APPAREL
Huntington Beach-based apparel maker Quiksilver Inc. entered into licensing agreements for several product categories, Chief Executive Andy Mooney said. Deals range from production of socks to backpacks and include New York-based Parigi Group Ltd. and E. Gluck Corp.; Planet Sox, owned by New York-based PS Brands LLC; Travel Plus International LLC in Pasadena; Northwest Co. LLC in Roslyn, N.Y.; and SARL Euroglass in France.
EDUCATION
Santa Ana-based for-profit school operator Corinthian Colleges Inc. will try to sell or close schools under its Everest, Heald and Wyotech brands, according to terms of a deal with the U.S. Department of Education. Corinthian also operates QuickStart Intelligence, an online information technology school. The education department and other agencies had been investigating Corinthian’s advertising and job placement claims and whether it manipulated records to receive federal funding or misled students regarding student loans. The company said it had complied with investigations.
HEALTHCARE
San Clemente-based ReShape Medical received $4 million in debt financing to support efforts to gain approval for a medical device to treat obesity. The sources and planned use of the money weren’t disclosed. ReShape makes the ReShape Integrated Dual Balloon System, which uses balloons filled with saline to reduce the capacity of a patient’s stomach.
A Questcor Pharmaceuticals Inc. regulatory filing showed the number of patients who reported adverse effects while taking its Acthar drug made up about 5% of dispensed prescriptions. It’s what’s known as an orphan drug, which can significantly benefit patients with serious or life-threatening diseases occurring in 200,000 or fewer people.
HOSPITALITY
The Irvine-based Orange County Visitors Association promoted Chip Stuckmeyer to senior vice president for global sales and marketing from vice president for project management, and Micky Rucireta to vice president and chief administrative officer. Lesley Swain will be chief financial officer.
REAL ESTATE
Newport Beach-based commercial real estate research firm Green Street Advisors Inc. sold a majority stake to Golden Gate Capital, a private equity firm in San Francisco. Terms of the deal were undisclosed. It has about 95 employees, 65 in Newport Beach. The deal is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the fourth quarter.
RESTAURANTS
CKE Restaurants Inc., parent company of Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s, is moving a “small” number of employees to its Anaheim offices for increased efficiency, according to news reports. Founded in Anaheim, it moved its headquarters in Carpinteria in Santa Barbara County in 2002.
RETAIL
Dubai-based shopping center chain Ansar Group of Cos. will host a grand opening of a store in Tustin, its first in the U.S. Ansar bills itself as “Target with a huge international grocery section.”
TECHNOLOGY
Western Digital Capital, the investment arm of Irvine-based storage products maker Western Digital Corp., led a $20 million funding round for Pittsburgh cloud storage provider Avere Systems. The Series D investment round also included previous backers Lightspeed Venture Partners, Menlo Ventures, Norwest Venture Partners and Tenaya Capital. Avere said the funding will be used to boost sales, marketing and development of the company’s hybrid cloud storage offering. The latest development highlights Western Digital’s strides to invest in new technologies that could be leveraged along with a string of buys it made last year.
Santa Ana-based Ingram Micro Executive Vice President of Human Resources Lynn Joliffe was named one of the Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Technology by the National Diversity Council.
Officials with the Orange County Fire Authority said the department billed about 1,460 local businesses for mandatory hazardous material inspections that never took place, according to the Orange County Register. The charges came to about $360,000. The authority’s board was scheduled to vote last week on refunds to effected businesses.
John Wayne Enterprises in Newport Beach, which brands products with the late actor’s “Duke” nickname, filed a lawsuit claiming Duke University in Durham, N.C. has tried to stymie its use of the name, according to the Los Angeles Times.
