In 2005 Sun Coast Resources ranked #8 in the Houston Chronicle’s “Chronicle 100″. Sun Coast had, at that point, been operating for 20 years and was doing very well. Now in 2011 Sun Coast continues to grow, thanks to our amazing customers! Here is what the Houston Chronicle wrote about Sun Coast in 2005, we look forward to what they will right in 5, 10, or 15 years. Enjoy!

SUN COAST RESOURCES: RANKED 8 (Chronicle 100, 2005)

Long before Tracy McGrady and Kevin Garnett skipped college and became NBA superstars, Kathy Lehne, founder, president and CEO of Sun Coast Resources, went from high school straight to the pros.

Lehne got a job with an oil distributor after completing a high school vocational program and worked for the company for five years.

She founded Sun Coast in 1985 at a time in her life when opportunity crossed with necessity.

In short, she needed more money and had a some potential clients lined up.

The company started with $2,000 and four workers, including Lehne. They hustled to secure new clients to get the operation off the ground.

Twenty years later, Sun Coast has 280 employees, and its 2004 revenue reached nearly $700 million. Its fleet of trucks delivers fuel and lubricants from the refinery to a variety of customers, including trucking companies, cities and school districts in Texas and eight other states.

Lehne attributes the firm’s staying power to long hours and attention to detail.

“It’s often the little things that make the difference between success and failure in this business,” Lehne said.

Most of Sun Coast’s growth has been done without acquisitions.

The company still has room to grow, but Lehne said higher fuel prices make good service and competitive pricing all the more important.

“Usually when prices are high, your customers shop a lot harder than they normally do,” she said.

But she’s not looking to change much.

“It’s been 20 years, and we just keep growing,” she said. “We’ve just been doing the same thing over and over, and it works.”