When Galley Support Innovations of Sherwood had only $10,000 in sales in its first year in 2005, the Sherwood manufacturer of interior hardware for airplanes, trains and yachts began to look for other sources of sales.
"We were pretty much a dead company in 2005," said Gina Redke, Galley Support's chief executive officer, in an interview at the 2015 Governor's Award for Excellence in Global Trade. Galley Support won the award for small manufacturer exporter Tuesday at a ceremony at the Governor's Mansion.
The company -- which now does "upwards of $2 million" a year in sales, Redke said -- began working with the state, which invited the firm to go to the National Business Aviation Association trade show in 2007.
"We were able to make contact there with some customers, and it started the ball rolling," Redke said.
It began to expand its exporting business with a trip to the Farnborough International Airshow in England last year, Redke said.
Galley Support has about eight new contracts in the works and plans to go to the Paris International Airshow this year with several state agencies, including the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, Redke said.
"I think the great thing about being a small business and being broke for so long, you learn how to get things done," Redke said.
Galley Support's customers include Boeing Co., Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. and Dassault Falcon Jet, Redke said.
Galley Support does about 20 percent of its business through exporting, Redke said.
It hopes to double its workforce to 50 employees in the next five years and increase sales by 50 percent, Redke said. It is hiring workers in every area to keep up with demand, Redke said.
Georg Fischer Harvel of Little Rock won the larger manufacturer exporter award. The company produces plastic pipe and fittings for the transportation of water and gases.
Its local market was saturated about five years ago and it worked to expand into the international market. It now exports to more than 50 countries.
Georg Fischer Harvel has about 130 employees in Little Rock, said Jim Gilchrist, the plant manager in Little Rock. About 20 percent of the company's business is in exporting, Gilchrist said.
One of every five Arkansas jobs is export-related, said Wanda Felton, vice chairman of the Export-Import Bank of the United States, the official export credit agency for the country. That is about 325,000 jobs in the state.
"The U.S. has no choice other than exporting if we're going to prosper in the 21st century," Felton said.
Export-related companies pay wages about 18 percent higher than other companies, Felton said.
Other winners Tuesday were Collective Bias Inc. of Rogers, which won the Arkansas Rising Star award; Jobco Inc. of Fort Smith, which won the award for small service provider; and Knesek Guns Inc. of Van Buren, the medium service provider winner.
Collective Bias began six years ago with the goal of helping brands figure out the social media marketing landscape. Forbes has twice named Collective Bias one of "America's Most Promising Companies."
Jobco is a wholesale distributor for manufacturing companies nationally and in international markets. It has doubled its international sales in the past year.
Through discussions with potential customers after attending a trade show in Germany, Knesek Guns realized there was an international need for specialized firearms. Knesek Guns exports advanced firearms and equipment to 76 international markets.
Business on 05/20/2015