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FIRST-EVER LIST OF THE 5,000 FASTEST-GROWING BUSINESSES

REPORTS TOTAL REVENUE OF $194.5 BILLION

Ace Underwriting Group, Inc. Ranks No. 4409 on the 2007 Inc. 5,000

With Three-Year Sales Growth of 47.1%

NEW YORK, August 23, 2007 – Inc. today ranked Ace Underwriting Group, Inc. #4409 on its first-ever Inc. 5,000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in the country. The Inc. 5,000, an extension of Inc. magazine’s annual Inc. 500 list, catches many businesses that are too big to grow at the pace required to make the Inc. 500, as well as a host of smaller firms. Taken as a whole, these companies represent the backbone of the U.S. economy.

"The Inc. 5,000 provides the most comprehensive look ever at the most important part of the economy – the entrepreneurial part," said Inc. 5,000 Project Manager Jim Melloan. "The expansion of the list has allowed us to tell the stories of larger companies, older companies, and a wealth of companies in industries like Manufacturing and Construction that are underreported in the business media.
Year 2007
Industry Insurance
Founded 1989
Growth 47.1%
Revenue $7.5 million
Website www.underwriting.com

What it does: Parent company of insurance and related services such as 24-hour insurance claim services, travel benefits, computer software, packaging and shipping of goods, and photo processing.

Why it's growing: Taking advantage of the Internet. With the advent of search engines like Yahoo and Google and the growing popularity of shopping for insurance online, the company's strategic Internet marketing campaigns paid off. The company had a web address in 1994 before they had the ability to even launch a site.

What's noteworthy: Every July 4th, the company drives an SUV in the local parade. Sitting up front is Ace's mascot, an English sheepdog named Max who rides next to two employees dressed up as crash test dummies with the slogan, "Drive Safely."

 

The 2007 Inc. 5,000, as revealed online at www.inc.com, reported median revenue of $9.4 million and median three-year growth of 140 percent. Complete information on this year’s Inc. 5,000, can be found at www.inc.com/inc5000. The list features a profile for each company, almost all of them written as a result of Inc. interviews with management. In addition, the list is searchable according to numerous criteria, including industry, city, state, region, and year founded.

Hottest Regions for Fastest-Growing Companies

Leading the list of the fastest-growing companies in the nation is the Midwest region with 1,046 of the fastest-growing companies, followed by the West with 884 companies.  The Southeast comes in a close third, with 872 companies, followed by the Northeast with 782 companies, and the Mid-Atlantic region with 606 companies.

Hottest Industries for Fastest-Growing Businesses

The largest business category is Construction, with 561 of the fastest-growing companies in this category,  followed by Manufacturing with 515 companies, IT services in third with 466 companies, Business Services with 377 companies and Advertising & Marketing with 349 companies round out the top five industries ranked on the 2007 Inc. 5,000.

Industries reporting the highest total revenue in 2006 are Construction ($27.1billion), Manufacturing ($18.6 billion), Health ($13.1 billion), Computers & Electronics ($12.7 billion), and Financial Services ($11.8 billion).

Methodology

The 2007 Inc. 5000 list measures revenue growth from 2003 through 2006. To qualify, companies had to be U.S.-based and privately held, independent – not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies – as of December 31, 2006, and have had at least $200,000 in revenue in 2003, and $2 million in 2006.

Companies can apply for next year’s Inc. 500 and Inc. 5,000 by registering with IncBizNet, the new social network for private companies that will launch this fall on Inc.com.

About Inc.com:

Inc.com, the Daily Resource for Entrepreneurs, delivers advice, tools, breaking news, and rich multi-media  to help business owners and CEOs start, run, and grow their businesses more successfully. Information and advice covering virtually every business and management task, including marketing, sales, finding capital, managing people can be found at http://www.inc.com.

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