JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Jaguars and Web.com revealed Veterans Elite Services as the winner of the 2nd annual Small Business Breakthrough powered by Web.com in a broadcast Saturday night on WJXT Channel 4. As the winner, Veterans Elite Services has already worked with Web.com to finish a complete online makeover of their web site www.veteranseliteservices.com, and the new brand was introduced at the Jaguars' nationally-televised home preseason game at EverBank Field on Sunday night.
Veterans Elite Services was one of six local companies that faced a panel of judges, including Jaguars Owner Shad Khan and Web.com CEO David Brown. Originally founded in 2014 as U.S. Military Maintenance, the company is on a mission to provide military veterans on the First Coast a living wage through commercial and residential cleaning and maintenance employment.
"The new website and digital makeover that Web.com developed for our company truly exceeded my expectations as the site now better conveys our mission and services we offer to helping employ military veterans," said Joe Padlo, owner of Veterans Elite Service. "Having the power and expertise of Web.com behind us is amazing. Combine that with the branding and exposure opportunities that come with a Jaguars team sponsorship and the future is looking bright for Veterans Elite Services!"
Veterans Elite Services has already experienced unprecedented success since the unveiling of its new website and corporate branding, securing multiple new clients and increased interest from many potential companies.
Round one of the "Shark Tank"-style competition brought in more than 225 online applications, which were narrowed down to 33 semi-finalists. They were invited to audition in front of a panel of preliminary judges, who narrowed the group down to the final six. They gave their best pitch to the full panel of judges including Khan, Brown and other business experts.
"Web.com is proud to have teamed up with the Jacksonville Jaguars for the Small Business Breakthrough and provide assistance to this year's winner, Veterans Elite Services, to help them grow their business online," said Tyler Brown, Senior Director of Marketing for Web.com. "It is very rewarding to support Joe's business and give him the necessary lift to reach more customers in a meaningful way. We expect them to have significant growth in the months ahead; this is just the beginning of what will be a great partnership."
The five other finalists included Trasca & Co Eatery, Zack Snacks by Snap Foods, Wolf and Shepherd, Barrett's Small Batch and Lat & Lo Jewelry. All finalists were introduced on the field at the Jaguars preseason game on Saturday, August 20. Veterans Elite Services was known as U.S. Military Maintenance throughout the competition, but changed its name as part of a rebranding exercise in conjunction with Web.com and Jaguars executives.
Small Business Breakthrough Powered by Web.com was launched in an effort to help small businesses discover new ways to boost their marketing and earn next-level exposure. Inaugural winner Modasten has already seen great results after a season in the spotlight, both at the stadium and online. Since winning the 2015 competition last August and taking advantage of the grand prize, Modasten's monthly sales have doubled and it has increased its retail presence from 8 retail locations to 15. Since Web.com rolled out Modasten's brand new e-commerce site in February, the company has seen a 250 percent growth in website traffic. Modasten will continue to be featured at EverBank Field this fall.
