Other news items of interest from the Orange County Business Journal
Dragonfly Clothing, a Fullerton-based rock ‘n’ roll-inspired apparel company, will produce a new line of clothing for guitar maker Fender under a recently struck licensing deal. Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Fender Musical Instruments Corp., which had its start in Fullerton, said Dragonfly will design a line “inspired by Fender’s rich music history.” The line is expected to roll out this summer and will be sold in specialty and higher-end department stores in North America and Europe. The license was previously held by Los Angeles-based Defiance USA Inc.
Shares of Irvine-based Billabong USA’s parent surged last week in Australia after the action-sports apparel maker and retailer said talks with two private equity firms continue and “are well advanced.” Australia-based Billabong International Ltd. is in separate talks with private equity firms Altamont Capital Partners of Palo Alto and New York-based Sycamore Partners on alternative refinancing and asset sales.
Costa Mesa-based engineering, procurement and construction company Brinderson LP agreed to be acquired by publicly traded Aegion Corp. in St. Louis for $150 million. Brinderson serves the oil and gas markets on the West Coast, primarily in California. It also serves the industrial-manufacturing and renewable-energy sectors. The company had $231 million in revenue for the 12-month span through March. Brinderson’s senior management is expected to remain with the company after the deal.
The University of California, Irvine, won $2.2 million in two private grants for research on juvenile diabetes. The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation awarded the money. One grant will fund research on transplants of cells that release insulin into the body. The second goes toward the development of an insulin sensor for an artificial pancreas.
Buena Park-based Uniti Bank appointed Jack Choi chief executive to replace Joo Hak Kim, who recently resigned in April. The 12-year-old bank remains profitable, but its assets and deposits have been on a steady decline over the past few of years. It is currently operating under a consent order received in 2009 from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and California Department of Financial Institutions that called for heightened oversight of the bank’s operations, as well as improvements in capital and credit quality.
Opus Bank in Irvine named Romolo Santarosa its chief operating officer, a new position. Santarosa joins Opus from First California Bank in Westlake Village, where he served in the same role and also as chief financial officer. First California was recently acquired by Los Angeles-based PacWest Bancorp. Opus also promoted former Chief Credit Officer Michael Allison to co-president, a title also held by Chief Executive Stephen Gordon.
State officials approved dock rent increases the city of Newport Beach instituted last year. The rent hikes affected commercial and residential dock owners, many of whom protested the change. The California State Lands Commission approved the city’s request to start a fund to collect fees from the rent increases. The city said it plans to use the revenue for capital improvements, including for public docks and seawalls.
Irvine-based Aviir Diagnostic Laboratories Inc. said its current investor group has rounded out a total of $30 million in financing initiated roughly 18 months ago. Aviir offers tests that predict a person’s risk for heart disease. The company said in a news release that the financing was triggered by its “successful achievement of revenue milestones ahead of schedule,” although it didn’t disclose a specific amount. Aviir’s investor group includes the Merck Global Health Innovation Fund, an arm of New Jersey-based Merck & Co. Aviir moved to Irvine in 2011 from the Bay Area.
Newport Beach-based Pacific Investment Management Co. cofounder and Co-Chief Investment Officer Bill Gross and his wife, Sue, gave $50,000 to Laguna Beach homeless shelter program Friendship Shelter. The gift was made in honor of Shelter supporters Santina Davies and Paola Porrini-Bisson and will be used for various facility improvements, according to Friendship Shelter Executive Director Dawn Price. Friendship Shelter provides services to homeless adults in South Orange County.
ECONOMIC INDICATOR
UP: Customer traffic in May at John Wayne Airport, which saw a 7.8% increase from a year earlier to 799,755 passengers. International traffic, which accounted for nearly 4% of the airport’s total for the month, was up 163.9% to 30,677. The jump reflects the addition of service to Mexico by AirTran Airways last June and by Interjet in October.
