IE Business Daily Business news for the Inland Empire.
This is the first year U.S. Rubber Recycling Inc. in Colton has been nominated for a Spirit of the Entrepreneur Award, and Jeff Baldassari, the company’s president and chief executive officer, could not be more delighted.
The company, which makes rubber flooring, acoustic underlayment, and vegetation control products, has been in business for 25 years, six years longer than the Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship at Cal State San Bernardino has been hosting the Spirit Awards.
Baldassari says he would be pleased to be nominated any year, but to be selected in 2021 is particularly satisfying considering what his business has had to deal with during the past year and a half.
Among other things, it doubled its workforce to 70, turned to the internet to find more clients, and doubled its business.
“It feels like recognition for everything we’ve been through, and that’s very satisfying,” said Baldassari, whose company is one of four nominated in this year’s manufacturing – entrepreneur category. “Because of COVID-19, we went from being a business-to-business operation to business-to-consumer.
“Now we’re a combination of the two, but we’ve more than doubled our business since March of 2020. I was never worried about losing the company, but it has been difficult. I think being nominated now means more now than it normally would.”
Other nominees in the manufacturing – entrepreneur category are:
- DH Casters in Ontario;
- The Sash Co. Upland;
- Stearns Product Development Corp., doing business as Proluxe, in Perris.
The five other categories are Healthcare, Small-Emerging Enterprise, Service-Based, Social and General Entrepreneur. A Best-of-the-Best Award is also given out, and Cal State San Bernardino business students deliver 90-second pitches for new businesses that are judged by the audience.
All six categories, and Best-of-the-Best winners, are judged by former Spirit of the Entrepreneur winners.
This 2021 Spirit of the Entrepreneur Awards Gala, a black-tie event, will be held Nov. 10 at Fox Performing Arts Center, 3801 Mission Inn Ave., Riverside. For information or to get tickets to visit https://spiritawardsie.com/ or call Stacy Allis at (909) 329-4515.
