On January 22 of this year Jeremy, head of Product Development, was honored with an award at the second annual Bulldog 100 Ceremony. This program recognizes the fastest-growing businesses that are owned and operated by University of Georgia alumnus. J House Media ranked 35th out of more than 750 applicants from across the United States, surpassing a number of competing companies.
I recently spoke with Jason, Operations Manager, and Jeremy about the award, and it became quite clear to me that this duo was bound to succeed. Their responses to my questions were nearly identical – “We do tend to think similarly,” mentioned Jeremy. The pair agreed that one main reason for receiving this prestigious award had to do with hard work, “A lot of hard, hard work,” to be exact according to Jason. As any other up-and-coming business might tell you, there were times when the success of the business was uncertain: “There were never any points when I thought we wouldn’t make it, but there were times when I questioned the financial viability of it, but we overcame it with strategy,” said Jason. Jeremy continued, “We’d never have to close the business, only scale back. But the thought of letting people go just to make more money is terrible.”
There’s no question that J House has made it’s mark in Athens, Georgia as a rising star in the business community, and I think it will only get better from here. When asked what advice they would give to other small business owners, Jason replied after some brief contemplation, “Always have a goal, always have a plan, and always know that you’re going to work very hard.” Working hard seems to be a recurring theme in the J House culture, as seen in past years. Jeremy added, “Never lose sight of why you’re doing what you’re doing.”
J House would like to give a special thanks to the UGA Alumni Association for taking the time to recognize and promote the efforts of the bulldog nation. Not only is the program taking the time to appreciate and acknowledge the accomplishments of UGA graduates, but the labors of small businesses everywhere are being realized.
More information about the program as well as the complete list of the Bulldog 100 Class of 2011 can be found at: www.uga.edu/alumni/bulldog100.
