They filled three tables and even brought a stuffed-animal gorilla. When they found out they won, the group rose to their feet, clapping and roaring.

Gorilla Kleen, a local pressure-cleaning company, received the top honor of “Small Business of the Year” at the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce’ 26th annual Frank G. Berlin Sr. Small Business Awards on Friday. “Excited,” was the first word the company’s president John Cloud managed to get out, moments after the announcement.

“I’ve lived here for 50 years, this is my home,” Cloud said. “It’s a tremendous honor.”

Gorilla Kleen opened in summer 2011 and employs 15 at the company’s headquarters, 1663 11th St. Cloud started the business from scratch, something he said isn’t easy in an industry in which anyone who buys a pressure washer tends to think they are a professional.

“Pressure washing is a low-entry business. It’s hard to transcend a business model,” he said. “And to have built it up in five years to be worthy enough of Small Business of the Year … it makes you feel validated for the seven days a week that you’ve been putting into it — it’s like an atta’ boy.”

While Gorilla Kleen cleans and maintains large commercial areas such as Ed Smith Stadium and Sarasota Memorial Hospital, the company makes routine house calls, too.

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