As I look back on my five years here at EASE, I can’t help but feel nostalgic. That may sound silly, given how relatively young we are. But the distance we’ve traveled as a team, a company, an employer, and as an exceptional brand — is truly extraordinary. I’m blown away by all we’ve accomplished in just the five years that I’ve been here — not just in our company, but in the difference we’re making in our industry and community. I’ve come to realize how rare it is to work for an organization that fulfills me not just professionally but personally too.
Like many small businesses starting out, we’ve had our fair share of challenges. Although I started at EASE in accounting, it seems like just yesterday that I was being pulled out onto the Ops floor to make check calls (very poorly, I might add), scrambling to make ends meet because we had WAY more freight than our small team could handle at that time. Fast forward to 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic, which was possibly our greatest challenge to date. As part of the leadership team, we made a promise and commitment to keep our employees employed. I am most proud of not only being able to make good on that promise but that we were in fact, able to grow and expand our team — something unprecedented at that moment in time. Nonetheless, while there have been days filled with uncertainty (dare I say, Un-EASE…), we pulled together, we had GRIT, we came out stronger than we were before, and I will forever be grateful for yesterday’s trials and lessons learned.
“Great things in business are never done by one person; they’re done by a team of people.” – Steve Jobs
Looking back, I am incredibly proud of our team of employees, working together to accomplish a common goal. They are our most valuable assets, and they motivate me every day. However, I would be remiss if I did not recognize our CEO, Peter Coratola, who founded EASE seven years ago. Without his leadership, inspiring and challenging us every day, we would not have been able to grow at the rate we have, hire exceptional people, and become the award-winning organization we are today. Most notably, within the last five years, we have:
- Surpassed $150M in gross revenue
- Been recognized on both the Fast 50 and Inc. 5000 list for four consecutive years (among many other awards)
- Thrived through a global pandemic
- Grown from 28 to more than 125 employees
- Increased our local footprint, now building out THIRD building
- Built the “Innovation Hub” and collaborated with local strategic partners to develop, pilot, and deploy new initiatives around smart technology
- Impacted our local community through countless donations, sponsorships, volunteer hours, and so much more
And this is just the BEGINNING for us!
Along this crazy journey, I must thank my amazing wife, Julia. There have been plenty of late nights over the years, but she provides me endless support in my journey to be the best human I can be.
Looking ahead, I hope that, as a company, we never lose sight of where we came from and the drive that brought us to where we are today. It has been an incredible ride these last five years, that’s for sure, but we continue to persevere, push ourselves towards greater and greater heights, and strive for excellence in everything we do. Cheers to EASE and the next five years. Sky’s the limit, and I can’t wait to see what comes next!
