Ceilings Plus Named Ex-Im Bank Small Business Exporter of the Year
April 9, 2012
(Ex-Im Bank)
Growing Export Sales Helps California Company Add More Than 70 Jobs
Washington, D.C. – Ceilings Plus, a California small business manufacturer and
installer of high-quality aluminum and wood ceilings and wall panels, will
receive the Small Business Exporter of the Year award from the Export-Import
Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank). The award will be presented at the
Bank's 37th Annual Conference, "Ex-Im –Your Competitive Edge," on April 12 in
Washington, D.C
In cooperation with Bank of the West as the guaranteed lender, Ceilings Plus has
been using Ex-Im Bank's working capital loan guarantee since 2007. The company,
which now exports to 5 countries, recorded $30 million in sales this year and
created 73 American new manufacturing jobs.
"Ceilings Plus is a great example of a small business that has been extremely
successful in the international marketplace," said Fred P. Hochberg, chairman
and president of the Export-Import Bank of the United States. "With 95% of the
world’s customers outside the United States, it is critical that we encourage
our small business owners to sell more products to more customers in more
countries."
"Thanks to Ex-Im Bank, more than 50% of our business now comes from exports and
we have created 73 new jobs," said Nancy Mercolino, president of Ceilings Plus.
"Exports have increased our bottom line, and I am looking forward to reaching
more international markets."
In Fiscal Year 2011, Ex-Im Bank authorized nearly $400 million in financing for
California small businesses, making it one of the leading states in the country
for Ex-Im small business financing. Over the past three years, the Bank's small
business financing has increased by more than 70 percent, from $3.3 billion in
FY 2008 to $6 billion in FY 2011, and it is up $1 billion from last year.
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