WALTHAM, Mass. – The Smaller Business Association of New England honored a Fall River linen company for innovative ideas and practices during recent presentation of the 25th annual 2011 New England Innovation Awards.

John Matouk & Company Inc. was one of nine businesses honored with an innovation award for its work designing and manufacturing linens.

Founded in 1929 by John Matouk, a native of Damascus, the company soon became nationally known for its work and, in 1933, Mrs. Edsel Ford replenished her linen closets by buying table linens from Matouk worth $75,000, an investment of $1.2 million in today’s terms, according to the company website www.matouk.com. The company was located in Manhattan until 1985, when John Matouk’s son, George Matouk Sr., moved the factory to southern New England.

Today, the company is owned and operated by John Matouk’s grandson, George Matouk Jr. and, among other accomplishments, has installed a solar energy power system at its Fall River plant. Linens the company makes are available across the country, but in just two places in Rhode Island, according to the company website: the Wendy Brown shop on Wayland Avenue in Providence and The Linen Shop on Bellevue Avenue in Newport.

The sold-out awards dinner was held May 11 at The Westin Waltham-Boston and attended by 450 people. Sophie Vandebroek, chief technology officer for Xerox, was the keynote speaker. Among those attending were Keith W. Stokes, director of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation, who received a special award from Raytheon for his work with small businesses.

Other 2011 innovation award winners were: Biovation, Boothbay, Maine; Black Duck Software Inc., Waltham; Harvest Power, Waltham; IdeaPaint, Ashland, Mass.; Science Club for Girls, Cambridge, Mass.; TEI Biosciences Inc., Boston; Trexel Inc., Woburn, Mass.; and United Teen Equality Center, Lowell, Mass.