10.31.2001

Security Check Named One of The Nation's Fastest Growing Companies by Inc Magazine

OXFORD, MS - Security Check has been named one of America's entrepreneurial growth leaders by Inc magazine, which recently released its annual ranking of the Inc 500, the nation's fastest-growing private companies. Security Check, based in Oxford, was ranked 91st on the prestigious Inc 500 list. The magazine began ranking the nation's fastest-growing private companies in 1982, charting sales growth over five year periods. Former Inc 500 companies that have gone on to become household names include Microsoft, Timberland, Domino's Pizza and Patagonia.

"The Inc 500 has included some prestigious corporate names among its leaders through the years, so our ranking in the top 100 is gratifying," said Security Check co-founder and owner John Lewis. "The Inc 500 is results-driven so it's not an award; it's a reminder to the owners and employees of five years of hard work and focus."

Security Check, a national provider of check collection and verification services, achieved 2,500 percent growth rate in the past five years.

"We've worked hard and set some lofty goals along the way," said William Alias III, a co-founder and owner of Security Check. "We have grown fast because we've remained committed to customer service each step of the way."

To be eligible for this year's Inc 500, companies had to be independent and privately held through 2000, have at least $200,000 in sales in the base year of 1996, and their 2000 sales had to have exceeded 1999 sales.

Security Check, founded in 1995, had revenues in excess of $15 million this year.

"The Inc 500 gives America a window on the future - which companies will be the Microsofts and Timberlands of tomorrow," said George Gendron, Inc editor-in-chief. "The economy may have slowed, but entrepreneurial enterprises have always been, and will continue to be, the nation's foremost engine of growth and job creation."

Alias said the slowing economy should have little impact on Security Check's core business and predicted continued growth.

"We are now big enough to service large companies, but we still have a small business mentality," Alias said. "That combination is opening a lot of doors."

Security Check has been listed among the fastest growing companies in Mississippi the past two years. The company employs 150 associates and has more than 20 individual sales partnerships in ten states.

Security Check www.securitycheckllc.com is a privately owned and operated company that offers a full range of payment and customized process solutions. By offering their clients a customized payment solution, Security Check has been able to develop new products that will enable their clients business to grow.