It’s hard to believe that we’re nearing the launch of our eighth edition of the Florida 500. This year’s publication will arrive on subscribers’ desks the third week of October, followed directly by the launch of the 2025 Florida 500 website.
The Florida 500 has become a brand of its own — identifying and showcasing 500 of Florida’s most influential business leaders. These 500 executives are selected at the discretion of FLORIDA TREND’s executive editorial board, with a selection process that encompasses a full year of editorial work. The team does extensive research, including a lot of reading, sorting through nominations and informal consultation with other business leaders across the state — and at the end of the day our editors make the calls. It’s a tough process, and one I can assure you that they don’t take lightly.
Each year, FLORIDA TREND receives thousands of recommendations of Florida business leaders to consider for inclusion within the publication. In addition to the requests for consideration we receive, each of our editorial team members amass lists of their own candidates that go through the rigorous vetting process that is required of each of the final candidates being considered for selection.
Leading the team of editors in selecting the final candidates are Executive Editor Amy Keller and Managing Editor Mike Brassfield. It is through their watchful eyes, thorough examination and discerning awareness that the selection process moves along seamlessly each year.
Once the selections are made and the write-ups finished, the process moves along to our talented art department, led by Art Director Gary Bernloehr and Associate Art Director Jason Morton — and together, these visual architects bring the Florida 500 to life. Each year, Gary and Jason have taken the sophistication of the publication to another level, and just when we think that the Florida 500 can’t be improved upon, they find a way to polish and masterfully elevate the design and layout from the previous year. I know this year’s Florida 500 will be no exception.
Once the individual parts are complete, it takes true talent to ensure all the individual pieces come together on time and in perfect alignment. That magic happens when Production Manager Jill South takes the raw elements underneath her wings and assembles them into the final, cohesive product, ensuring that each piece of the puzzle is deliberately and meticulously placed in its correct position.
Without the focus, attention and dedication of our entire team at FLORIDA TREND, our products would end up sub-par. It is only due to the talent and integrity of our staff, and their relentless pursuit of excellence, that we can deliver the quality and caliber of products that we do.
— David G. Denor, Publisher, ddenor@floridatrend.com
David Denor
David is the publisher of Florida Trend, the highly regarded statewide magazine and website read and visited by business executives, government officials and civic leaders. David spent nearly 15 years overseeing the business and sales operations for Crain’s Chicago Business. David is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, majoring in criminal justice.
