Expansion: Taking That Next Step
Urban Perch Boutique Homes
Owners: Bianca and Eric Rey | erey@urbanperchhomes.com | 407-467-2947
SBDC contact: Jairo Batista | Jairo.Batista@ucf.edu
It’s one thing to start a company and another thing, altogether, to make that company grow.
In 2014, Eric and Bianca Rey launched Urban Perch Boutique Homes, a Winter Park company that builds unique homes. Both of them came from entrepreneurial backgrounds: She owned a dance studio and he was working in his family’s commercial construction business.
Seeking to plot their own course, they started Urban Perch and experienced modest success for about eight years, before reaching a crossroads. They were building a few houses a year, but wanted to do more.
“We had a good business going, but there were problems that we needed to think through,” recalls Eric Rey. “We were trying to grow, and there were a lot of issues.”
Among their biggest concern was how to maintain their high quality standards — with only so much time in the day to keep an eye on their various projects.
As they considered the company’s future, they turned to the Florida SBDC at the University of Central Florida and its Advisory Board Council program. The customized panel of expert advisers served as a sounding board and offered guidance on a range of business aspects, including brand positioning, product offerings, expansion and marketing.
Growth has followed. They now have eight employees and are building 10 houses this year, with at least 15 more in the 2026 pipeline.
“They really changed our mindset and business by helping us have the confidence to realize that we knew what we were doing,” says Bianca Rey. “Now we have the culture and we have trusted project managers. We’re able to procure more business and know that we can have the capacity to fulfill these jobs.”
How to Manufacture Opportunities
Grainman
Owner: Eduardo Castellanos | eduardo@grainman.com | 305-620-2525
SBDC contact: Lorna Baez | lobaez@fiu.edu
Ten years ago, Eduardo Castellanos took over a business that belonged to a longtime family friend. Grain Machinery Manufacturing Corp. (also known as Grainman) already had a strong reputation for making lab testing equipment used by the rice, seed and grain industries.
But Castellanos quickly realized the Miami Gardens company needed to modernize. The manufacturing work was being done by machines controlled by a small group of skilled employees.
“It was amazing, the quality of work they were able to put out,” Castellanos says. “But if you plan to grow and expand, you can’t do volume manufacturing on manual machines.”
Today, Grainman has 12 employees and more than a dozen computer-controlled machines that have significantly boosted its production abilities. In fact, the company is now looking for ways to bring in more business to fill that extra capacity, including taking on custom projects from customers.
Working with the Florida SBDC at Florida International University has boosted these efforts to identify new markets.
“Having consultants who know funding, exporting and government pathways has saved us a lot of time and mistakes,” Castellanos says. “We would have had more difficult challenges if we didn’t have someone to point us in the right direction.”
One of those directions is government contracting.
Grainman already holds the distinction of being the only U.S. manufacturer of lab testing equipment approved by the USDA for the rice sector. And now the company is looking for additional governmental opportunities, with guidance from the Florida APEX Accelerator at FIU.
“We’re getting set up with certain certifications and getting everything in place so that we can get more aggressive,” Castellanos says.
Tapping the International Market
World Truck Parts
Owner: Marlon Romero | marlon@fortpro.com
SBDC contact: Lorna Baez | lobaez@fiu.edu
There may be no better state than Florida for access to international markets. Reaching out to South America, Central America and the Caribbean has been essential to the success of Miami’s World Truck Parts.
The company, which will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2026, specializes in a wide range of parts needed to repair and maintain large trucks and commercial vehicles. The company has warehouses in Miami and Houston and offers its own Fortpro brand of aftermarket parts. It has 35 employees and expansion is on the horizon.
Being based in Miami, the company is increasingly focusing on the domestic market. But company founder Marlon Romero says the international market remains an important part of the company’s DNA — with help from the Florida SBDC at Florida International University.
The relationship has helped World Truck connect with the Export Import Bank of the United States, which has increased the efficiency of World Truck Parts’ international dealings. And there have been valuable consulting services.
“Every time I have questions about things like marketing strategies, hiring people or even taxes, they always give great feedback and guidance,” Romero says.
Romero, in turn, has advice for other companies looking at international markets: Don’t be intimidated, as it is probably easier than you think.
The key is investing in relationships with your customers, which includes hiring marketing reps who specialize in your target markets. It’s not enough to ask your domestic marketing team to take on the international business, he says.
“You have to hire a specialized rep who goes to those markets,” Romero says.
Making the Case for Rural Businesses
Sunshine Rail Service
Owner: Doug and Joe Fournier | doug@sunshinerail.com | 386-846-6019
SBDC contact: Ali Stephens
| ali.stephens@unf.edu
For many businesses, there are distinct advantages to being located in a large metro area. But for others, the opposite is true.
Consider the case of Sunshine Rail Service, a Palatka company that repairs rail cars. The young firm opened in 2021 after the father and son duo of Doug and Joe Fournier decided to strike out on their own.
Doug Fournier recalls his son’s efforts to convince him they should start their own business, using a pitch sure to resonate with most aspiring business owners.
“He says we’ve worked hard our whole lives. And the other people we work for are millionaires,” Fournier says. “We do all the hard work, and they just sit back and collect the money. Why don’t we do it ourselves?”
So they spent a year researching and planning, before launching the company. Now, with guidance from the Florida SBDC at the University of North Florida, they’re looking at a major expansion — with plans to open a new facility on nearly 100 acres in Hawthorne.
The new site will include 12 miles of train track, four rail car repair shops and the ability to handle cargo for nearby businesses. And that’s where the benefits of being in a rural area are critical.
For years, they have kept an eye on their new home — currently the shell of an abandoned chicken farm from the mid-1980s. The place has lots of concrete, chicken cages, trees and overgrown vines. And it was only $10,000 an acre.
“I don’t know what 100 acres would cost in Downtown Miami, but I’m sure it would be way more than a million dollars,” Fournier says.