Jim Matuga, the host of Positively West Virginia, hosted a special edition highlighting the West Virginia Small Business Administration’s 2020 award winners. Karen Friel, SBA District Director, and Steve Bulger, SBA Mid- Atlantic Regional Director, joined Jim for the special edition of Positively West Virginia.

Mike McCown, Industrial Bolting Technologies – Small Business Exporter Of The Year

Industrial Bolting Technologies, Inc. started in 2003 in Tyler Mountain, West Virginia, by Mike McCown. McCown created The Torsion X brand and hydraulic tools. These high-quality tools are sold domestically and internationally. Recently, Industrial Bolting Technologies, Inc. was just named “Small Business Exporter Of The Year” by the United States Small Business Administration in West Virginia.

 How Many Different Countries Do You Export To?

“Currently, we are in thirty-five countries; some are one time deals, and some are multiple deals. We do so much in South America; it is unbelievable. We ship to Western Europe, Netherlands, Germany and France every week. We are very pleased with that, and the growth has been good. We found that during this pandemic, other companies throughout the world are looking for new products and better products to sell, so we have picked up about a half dozen more distributors, including France and Pakistan, during COVID,” said Mike McCown.

What Does Winning This Award Mean To Your Company?

“For me, it is fantastic, and for my company, it is a source of pride because we are a small company located in Tyler Mountain, West Virginia. It also gives us credibility to our international work, we put it on our Facebook page this past week and we got an incredible come back from distributors all over the world. It makes you feel good and it also gives your company credibility,” stated Mike McCown. 

Andrea Bourdelais, Level 1 Fasteners – WV Family-Owned Small Business Of The Year

Andrea Bourdelais is the president and majority owner of Level 1 Fasteners, Inc., founded in 1959 by John E. Bourdelais and Jack Bourdelais in a garage in Huntington Park, California, now located in Huntington, West Virginia. Since its inception in 1959, Level 1 Fasteners, Inc. has produced high-quality fasteners for aerospace, defense, medical and oil and gas industries. They began in the aerospace community in Southern California, putting fasteners onboard the Mercury and Gemini spacecraft and countless space stations, satellites and aircrafts. 

In the 1970s, their customer base shifted from aerospace to defense and oil and gas. They currently have fasteners on most aircraft carriers and submarines built since the early 1970s. Level 1 Fasteners manufactures high quality, fully traceable fasteners. In the past three years, Level 1 Fasteners and its management company, High-Performance Fasteners, had doubled its revenue and is projected to double again in the next three years. 

Bourdelais runs the business with her brother Ted Bourdelais, the shop manager, and her father, Jack Bourdelais, who is retired. Bourdelais is the current president and majority owner of Level 1 Fasteners, as she manages the business with the help and support of Jack and Ted. 

What Is One Piece Of Advice You Would Give To People That Are Thinking About Starting A Company?

“If it is family-owned, you really have to separate your family dynamics from your business dynamics. You also have to communicate with your family members, whether you agree or not. It has been crucial for us these past few years. Utilize the resources around you; there are so many opportunities out there for you to use,” said Andrea Bourdelais.

What Is The Thing You Are Most Optimistic For Moving Forward In This Business?

“We have a great new group of people who are excited about making nuts and bolts. I am also excited to get out of the COVID-19 period and interact with our customers who we have not seen this whole time. Our next phase is work with small aircraft carrier stations, which will expand our products quite a bit,” said Bourdelais.

Diane Lewis, Action Facilities Management – Small Business Prime Contractor Of The Year

Action Facilities Management, Inc. (AFM) is a West Virginia-Headquartered Minority Woman-Owned Small Business, Certified Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB) and certified by a third party as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE). AFM, established in 2001, provides Government and Commercial facilities management support to clients in 11 states and the District of Columbia. AFM was founded and is led by Diane Lewis, President, and CEO, who was the 2015 Minority Supplier of the Year Level III for the Tri-State Minority Supplier Development Council. Lewis was awarded on the Federal level of the U.S Small Business Administrations’ 2013 West Virginia’s Small Business Person of the Year. AFM received one of the highest honors from the National Guard for the company commitment to Veterans and was awarded the 2010 West Virginia’s Minority Small Business Champion.

AFM’s core competencies are facility operations and maintenance, predictive maintenance, repairs, construction, administrative support services and emergency management. Their entire professional team is committed to providing a comprehensive, low-risk solution to all facilities management needs.

How Has The SBA Positively Impacted Your Company?

“In 2003, I wanted to know about federal contracting, and they were able to help me understand that. I was able to get into the SBA’s business development program, and it actually allowed us to be competitive or not competitive. Still, it had set aside where we could get our feet wet without putting too much on the line. From that program, the training, and the networking opportunities have been a lifeline for my business,” said Diana Lewis.

What Is Something You Are Optimistic About For The Next Year?

“The last couple of years we have had a lot of momentum going and that momentum has not slowed down since, so our team is leaning forward on this. We are looking forward to continuous growth and adding to the economy here in West Virginia. We also want to keep putting efficiencies into those offices and services we provide to the federal government along with commercial clients,” stated Diana Lewis.

Businesses Who Were Not Able To Make It On The Show:

  • WV Veteran-Owned Small Business Of The Year – Tony Alonso from The Alonso Group
  • WV Rural-Owned Small Business Of The Year – G. Larry Omps from The Country Inn
  • WV Woman-Owned Small Business Of The Year – Alice Ann Friends from Friends Interpreting Services, LLC

Final Words

“I just want to say whether it is this year’s award winners or past award winners, these phenomenal small business owners who have gotten into business utilize the resources that were available to them. I have to give a shout-out to my team. If it were not for them, we would not be able to do what we do,” stated Karen Friel. 

Listen to Part 2 of the special edition podcast about the WV SBA award winners here.