Greg Muzzillo, founder of Top 40 distributor Proforma (asi/300094), has started a new business outside the promotional products industry, while also ramping up Proforma’s efforts to drive growth through acquisitions and other means. Launched last fall, the new business, ProTalent, is billed as the first franchise system exclusively for staffing professionals. 

“Proforma is a B2B franchise organization. I wanted to leverage our expertise, infrastructure and support team in another B2B business,” Muzzillo told Counselor. “Staffing is very similar to the promo, print and packaging distribution industry. The key difference is that at ProTalent, we are providing people, not printed products.” 

Muzzillo said ProTalent is the first and only franchise of its kind in the staffing industry. “All the current staffing franchises charge $35,000 to $85,000 up front, require immediately hiring five or more employees and have limiting territories,” he said. “ProTalent is exclusively for staffing professionals looking to turn their successful career into their own successful business. With ProTalent, there are no up-front fees to join, no expensive startup requirements and no limiting territories.”

Over time, Muzzillo believes there will be mutually beneficial referrals between Proforma and ProTalent franchise owners, especially because both organizations work with human resources departments. “Additionally, as we grow and perfect our recruiting expertise at ProTalent, we should be able to even more efficiently recruit sales reps and customer service staff for our Proforma owners,” Muzzillo told Counselor. 

While excited about ProTalent, Muzzillo remains laser-focused on growing Proforma. “I wouldn’t want anyone to think I’m taking my foot off the gas pedal at Proforma,” he told Counselor. “In fact, we are picking up the pace at Proforma. We are rolling out a new Proforma Acquisition Division to directly purchase businesses in our industry ranging in size from $5 million to $100 million in sales. We are investing more than $10 million in a new technology platform that will be a real game changer. Concurrent with the roll out of our new technology platform, we will also be introducing The Proforma Service Bureau for distributors over $5 million.” 

Muzzillo’s goal is to make both Proforma and ProTalent 10-figure companies. “Overall, one of my favorite hobbies is business. I am having fun working to grow Proforma from a $500 million to a billion dollar company,” he said. “I also look forward to growing ProTalent to a billion or more.”

Proforma ranked third on Counselor’s latest list of the largest distributors in the ad specialty industry as determined by 2016 North American promotional product revenue.