Happy New Year, Martin County!
Like you, we’re fresh off that wonderful time of rest, relaxation, and reflection … and ready to achieve our resolutions for 2025.
Every economy entails the circulation of a certain finite amount of financial capital. The addition of outside capital ensures economic sustainability and enables job creation. This means attracting outside investment and splashy, high-profile projects for some economic developers.
While that remains one indicator of success, I prefer a different approach—prioritizing our existing employers and helping them meet and achieve their expansion goals within Martin County. After all, according to the International Economic Development Council (IEDC), existing businesses are responsible for up to 80 percent of all net new local jobs.
This process begins with one of the Business Development Board of Martin County’s most important initiatives, the Pulse Program.
In the medical profession, whether a patient is in for a wellness check or an essential procedure, it all begins with taking their vitals. Similarly, the Pulse Program measures our economy’s vitals.
Martin County is home to some amazing businesses whose innovations carry national security implications and serve both domestic and international markets. The current work of these companies infuses outside capital into our economy. Many belong to our legacy industries (e.g. aviation and marine) as well as fast-growing newer industries such as advanced manufacturing.
One of the best ways to assist these innovative companies is to proactively reach out, hear from them directly, and listen to what they have to say. Thanks to our talented staff and dedicated board of directors, we’ve conducted hundreds of Pulse visits over the years.
Over time, we’ve refined the structure of Pulse visits to honor the employer’s time and gather enough insights to produce meaningful and actionable data.
Pulse visits cover a wide range of topics, from labor force issues to regulatory challenges to industry trends. These visits help crystalize the true nature of employer obstacles. Then, we use what we’ve learned to help develop creative solutions for companies, assist local leadership with making informed policy decisions, and ensure that the free workshops and informational sessions we host remain relevant and applicable.
We hope to pay your business a Pulse visit this year. Please call (772) 221-1380 or email office@bdbmc.org to inquire about scheduling a visit.
Final salute to the standouts of 2024
One more shoutout to the Martin County Business Awards winners:
- Company to Watch: Grind Hard Ammo, which the BDB helped with as it invested nearly $90 million in capital expenditures and investment in the City of Stuart and Village of Indiantown.
- Newcomer of the Year: TrenchBadger, whose innovation makes trench digging far more efficient and precise.
- Youth Entrepreneur of the Year: Parker Smith, 16, of Parker Marine Services, does everything from boat detailing to captain services.
- Entrepreneur of the Year: Pete Morello, Sr., of CIS Security Solutions, whose innovations have battled retail theft for 30 years.
- Manufacturer of the Year: Value Tool & Engineering, located in Palm City, manufactures parts for nearly every aircraft that the U.S. military and its NATO allies rely on.
- Headquarters of the Year: Paradise Air Fresh, a fragrance manufacturer for home, auto, and commercial uses, serves a global customer base from its 80,000-square-foot Palm City facility.
- Business Excellence: Pursuit Aerospace, which has specialized in manufacturing precision parts for aircraft for 57 years, employs 300 people in multiple local facilities totaling 200,000 square feet.
- Charlene Hoag Leadership Award: Suzy Hutchenson for her 50-plus year career leading Helping People Succeed in its support for infants and adults with developmental conditions.
Click here for a full event recap of the 2024 Business Awards presented by Bank of America, including a photo gallery, a list of sponsors, and the “Made in Martin” approach to the awards.
