2015 Success Award Winner: Milherton Commercial Flooring

Milherton Commercial Flooring of New Jersey specializes in supplying and installing commercial flooring to customers in the New York/New Jersey Metropolitan Area. Owner, Milton Herrera grew up in El Salvador chopping trees and selling wood, with the ambition of becoming an American entrepreneur. He immigrated to the United States when he was 23 years old, not speaking a word of English but fluent in tenacity and determination. Over several years, he learned the flooring trade and began to work part time at his own business.

In 2013, Mr. Herrera needed to move his business forward in order to sustain it; so he sought assistance from the NJSBDC at New Jersey City University. Business Consultant, Ryan Silvestre advised Herrera on his business structure, organizational skills, time management and financial picture. Through some basic forensic accounting, over spending was identified, eliminating the need for debt. Mr. Silvestre was able to demonstrate that Mr. Herrera didn’t need to borrow a crippling amount of capital to operate his business because the business was actually generating enough internal cash flows to stimulate growth. By adjusting and prioritizing his structure, demand time, efficiency, delegation of employee duties and allocation of funds, Mr. Silvestre successfully guided Milherton Commercial Flooring to grow quickly, vertically and organically.

Within two years, Mr. Herrera needed to hire more employees and independent contractors to handle the abundance of work. He has increased his staff from two full-time employees to five full-time employees, supplemented by 61 independent contractors to fulfill all of the contracts he is securing. The company has grown from $80,000 in 2012 to $1.5 million as of the third quarter 2015. As revenues continue to grow, the company continues to need more advice on supporting the new growth. NJSBDC at New Jersey City University is now providing advanced advice on global business expansion, loan processes and minority business certification. Milherton has been able to secure $325,000 in construction financing, and preliminary partnerships with China and South America.

Milherton Commercial Flooring, with the assistance of the NJSBDC, has collectively created strategic plans that have resulted in successfully sustaining and growing the business. Mr. Herrera, who is now contracting over a 50-mile radius and looking toward building a national business franchise, has come a long way from collecting floor scraps. He, as do we, believe that when it comes to success, his floor has no ceiling!

Milherton Commercial Flooring
175 Bergen Boulevard #3
Fairview, NJ 07022
www.milherton.com