OCBJ WEEKLY LISTS
ABOUT THE LISTS: Click on a story headline for analysis of a featured weekly List (paid subscribers)
Commercial Brokers See Slow, Steady Growth
Sales, Leases Up 5% Year-Over-Year
Orange County commercial sales and leasing activity grew in 2018 for the ninth year in a row, albeit at a slower clip than the prior year.
OC Portfolios Rise on Development Push
Tenants Set The Standard at Offices
Local commercial property managers grew their Orange County portfolios, surpassing 200 million square feet for the second consecutive year.
Commercial Printers Don’t Stop the Presses
Work Increased 1.6%, Jobs Up 4.4%
Orange County’s largest commercial printers on this week’s Business Journal list were able to eke out modest gains in local work last year.
Environmental Firms See 5% Jump in Local Billings
New Sites, Now Litigation Free, Drive Demand
The largest environmental consultants in Orange County saw their third consecutive year of billings increases, buoyed by government and commercial work, as well as the end of litigation pertaining to a number of long-delayed sites in the area.
Attorney Totals Largely the Same Despite Changes
Count Up Less Than 1%; Double-Digit Firm Shifts
First thing we do is count all the lawyers. This week’s Business Journal list of the top law firms in Orange County ranked by number of attorneys here show about 2,700 spread across 88 firms, from No. 1 Knobbe Martens with more than 150 to the four firms tied at No. 85, which have 10 apiece, the cutoff for being ranked this year.
Homebuying Slump Adds to Title Insurers Woes
Transactions Down 20% Amid Rising Rates
Title insurers continued to see a decline in business last year, a trend they hope will stabilize in 2019 and end two years of consecutive losses.
Soup to Nuts, But No Jell-O: A Feast for OC Foodies
County Fills Shopping Cart Just Fine From Food Suppliers List
Charting foodmakers in Orange County is like nailing Jell-O to the wall—given that the powdered gelatin, an early patent of which predates the 1889 formal founding of OC by 44 years, is possibly the only edible substance someone isn’t making locally.
Bank of America Overtakes Wells Fargo As OC’s Biggest
Banks Deposits Grow Just 2.1%
Bank of America Corp. is back, taking the top ranking for the first time in seven years on the Business Journal’s list of the 40 biggest banks doing business in Orange County.
Outpatients Push Healthy 7% Hospital Revenue Hike
UCI, Kaiser, Hoag: $3B, 37% of List’s Net Revenue
Orange County hospitals grew net patient revenue 7% year-over-year to $8.5 billion, largely due to the continuing move toward more outpatient visits.
2018 Giving Totals Rise, Excluding Big Outliers
Tough to Top Samuelis’ Transformative $200M
It’s hard to beat $200 million from a tech billionaire to develop and fund an entire health sciences college at a major research university and a $120 million campaign led by the Muscos and with giving from multiple donors to save a church and monastery with historical roots dating to the 12th century—two record-breaking donations announced in 2017.
Builders Top 5,000 Sales Again; Prices Near $1M
Close to $5 billion was spent on new Orange County homes in 2018—builders’ second-best sales year in the last 15.
Meetups: Hotels Hike Indoor-Outdoor Counts
Beach Resorts Big Gainers on List’s New Approach
In a list that rarely sees changes, the New Year brings a new look to the Business Journal’s ranking of OC hotels by total meeting space.
Foreign Firms’ Employment Flat, With Exceptions
Foreign Firms’ Employment Flat, With Exceptions
The biggest foreign-owned firms in Orange County by employment saw little change in their combined workforce in 2018, but specific companies and industries made notable moves and what the list doesn’t reflect, at least not yet, could be even more influential on the group.
Nonprofits Grow Their Ranks, Add Revenue
$1.7 Billion for OC’s 95 Largest Organizations
Nonprofit organizations in Orange County hit double digit growth on this year’s Business Journal list, reporting $1.7 billion in revenue for the 12 months ended June 30, up 11% year-over-year.
OC’s Biggest Bosses Increase Employment 1.4%
More Local Companies Add Rather Than Subtract
Disneyland, despite all its well-publicized labor problems, once again retained the title of Orange County’s largest employer with 30,000 workers, based on the Business Journal’s annual list of biggest employers.
Local Auto Dealers Continue Sales Increase Streak
OC-Based Automakers, Meanwhile, Up Workforce
Orange County’s largest auto dealers reported their seventh straight year of increased sales.
Top Retailers Turn Tide on Online Competition, Up Sales
$8.6 Billion at Top 37 Shopping Centers in OC
Redevelopment and reinvention appears to be paying off for Orange County’s largest shopping centers.
OC Banks’ Asset Growth Slows
Report 10% Climb, 28% Jump in Profits
Orange County-based commercial banks’ asset growth slowed to 10% to $37.8 billion for the 12 months ended June 30.
Firms’ Expansion Slackens
Rate of Asset, Member, Worker Growth Slows
Orange County’s credit unions reported slowing growth in assets, members and employment, based on the Business Journal’s annual list.
Life in the Fast Lane
IPOs, Relocations, New Markets Add to Ranks
It’s getting a bit harder to be one of Orange County’s fastest-growing public companies. But for those who make the cutoff, the payoff remains sweet.
Aerospace, Defense Firms Add Few OC Employees
Seeing Pickup as Pentagon Expands Military Budget
Local employment at Orange County’s largest aerospace and defense contractors was flat in the past year in a wave of industry consolidation and increased spending on national defense.
50 Honorees, 8 Awards on 2nd Civic 50 OC
Giving Works in Many Ways—Witness These
Young Carson Kropfl recently spoke at my Chapman University journalism class. You may know Carson; when the San Clemente resident was 11, he created and later patented a nonfolding skateboard that fits into a school locker and snugly into a backpack—a good enough market and message that Richard Branson had to outbid Mark Cuban on “Shark Tank” to buy 20% of Carson’s company, Locker Board.
Local MBA Enrollment Reflects US Decline
6.5% Drop Steeper As Intl. Schools Take Share
Enrollment in area schools MBA programs fell in the 12 months ended Sept. 30.
First Community Colleges List Shows Flat Enrollment
About 230K Students At Schools on Directory
This year marks the debut of the Business Journal’s list of OC community colleges, which features enrollment in the 12 months ending on Sept. 30.
Local Insurance Brokers Continue Growth Apace
Producers’ Progress Slows In 6-Year Streak of Gains
The largest insurance brokerages in Orange County continued their way up last year, local revenue rising 6.3% to $745.4 million—the sixth straight year of steady growth. However, it’s the first time since 2012 that revenue growth dipped below 7%, as post-recession growth plateaued.
Architects Ride Strong Economy to New Heights
OC Billings Top $500M for First Time
It’s been a good year for architecture firms in Orange County, who have benefited from increased work as corporate clients look to reimagine their workspaces, as well as a continuing boom in residential development in the county.
Engineering Firms Extend Strong Local Showing
OC Billings Up 10% For Areas Top 38 Firms
Orange County’s top 38 engineering firms reported another year of growth with a nearly 10% increase in OC billings to $1.2 billion.
Some Popped the Gate, Some Just Kept Growing
Others Reinvented Themselves in the Roundup of Fastest-Growing Private Cos.
The Business Journal’s 2016 and 2017 lists of fastest-growing privately held firms sported a statistical anomaly.
Medical Device Makers’ Employment Rises 4.5%
Top Four Increase Headcount Above Average
Medical device makers with operations in Orange County added over 900 employees in the year ended July 31, up 4.5% year-over-year, according to Business Journal research. The top four reported above-average growth, fourth-ranked Microvention Inc. in Aliso Viejo up 29%, the biggest move.
OC’s No. 1 Drugmaker, Allergan, Keeps Downsizing
Dendreon Plans to Grow; Peregrine Drops Off List
Compared to robust activity in the medical device sector, the eight biggest drugmakers with headquarters or significant operations in Orange County reported lackluster local employment of 2,153 in the year ended July 31, down nearly 20%.
Corporate, Private Foundations Sharpen Focus
Updated Rankings Focus On Local Contributions
This year’s Business Journal list of corporate and private foundations lost a few names after we narrowed rankings to firms most connected to Orange County charities, as opposed to earlier lists based on both local and total contributions.
Coworking Explodes in OC
Base Tops 1.2M SF, 67 Locations
Entrepreneurs, small businesses and startups have a million reasons to smile about Orange County’s rapidly growing base of coworking locations and their wide array of customer amenities.
Communications is the Answer to 4% Job Gains
Telecoms, Wireless Cos. Extend Job-Growth Hat Trick
The largest telecommunications companies and related wireless equipment makers grew employment at a modest clip in the year ended July 31.
PR Agencies’ Staffing Up 8% as They Help With Tech
Clients Tap Them For Targeted Ad Campaigns
Orange County’s biggest public relations firms added more desks in the 12 months ended July 31.
HMO Members Up 4% in OC; PPO Numbers Flat
Providers Turn to Tech to Control Costs
To HMO or PPO, that’s the question. Orange County’s top health maintenance organizations experienced growth in the former and decline in the latter during the 12 months through July.
Delta Dental Sees Steep Decline in OC Membership
Low-Cost Plan Not A Hit with Dentists
Net dental enrollment in dental HMO and PPO plans decreased more than 25% to about 2 million members in year through July.
In Our Annual List of OC’s Wealthiest …
Our 18th annual special report on the wealthiest in Orange County again has the same man at the top – Donald Bren – but it also showcases new members, a higher starting point and surprising stories.
Fastest-Growing Private Companies Wanted for Business Journal’s Annual List
ECONOMY: Centerpiece of Sept. 17 Special Report
Is your company growing fast?
Tenant Contractors’ Growth Slowest Since 2009
Executives Say It’s a Blip, As Work Still Booming
Firms in Orange County’s tenant contractor industry reported slowing revenue growth last year, the lowest rate since 2009.
Biggest Women-Owned Cos. Stretch Growth Streak
2017 Sales Up Almost 6%, Though Club Lost Members
2017 was another good year to be one of Orange County’s largest women-owned businesses.
Biggest Accounting Firms Step Up Hiring By 3.3%
Local Industry Climbs For Seventh Straight Year
Orange County’s largest accounting firms accelerated hiring in the year ended May 31, pushing it up 3.3%, more than the 2.1% reported a year earlier, based on the Business Journal’s annual list.
Management Consultant Employment Up 1.7%
Getting Demand in Banks, Healthcare, Construction
Orange County management consulting firms ranked on the Business Journal’s annual list reported a 1.7% increase in staff consultants to 1,959 in the year ended May 31.
Active Year for Restaurants, Even Before Chipotle
$4.5B Chain to Debut At No. 2—Next Year
Boy, will this list be different next year.
22 Private Cos. Have Double-Digit Growth
110 Firms Combine For $100B in Annual Revenue
Strong sectors of the economy, acquisitions, and emerging markets and technology drove double-digit revenue increases at several Orange County private companies—including three top-ranked businesses, where revenue totals make bigger bumps harder to come by.
Irvine Office Projects Dominate OC Development
4M SF of New Ones Opened Here in Past Year
Orange County’s commercial development community was buoyed over the year ended April 30 by a surge of office openings, primarily in Irvine, the country’s biggest office market.
Construction Firms Report Solid Gains; 10-Year High
$9.1B in Commercial Work By Local Offices
Orange County’s largest commercial construction companies defied some worrisome regional trends to post their best revenue year in a decade.
Broker-Dealers Grow Representatives Staff 2.6%
Firms Adapt to Trends, Including Robo Rivals
While the talk on Wall Street is about a decline in the number of stockbrokers, Orange County’s largest broker-dealers are coping.
VC Firms Reduce OC Investments 22% to $65.1M
Execs Say They’re Still Bullish on Local Startups
Venture capital firms based in Orange County decreased their local investments last year by about 22%.
New Business Journal List Highlights RIAs
Independent Wealth Managers Surging
The Business Journal is introducing a new list this week showing large or better-known registered investment advisers, also known as RIAs.
Hotel Rooms Snapshot: Hilton Still Tops, Others Move
51 Properties’ Total Stable; Tower, Refreshes Added
In the league of Business Journal lists, hotels sketch out a stable game. Room totals—the metric for this week’s list—pivot little, if at all.
Women-Owned Businesses Wanted for Annual List
List Will Be Centerpiece of July 9 Edition
Is your company women-owned? The Business Journal wants to hear from you.
Largest Makers Held Payrolls Steady
Early Returns on Major Moves At Big Three Coming Soon
The largest consumer electronics makers in Orange County shrank payrolls slightly compared to last year.
SBA Lenders See Big Shakeup as Growth Slows
Loans Up 13.2% By Dollar, 5% by Number
A 13.2% growth in Small Business Administration loans by dollar value would normally be a celebration in Orange County.
Apparel Companies Hemmed Their Job Lines
Losses Eased And Several Bucked Trend
Orange County’s largest apparel companies showed they aren’t immune to the ongoing headwinds facing the apparel industry as local employment in the 12 months through March fell slightly for the second year.
No Advantage, Small Gains For 2017 Ad Agency Roster
Data the Driver in ‘Media Landscape Changing Quickly’
The Business Journal’s list of Orange County’s largest advertising agencies swelled its ranks and grew revenues modestly over the past year.
Trend Sets the Trend As Local Printers Adapt
Fighting Disruption With Digital Printing, Packaging
Orange County’s largest commercial printers posted only steady results in 2016, but the 29 companies on this week’s Business Journal list picked up the pace last year.
Private Companies Wanted for Annual List
Special Issue: List will be centerpiece of June 18 edition
The Business Journal is preparing its annual list of privately owned companies for publication in June.
ENJOYING THE RIDE
Publicly Traded Cos. See 15.4% Boost to Market Cap
Orange County’s publicly traded companies probably popped a lot of champagne bottles during the past year.
Having a Record Year
17% Gains in Past Year As Leasing, Sales Climb
Another active year in building, apartment and land sales, along with solid leasing activity across all product types, made for a strong year among Orange County’s largest commercial brokerages.
OC Food Makers, Purveyors Healthy; Tests Coming
Big Eaters, Small Plates Abound In OC, On List
If the Business Journal’s snapshot of local food and beverage suppliers reflected an average Orange Countian’s food intake, the three largest ranked companies would, by revenue, provide 75% of our diet, which would consist mainly of butter, bourbon and Big Macs.
Law Firms Boost Lawyers 2.7%; Employment Flat
Same Firms Top Annual List Of County’s Biggest
Orange County’s biggest law firms grew their attorney count by 3% while promoting partners at a slower pace and keeping employment flat, based on the Business Journal’s annual list of legal firms operating here. Last year, the attorney count was flat.
Rising Rates Take Bite Out of Title Cos.’ 2017 Work
Commercial, Homebuying Business Pick up Refi Slack
The country’s biggest title insurers are striking optimistic notes on the health of their industry, despite the expectation of additional interest rate hikes, which have already put a crimp on refinance business.
Condo Surge Lifts New-Home Sales to 15-Year High
4 Master-Planned Areas See Two-Thirds of Action
New-home sales reached a 15-year high in Orange County last year, thanks to a surge in condominium and attached-home sales and continued development at the area’s four largest master-planned communities.
A Record-Setting Year for Transformative Gifts
Big Giving Up And Unprecedented in 2017
This is the Business Journal’s first ranking of largest charitable gifts. Was an easy inspiration. The Susan and Henry Samueli gift to the University of California-Irvine, the Fowlers’ and Kecks’ to Chapman University, the Argyros’ to Segerstrom Center (and others) were front-page stories, in some cases record in scope, even on a national level.
Banks Increase OC Deposits 9%, Cut Jobs
FINANCE: BofA, JPMorgan outgrow top-3 rival Wells Fargo
Banks operating in Orange County are attracting more deposits with fewer employees and branches, based on the Business Journal’s annual list.
Top Care Providers Experience Exec-Level Change
UCI to Fill Two Positions; Providence Taps New Head
High performers like UC Irvine Medical Center and Providence St. Joseph Health—its local network comprised of seven hospitals—experienced changes on the executive level in the year ended Sept. 30, the former in search of a new chief executive, the latter naming a regional head to oversee Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties.
Environmental Consultants Grow, Seek Balance
Solitary Work Connects Care, Corporate Concerns
They say there’s balance in nature.
Revenue, Hiring Flat at Minority-Owned Businesses
Activity Level Belies Slow-Growth Numbers
2017 revenue and hiring at Orange County-based minority-owned businesses showed little change from 2016, according to Business Journal research—including slight declines at companies such as No. 3, Alorica in Irvine, and No. 7, New American Funding.
Employment Agencies Repair Flat and Grow
Growing Economy and Wage Boosts Lifted 2017 Placings
2017 was a better year for the Orange County operations of employment agencies. The placement firms saw growth across nearly all metrics, from annual revenue to number of temporary and permanent workers landing jobs with clients.
Little Change in Meeting Space Last Year, Lots in Focus
Events Digs Make Splash as SF Up 2.1%
Meeting space is what the community of business is, at least for the 52 hotels on this week’s list.
Autos Lead Modest Pace of Jobs Growth
Top Foreign-Owned Cos. Still Show Some OC ‘Braun’
Orange County’s automakers helped drive a modest uptick in employment last year among the largest foreign-owned companies with major operations here.
Wanted: Best Places to Work for OCBJ’s List
CALL FOR ENTRIES: Website to take entries through March 16
Is your workplace great?
OC’s Nonprofits Increase Revenue 7.2%
Donors Boost Giving To Assist Homeless
The issue of rising homelessness was one of the keys to a 7.2% boost in revenue among nonprofit organizations in Orange County.
Local Employers Edge Up Worker Count to 289,000
List Adds Bigger Players, County Workers in 2017
Orange County’s largest employers added about 2,300 jobs over the previous 12 months for modest growth of 1%.
Streak Ends for OC Malls
Ownership, Executive, Plan Changes in Group of 35
A seven-year growth streak has ended for Orange County’s largest shopping centers.
OC Auto Dealers See Sales Decelerate
Karma Now Biggest OC Automaker Employer
The 39 largest auto dealers in Orange County combined for $5.16 billion in sales for the 12-month period that ended June 30, a 1.4% increase that marks the second straight year of a significant slowdown from recent years, according to this week’s Business Journal list.
OC-Based Banks’ Growth in Assets Slows Down
14% Increase Doesn’t Compare to Prior Years
Orange County-based commercial banks boosted assets a normally admirable 14% to $36 billion in the 12 months ended June 30.
Credit Unions Boom Again With 10% Asset Growth
Increase Tops 10% For First Time in Decade
Orange County’s credit unions are back to growing assets by double-digit percentages.
On the OC Fast Track
Fastest-Growing Cos. Use Buys to Bump Sales 44%
Orange County’s fastest growing publicly traded companies increased revenue by $16 billion in a two-year span.
50 Honorees, 5 Awards in 1st Civic 50 Orange County
‘Corporate Philanthropy Is in a Renaissance’
The list in this Special Report is unusual for the Business Journal in two ways. It’s a first—the first list of local-market Civic 50 honorees in the country. And it’s likely a first Business Journal list without financials. Rightly so.
Aerospace and Defense Reverse Job Slide in ‘17
M&A, Growing Business Lines Highlight Sector
Two big takeovers and a headquarters move to Orange County shook up the local landscape for the largest aerospace and defense contractors with operations here.
Total SoCal MBA Enrollees Down Slightly
Competition for Students Results in Fewer Applications
Southern California schools with MBA programs showed a slight decrease in the number of Southern California enrollees, down about 2% from a year ago, based on the Business Journal’s annual survey. The number of enrollees dropped from 12,418 in September 2016 to 12,171 last month. It was a smaller drop than that reflected on last year’s list, when there was an approximate 6% change from September 2015 to September 2016.
Insurance Brokers Average 7.8% Rise in OC Revenue
25 Firms Report Strong Growth for Fifth Year
Orange County’s largest insurance brokerages continued solid growth as local revenue climbed above 7% for the fifth straight year.
Architecture Firms Finding Work Outside of OC
Firmwide Billings Climb At Faster Pace than Local
Orange County’s architecture firms reported they’re growing their business faster outside the county.
Engineering Firms’ Local Billings Increase 6.2%
AECOM, Arcadis, Jacobs Experience Good Years
Orange County’s top engineering firms reported a 6.2% rise in OC billings to $1.6 billion.
Private Cos. Grow 2-Year Sales 90%, Top $19B
This Year’s Ranks Led by the ‘Big As’ Grew Jobs 30%
In life, in lists, it’s rough to do apples-to-apples comparisons. In culling our weekly lists of every business silo and subsilo, of firms of all ownership forms and makeups, we have several goals: to compile as comprehensive and accurate a roster as possible; to produce features on the best and the brazen; and to analyze beyond a comparison of numbers. As an editor wrote one sentence ago, “It’s very difficult to do apples-to-apples comparisons.”
Medical Device Makers Grow Employment 8.1%
HEALTHCARE: 39 biggest add over 1,500 workers in strong sector
Medical device makers with operations in Orange County added 1,560 employees over the 12 months ended July 30, for a growth rate of 8.1%, according to Business Journal research.
OC-Based Drugmakers Increase Employment 3%
Allergan Still No. 1; Dendreon Joins List
The biggest drugmakers with headquarters or significant operations in Orange County employed 2,861 here at the close of the year ended July 30, up nearly 3% from a year earlier.
New Rankings Based on OC Charitable Giving
Argyros Tops Privates, Wells Fargo Corporate
For this year’s philanthropy lists, the Business Journal ranked both corporate and private foundations by the amounts they gave to Orange County charities, instead of by total giving. The criteria include that the foundation is either headquartered here in OC, focuses a significant amount of its giving on OC charities, or that a principal lives here. Giving, in and of itself, can be volatile and fluctuate from year to year.
OC’s Top Software Firms Added Jobs, Grew Ranks
Six List Newcomers in Hot Spaces: AI, Gaming
A mix of new and established companies helped Orange County post solid job growth in the software sector for the second consecutive year.
City of Irvine’s Got Speed And Hits for Power
Anaheim Leads Cities Roster
Imagine Angels outfielder Mike Trout on an exceptional day—the final score could read “Trout 7, White Sox 2,” —and you get an idea of Irvine compared to its city-mates in Orange County.
T-Mobile Leads Telecom Job Gains Amid ‘Disruption’
TECHNOLOGY: Mobilitie grows on 5G buildout
Employment in Orange County’s telecommunications sector was buoyed by strong gains from the local operation of T-Mobile USA Inc. for the second consecutive year.
OC’s PR Shops Grew in Past Year
Social Media, Digital Storytelling in Toolset
The role of public relations professionals is changing—even the president is tweeting daily, bypassing the media.
Not Standing Still
How OC’s Wealthiest Grew Firms and Fortunes
Orange County’s wealthiest people enjoyed a good year. Most on our 2017 list, see page 16 of stand-alone Special Report, grew their fortunes, some substantially. The roster grew by two, nearly 5% from 45 to 47. The Business Journal’s “cutoff” is $250 million.
Best Places to Work Give Employees More Than Pay
100 That Came Out on Top Offer Perks, Extra Dough
Looking for a job with an unlimited number of vacation days? Check in with DKN Hotels in Irvine.
Tenant-Improvement Contractors ‘Crazy Busy’ in OC
33 Firms Pass $1 Billion In Sales With 19% Jump
Orange County’s tenant contractor industry is “crazy busy,” according to David Smith, president at Smith and Severson Builders of Lake Forest.
Fastest-Growing Private Companies Wanted for Business Journal’s Annual List
ECONOMY: Centerpiece of Sept. 18 Special Report
Is your company growing fast?
Accounting Firms Grow Again on ‘Positive Trends’
6th Consecutive Rise In Employees 2% Bump
Orange County’s largest accounting firms increased their employee counts 2.3%, the sixth consecutive year of gains.
Consulting Firms Report 2.2% Rise in Headcount
List Adds Consultants From Accounting Firms
Orange County’s top management consulting firms reported a 2.2% bump in consultants to 1,924 in the year ended June 30, based on research for the Business Journal’s annual list.
Largest Women-Owned Firms Made Gains in 2016
10-Year Trend in OC Keeps Pace With U.S.
Revenue generated by Orange County’s largest women-owned businesses grew about 35% since the recession and is on par with the national growth for the same time period.
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