Iteris Inc.’s recent move into the commercial sector could generate $30 million in added annual revenue in the coming years, Chief Executive Abbas Mohaddes told the Business Journal.
The move will target the automotive and media industries and various consumer markets with the Santa Ana-based company’s iPerform traffic and weather data and analytics software.
“That predictive weather and traffic information has tremendous value that we can monetize and expand our margins and profitability,” Mohaddes said. “The company is really evolving and moving into a software-based traffic-management-information technology company.”
The emerging traffic and weather information segment is forecasted to grow at a 38% annual clip in the U.S. to $2 billion by 2016, according to Los Angeles-based market researcher IBISWorld Inc.
The company, which trades under the symbol ITI on the Nasdaq, plans to fund its push into commercial markets over the next 18 months, using cash flow from its core business.
“We intend to stay profitable while we’re doing all of this,” Mohaddes said.
The new segment is projected to rival Iteris’ two other primary divisions: Roadway Sensors, which makes traffic-analysis software; and Transportation Systems, which includes engineering and consulting services, as well as development transportation and management and traveler information systems.
Both divisions primarily target government agencies, which account for the bulk of Iteris’ revenue.
The company’s systems and services are deployed in 12 states, including five major metro areas.
The company posted revenue of $14 million in the December quarter, down 6% from a year earlier. Net income hit nearly $1.1 million, up 47.2%.
Killer Deals
Irvine-based consumer electronics startup Killer Concepts has lined up distribution deals with Amazon.com, Fry’s Electronics and alternative rock band 311 for its recently released wireless Bluetooth speaker.
The deal with Amazon will have Killer Concepts selling RocksteadyXS to the online retailer, which will ship them from warehouses. The speakers will sell for a discount to prime members of Amazon, according to Killer Concepts cofounder Jeff Leitman, who spent years in retail as a buyer and a seller for Ditan Corp. and CompUSA.
The company connected with 311 through Merchwide Inc., an Orange-based company that does exclusive screen printing for the band and others.
One version of the portable Bluetooth speakers comes branded with a 311 logo through the band’s website.
Leitman and Rick Cao, a real estate exec, came up with the concept for the company during a four-day camping trip with buddies in the Sierras, where they brought along a portable Jambox to help pass the time.
The duo weren’t happy with sound quality, short battery life and overall performance, which prompted some mocking among the group.
They soon were off to China to tour factories in Shenzhen and meet with manufacturers, suppliers and sales teams.
Most of the assembly on the RocksteadyXS, which encloses the speakers in a rugged aluminum casing and runs on lithium-ion batteries, is done in China. Some work is handled in Ventura.
The company also inked a deal with Tor-onto-based logistics service provider Cinram for distribution to brick-and-mortar retailers.
Leitman and Cao’s trip to the International Consumer Electronics Show in January brought key meetings with buyers as they demonstrated the speakers at a suite at the Bellagio.
The founders have poured more than $200,000 into launching the product, which sells for about $100.
“We knew we had a product that was outperforming anything out there,” Leitman said. “We’re in the black already.”
What a Kick!
Aliso Viejo-based startup Arkami Inc. blew past its Kickstarter fundraising goal of $150,000.
The company, which launched its campaign last month, has raised more than $403,000 from nearly 3,400 backers, or some 270% more than its goal.
Arkami will use the proceeds to boost production of myIDkey, which allows users to access stored passwords and other critical information on a Bluetooth or USB device through a biometric fingerprint.
Some investors, typically early tech adopters and enthusiasts, prepurchased the device at a discount.
The company recently named several new advisory board members, including former Hearst, Time-Warner and Dell Online Chief Technology Officer Michael Dunn; Harriet Seitler, a former marketing executive at the Oprah Winfrey Network, Harpo Studios and ESPN; and Geir Magnusson Jr., a former tech exec at Bloomberg and Intel.
Drop me an email at casacchia@ocbj.com if you see other local deals of interest.
