A Marietta commercial flooring company grew gross profit by 34% and added seven full-time employees within a year of connecting with a free business coaching program available to any Cobb County company.

Perimeter Floors, headquartered at 3045 Chastain Meadows Parkway, linked up with the University of Georgia Small Business Development Center at Kennesaw State University after a chance meeting during SelectCobb's Business Walks Program. The company also posted a 12% sales increase over the same period, according to a case study published by the Cobb Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, Aug. 18. The SBDC program is free and open to businesses anywhere in Cobb and Cherokee counties, including East Cobb.

Tina Walker, director of administration at Perimeter Floors, first met UGA SBDC business consultant Joe Zirkel during one of SelectCobb's semi-annual Business Walks visits. Those walks bring economic development professionals, local officials and business experts directly into Cobb County companies to learn about their operations and connect them with resources.

Zirkel invited Walker to a strategic planning class he was offering through the Cobb Chamber. That introduction turned into an ongoing consulting relationship.

"Having a strategic plan gives you the direction and a guide that you can continually go back to when things seem like they're all over the place and moving really fast," Walker said in the Chamber's profile of the company. "It keeps you on track."

Founded in 2019, Perimeter Floors specializes in flooring for large-scale multifamily developments, apartment complexes, student housing and health care facilities. The company relocated to Cobb County in 2024 and now works on projects including the 108 Townpark Apartments near its Marietta office.

With Zirkel's guidance, the company conducted a SWOT analysis, developed a structured strategic plan and adopted a 12-month moving total financial tool to better track sales trends. The SBDC also helped the team review three-year financial projections covering profit-and-loss statements, balance sheets and cash flow forecasts.

Beyond the numbers, Perimeter Floors expanded its strategic planning committee to include emerging leaders and is creating promotion paths for employees.

What East Cobb business owners should know

The UGA SBDC at KSU offers free, confidential one-on-one consulting to businesses in Cobb and Cherokee counties. The office is at 3333 Busbee Drive, Suite 500, Kennesaw, and can be reached at (470) 578-6450 or [email protected].

The Cobb County Economic Development Office also holds open office hours for small business owners every Wednesday from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Appointments can be scheduled at (770) 528-2018.

Perimeter Floors said it plans to continue working with the SBDC and is preparing to adopt new financial management software as its next step.