04-10-2008: BizSanDiego: Fast Growth

Number:6- Confirm BioSciences

HQ: Mira Mesa
Top executive: Zeynep Ilgaz, president and CEO
Web: www.confirmbiosciences.com
2007 revenue: $3.2M
2006 revenue: $2.6M
2005 revenue: $1.1M
2004 revenue: $300K
Revenue growth ’06 to ’07: 23%
Revenue growth ’04 to ’07: 142%
Current local employees: 20
2006 local employees: 10
Local employee growth ’06 to current: 100%

What it does: Develops service-oriented drug-testing technologies Market growth: In the past couple of years, much of the company’s overall growth can be attributed to new product development and a number of new distribution channels.

( INTERVIEW WITH PRESIDENT AND CEO ZEYNEP ILGAZ )

Name a few of the key factors that have led to Confirm BioSciences’ success.
My husband and I are the founders, and it literally started from the garage a few years back. It has been an enormous ride for us, and being a family-owned business has contributed to that. Our success has also come because we’ve seen a demand in the market and have responded to it in a fast and efficient way, and we’ve set up a good infrastructure to scale the company.

What is your company’s biggest competitive edge?
Our new-product development capabilities and the distribution channels that we have created over the years, with resellers and drugstores being the main distribution channels.

Big, hairy, audacious goals:
We would like to be acquired by a bigger diagnostic company at some point.