Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber Announces the 11th Annual Small Business of the Year Recipient

The Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber (GGCC) awarded Crown Trophy Gaithersburg as the recipient of the 11th Annual Small Business of the Year Award (SBY) on December 7, as a part of their Annual Celebration Dinner & Awards Ceremony. The award was presented by Eric Myers with M&T Bank.

“The Crown Trophy story is a great small business story. It is a story of hard work, dedication, and a family coming together to create a business. We are honored to recognize Martin and his team for their efforts,” said Marilyn Balcombe, GGCC President and CEO.

Nino Penaflor, Martin Hollander, owner, Michele Hollander, Adriana Camacho, Poundra Prayitno of Crown Trophy Gaithersburg proudly accept the Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber’s 11th Annual Small Business of the Year Award at the Chamber’s Annual Celebration Dinner & Award Ceremony on December 7, 2017.
(Photo Credit: GGCC)

The Small Business of the Year Award recognizes small businesses, which are a vital part of our economy and community. The award is presented to the small business that demonstrates success, community involvement, and excellent customer relations.

Crown Trophy of Gaithersburg is the Chamber’s Small Business of the Year for their growth and commitment to their customers and community for the past eighteen years. The trophy and plaque business is like no other. Crown Trophy brings excitement and joy to children and adults alike when they are recognized for both small and large accomplishments. Crown Trophy employs seven full time employees who are all sincerely dedicated to our customers’ needs.  Many of the employees are family members who enjoy working together in a friendly atmosphere.  In a time when consumers can go online and order virtually anything, Crown Trophy has retained customers over the years based on superb customer service and quality products.

It was the 90’s, and Martin Hollander was in the auto parts business when he saw the writing on the wall that the auto parts business was changing and decided to look for something different. He discovered Crown Trophy in an Entrepreneur magazine that was ranked in the top 500 franchises. It peeked his curiosity and he thought it was a “unique type of business”. He purchased a Crown Trophy franchise, traveled to New York for new owner training, and then Crown Trophy of Gaithersburg was born in June of 1999.

Here is where their story gets cool – Hollander’s father helped with the build out of the work area and friends and family were some of their first employees. That first year, his wife, children and Hollander made trophies at their kitchen table until the wee hours of the morning to meet deadlines for their first baseball order.  Nine years ago, they doubled their space by taking over the unit next door to theirs in the Airpark. As the business grew, they added more full-time employees to keep up with production and customer’s needs. They have expanded their product line to include banners, signs, and full color printing on awards. Crown Trophy of Gaithersburg has been one of the top ten Crown Trophy franchises in the country for the past ten years.

Crown Trophy of Gaithersburg is also involved in the community and likes to give back when they can. They have sponsored various local sports teams in the past. They donate the awards for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and have done so for the past five years. And they donate the awards for the annual gala for Hospice Caring. As well as sponsoring a myriad of other local non-profit organizations.

Crown Trophy has been a Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber Member for eighteen years and has supported and continues to support us in many ways.

Learn more about Crown Trophy at: www.crowntrophy.com.

The GGCC is active in providing business-to-business networking opportunities throughout the year: a collective voice in local, regional, and state legislative affairs, professional development opportunities and other services that enhance the business environment.

The GGCC is located at 910 Clopper Road, Suite 205N, Gaithersburg, MD. To learn more about the GGCC visit us at www.ggchamber.org. Find us on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gaithersburg-Germantown-Chamber-of-Commerce/64339954570. And on Twitter at @GGCCNEWS.

About Laura Rowles

Laura authors the blog Your Success is Our Business on MyMCMedia. Laura is the Director of Events & Marketing for the Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber of Commerce - a member-based organization of businesses that have joined together for the purpose of promoting the civic, commercial and industrial progress in our communities. The area's economic well-being is a result of the caliber of work that is done by the Chamber. The Chamber has a major impact on business, income and future growth of the area. My position at the Chamber - Director of Events & Marketing - affords me the opportunity to plan quality events for our Members and market the Chamber is a variety of avenues. At the GGCC, we typically have around 30 events each year including: breakfasts, lunches, after-five's, ribbon cuttings and special events. The consensus is we have high quality events with good energy. In 2012, we had over 2,040 people visit our events. Most our events are free to Members so securing sponsorships for all events. Additionally, I am responsible for planning networking, overseeing the budget and marketing of all events in order to make them successful. Lastly, I coordinate all marketing and communication efforts of the GGCC including weekly email blasts, its quarterly newsletter, all social media platforms, media relations and community outreach.

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