Who’s shaking up the industry today and making it a unique, successful, challenging and innovative sector? The members of the 2016 Counselor Hot 25. Check out their stories.

Eddie Blau is no stranger to challenges. When he left his job as a corporate attorney two decades ago to join Innovation Line (asi/62660), the supplier was just a small family business. Today, the company has grown immensely, increasing sales by 73% between 2012 and 2014 alone under Blau, who is now CEO.

In September, Blau led Innovation Line as it faced another challenge. A fire damaged part of the company’s operating facilities and about a fifth of its inventory. Blau credits Innovation Line’s employees and its overseas factories, who helped “day and night” with rebuilding.

Now, Blau is hoping to grow Innovation Line even further, expanding into different regions to reduce delivery times. No matter what obstacles he faces, though, Blau’s original goal will always be the same: “To create something of lasting value in an exciting and interesting industry.”

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