2026 Small Business Week Award Winners: Fueling West Virginia’s Economy

The West Virginia Small Business Development Center (WV SBDC), together with U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) WV District Office officials, recognized the state winners of the 2026 Small Business Week Awards during a ceremony at the Robert H. Mollohan Research Center in Fairmont on May 6. All seven of the honorees were WV SBDC clients. 

Award recipients spoke of their work with business coaches and how the WV SBDC helped them grow their businesses. 

WV Small Business Person of the Year

Madhur Bedre, founder and president of Atlas Prediction Control, was named WV Small Business Person of the Year. Located in South Charleston, Atlas Prediction Control works with petrochemical operations teams on process optimization. Bedre’s WV SBDC business coach, Julia Moran, nominated him for the award. 

“I nominated Madhur because the time felt right. He’s been in business for 6-7 years, and he’s grown dramatically — from being in his basement to now having employees across the country and the world,” Moran said. “He’s getting ready to marshal a new AI initiative, and I felt like this would be a great time to celebrate what he’s achieved and where he’ll be going.”

Bedre moved to the United States from India in 2010 to pursue his graduate degree in chemical engineering from West Virginia University. He later earned his MBA from the University of Michigan and worked for Dow Chemical for several years before starting Atlas in 2019.

“This is my adopted home state, and it just brings me a lot of joy to be here and to be recognized and also to represent West Virginia on a national stage,” he said.

WV Small Business Manufacturer of the Year

Kim Mack, owner and president of South Charleston’s Cyclops Industries, is a third-generation entrepreneur. Her grandfather, Gene Leroy, started the business in 1959, passed it down to her father, Gene B. Leroy, and Mack assumed leadership in 2001 after her father’s death. 

Cyclops designs and manufactures safety sight glasses, viewport assemblies, sight flow indicators, spray rings, sight lights and sight glass replacements for observing processes in industrial pressure vessels and pipelines. The company has been a WV SBDC client for a number of years. 

“Whether you’ve been in business for a short time or a long time, the SBDC is the place to go to if you’re looking for guidance,” Mack said. “As an entrepreneur, you can depend on these people to direct you in the right way when you have a question about your business.” 

Harold Patterson, Mack’s current WV SBDC business coach, nominated her for the award because he believes her to be an ideal entrepreneur.

“She is very forward-thinking, she understands her business, and she reaches out for help, she reaches out for guidance. Based on this criterion, she was perfect for the Small Business Manufacturer Award,” Patterson said. 

Before receiving this year’s WV Small Business Manufacturer of the Year Award, Cyclops was awarded the WV Family-owned Small Business of the Year in 2022. 

WV Veteran-Owned Small Business of the Year

A veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps and former sheriff’s deputy, Andrew Pintus III owns Blue Mountain K-9, a “dog activity center” that features training, boarding, daycare, grooming and other services in Morgantown. 

Pintus has been working with his WV SBDC Business Coach, Frank Goldsborough, who nominated him for the award, for over a year. 

“I think Andy was deserving of this award because he really exemplifies the SBA’s mission to utilize entrepreneurship to grow our local communities,” Goldsborough said.

“I definitely recommend entrepreneurs reach out to the Small Business Development Center; the resources have been absolutely fantastic,” Pintus added. 

Become a WV SBDC Client 

The WV SBDC, an accredited partner program with the U.S. Small Business Administration and a division of the West Virginia Division of Economic Development, helps small businesses at all stages of development by connecting owners to programs, resources, and coaches.

WV SBDC business coaches have professional certifications ranging from Certified Business Advisor® (CBA), Entrepreneurship Development Professional (EDP), MBAs, design thinking, AI, cybersecurity and exporting, along with experience in technology, innovation, manufacturing, finance, management, HR and marketing.

Sign up here: wvsbdc.com