Per Mar honored as 2023 Business of the Year

The Quad Cities Chamber honored Per Mar as Business of the Year at the 2023 Chamber Annual Meeting presented by IMEG Corp.

Headquartered in Davenport, Per Mar is the largest family-owned, full-service security company in the Midwest, offering a wide range of services, from home security and business security systems to in-person security guard services and corporate investigations. Per Mar also owns and operates Midwest Alarm Services, which has nine locations in four states and has been a part of the company for 25 years.

Per Mar’s commitment to growth and providing first-class customer service is what makes them this year’s Business of the Year. Over the decades, Per Mar has grown organically and through acquisitions, evolving their offerings and becoming one of the only one-stop-shops for security services in the Midwest. This growth has helped them to become one of the largest companies in the United States in three areas: security officer services, electronic security services and fire alarm services. 

President and CEO Brian Duffy said the Business of the Year Award is a great tribute to the growth and successes that Per Mar’s workers have achieved.

“It's really a testament to years of continuous improvement. We work at getting better and growing every year. This award demonstrates the hard work that our employees have been doing for a very long time,” he said.

First established in Davenport in 1953, Per Mar now has 25 offices in 14 states, with over 2,500 employees. In the Quad Cities, Per Mar serves 7,500 clients and employs 300 individuals.

Those are some impressive numbers for a company that initially planned to make a home in Denver. Duffy recalled the story of his grandparents, Per Mar Founders John and Eleanor Duffy, traveling from Detroit to Denver when their vehicle broke down in Davenport.

“They lived in Detroit and were moving to Denver, where my grandparents had plans to open a business,” Brian shared. “They were visiting relatives in Davenport when their car broke down. In the time that it took to fix their car, they decided they really liked Davenport, so they set up shop. And we've been here ever since. If it weren't for the happenstance of their car breaking down, our company wouldn't exist, certainly not in the Quad Cities.”

 Founders John and Eleanor eventually passed the business reins to Brian’s father, Michael Duffy, who led the company as President before becoming Chairman in 2021, with Brian as the new CEO and Brad Duffy as President of the Security Officer Division. Per Mar is now being led by the third generation of Duffys; all six of Brian’s siblings have worked for the company.

For Brian, running the family business has a profound impact on his work. “I feel like I can really make an impact every day and feel the importance of what we do in a way where it just wouldn't be the same if I worked somewhere else.”

None of Per Mar’s successes would be possible if it weren’t for the 2,500+ employees helping move the company forward. Brian said that the employees are the driving factor guiding Per Mar to big company wins.

“My grandparents and parents said the same thing, that we need to take care of our employees first, and the employees will take care of the customers and then the rest will take care of itself. Connecting with and supporting our employees is what helps us win,” he concluded.           

Per Mar was selected as Business of the Year from a strong list of nominees, and the Chamber is proud to support their work in creating a more robust regional economy.