2018 is almost in the books, and what a year it was. We want to take this opportunity to reflect on everything we have achieved as a team this year, and more importantly, how much fun we had doing it!
Awards & Recognition
In 2018 we were honored and humbled to receive some amazing awards and recognition for all the hard work that our team has put in over the past few years. Here’s a look at two of the awards that we were delighted to receive.
Merchology Ranked #1 in the Fast 50
In October we were thrilled to hear the news that Merchology received the top ranking for the fastest growing company in the Twin Cities Metro by the Minneapolis/ St. Paul Business Journal. Since 2015 Merchology’s revenue has inflated by a staggering 422% to $23.4 million in 2017. But it’s not just revenue that’s growing. Our team has expanded from just 11 employees in 2015 to over 100 this year. That’s one big family!
Merchology Ranked #282 in the Inc. 500
In August we debuted on Inc. 500’s list of America’s fastest-growing companies at #282. The publication judges companies based on three-year revenue growth and Merchology earned their ranking with a remarkable 1730% growth rate from 2014 to 2017. Merchology CEO Dick Ward had the following to say regarding the ranking, “In my 31 years in this industry, I've never seen change happen at the pace it's happening today, and it's exciting. To succeed in this industry or any industry, you must become comfortable with embracing and driving change, which has been one of our core values from day one."
Awesome Events
One of our core values here at Merchology is to celebrate and share our successes, and we had a lot to celebrate this year! Our amazing social team planned some fantastic events and company outings that were an absolute blast.
Company Golf Scramble
The Merch team hit the links at Baker National Golf Club in Edina, Minnesota for a company golf event in June. We might not have been the most skilled golfers on the course, but we definitely had the most fun! Learn how to plan your own company golf event here!
Volunteer Event at Coldwater Spring
In May we joined forces with the Mississippi Park Connection and the National Park service in a volunteer event at the Coldwater Spring area of the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area. 22 volunteers from Merchology spent the day clearing invasive species from the area to restore the landscape to its original state!
Cinco de Mayo Party
Our team collaborated on a Cinco de Mayo Potluck for the ages complete with generous servings of Mexican and Latin American dishes, drinks, and desserts. And of course, it’s not a Cinco de Mayo party if you don’t have margaritas!
Ice Cream Social
There’s nothing better on a summer day than some delicious some ice cream, so we had local ice cream truck, “A Whale of a Treat”, stop by the office to distribute tasty frozen treats to the team after lunch. No one even minded that it just happened to be the coldest day of the summer.
Summer Boat Party
The Merchology Summer Boat Cruise is definitely an event that our employees look forward to all year long. This year we chartered the Al and Alma’s yacht on the world-famous Lake Minnetonka for an afternoon of great food, drinks, and a “Shipwrecked” themed celebration.
Summer Barbeques
Once a month in the summer we host a company BBQ outside of our office. It’s a great opportunity to get outside and enjoy the few months of good weather we get here in Minnesota. Plus, our Merchology grill masters can really cook a mean burger!
Halloween Open House
For Halloween we opened up our headquarters to all employees and their families for a company wide Halloween party complete with food, beer, wine, games, and a costume contest!
Company Holiday Party
The Merchology Christmas Party was a great way to wrap up the year and reflect on everything we’ve accomplished in 2018. It was also a great opportunity to chow down on some delicious D’Amico & Sons catered Italian food and sip on some tasty brews from Wayzata BrewWorks while CRO Andrew Ward and CMO Ally Delgado recapped the year that was in a very entertaining presentation. Check out some tips on how to plan the ultimate company holiday party!
New Sustainability Initiatives
It’s pretty clear that we like to have fun here at Merchology, but we also love to give back. Aside from our volunteer event at Coldwater Spring, our team has been looking to make a difference any way we can. That starts with our membership to Patagonia's 1% for the Planet program. Through this program Merchology donates 1% of all profits to environmental causes and Patagonia matches that 1% on all Patagonia orders! We've chosen 2 non-profit organizations to receive our donations:
- Recycle Across America: this organization's main initiative is creating a standardized labeling system for recycling bins to make it easy and accessible to recycle. RAA is making it far less confusing to know what can and cannot be recycled, resulting in 50-100% increases in recycling in areas where these labels are used!
- Mississippi Park Connection: our partner for the aforementioned Coldwater Spring volunteer event! Their mission is to help keep the Mississippi River clean and rich with wildlife, while serving as a model for operating a top of the line national park in an urban area where people are part of the landscape.
We are also lucky to partner with so many great brands that are dedicated to environmental causes. We compiled a collection of sustainable apparel and accessories that you can feel proud to put your corporate logo on. Finally, in 2018 we switched to eco-friendly packaging for all of our orders! We teamed up with International Paper for recycled shipping boxes and partnered with Eco-Enclose for sustainable poly mailer bags, each decorated with a sweet new packaging design!
Thank You!
Before we look ahead to 2019, we want to thank all of our employees, customers, and business partners for making 2018 so special. It truly was a year to remember! We have some excited stuff planned for next year that we can’t wait to share with you. But until then, have a happy holiday season!