APEX Accelerator Success Story: Aquamen Cleaning, LLC

by Kim Magee - May 7, 2024

Did you know? Arkansas APEX Accelerator not only assists with federal government contracts, but also assists with state and local government contracts as well.

Aquamen Cleaning, LLC is a minority-owned janitorial company owned by Christian Gilbert. Gilbert initially felt that Memphis would be a good fit for his business, but came to find Arkansas is the best fit for his business.

Aquamen currently does business in eight Arkansas cities: Jonesboro, Forrest City, Marion, West Memphis, Hot Springs, Truman, Harrisburg and Marked Tree. Soon, he will be branching into North Little Rock. The company has been in business since 2022.

While the young entrepreneur Gilbert was thinking about delving into government contracting and was searching the System for Award Management (SAM) website, he took note of the advertisement for the APEX Accelerator network and contacted Arkansas APEX Accelerator. He became a client in February 2024.

Gilbert was assigned to the procurement counselor in our Jonesboro satellite office, Flora Tate. Since becoming a client, they have worked together to construct a capability statement, marketing strategies, and vendor registrations, as well as review federal certification options, cybersecurity requirements, and federal, state, and local acquisition regulations.

Aquamen Cleaning has received several state and local contracts, including the Child Support Office in Hot Springs, the Marion Revenue Office, the Harrisburg Revenue Office, and the Truman Revenue Office. They have also subcontracted contracts with the Department of Human Services (DHS) and are looking into possibly being the prime contractor for DHS contracts in the future.

“Mrs. Tate made me aware of programs and certifications beneficial to my business regarding government contracting that I otherwise would not have known existed,” Gilbert said. “I wish more folks knew about Arkansas APEX Accelerator. I have been a part of the cleaning network for several years now and have never heard anyone mention APEX Accelerator.”

After being successful with state and local contracts, Gilbert is ready to delve into federal contracting and is currently working with Tate on his SAM (vendor) registration, a requirement to do business with the federal government.

We commend Gilbert & Aquamen Cleaning on their state and local government contract success and wish them luck in their federal government contract venture.

To see how Arkansas APEX Accelerator can assist you in securing state, local, or federal government contracts or for more information on our services that are offered free of charge, please contact us at APEX@uada.edu.