OCBJ WEEKLY EDITION
Disneyland Rising
TOURISM: New ride completes Galaxy’s EdgeGalaxy’s Edge’s second actOC: The New Face of Booming Aesthetics Industry
Conference Draws Crowds; New Focus for Allergan’s Irvine Hub
Orange County has developed into a world-renowned leader in the medical device industries for heart valves and ophthalmology.
PacSun HQ Trades Hands for $44M
REAL ESTATE: 63% jump in price since ’17
The Anaheim headquarters for teen and young adult fashion retailer Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. has sold in a $44 million deal.
OCBJ INSIDER: Rinker’s Recollections
The new Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge ride, Rise of the Resistance, made its debut over the weekend, largely to rave reviews (see our front-page story).
Syntiant Gets Word Out On Next-Gen Chips
CHIPMAKERS: CEO Busch courts new investors for 2020
... and that word is 'ubiquitous AI'
Irvine’s Atrium Office Tower Wrapping Up Renovation
$14M Project Includes New Concepts, New Look
A notable office building along Von Karman Avenue in Irvine is getting a facelift.
What an Office Tenant Wants in 2020
Stradling Takes Smaller Newport Center Lease
Less is more for Orange County office tenants, particularly professional services firms.
Industrial’s Edge: Low Vacancies, Few Development Options
New Construction Can’t Keep Up with Demand
If you think it’s tough as an industrial tenant to find available space in Orange County, try being an industrial developer in the area, where opportunities are scarce, and the competition remains fierce.
What’s in a Space
LPA’s ‘Smarter’ Design Approach to Glaukos, MerchSource HQs
This push to find ways to do more with less has inspired somewhat of a new trend in office design, according to Irvine-based architecture and design firm LPA Inc.
OC LEADER BOARD
Positioning a Nonprofit to Build The OC Workforce of Tomorrow
Today’s workforce is quite different than 27 years ago when WHW was first formed.
New CEO For Green Street Advisors
Leupold Steps Down From Data & Analytics Firm
Less than a year after its sale to a New York private equity firm, Newport Beach-based Green Street Advisors, one of the country’s top research and advisory firms in the commercial real estate sector, has named a new chief executive.
Viseon’s Spine Imaging Product Moves Ahead
FDA Nod; Ex-Parent Sells for Up to $100M+
Irvine-based medical device maker Viseon Inc. is getting closer to commercializing its first product, which helps doctors better visualize the spine during surgery to that part of the body.
STARTUPS & INNOVATIONS
San Juan Capistrano entrepreneur Kevin Strom and business partner Ryu Kawamura have launched an app that helps users make friends and romantic acquaintances across the globe.
Tarsus Raises $60M to Combat Eyelash Disease
DRUGMAKERS: Bill Link on firm’s board
Irvine-based Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, which is backed by Orange County’s best-known ophthalmology venture capital executive, Bill Link, and several other notable area investors, has raised $60 million to continue testing a drug that aims to be the first of its type to treat a common disease affecting the eye.
Withum’s West Coast Push Starts in Irvine
ACCOUNTING: Top 25 firm buys KSJG
WithumSmith+Brown PC, a Princeton, N.J.-based accounting firm with a large presence in the East Coast, wanted exposure to the West Coast.
UCI Brings Top Minds Together for Brain Research
EDUCATION: New initiative emphasizes multi-disciplines
University of California-Irvine in 1964 was the first department of neuroscience in the U.S., which meant it was first to be studying the brain in an academic setting.
Jabara-Backed ioXt Aims For Internet of Secure Things
Alliance Has 120 Members; Separate Product Company
In an increasingly interconnected world, the Newport Beach-based industry group known as the ioXt Alliance is trying to set the global security standard for products that consumers buy and use every day.
Konka Plants US Roots In Irvine
China’s US Outpost Hires Former Toshiba Exec
Scott Ramirez, senior vice president for the recently formed North America unit of Chinese television giant Konka Group Co., is quickly getting to business from his new outpost in Irvine.
Wanted: Best Places to Work for OCBJ’s 2020 List
CALL FOR ENTRIES: Website to take entries through March 6
Is your workplace great?
Charitable Gifts Highlighted in February Edition
CALL FOR ENTRIES: Nearly $150M reported in prior year’s list
Did you, your company or foundation give—or did your organization receive—a large cash or noncash gift in 2019?
From Fast Food to Fashion, Home
New Gigs for Ex-Taco Bell CBO Thalberg
The move from Doritos Locos Tacos to fast fashion and home improvement turns out to be quite the linear one for Marisa Thalberg.
Brokers Note Strong Start to Year
Nearly $80M of Luxe Sales Since December
An active December and January hints that luxury buyers may be coming out of a wait-and-see mode.
Bioniz Wins Spanish Investment
BIOPHARMA: Almirall deal could generate $540M
Bioniz Therapeutics, an Irvine-based medical research firm backed by prominent Orange County executives, has reached a deal with a Spanish pharmaceutical company that could ultimately result in a $540 million sale of one of its main drug products.
OC Execs: 2020 Starts On Upbeat Note
ECONOMY: D.C. disputes, trade tops list of concerns
Orange County executives are heading into the new year with a fresh dose of optimism, while they’re still keeping a wary eye on the how political turmoil in the nation’s capital may affect their companies, California State University-Fullerton economists said in their latest business expectations survey.
Lung Cancer Testing Firm OncoCyte to Irvine
HEALTHCARE: New CEO relocates firm from Bay Area
OncoCyte Corp., an early-stage molecular diagnostics firm focused on lung cancer care that counts a $160 million market capitalization and has plans for commercialization of a recently acquired testing product this year, is Orange County’s newest publicly traded company.
OC LEADER BOARD
How OC Can Go from Good to Great
Those of us who spend time working or living in Orange County understand why it’s a unique place.
Costa Mesa International School Gets OK
Former Trinity Broadcasting Site to Be Revamped
An overhaul of one of Orange County’s more recognizable buildings appears imminent, following a deal between the city of Costa Mesa and an international language education company.
50K-SF Medical Office Planned for ATEP
2nd Building at Tustin Education Park
ACS Development Group Inc. plans to build a 50,000-square-foot medical office building in Tustin, the newest sign of construction at the Advanced Technology Education Park on the former Marine base.
STARTUPS & INNOVATIONS
GoVyrl Inc., an Irvine-based technology development firm for marketing and advertising, recently launched its first platform, Carro.
Urovant Gets Japan Investor Boost
$300M Loan; FDA Progress for 2020
Urovant Sciences Ltd. (Nasdaq: UROV), which is developing medications to treat urologic issues, is starting the year with a new main investor from Japan, a $300 million loan, and progress in getting its core drug, vibegron, to market in the U.S.
Philanthropy
More than 400 guests gathered to celebrate the holiday season on Dec. 6 for Segerstrom Center for the Arts’ 46th Candlelight Concert.
Khoshbin’s Landing Site Trades for $40M
REAL ESTATE: Atkins buys on Mariner’s Mile
Local real estate executive Craig Atkins has added to his private commercial real estate portfolio by snapping up one of the more notable mixed-use properties along Mariner’s Mile in Newport Beach.
BlackBerry: Cylance Cybersecurity Key
TECHNOLOGY: CEO Chen talks machines at CES
BlackBerry Ltd. Chief Executive John Chen said the company’s Irvine-based BlackBerry Cylance cybersecurity unit will become increasingly important for the Canada-based company.
Five CFOs Won, Then Had Dramatic Years
Global Unrest, Unruly Weather, C-Suite Changes, New Roles
From the U.S. banning a key Chinese customer, to a real live hurricane, to a chief executive in office seven months, to new roles, last year’s Business Journal Chief Financial Officers of the Year had quite the 2019 … where 2020 will take our next slate of honorees after they’re named is a story for another day. For now, we tell the tale of last year’s Gang of Five, their companies, and five thrilling years in one. —Peter J. Brennan
Khoshbin Looks Outside of California
The Khoshbin Co. is already spending the funds from its recent $40 million sale of Khoshbin’s Landing.
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