Black Box Safety’s road to winning a $10 million a year contract with the State of California was paved with networking, nurtured relationships, strategic planning and elbow grease. Black Box Safety is a small Veteran owned business specializing in distributing and selling workplace safety equipment, including eye, face and head protection, ear protection and so much more. President and Owner Jackson Dalton walked us through what it took to achieve mission success for him, his team and his business.
This story starts in Florida, where Dalton responded to an RFI that brought him to Tampa. The VA in Tampa asked Black Box Safety if they would be able to provide body armor, an ask that led him to reach out to Point Blank Body Armor, a large manufacturer of body armor. Point Blank declined to work with Black Box Safety on the VA request, but Dalton creatively proposed an alternative – partner with Black Box Safety to get Point Blank products out to California. Point Blank had previously not been present in the Golden State and agreed to the offer.
If this agreement was a starting whistle, then Black Box Safety was running a triathlon while also cooking a souffle and knitting a sweater simultaneously. Dalton tasked his Vice President Griffin Forsyth and Head of Sales Parker Marshall to strategically present, promote and sell Point Blank’s products to as many California state agencies as possible. There was no easy way to do it – this was nose to the grindstone hard work. The team spent countless hours traveling up and down the state, showing California agencies the Point Blank products and making contacts left and right.
All of this hard work had another layer – Dalton was also aware that the California state contract for body armor was about to go to bid soon. In order to position Black Box Safety competitively, he knew that they could only improve their chances by making personal connections with the agencies that would be utilizing the product. This was strategic networking by showcasing a reliable product with a Black Box Safety representative, reinforcing that this small Veteran owned business has the ability to meet this need.
Black Box Safety submitted their bid for the California state contract to provide body armor to all prisons and state agencies that required the protective gear for the next 5 years, a $10 million a year contract. Dalton presented their bid to a DGS committee in early 2023, proud of the work he and his team put into the intense period of sales and marketing. Black Box Safety’s bid ultimately won the contract, propelling this Veteran owned business to become the California state provider of body armor for the next 5 years.
It’s an inspiring story and incorporates every aspect of owning a small business – hard work, perseverance, creativity, the ability to pivot when told no and ultimately, pivot to incredible success. Dalton’s best advice for fellow Veteran owned businesses is to respond to every RFI that comes your way and put real value into the business relationships you cultivate. Black Box Safety’s win showcases the importance of networking and being top of mind for your connections when it really counts.
We are proud to have Dalton and the entire Black Box Safety team as part of the VIB Network to help enable Veteran businesses to connect with Corporations and Government agencies actively looking to work with this community. Bravo Zulu, Black Box Safety!
By Sydney Santiago
You can read more about Black Box Safety’s contract win here => Small Business Wins Largest Body Armor Contract in Country