THE TIMES 100 : THE BEST PERFORMING COMPANIES IN CALIFORNIA : THE FAST TRACK : Anything Grows: The Eclectic Economy : Lumber, Shoe and Computer Firms Lead State’s Fast Pack

Gold was the first engine to drive the California economy.

But in the 140 years since gold-hungry ‘49ers put it on the map, California has grown into the nation’s wealthiest state--it is the world’s eighth-largest economy--by virtue of a richly varied business community that has spanned a spectrum from gold nuggets to fruits and vegetables to airplanes and missiles to silicon wafers.

This economic diversity remains as strong today as ever. In fact, after fueling an economic growth rate during the 1980s that consistently outpaced the nation’s, this diversity is expected to cushion the state against the slowdown that most economists expect to hit with full force later this year or early in 1990.

“Our image is kooky and distinct,” observes Larry Kimbell, director of the UCLA Business Forecast. “But the reality is that California all by itself is a mirror of the rest of the nation when it comes to its businesses. We are the most diverse state in the nation.”

And this variety has been an invaluable blessing. According to a study released earlier this year by the Bank of America, torrid growth in the state’s defense and construction industries from 1982 to 1985 offset slowdowns in its agriculture and consumer electronics sectors. Since 1986, red-hot growth in agriculture, commercial aerospace and consumer goods manufacturing has buffered the effects of slowing in the defense and real estate industries.

Further, during the next two years, growing strength in export operations--largely with Pacific Rim countries--and skyrocketing orders for new commercial aircraft and related parts are expected to help the state weather the recession that many economists predict is just over the horizon.

The Times list of the 100 fastest-growing California companies underscores the diversity of the state’s economy.

The top three companies on this list of “fast trackers” represent three separate segments of the economy. Further, a more detailed analysis of the growth rates for all 921 public companies surveyed reveals a remarkably even rate of growth among the 13 industry groups into which the businesses fall.

Eight groups--biotechnology, computer products, consumer goods, electronics, entertainment, industrial, retail and services--posted growth rates in the double digits. Four--aerospace and defense, energy, financial services and utilities--had growth rates of less than 10%, and just one industry--wholesale operations--suffered a sales setback for the year.

Overall, the 921 companies surveyed for The Times Growth 100 posted an average sales growth rate of 9.8% in 1988. Of the 100 fastest-growing companies, a list that admittedly favors smaller companies, the median growth rate--the mid-point on the tally--was about 37%. To be ranked in the Growth 100, a company had to have sales of $30 million in 1986 and must have been publicly traded for the past three years.

The fastest-growing companies represent the stars of the state’s economy in 1988.

Topping the list was Maxxam Inc., a Beverly Hills-based holding company with operating subsidiaries in lumber, real estate development and chemicals. The company, which most recently acquired the Kaiser-Tech aluminum and chemicals company in Oakland, had sales last year of $519 million, a figure representing a two-year average sales growth of 158%, a figure due entirely to the company’s recent acquisitions.

L.A. Gear, the trend-setting manufacturer of women’s and girls’ athletic shoes and casual clothing, was a close second. The Los Angeles company’s sales for 1988 were $224 million, and its two-year average growth rate was 148%.

In third place, with annual sales last year of slightly more than $1 billion was Sun Microsystems, a manufacturer of powerful computers for engineers and scientists, with a two-year average annual growth rate of about 124%.

“One of the outstanding characteristics about 1988 wasn’t just the raw sales numbers,” says Jeanette Garretty, a Bank of America economist. “It was that we saw growth in a lot of sectors of the economy. In the past, the growth has been a lot more uneven.”