TentCraft Selected as Small Business of the Year

April 14, 2021

TentCraft in Traverse City has been selected as the Northwest Michigan Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) Small Business of the Year. The company, which manufactures outdoor marketing elements such as pop-up tents, custom structures, flags, and signage, is being recognized for working to increase its government sales with assistance from the PTAC.

When the COVID-19 crisis hit in 2020, and demand for its custom-printed tents disappeared, TentCraft had to pivot to keep its employees working. The company recognized a critical need for portable, quick-deploy tents and shelters to support medical testing and containment, and emergency response activities. TentCraft quickly realized that selling to the government is rife with government-specific rules and regulations and complicated steps and procedures. TentCraft turned to the PTAC for assistance.

The PTAC collaborated with TentCraft’s supply chain manager and sales team and provided support and technical assistance including connections to a wide variety of information and resources. In 2020, the PTAC recorded nearly 100 hours of counseling time assisting TentCraft.

“The PTAC has been helpful researching new opportunities,” said Matt Bulloch, TentCraft President.  “These efforts, with the PTAC’s guidance, gave us an enormous amount of credibility with the VA when we worked with their individual hospitals and regions on COVID-19 screening products and mobile infirmaries.”

With the assistance from the PTAC and TentCraft’s successful pivot to government sales, the company weathered the pandemic and jobs were retained. Since March 2020, TentCraft has been awarded over $2 million in federal government contracts (Source: USASpending.gov.) 

“TentCraft took advantage of our many services and the expertise of the PTAC staff to switch gears mid-stream and without warning,” said Cathy Fairbanks, Northwest Michigan PTAC Regional Director. “I am glad we already had a relationship with them and they reached out to us. It was rewarding to play a small part in responding to the pandemic.”

“Our work with the PTAC has shown us that there is a world of opportunity for us to seize,” said Bulloch. “We look forward to continuing to work with the PTAC to bid on government contracts as they become available.”  

TentCraft will be formally honored at the Annual Michigan Celebrates Small Business (MCSB) awards gala July 20, 2021 in Lansing.

For more information about TentCraft, go to Tentcraft.com.

The Northwest Michigan Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to enhance national defense and economic development of the State of Michigan by assisting Michigan businesses in obtaining and performing on federal, state, and local government contracts. We offer no-cost marketing, technical consulting, and training to businesses. More information is available at nwm.org/PTAC.