For 25 years, Virginia-based JANSON has been bucking the survival odds for small businesses. This Old Dominion company has been growing in size and profitability during its quarter-century of activity, defying the statistics that only 20% of small businesses survive more than two decades.
JANSON was co-founded in 1998 by Janet Marie Chihocky to provide communications solutions to primary aerospace clients. Today it provides a broader set of communications and workplace transformation solutions to clients within the Department of Defense as well as to private industry clients not only in Virginia but across the country. Starting from a small office of two in 1998, JANSON now encompasses three primary locations in Virginia, Georgia, and Florida, and a full-time staff of 30, plus a network of specialists nationwide. Chihocky remains its CEO, and is as ebullient about the company’s future prospects as she was at its founding.
“We have grown and continue to evolve, adapting to the changing needs of our clients. But we remain laser-focused on service excellence today, just as we were at the beginning of our enterprise journey,” explains Chihocky. “We don’t ever want a client to feel that we have gotten too big to respond to their individual needs.”
JANSON’s success is all the more notable because it is a woman-owned company in a sector (defense and military) that has long been dominated by men. It is one of 12.3 million businesses owned by women in the US today, representing 42% of all American business. Women-founded enterprises make up only 18.3% of all employer businesses in the US, yet they generate $1.8 trillion a year.
JANSON’s Virginia headquarters has worked in its favor. Virginia has long been known as one of the top business-friendly states in the country: corporate taxes are relatively low and northern Virginia’s proximity to Washington, DC, facilitates access to government and military centers. In addition, Virginia is ranked the third best state for women entrepreneurs (according to a 2023 survey by NorthOne, a technology company), and has one of the highest percentages of women-owned businesses in the country (10.12%).
Location is only a starting point. Chihocky cites four core pillars to account for JANSON’s success: teamwork, flexibility, integrity, and faith. Teamwork encompasses not only her employees but the wider network of consultants, suppliers, and clients who have contributed to her company’s sterling track record. Flexibility is part of JANSON’s DNA, as is integrity in dealing with this greater community. Faith is a personal strength acknowledged by Chihocky as a key to her -- and her company’s -- accomplishments.
Therefore, plans for JANSON’s silver celebration include activities for employees and for the communities they serve. “At the 25-year mark, we look to the future but we are grounded in the work we have done so far,” notes Chihocky. “We have never tried to be all things to all people. We focus on offering the smartest solutions to our clients, personalized for their specific situations and circumstances.”
About JANSON
Headquartered in Northern Virginia, JANSON delivers smart and highly customized communications and workplace solutions for its military and defense customers worldwide. It was named one of the Top 10 Most Innovative Defense Technology Companies for 2021 by Global Tech Outlook Magazine. To learn more, please visit jansoncom.com.
Media Contact:
support@jansoncom.com
adamtorres@missionmatters.com
Source: Adam Torres / Co-Founder
Release ID: 586936
