for eight years' in the Top 15.

Companies such as iBoats.com and Breathe Day Spa might not be household names, but they could be soon. Hailed as up-and-comers with future potential in the "Emerging Elite" category, these companies and 13 others are poised for future growth and success.

Since everyone wants to know the secrets of success, here's a behind-the-scenes look at a few top performers.

'THE BIG O'

In October 1999, Patrick Byrne launched Overstock.com, an online "closeout" retailer selling excess inventory over the Internet. By December, The Salt Lake Tribune had run ran an article citing Byrne's company as the fastest-growing Internet site in the country--not too shabby, considering it was the heyday of the dot-com movement.

At the Utah 100 awards ceremony, Byrne said, "[Four years ago] I was turned down by 55 VCs, and I was probably the only guy turned down in the fall of 1999. Since then, he noted, "[Overstock.com has] liquidated 18 dot-coms funded by the same guys who turned me down." Byrne says the company exploded, using simple, obvious tactics. For example, his team tracked the source his visitors were arriving from. "We just cut off the bottom 80 percent of sources, and doubled up our spending on the top 20 percent. Then we did that each month. That's all it took--it was that simple," he explains. "To me, I don't think I'm very smart. The technique we used is something that could be explained to any eighth-grader. But it's possible for people to be so smart they don't see what's in front of their eyes anymore."

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ENGINEERING SUCCESS

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