Our Very Own Jim Couts Honored as Local Business Person of the Year

We are thrilled to announce that our very own, Jim Couts, founder and CTO of Jag Journey received the 2022 Local Business Person of the Year Award for Issaquah, Washington!

The largest online referral network for small businesses, Alignable.com is announcing the results of its national search for leaders who’ve gone above and beyond guiding peers and supporting entire communities as they strive to recover. The 2022 contest is the most popular competition Alignable has ever hosted, marking a 64% increase in participation over last year. In all, 2,400+ small business owners were elected by their peers to be their Local Business People Of The Year across the U.S. and Canada.

During the contest, which ran from Jan. 10 to Feb. 11, 2022, 160,000+ votes and 32,000+ testimonials were posted praising thousands of local leaders for helping their peers and communities through a turbulent year with many challenges: skyrocketing inflation, labor shortages, supply chain problems, and COVID variants.

Because of these issues, 70% of small businesses have yet to recover and recovery rates have declined 13% since December, according to Alignable’s latest poll of 6,305 small business owners. This recovery reversal highlights how important it is for the contest winners to continue their work helping even more businesses bounce back from pandemic-era hurdles.

When shutdowns happened in 2020 and many local businesses didn't have an online presence. This is why Couts launched an ecommerce shop, JagExchange, to give businesses the opportunity to sell products and services online to help companies survive.

Giving Is The Glue Holding Us Together

“You almost always get back what you give,” said Couts. “And the challenges we’ve all encountered have compelled many of us to offer support to people struggling to keep their businesses afloat. While I’m thrilled to receive this award, it’s really a testament to our community. We will always help any struggling small business or Chamber of Commerce.”

Couts received a special badge on his Alignable profile, recognizing this big win. In past years, the awareness generated through similar contests has spurred expanded connections, as well as new business for many winners. 

Driving Recognition Is Key

“This has been a fun and rewarding contest to watch unfold,” said Alignable’s President & Co-Founder Venkat Krishnamurthy. “Local business owners are the heart and soul of their communities and they ought to get way more recognition for all they do. Friendly competition aside, this contest generated some incredible peer testimonials (to the tune of 32,000+), showing exactly why small business owners are stronger together.”

To arrange interviews with Jim Couts and/or an Alignable representative,  please contact Chuck Casto at [email protected]. He also can offer JPEGs and other visuals, as well as local winner testimonials.