Daily Business Report: Thursday, March 2, 2023
March is Women’s History Month
Women entrepreneurs build businesses,
create jobs and drive economic impact
Woman-owned businesses in the U.S. top 12 million and generate $2.1 trillion in receipts annually, with female founders representing 22.4 percent of all small business owners, according to SCORE, mentors to America’s small businesses and a resource partner of the U.S. Small Business Administration. This Women’s History Month, SCORE celebrates women entrepreneurs and their indelible impact on the U.S. economy.
“Being an entrepreneur can be lonely, stressful and you can feel lost at times,” said SCORE client Kelly Twichel, inventor, CEO and co-founder of Access Trax in San Diego. “SCORE really prepared me for what was to come, helped me avoid a lot of mistakes, and made me feel more confident about being a small business owner.”
On Wednesday, March 15, SCORE will host a free, online event celebrating Women’s History month and woman-owned small businesses. For the first time in history the leaders of SCORE and the SCORE Foundation, as well as the chairs of both boards of directors, are women. SCORE CEO Bridget Weston, SCORE Foundation President Liz Sara, and Board Chairs Tracy Shaw and Patricia Loftus, will speak about leadership, the power of women in business, and the many resources available to women entrepreneurs on the road to success.
Click here to register or learn more.
Chula Vista’s renter protection
ordinance stricter than state law
A new law that shields renters from eviction goes into effect Wednesday in Chula Vista, making it the first city in the county to enact protections that are stricter than those allowed under state law.
The City Council last October passed a landlord-tenant ordinance aimed at safeguarding good tenants from no-fault evictions by landlords acting in bad faith.
The protections will cover several thousand units across the city of nearly 300,000 residents. Of the 79,000 units that make up its housing stock, more than 42 percent are rentals, according to 2019 city data. Apartment buildings with 10 or more units make up most of the rentals.
New franchisees agree to open Jack in the Box
restaurants in Florida and Arkansas
Jack in the Box announced that it has signed 14 new restaurant commitments that will bring Jack in the Box to two new states, Florida and Arkansas. This is the first time the brand has entered the Arkansas market, and over 30 years since it was last in Florida.
“We’re excited to see the brand’s continued expansion into new cities and states across the country, as both of these groups bring tremendous experience to the Jack in the Box franchise system and are the perfect franchisees to open these new markets,” said Tim Linderman, chief development officer. “These signings come on the heels of another recent 37-store development agreement with new franchisees, which speaks to the tremendous value of the Jack in the Box system to new franchise operators who want to bring a proven concept into their markets.”
SDSU School of Journalism and Media
Studies opens new research lab
The Media, Identity, and Communication (MIC) Innovation Research Lab is the brainchild of Nathian Shae Rodriguez, associate professor of digital media and associate director of San Diego State University’s School of Journalism and Media Studies at the College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts (PSFA). This novel lab was opened Jan. 23 after Rodriguez was awarded the Inaugural SDSU Presidential Research Fellowship.
Rodriguez created the MIC Lab to assist his research in critical cultural media and to help foster innovative research using creative media technology.
This state-of-the-art research lab is open to faculty, students, and staff who are doing research into intersectional identity in the media, entertainment, communication, and pop culture.
Two students are currently working as lab research assistants as part of the Weber Honors College Research Fellowship Program. They will have the opportunity to have their names included in a published research paper.
Richard Kronick appointed to the California
Health Care Affordability Board
Richard Kronick, 70, of San Diego, has been appointed to the California Health Care Affordability Board. Kronick has been a professor at the University of California, San Diego since 1991, where he currently serves as a professor of health policy in the School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science. He was director at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality from 2013 to 2016.
Kronick was deputy assistant secretary for health policy at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from 2010 to 2013. He was a senior health policy adviser in the Office of President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 1994.
Kronick is a member at the National Academy of Medicine. He earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Political Science from the University of Rochester. The position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $500 per diem. Kronick is a Democrat.
Lavine, Lofgren, Morris & Engelbert
adds tax director and tax manager
Bill Dempsey has joined the accounting Lavine, Lofgren, Morris & Engelberg, LLP as tax director and Larisa Strijicova has joined as tax manager.
Dempsey has more than 25 years of experience providing tax compliance and consulting services to medium-sized, closely held businesses and related owners in industries including health care, senior living, retail, manufacturing and distribution, professional services and real estate.
Prior to joining LLME, Dempsey was a tax principal at CliftonLarsonAllen LLP.
Strijicova is a CPA with more than 10 years of experience providing accounting and tax services to corporate and pass-through entities as well as individuals in the technology, real estate and professional services industries.
Prior to joining LLME, Strijicova was a tax manager at Chawla & Chawla.
Disguise Inc. announces multi-year costume
rights to Black, female-owned Afro Unicorn
POWAY — Disguise Inc., the costume division of leading toy and consumer products manufacturer JAKKS Pacific Inc., announced the costume rights to Afro Unicorn for North America and EMEA.
Commencing in 2023, Disguise will design, market, manufacture and distribute costumes and costume accessories for Afro Unicorn, a conscious brand with a mission to uplift and celebrate women and children of color.
Afro Unicorn, created by April Showers, is designed to represent the uniqueness of women and children of color in a truly diverse and inclusive fashion.
SDG&E: Natural gas prices to drop
further in March from January’s high
SAN DIEGO — Natural gas prices are set to decline in March for a second month in a row after hitting a record level in January, San Diego Gas & Electric reported Tuesday. The utility said a typical residential customer’s gas bill is expected to be around $85 in March, down from around $225 in January, with the price per therm falling from $3.45 to $0.60. SDG&E does not set the price for natural gas, which is determined by national and regional markets. The utility bills customers for the gas used with no markup.
County establishes new Child
and Family Well-Being Department
SAN DIEGO — The San Diego County Board of Supervisors has approved a reimagined department to support children and families. The new Child and Family Well-Being Department will integrate multiple child and family serving systems, including First 5 San Diego, Child Welfare Services, and other Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) departments, under one umbrella to deliver both prevention and safeguarding services.
BetterNight raises $33 million growth
financing round led by NewSpring
SAN DIEGO — BetterNight, a leading provider of comprehensive sleep care through its virtual care platform, announced $33 million in growth funding led by NewSpring.
The financing round includes participation from existing investors HCAP Partners and Hamilton Lane via its Impact Fund II and other accounts managed by the firm. BetterNight provides a full continuum of care for patients with sleep disorders, from consultation to diagnosis to treatment to long-term coaching. The company is focused on addressing obstructive sleep apnea and insomnia to boost clinical outcomes, lower health care costs, and improve patient lives.
Taoglas accelerates its IoT growth strategy
with major investment from Graham Partners
SAN DIEGO — Taoglas, a provider of antennas and IoT components that helps solve complex engineering problems, announced that it has completed a transaction that results in a majority ownership from Graham Partners, a private investment firm targeting technology-driven advanced manufacturing companies. The deal will support Taoglas’ continued expansion of in-house RF engineering expertise and design globally, new product development, sales channels, and customer base across a wide range of IoT industries.
Seismic Winter 2023 release adds new
capabilities to simplify and optimize programs
SAN DIEGO Seismic, a global leader in enablement, announced its Winter 2023 Release packed with enhancements to drive greater enablement and operational efficiency. According to new global research, 85 percent of organizations are increasing or retaining their investment in enablement technology in 2023 – and they’re counting on enablement to drive business-critical outcomes: respondents overwhelmingly agree that enablement is integral to weathering difficult economic times (92 percent), maintaining client relationships (88 percent), and operating more efficiently (84 percent).
San Diego International Airport expands
deployment of Identiv’s access control
SAN DIEGO — Identiv Inc., a global digital security and identification leader in the Internet of Things, announced that San Diego International Airport has deployed Identiv’s comprehensive, end-to-end access control ecosystem, including Hirsch Velocity Software and its Velocity Vision video management system under a single graphical user interface.
Identiv’s Hirsch Velocity Software and Velocity Vision VMS are integrated as a sub-segment within the airport’s access control and surveillance infrastructure.
San Diego Foundation awards $100,000
grant to advance DEI training for nonprofits
SAN DIEGO — San Diego Foundation has awarded a $100,000 grant to RISE San Diego to provide diversity, equity and inclusion training to local nonprofits to advance racial and social justice efforts in the region. The grant-funded program will help provide free training to leadership and staff of a selected cohort of 15 to 20 local nonprofit organizations. Priority will be given to nonprofit organizations that: Serve North, East or South County; are located in the San Diego Promise Zone or San Diego Communities of Concern; Are small- to mid-sized nonprofit organizations led by or serving Black, Indigenous and/or People of Color communities.
Luminous Capital Management sells
Carlsbad R&D building for $18.6 million
CARLSBAD — Luminous Capital Management, in partnership with Austin-based Virtus Real Estate Capital, has sold 2290 Cosmos Court, a 37,200-square foot industrial/R&D building in Carlsbad. The property was sold to Hazard Jr Enterprises LP, a family-owned entity advised by San Diego-based Commercial Facilities Inc., for $18.63 million. Luminous and Virtus acquired the Property in January 2022 and shortly thereafter signed a 10-year lease for the entirety of the building with REEF, a leading global manufacturer of beach-inspired footwear and apparel which has been based in Carlsbad since 2007.
Biological Dynamics collaborates on
early-stage pancreatic cancer detection study
SAN DIEGO — Biological Dynamics Inc., a company developing and commercializing its exosome-isolation ExoVerita platform for early disease diagnostics and other applications, announced its collaboration with the Brenden-Colson Center for Pancreatic Care at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) to study its ExoVita Pancreas assay. The Brenden-Colson Center has a robust, integrated clinical-translational interface to drive innovative patient care and nourish scientific collaborations. The ExoVita Pancreas assay significantly improves the care of patients at high risk for pancreatic cancer through earlier detection.
