What you need to know about New York's top privately held companies
By Gerald Schifman and Aaron Elstein on November 18, 2019
Perfect growth
TransPerfect is proof that a sound business can survive, well, anything. The nation’s leading translation-services firm was subjected to a four-year war for control between its two founders, ex-lovers Phil Shawe and Liz Elting. Last year a court-appointed referee deemed Shawe the winner. Elting sold him her stake for $385 million.
But Shawe isn’t ready to lay down arms quite yet; he sued the arbiter earlier this year, violating an order from a judge who found him in contempt of court. Through it all TransPerfect has continued to thrive. In fact, since it was launched in an NYU dorm room in 1992, its 35% compound annual growth rate has exceeded Apple’s. In a recent staff memo, Shawe said revenue growth in 2019 is running 7% ahead of last year’s record pace.