Utah

Skimble

Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Website: https://www.skimble.com/
10 million app downloads in the Google Play Store

A lifelong athlete, Maria Ly Vanrenen began developing Skimble’s Workout Trainer app to support her own fitness journey. “I was just getting into rock climbing, while working as a computer engineer and product manager,” she recalls. “So I built a prototype to train for the sports I loved.” It didn’t take long to realize the idea could help others. “Most people would love to work with a personal trainer, but real-life constraints often get in the way,” she says. Maria launched the first version of the app during the early days of smartphones, creating workouts for both at-home exercisers and outdoor enthusiasts. Today, the app partners with certified personal trainers to deliver follow-along multimedia workouts for goals like cardio, strength, and mobility. Users can track progress and stay motivated through virtual communities. Built as a bootstrapped business with an organically grown user base, Skimble has surpassed 30 million tracked workouts.

Google AI products help Maria scale across 80 countries and support content in 12 languages. The app runs on Google Cloud and uses TensorFlow for machine learning modeling; it’s trained on more than 8 million workouts to deliver highly customized fitness plans. “Google AI helps us deliver personalized training plans and video-based form analysis,” Maria explains. Using Gemini, the app analyzes user-submitted videos to generate individualized form scores, actionable feedback, and training tips. “We’ve seen three times the engagement from members who use our AI features,” she adds. “These tools are meaningfully enhancing the online fitness journey for our members.” With nearly 100,000 4+ star reviews on Google Play alone, Skimble’s reach continues to grow. “It’s incredible to think we’ve built something that resonates with people all over the world,” says Maria.

Bean Trailer

Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Website: https://beantrailer.com/
76 employees

Bean Trailer co-founder Mark Harling and his wife, Cindy, are avid mountain bikers who enjoy exploring Utah’s rugged terrain. “We play hard, but we like our creature comforts and some luxury at the end of the day,” says Mark. He’d been searching for an off-road teardrop trailer that combined quality construction with easy towing, but–being a manufacturing expert himself–he was having trouble finding one that met his standards. In 2017, Mark and long-time business partner Brian Dyer co-founded Bean Trailer, named after Mark’s granddaughter whose middle name is “Bean.” They created the Classic Bean in 2018. “There’s nothing new about teardrop trailers, but we build ours with a one-piece fiberglass shell, eliminating seams where water can seep in,” Mark explains. “We made it to be roomier and more durable, in modern textures and finishes.” They now have 76 employees and offer seven retro-styled models touting convenience and off-road toughness, like the Mean Bean.

To help people searching for “small trailer” and “off-road trailer” discover their products, Bean Trailer uses Google Ads, which account for about 15 percent of their business. Google Analytics 4 helps them learn how customers, including their primary demographic of 55+ empty nesters, navigate through their website–which enjoys 1.5 million sessions a year. YouTube Ads are their “highest converting campaigns,” Mark says, helping to grow their YouTube channel where videos take consumers on detailed walkthroughs that highlight the trailers’ features. The team also uses Gemini to brainstorm ideas for marketing content. Now, Bean Trailer is developing new vehicles and a presence in RV dealerships. And their “Bean There” mobile app lets their community upload photos and post about their off-grid experiences. “We want to be part of our customers’ adventures,” Mark says. “Life is short. Get out there and enjoy it.”

Moises Systems

Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Website: https://moises.ai/
87 employees

Founded in 2019 by drummer and tech entrepreneur Geraldo Ramos, Moises Systems connects Geraldo’s two passions with a suite of AI-driven tools for musicians. “The reason I started Moises was actually to serve my own needs as a drummer,” Geraldo explains. “Our AI can separate the vocals from the drums, from the guitar, from the bass to allow musicians to practice.” Moises Systems’s offerings have since expanded to a voice synthesis platform and tools for producers, including generative models that help musicians create and complete songs. “Our view on AI is really focused on empowering human creativity,” he says. “We want to create solutions that augment the musician and producer as opposed to creating something fully automated.” With growth doubling annually, Moises Systems now processes over a million minutes of audio daily for around 40 million users.

All of that audio goes through Google Cloud, where Moises Systems runs its AI models in order to scale. They have over 29 million downloads from 252 countries on Google Play, accounting for about 78 percent of their overall app downloads. To expand their reach and jumpstart growth in new regions, Moises Systems began using Google Ads in early 2023, and Ads now account for 20 to 30 percent of new users each month. “It has become a meaningful acquisition channel that delivers a significant amount of new subscriptions,” Geraldo says. They use YouTube to share product releases and tutorials with their 24.3 thousand subscribers and host independent artists for in-studio performances. As the company grows, Geraldo shares plans to broaden their reach: “We have over 50 different models for music and audio that are powering companies in the B2B space,” he says. “So that’s one of the big themes for 2024, and it’s already in motion–to evolve from a purely consumer application to a platform that all companies can leverage.”

Redrock Ballooning

Location: Moab, Utah
Website: https://redrockballooning.com/
600 customers in 2022

“I’ve wanted to be in the sky since I was a little kid,” says Jimmy Peterson. The owner and pilot of Moab-based Redrock Ballooning founded his business in 2020 to share bird’s-eye views of Utah’s stunning terrain with customers, offering sunrise flights over areas like the nearby national parks. Jimmy admits the timing of his business launch was challenging. “I had just bought the hot air balloon when COVID-19 hit and everything shut down,” he recalls. “It was three months before I had my first flight with customers. I had spent almost every last penny I had, so it was very scary.” Jimmy bounced back by using Google Ads and a Google Business Profile to spread the word about Redrock Ballooning. “Using Google tools makes running my business extremely easy,” he says. By the next year, revenue had doubled and the number of customers was soaring. His Business Profile now showcases photos and a growing number of five-star reviews.

Jimmy improves his results on Google Search by adding detailed information called 'structured data' to his website. That helps him match user queries more accurately, and helps the users have richer interactions with his site. “I ask each customer how they found me,” he says, “and 99 percent of them say it was through Google.” Jimmy has already upgraded to an 8-person balloon, and plans to add additional pilots and a 16-person balloon soon. He piloted 115 flights over the March–November season in 2022, allowing 600 people to enjoy canyons and rock formations from a unique perspective. Jimmy also donates flights to fundraising auctions to support local charities like Underdog Animal Rescue and Community Rebuilds. Today Jimmy is living his childhood dream. “Getting to share my passion with other people, and see the golden hour glow at sunrise with all the red rocks is mind-blowing,” Jimmy says. “It’s a cool way to make a living, that’s for sure.”

The Baby Cubby

Location: American Fork, Utah
Website: https://www.babycubby.com/
300% increase in online sales since 2019

As parents of five children, Cameron and Jacquelyn Muir knew shopping for baby gear could be stressful and confusing. “Seeing products stocked floor-to-ceiling in the big box stores was overwhelming,” Jacquelyn says. “And with retail associates who couldn’t always answer your questions, it was hard to know which stroller or car seat to choose.” In 2013, they founded The Baby Cubby store and e-commerce site “to celebrate parenthood by making decisions and shopping a lot easier.” Team members receive in-depth product knowledge training, with six state-certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians on board. The Muirs have also created more than 500 YouTube videos, offering product reviews and how-to guides to educate parents and inform their purchasing decisions.

”A big part of our strategy was figuring out how to drive traffic to our store and website,” Cameron notes. They use Google Ads to reach parents searching for strollers and sippy cups, and Google Analytics to learn which marketing campaigns work best. Their Google Business Profile lists hours and directions, along with featured products and hundreds of customer reviews. Since 2019, in-store business has increased 40 percent and online sales are up 300 percent. They employ 45 people, with plans to open a second store in Salt Lake City in 2022. “We want to create a workplace where we can improve people’s lives–where people feel they can make a difference by enriching the lives of families,” Cameron says. They give back by supporting area hospital neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), including creating gift bags for new moms. Going forward, Cameron says they’ll continue to use Google products to grow the Baby Cubby brand. “We want to help parents find us,” he says, “and when they do, we want them to feel at home.”

Statues.com

Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Website: https://statues.com/
15 employees

Vasilios and Victoria Karpos saw the potential of the web early on. In 1995 they put their business selling Greek and Roman figurines online and called it Statues.com. Then someone asked if they could build a custom statue. The easy answer would have been “no,” but they talked to local artisans, and before long were contracting with sculptors, and doing molding and casting onsite in a 7,000-square-foot studio. “We became experts, even developed our own casting mixture, which helped us establish a reputation for beautiful statues that stand the test of time,” says Victoria. In the early 2000s, the statuary marketplace became crowded, and it was harder to stand out. “We had a great product, and a great URL, but we relied on that too much,” says Victoria. So in 2015, they began investing in Google Ads campaigns. In three years, sales tripled.

Then COVID-19 hit. “Things changed overnight,” says Victoria. She kept the Google Ads campaign in place, and in June orders began to pick up again. Summer was busy. ”Today, we are beginning to rise to pre-pandemic levels, plus more," says Vasilios. "We are seeing an increase in new inquiries." The great news: Their average order value has doubled from the previous year. COVID-19 actually offered Victoria and Vasilios an opportunity to reevaluate their business. They dug into Google Analytics and Google Ads to identify the top five keywords for their market. Surprisingly, several historic U.S. presidents were among the trending terms. They redesigned the website accordingly. Visitors were already lingering 1.5 minutes on their home page, and Victoria is hopeful that the new site—which is more interactive and now has an historical focus—will help them sustain a strong business. For 2021, Victoria and Vasilios are prioritizing international sales and Google Translate makes their website multilingual. They’re increasing the number of Google Ads keywords they bid on, and look forward to using other Google products as well. “Our whole business is on the internet. Google is it for us,” says Victoria.

Beddy’s

Location: Jordan, Utah
Website: beddys.com
12 employees

Betsy Mikesell owes her kids a debt of thanks — for not doing their chores. One day when her twins wouldn’t make their bunk beds, she went to show them how to do it and discovered it really wasn’t so easy. “It was such a pain to tuck the bedding around the rails while I was on the bed,” she said. “I realized I wasn’t being very fair with my kids and wondered why no one else was complaining about this.” To solve the problem, Betsy created her own bedding set — a unique, one-piece unit that zips together and goes on the bed like a fitted sheet. Two years later, Betsy teamed up with her running buddy, Angie White, to launch Beddy’s (bed ease) on a crowdfunding website, raising over $100,000 in 40 days. Not only did they have funding but confidence that there would be demand for their product. Betsy and Angie stuck to digital to keep informing people about their unique bedding. “Our biggest challenge is just telling the story, because it’s a more expensive product,” said Betsy. “We’re trying to educate people about the concept and function of zippered bedding.”

Beddy’s uses YouTube to share informative videos about its products, and Google Ads to get out in front of users searching for zippered bedding or similar items. Since last August, nearly 9% of the company’s website traffic has come from Google Ads, which contribute to 31% of its total sales. Betsy reports the return on ad spend from Google Ads is more than 24%. Beddy’s also uses G Suite tools like Gmail, Calendar, Sheets, and Drive to stay organized. “It’s how we keep track of things with our graphic designer who’s out of state. If she updates something, we can see it live through Google,” said Betsy.

Last year, Beddy’s was named one of the fastest-growing private companies in America. “Google’s helped us from day one,” said Betsy. “We have had such rapid growth, and we can thank Google for that.” The co-founders pay their success forward by donating bedding to various charities and fundraisers, and they hope to start their own foundation aimed at providing comfortable bedding for homeless and foster children in the coming months. Both Betsy and Angie say they didn’t anticipate the impact their business would have on so many families. “We’ve gotten letters from moms, who tell us that their kids finally feel like they can accomplish something,” said Betsy. “We set out to change beds, but the fact that we’re making even a small difference for people is really gratifying for us.”

Wine Racks America

Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Website: www.wineracksamerica.com
50 employees

Jeff Ogzewalla was a digital marketer who had spent years advertising and reselling products online. “For a one-man show in his basement, I was moving quite a lot of merchandise,” he recalls. “But then I realized that when it came to paying the bills, the margins for reselling products weren’t good enough. I needed to sell something that I could make.” Looking around, Jeff ruled out products made from textile, metal, and glass—”anything that needed giant facilities,” he says—before deciding on wooden wine racks. “I had ordered one earlier that year. It wasn’t complicated, not finished very well, and I remember thinking, ‘I could make a better wine rack,’” he shares. In 2002, Jeff launched Wine Racks America, building and selling wooden wine-cellar components out of his two-car garage.

Wine Racks America has always made high-quality products, but for many years, “our edge was that we were first and foremost digital marketers,” says Jeff. The company was an early adopter of AdWords, Google’s advertising program, which they still use to reach customers across the U.S. and Canada. “It is by far the largest revenue generator we have,” he notes. Google Analytics equips them with the customer insights to continually refine their marketing campaigns and online presence. G Suite tools, such as Docs, Sheets, and Drive, keep their internal operations running smoothly. And aside from the occasional trade show, all of their marketing budget goes to digital formats. “Google really has created a magic recipe to connect businesses and customers via their platform,” Jeff adds.

Today, Wine Racks America is a 50-person team operating out of a 29,000-square-foot manufacturing facility. They have grown at a double-digit rate in recent years and, on average, fulfill 1,500 orders per month. The company has also expanded their product line to include complementary products, such as wine-cellar cooling systems. “When I started this business, I was just a digital marketer looking for a product to sell. I didn’t really understand how special wine cellars were to our customers,” Jeff shares. “But now I do. It’s one of those things people want to do. They think about it for years, and plan for it, and save up. Then they find us through this magical thing called the Internet. We never meet the person. We don't really know each other, but we have this bond.”

Purple

Location: Alpine, Utah
Website: www.onpurple.com
600 employees

Brothers Tony and Terry Pearce have one passion: making the world a softer place. “They're honestly ecstatic about helping people live life more comfortably,” says Purple’s Director of Marketing, Bryant Garvin. The two engineers spent 20 years inventing revolutionary polymers that companies use to cushion everything from wheelchairs to basketball shoes. But their greatest creation is their newest, a hyper-elastic polymer called Purple. They use it to make some of the world’s most comfortable mattresses and pillows. “Purple is the color of royalty, and we want everybody to feel comfortable—to feel like royalty,” Bryant remarks.

Purple began selling exclusively online in 2016. They leverage YouTube to help consumers get a feel for their mattresses by showcasing the technology and its benefits through entertaining videos. Their approach is working–the videos garner hundreds of millions of views. “YouTube gives us a key opportunity to tell our story in a unique way that engages audiences,” Bryant explains. They count on Google Analytics to track their web traffic and gain valuable insights about their customers. AdWords, Google's advertising program, helps them drive revenue and build awareness internationally, while G Suite tools Gmail, Docs, and Drive keep their employees as flexible as their polymer. “If Google products didn't exist, it would be a lot harder for us to see this kind of growth,” says Bryant.

Today, Purple sells more mattresses in one day than they once did in two months, and demand is still growing. They've hired 500 employees in a little over a year, and operate a 90,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Alpine, with another 574,000-square-foot facility opening in Grantsville. “The biggest thing we do is bring manufacturing jobs to the state of Utah. We drive community growth,” Bryant says. They plan to hire several hundreds more employees as they introduce new products and expand internationally. “We should be in most major international markets within five years,” he adds. With a company as innovative as their space-age material, Purple feels comfortable about their future.

Finch

Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Website: www.finch.com
Finch has 300 clients worldwide

Partners Bjorn Espenes and Eric Maas founded Finch in 2009 to improve online performance for digital advertisers and grow their profit. They built a software platform specifically to handle large product catalogs and manage retailers’ Google advertising programs. Their inspiration for the company’s name was the small, adaptive bird species that played an important role in Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection. The toughest business challenge for a company like Finch is building brand awareness among prospective clients and separating themselves from “thousands, if not tens of thousands,” of competitors, Bjorn says. “It's very competitive in the marketplace.”

Finch primarily provides expertise in AdWords, Google’s advertising program. They do this by focusing on increasing the campaign quality score while expanding market size for their clients. Their goal is to achieve a “Finch moment,” when a client sees significant growth in online sales or customers. The company has used AdWords for themselves, too, since the beginning. “We need to see a hard return on our advertising budget, which is exactly the same challenge all our customers have,” Bjorn says. In addition, Google Analytics helps them judge online ad performance both for their clients and for Finch. They also use nearly every tool in the Google Apps for Work suite, including Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, and Google Hangouts. They also have a YouTube channel.

The business has 32 employees, with a presence in a dozen countries in Europe, Asia, Australia, and South America. “We're a very small company relative to our footprint,” Bjorn says. Inc. Magazine listed Finch in 2013 as one of the fastest-growing private companies in America. They aim to continue their rapid growth, which today totals 52% annually. Bjorn realizes that their customers “take a leap into our world” and trust Finch to come through for them. “It takes the whole company to produce the moment when the customer realizes what they've purchased is actually working,” he says. “That’s a magical moment for us.”