Garmin 2002 Annual Report Download - page 4

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Dr. Min H. Kao, CEO & Co-Chairman
Gary L. Burrell, Co-Chairman
We are privileged to share news of Garmin’s twelfth consecutive
year of revenue growth with the people who have played a role in
our success. Garmin’s growing family of customers, dealers, suppliers,
employees and investors inspires us to constantly seek new opportu-
nities. We are grateful for your faith in our business and for helping
Garmin develop and service superior products that enhance the
lives of people around the world.
There are times to celebrate and times to carry on with the business
at hand. In the pages of this report, we’d like to accomplish both —
celebrating a successful year while highlighting growth initiatives
that will help us elevate the Garmin brand.
Garmin posted record revenue growth of 26 percent from the
previous year. We brought 22 new products to market, which in turn
fueled sales for our long-standing dealers as well as new top-tier
national retailers. To support the development of future products,
Garmin increased research and development investments by 14
percent. The completion of our new flight test and certification
facility near Olathe, Kansas, and the expansion of our product
development capabilities in our Taiwan facility are tangible examples
of our commitment to R&D.
Garmin will hold to the solid business principles on which the com-
pany was founded while moving full speed ahead in the development
of new products. In our aviation segment, work continues on
Garmin’s integrated cockpit system, which is on track for certification
near the end of the year. Our consumer segment will continue
developing new devices to expand our existing lines of automotive,
marine and recreational products. We will also continue designing
products with integrated GPS capabilities, including FRS (family radio
service) radios, wireless phones and PDA organizers. Early response
to our Rino FRS radio and GPS as well as our recently announced
iQue 3600 PDA with built-in GPS indicates that consumers are hungry
for devices that integrate these feature sets.
With plans underway for a major expansion at our Olathe facility,
we are excited for the opportunity this will bring to support future
growth. We are also transitioning to the Oracle ERP (enterprise
resource planning) system for improved efficiencies and a greater
degree of systems integration among our facilities.
As we celebrate past accomplishments while staying focused on
growing our business, we are excited for what lies ahead. Our passion
for bringing innovative new products to market, tempered with a
carefully crafted plan for future growth will continue to guide
Garmin’s success. Thank you for being a part of that success.
3
To our shareholders: