September 18, 2009…Stratus Building Solutions, the nation’s fastest-growing international brand in the building services and maintenance franchise industry, has received the prestigious “2009 St. Louis Award” in the franchising category from the U.S. Commerce Association (USCA).

The USCA awards program recognizes outstanding local businesses nationwide which have achieved exceptional marketing success in their business category, and which enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and community.

Founded in 2004 by CEO Dennis Jarrett and President Pete Frese, Stratus Building Solutions now operates in 21 states and Canada. The company expanded to Eastern Europe in September 2009 to establish a business model for European expansion. In January 2009, Stratus Building Solutions won four “top ten” spots in Entrepreneur magazine’s 30^th Annual Franchise 500® ranking.

Jarrett and Frese said in a statement: “We value this honor from the U.S. Commerce Association because the 2009 St. Louis Award recognizes Stratus Building Solutions’ commitments to customer service in addition to business success. Customer service is a mainstay of our company and a foundation for our growth.

“We are especially grateful for this recognition in St. Louis because this community is where it all started for Stratus Building Solutions. Our international headquarters are located here. St. Louis is a great community for businesses.” 

Stratus Building Solutions offers 16 different building service franchise plans providing state-of-the-art “environmentally green” cleaning systems, products, services and marketing support. These include the “Stratus GreenClean” program which uses environmentally-friendly products and services to help sustain healthier, more productive facilities. Also, the firm offers an exclusive “Stratus Sani-Proof” program that kills bacteria, including Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus and other germs found in schools, offices and healthcare centers.

Stratus Building Solutions franchise benefits include orientation and training; customer referrals; administrative and accounting support; pre-arranged credit lines; access to insurance and surety bonds, financing options, promotional support; and other turn-key advantages. The firm’s international headquarters are at 1976 Innerbelt Business Center Drive in St. Louis.

The 2009 USCA award program focuses on quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on information gathered internally by the USCA and from data provided by third parties. Based in Washington, D.C., USCA is an advocate for small and mid-size businesses and entrepreneurs across America. The organization works exclusively with local business owners, trade groups, professional associations, chambers of commerce and other business advertising and marketing groups. For more information about USCA, please see the website http://www.us-ca.org.

For information about Stratus Building Solutions, please visit http://www.stratusclean.com or call Stratus Building Solutions at 314.731.2000 or toll-free at 877.731.2020. Media contact: Jeff Dunlap @ PowerlinePR 314.993.6925.

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