Orange County’s fastest-growing private companies combined for an average increase of 40% on sales over the past two years to reach $21.5 billion in revenue, according to this week’s Business Journal list.
Our seventh annual list ranks 165 businesses by revenue growth for the 12 months through June compared with the same period in 2011.
This year’s list is our largest to date by number of companies and total revenue. Last year’s list included 154 entries that combined for $21 billion in sales, a 37% increase in sales over the two-year period measured.
Prior lists topped out at 100 entries or less.
The increase of 11 entries that achieved the 15% minimum increase in revenue to make this year’s list—a reflection of an improving local economy in the past two years—provided a healthy boost on total revenue.
If we had kept the cut-off point at 154 companies this go around, this year’s entries would have combined for a more modest $9.5 billion in sales, but their two-year growth would have stood at just under 80%, far and away the best rate of growth seen in any of our lists to date.
The highest level of growth seen in our lists was 50% in 2007, a prerecession peak. The low point came in 2010, when 69 businesses on the recession-battered list reported an average growth rate of 23%.
Companies’ two-year growth had to reach at least 15% to make the list (see criteria, page 46).
More than 60 companies saw at least 100% growth or more from two years ago. Twenty-eight companies exceeded 300%, and six topped 1,000%.
Opus No. 1
The list continues to include many smaller companies, which are more apt to post big revenue increases on smaller bases and stand out on the list. They include a variety of technology companies, marketing firms, finance-related business, staffing services, general contractors and healthcare companies.
More than 60 companies on the list had less than $5 million in sales last year, and six earned less than $1 million.
Not all the eye-catching revenue growth was for small businesses, however. Irvine-based Opus Bank nabbed the No. 1 spot on the list, with revenue increasing nearly 2,000% over the past two years to $156.9 million.
The bank is one of several companies on the list to have benefited from strong volumes of mortgage lending in the past few years (see related story, page 1), although much of Opus’ gains are due to acquisitions.
Notable buys for the bank in the past two years include deals for Fullerton-based RMG Capital Corp. and its subsidiary Fullerton Community Bank, and Everett, Wash.-based Cascade Financial Corp. and its Cascade Bank. Opus had $3.2 billion in assets at the end of August.
Opus is one of 17 companies on the list with more than $100 million in revenue last year. PacLife’ s $1.26 billion increase in total revenue over the past two years was by far the largest increase seen on the list.
Other companies estimated to have seen sales increase by more than $100 million over the past two years include fitness chain Fitness International LLC (No. 110), operator of health club chain LA Fitness; and lenders Stearns Lending Inc. of Santa Ana (No. 24) and Anaheim-based CashCall Inc. (No. 158).
Restaurants
Additional notable names on the list include a pair of Irvine-based restaurant and food chains—Habit Restaurants LLC (No. 61) and Yogurtland Franchising Inc. (No. 115)—as well as Wahoo’s Fish Taco (No. 112) in Santa Ana.
The highest-ranking food-related chain on the list is Santa Ana-based Nektar Juice Bar Inc., whose 867% growth over two years, to $12 million, earned it the No. 7 spot.
Businesses represented on this week’s list have seen a surge in employment over the past two years. The 165 companies on this week’s list employ about 21,700 people in OC, an increase of nearly 38% over the past two years.
This week’s list is part of a Special Report that starts on page 39, with related stories throughout this week’s issue.
Download the 2013 OC’s FASTEST GROWING PRIVATE COs list (pdf)
