GENICON
“You don’t
know what you don’t know.” This is the answer Gary Haberland,
President and CEO of GENICON, gave when asked if he imagined his
company would be where it is today.
Founded in
1998 and with not much more than $2,000 in revenue its first
year, GENICON began as a manufacture of medical device products
for larger medical device companies under their own brand
labeling. Today, GENICON, located in Orlando, Florida, is
recognized as an emerging leader in the design, production and
distribution of patented instrumentation focused within the
field of Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS). Distributing products
to over 44 countries in four continents, three different faiths
and eight cultures, GENICON is the epitome of an international
company.
Inspired by
working in the medical device industry for years, Gary Haberland
decided he could and would do it better. With his dining room as
his office and his garage as his storage unit, Haberland created
GENICON and began building his own medical device products. Like
any newly found company, it was vital for Haberland to seek
expert advice. At the suggestion of his accountant, Haberland
contacted the Small Business Development Center at UCF (SBDC at
UCF) and met with Eunice Choi for start-up information. With
this meeting, the nine-year relationship between GENICON and the
SBDC began.
Over the
years, Haberland received business advice and guidance from the
SBDC at UCF including a detailed financial analysis, loan
assistance for a line of credit, business plan review, and
expansion strategy development. A UCF graduate student intern
was also assigned to work with Haberland on refining his website
and marketing collateral. By the end of 2001, GENICON was
exporting to 23 countries, experienced a 35% growth in sales and
continued to expand. In 2006 and 2007, Haberland utilized the
Center’s Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) program
to explore government contracting opportunities.
Given
GENICON’s long-term success with SBDC resources, Haberland
states, “GENICON’s prominence within the international medical
device markets can easily be traced back to the support received
from the SBDC at our infancy and recognizable through our
continued sustainable growth we enjoy today. On-going guidance
and resources offered by the SBDC, and in specific Eunice Choi,
has proved to be an integral part of our success with
exporting.”
From a home
office to an ISO certified, 10,000 square-foot facility in
Central Florida, GENICON has grown from a one-man show to a
multi-national company with more than 20 employees. With its highly
sophisticated, extensive product line, GENICON proves that a
small company can make a big impact on the local region. As a
multi-million dollar company whose revenues have doubled
year-to-year, GENICON brings recognition to the area through its
focus on exports and supports the local economy by attracting
new talent to Central Florida with average salaries of $63,000,
most of who are highly skilled with at least one college degree.
GENICON has
received several accolades in recognition of the company’s
achievements including the U.S. Commerce Department’s 2002
Export Achievement Award and, most recently, the Governor’s 2007
Export Excellence Award. Of course, starting and nurturing your
own business does not come without hard work and dedication.
Haberland, who feels wearing a watch would only slow him down,
gave the following piece of advice for future entrepreneurs, “If
you are starting your own business, you should be in pursuit of
your passion. If you are in it for the money, you will soon
become disillusioned and quit.”
|
“GENICON’s
prominence within the international medical device markets can
easily be traced back to the support received from the SBDC at
our infancy and recognizable through our continued sustainable
growth we enjoy today."
Gary Haberland
GENICON | 
SBDC