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October 2006 Presenters

The Fortress: The Citadel of Logistic Solutions

The Fortress is the only African-American owned, MBE Certified record center in the United States. They are a progressive document management company that manages clients' electronic and physical records with the most advanced technology available in the marketplace. In addition, their DocuData software sets them apart from the competition, since they are able to start from an electronic format, instead of trying to convert millions of containers of data from hard copy to electronic files. Whereas the competition looks at the industry as "storing boxes," The Fortress sees themselves as a software company that happens to store information. They are seeking $550,000 in cash and pledged credit line.

The Fortress is managed by William Scott, CEO and Michael Connelly, Vice President. Scott's background is in financial services, sales and marketing, while Connelly has over 30 years' experience with four Fortune 500 corporations such as P&G, Revlon, Avon and Ashland, Inc.

Some of the company's current clients include Aegis Armor, DocuData Software, Weyerhaeuser, and the Greater Cincinnati Health Council. They face competition mainly from Iron Mountain, the only true national document storage chain in the U.S., and Cintas, also national, plus companies like Business Information Systems and Info Management in Cincinnati.

Their ongoing marketing strategy is to maintain and expand a diverse base of clients in target cities of Dayton, Hamilton, Middletown, Columbus, Indianapolis, Frankfort, Lexington and Louisville. They will have a centralized hub without the commitment of major warehousing, personnel and other space requirements. Their technical services, inventory, and customer service will be located in Cincinnati. They plan to have salespeople in all Tri-State cities selling core businesses of document storage, media storage, document destruction, container sales, digital imaging, and shelving/racking.

Projections show sales of 2.4 million next year, growing to almost $7 million in 2009.