Croft & Associates named Cobb Chamber's Small Business of the Year

May 10—CUMBERLAND — Croft and Associates, the Kennesaw-based architecture and engineering firm founded in 2004, was named the Cobb Chamber's 2021 Small Business of the Year at its monthly Marquee Monday event.

The company was chosen as the top business from a list of 30 finalists across the county. Its notable local projects include the renovation of the Cobb County Civic Center, and the construction of the Acworth Community Center and the Kennesaw Math and Science Academy.

"They are an award-winning, multidisciplinary leader within their industry," Chamber CEO Sharon Mason said just before the announcement. "They impressively stay committed to their professional service and client satisfaction, and this has been reflected in their last 17 years of consistent growth."

Following Chamber Chairman John Loud's presentation of the award, the firm's president, Jim Croft, took the stage, joined by fellow executives Tim Clement, Mark Jackson, Anthony Iorillo, and State Rep. Ed Setzler, R-Acworth.

"We were one day a company of one person — me — and now we're almost 70 people," Croft told the crowd. "What an outstanding thing that is, (and) not because of the size of our company, but because of the outstanding people that I get to spend my every day with."

Mason noted that Croft completed 10 major projects in 2020, and speaking after the event, Croft and his coworkers said it meant something extra to take home the prize after the difficulties of the prior year.

"We're sort of heads down focused on what we're doing serving our clients ... It's been a very interesting journey to work remotely for most of our folks, but our clients have deemed that we're critical services ... So, we had to carry on. We had no option," Croft said.

Mark Jackson, the firm's chief operating officer, said he was particularly proud that the firm grew by adding 17 new employees last year. Setzler, meanwhile, deferred to his boss to let him take in the limelight.

In addition to the Small Business of the Year award, the chamber inducted Three-13 Salon, Spa & Boutique into its Small Business Hall of Fame.

Abernathy Ditzel Hendrick Bryce, a Marietta law firm; American Axes, an ax-throwing venue; Neighborhood Cuisine & Provisions, a meal delivery service; and The Dwell Collective, a real estate company, were all named as 2021 Businesses to Watch.

The full list of the chamber's Top 30 Small Businesses is as follows:

—41South Creative

—Innovation Compounding

—All Roof Solutions, Inc.

—InPrime Legal

—AQC Traffic Control Services, LLC

—Manay CPA, Inc.

—CFO Navigator

—Mills Specialty Metals, LLC

—CROFT & Associates

—Powers Electrical Solutions, Inc.

—Darden & Company

—Priority Jet, LLC

—Deluxe Athletics, LLC

—Prodew, Inc.

—DynamiX

—RE/MAX PURE

—Eclipse Networks

—SK Commercial Realty

—Four Hats, Inc.

—SpeedPro Marietta

—Georgia Trade School

—The Janice Overbeck Real Estate Team

—Governors Gun Club

—The Partnership of Atlanta, Inc.

—GreenMellen

—The UPS Store Smyrna

—Henry's Louisiana Grill, Inc.

—Win-Tech, Inc.

—HR Knowledge Source

—Yalo!

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