John Galiher, founder, president and CEO of Preferred Freezer Services, was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in New Jersey in the Distribution & Transportation Services category.
The Newark, N.J., company, which operates 23 cold-storage warehouses nationwide, with 10 facilities under construction or about to begin construction, has nearly 800 employees and annual sales of almost $100 million.
The winners were selected in a total of 10 categories by an independent judging panel. Regional winners are eligible for Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2008, which will be announced at an awards ceremony in Palm Springs, Calif., on Nov. 15.
Earlier this month, McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants chairman and CEO Doug Schmick was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in the Food & Beverage category in the Pacific Northwest.
"The Entrepreneur of the Year award recognizes all of the hard work, ingenuity and care these leaders have put into building and improving their businesses and communities," says Keith Brownlie, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year program director for New Jersey.