Part of the Movista crew outside the company's downtown Bentonville office.
Less than five years out from its founding in Bentonville, Innovate Arkansas client firm Movista continues to grow as one of the state’s “million dollar plays.”
International entrepreneur and investor Permjot Valia of London included Movista in his 2013 assessment of the state’s significant startups, and Movista now has grown its full-time staff to 25 employees.
That growth, accelerated throughout 2012, was bolstered by an $82,000 investment from the Arkansas Science & Technology Authority’s Seed Capital Investment Program which preceded a $550,000 funding round.
Movista develops mobile management and execution software that tracks, verifies and reports remote workforce activities.
It just launched a new product, One by Movista, that offers mobile data collection, task management and work verification. Movista president and co-founder Stan Zylowski said it helps clients save money on inefficient practices through real-time data collection and delivery.
The investment from ASTA helped Movista create good jobs, attract top-tier talent to northwest Arkansas, and helped lead to the larger funding round. Zylowski said Movista is in a “hyper-growth” phase and on a trajectory to double the number of employees in the next two years.
“In a technology firm, architects, developers and technologists determine your success,” he said. “The funds from ASTA have allowed us to get more and better employees and send our product and company into a different realm than might otherwise have been possible.”
Zylowski said Arkansas is gaining a national reputation among techies thanks to state investments in companies like Movista through programs like ASTA’s seed capital investments.
“That helps us attract talent and win business everyday,” he said. “What a great program.”
Gary Campbell, chairman of the ASTA Commercialization Committee, said replicating the success of Movista is key to growing the Arkansas economy.
“It’s about more than just repayment of the investment the state made,” he said. “Movista has grown revenue by millions and we’re proud to call them a client. Aside from revenue, they’ve created 25 high-paying, high-tech jobs in less than five years.”
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