Chugach, the Alaska Chamber's business of the year, has bought five Alaska firms since 2024

The Alaska Chamber named Chugach Alaska Corp. its 2026 Rita Sholton Large Business of the Year, an award the Alaska Native regional corporation accepted Oct. 15 at the Alaska Business Summit in Girdwood.

In a release on the award, Chugach said it has bought five Alaska-founded businesses since 2024. "The goal is a stronger Alaska-based enterprise that can serve major energy, infrastructure and industrial projects," the release says.

One is Copper River Fleece, the outerwear brand Jennifer Park founded in Cordova in 1995. Chugach announced the purchase in July and said the brand would keep its name.

The others are oilfield and building trades companies. In February, Chugach announced it had bought two Kenai firms that work in Cook Inlet and on the North Slope: Pollard Wireline, which does slickline work on oil and gas wells, and Alaska E-Line Services, which does electric-line work such as perforating and well testing. In 2024, it bought two Fairbanks contractors, the sheet metal firm H.V.A.C., LLC and Alaska Integrated Services, LLC, which installs building controls and refrigeration.

"We are building those capabilities at Chugach, both by growing our existing businesses and by investing in strong Alaska companies that complement them," said Gwen Welch, president of Chugach Commercial Holdings.

None of the announcements disclosed purchase prices.

Chugach reported $964 million in gross revenue in 2025, up 19% from the year before, ranking ninth on Alaska Business magazine's 2026 Top 49ers list of the largest Alaska-owned companies. Most of its roughly 5,000 employees work outside Alaska. The chamber award goes to companies with more than 100 employees in Alaska.