EY Announces Benjamin Bachman of Gerflor North America as an Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2024 Midwest Award Winner

 Bolingbrook, IL (June 17, 2024) – Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) today announced that CEO, Benjamin Bachman of Gerflor North America was named an Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2024 Midwest Award winner. Entrepreneur Of The Year is the preeminent competitive awards program for entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies. 

Benjamin Bachman was selected by an independent judging panel made up of previous award winners, leading CEOs and other business leaders. Candidates were evaluated based on their ability to create long-term value through entrepreneurial spirit, commitment to their purpose and the demonstration of growth and substantial impact, among other key indicators. 

"I am deeply honored to be named Entrepreneur of The Year® 2024 Midwest Award Winner by EY," said Benjamin Bachman, CEO of Gerflor North America. "This recognition is not just a testament to my journey, but a celebration of the entire Gerflor team whose dedication makes our success possible." 

Gerflor North America, a confluence of innovation and performance, operates four manufacturing sites across Utah, Michigan, and Georgia, and three logistics facilities in Philly, Montreal, and the Chicago area. At the heart of our operations is our Bolingbrook, IL headquarters, 'The Court', a state-of-the-art, open, and collaborative space. Our diverse brand portfolio includes Gerflor, Sport Court, Connor Sports, Stagestep, and SnapLock Industries, positioning us as market leaders in healthcare, high-tech and pharmaceutical industries, sports, education, dance, transportation, and garage segments. With over 500 dedicated associates, we’re proud to be the trusted supplier for the March Madness, NCAA®, and Final Four events. 

Gerflor Group, a leading provider of innovative flooring solutions, with a presence spanning 100 countries and a workforce exceeding 5,000, is renowned for its commitment to excellence and innovation. For details, contact us at 877-437-3567 | [email protected] or visit gerflorusa.com | sportcourt.com | connorsports.com | stagestep.com | snaplock.com. 

As a Midwest award winner, Benjamin Bachman is now eligible for consideration for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2024 National Awards. The National Award winners, including the Entrepreneur Of The Year National Overall Award winner, will be announced in November at the Strategic Growth Forum®, one of the nation’s most prestigious gatherings of high-growth, market-leading companies. The Entrepreneur Of The Year National Overall Award winner will then move on to compete for the World Entrepreneur Of The Year® Award in June 2025. 

Entrepreneur Of The Year recognizes many different types of business leaders for their ingenuity, courage and entrepreneurial spirit. The program celebrates original founders who bootstrapped their business from inception or who raised outside capital to grow their company; transformational CEOs who infused 

innovation into an existing organization to catapult its trajectory; and multigenerational family business leaders who reimagined a legacy business model to fortify it for the future. 

The Entrepreneur Of The Year program has recognized the leadership of entrepreneurs such as: 

• Daymond John of FUBU 
• Hamdi Ulukaya of Chobani, Inc. 
• Holly Thaggard and Amanda Baldwin of Supergoop! 
• Howard Schultz of Starbucks Coffee Company 
• James Park of Fitbit 

• Jodi Berg of Vitamix 
• Kendra Scott of Kendra Scott LLC 
• Michael Happe of Winnebago Industries 
• Reid Hoffman and Jeff Weiner of LinkedIn Corporation 
• Sheila Mikhail of AskBio 

Entrepreneur Of The Year Award winners become lifetime members of a global, multi-industry community of entrepreneurs. They receive exclusive, ongoing access to the experience, insight and wisdom of program alumni and other ecosystem members in more than 60 countries — all supported by vast EY resources. 

In addition to Entrepreneur Of The Year, EY US supports other entrepreneurs through the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women™(Winning Women) program and the EY Entrepreneurs Access Network (EAN) to help connect women founders and Black and Hispanic/Latino entrepreneurs, respectively, with the resources, network and access needed to unlock their full potential. 

Sponsors 

Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards include presenting sponsors PNC Bank, Cresa, Marsh USA, SAP and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. In the Midwest, sponsors also include regional Platinum sponsors, LaSalle Network; regional Gold sponsor, Becker Professional Education; and regional Silver sponsor, ADP. 

About Entrepreneur Of The Year® Founded in 1986, Entrepreneur Of The Year® has celebrated more than 11,000 ambitious visionaries who are leading successful, dynamic businesses in the US, and it has since expanded to nearly 80 countries and territories globally. 

The US program consists of 17 regional programs whose panels of independent judges select the regional award winners every June. Those winners compete for national recognition at the Strategic Growth Forum® in November where National finalists and award winners are announced. The overall National winner represents the US at the World Entrepreneur Of The Year® competition. Visit ey.com/us/eoy. 

About EY 

EY exists to build a better working world, helping to create long-term value for clients, people and society and build trust in the capital markets. 

Enabled by data and technology, diverse EY teams in over 150 countries provide trust through assurance and help clients grow, transform and operate. 

Working across assurance, consulting, law, strategy, tax and transactions, EY teams ask better questions to find new answers for the complex issues facing our world today. 

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