C.F. Martin & Co. Recognized as Governor's ImPAct Awards Export ImPAct Recipient

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May 26, 2015, 09:00 ET

HARRISBURG, Pa., May 26, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- C.F. Martin & Co. was recognized for creating jobs that pay and their economic impact within the commonwealth as part of the third annual Governor's ImPAct Awards, which were presented at a ceremony at the Hershey Lodge in Hershey, Pa. on May 21, 2015.

"I am very proud that Martin Guitar is being recognized for our international sales initiatives," said Chris Martin IV, Chairman and CEO of C.F. Martin & Co. "Being a recipient of the Export ImPAct Award highlights the significant work that our organization performs year round to support our foreign market distributors which creates strong brand awareness and economic opportunities abroad."

Martin Guitar was awarded the Pennsylvania Governor's ImPAct Award – Export Impact because of the company's work over the past two years undertaking multiple key initiatives to increase its export sales.

At Home: At our Nazareth, Pennsylvania headquarters we increased international sales staffing levels and hosted any number of international distributor and dealer visits to train our international representatives on our products.

In Europe: In The Netherlands, we undertook a cross dock initiative to bring our product to the European Union market faster, relieve our distributors of the burden of international documentation and permanently defer their tax burden. In the UK, we also partnered with internationally acclaimed Grammy award winning artist Ed Sheeran, collaborating with him to develop top selling signature models, the royalties of which are donated to East Anglia's Children's Hospices (www.each.org.uk), a UK-based charity. We also took steps to strengthen our European distribution network.

In Japan: We supported our Japanese distributor with a tour by virtuoso guitarist John Mayer.

Trade Shows: We displayed our products and supported our distributors throughout the world.

The Governor's ImPAct Awards recognizes companies from throughout the state in five categories: Community Impact, Entrepreneurial Impact, Export Impact, Jobs That Pay, and Small Business Impact.

Community ImPAct Award - This award is given to a company that exemplifies the tenet of "doing well by doing good." The winners in this category show a sustained commitment to the growth and development of their employees and the community(ies) in which they do business.
Entrepreneur ImPAct Award - This award is given to an entrepreneur who has led his or her company to a position of strength in the marketplace by way of growth in one or all of the following areas: creativity, innovation, managerial ability, leadership skills, and turnaround.
Export ImPAct Award - This award is given to a company that has significantly increased its export sales and the number of new foreign markets to which it sells
Jobs That Pay ImPAct Award - This award is given to a company that has demonstrated consistent job growth and retention over the past two years. The company must have had a positive net gain in new jobs during this time period.
Small Business ImPAct Award - This award is given to a small business that has been an innovator within its industry, demonstrated revenue/profit growth, increased its workforce, and committed to the growth and development of its employees and community. The company must have 100 or fewer employees.

Martin Guitar was nominated for an Export ImPAct Award by the Partnerships for Regional Economic Performance (PREP) network. Each of the 10 PREP regions submitted up to five nominations per category.

PREP is a statewide network of partners that works to regionalize and coordinate local economic development services to businesses and entrepreneurs.

Representatives from the Team Pennsylvania Foundation and Journal Multimedia evaluated the nominations and selected the award recipients.

For more information and the full list of nominees, visit newpa.com/gia.

About Martin Guitar & Strings
C. F. Martin & Co. (www.martinguitar.com) has been creating the finest instruments in the world for over 182 years. It continues to innovate, introducing techniques and features that have become industry standards, including X-bracing, the 14-fret guitar and the "Dreadnought" size. One of the world's leading acoustic instrument makers, Martin guitars are hand-made by skilled craftsmen and women, who use a combination of new design and techniques, along with those introduced by the company founder.

The company is also known for producing high-quality, popular acoustic guitar strings. These include the Martin SP® LIFESPAN® line, the fastest-growing treated string in the industry, and the Martin SP line, which uses an industry leading core wire to hold tunings better.

Martin guitars and Martin strings are the instruments and strings of choice for musicians around the world, from the icons of rock, pop, country, folk and bluegrass to those just beginning their careers. They can be seen across all segments of pop culture, from television to movies, Broadway, books, online, and gracing the covers of popular magazines on newsstands everywhere. Connect with Martin and Martin Strings on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, YouTube and via www.martinguitar.com and www.martinstrings.com.

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