AMUSEMENT
Disneyland Resort Senior Vice President of Operations Stephanie Young will replace Hong Kong Disneyland Managing Director Samuel Lau Wing-kee, reporting to Michael Colglazier, president and managing director of Walt Disney Co.’s parks and resorts in Asia, and former Disneyland Resort president. Young has been at Disneyland Resort since January and with Walt Disney Co. for 26 years. She was Hong Kong Disneyland’s chief financial officer from 2006 to 2009. The South China Morning Post reported Lau will take an unnamed role at Walt Disney World in Florida.
— Paul Hughes
FINANCE
Uniti Financial Corp., the largest Korean-American based bank in Orange County, is being bought by Walnut Creek’s BayCom Corp., the holding company for United Business Bank, for $63.9 million. Buena Park-based Uniti, which also has branches in Fullerton and Los Angeles’ Koreatown, had approximately $343.6 million in assets as of Sept. 30. After the transaction, which is scheduled to close in the second quarter of next year, the combined company will have approximately $1.8 billion in assets.
— Peter J. Brennan
HEALTHCARE
Mission Viejo-based Mynd Analytics Inc. appointed Patrick Herguth chief executive, replacing George Carpenter, who assumes the new role of chief innovation officer. Herguth previously served as chief operating officer of Portsmouth, N.H.-based Q-Centrix, an analytics platform that aims to measure and improve quality and safety of patient care. The predictive analytics company has developed the Psychiatric EEG Evaluation Registry, or PEER, to help doctors provide more personalized mental health treatment. It also operates wholly-owned subsidiary Arcadian Telepsychiatry Services LLC, which provides a suite of services, including telepsychiatry.
— Sherry Hsieh
UCI Health appointed Chad Lefteris chief operating officer, effective Dec. 17. He will oversee the daily business operations of the University of California-Irvine’s medical center and be responsible for administrative functions. Lefteris is currently vice president of operations of Raleigh, N.C.-based UNC REX Healthcare, where he’s responsible for the oncology service line of 13 service locations that generate about a third of the organization’s net income. UNC REX has a 660-bed acute-care facility and a range of healthcare services sites. It’s part of UNC Health Care, a nonprofit integrated healthcare system owned by the state of North Carolina.
— Sherry Hsieh
MANUFACTURING
Buena Park-based Simply Fresh Foods was sold to Lakeview Farms LLC in Delphos, Ohio, on undisclosed terms. The two food makers’ Dallas-based private equity parents—Ancor Capital Partners and Sequel Holdings LP, respectively—deal mainly in the lower middle market. Lakeview makes refrigerated desserts, dips, cheeses and sour cream. It’s one of four food-focused Sequel portfolio companies; the others involve refrigerated products, fresh produce and dry mixes. Simply Fresh makes salsas, dips and the San Francisco branded line of seafood salads.
— Paul Hughes
REAL ESTATE
Bellwether Financial Group in Newport Beach named Ralph Grippo a principal. The investor group was founded and is run by Joe Ueberroth, son of former Major League Baseball Commissioner Peter Ueberroth, with a big focus on marinas. It’s partners with Burnham Ward Properties and R.D. Olson Development, both in Newport Beach, in heading the $338 million redevelopment of Dana Point Harbor. Grippo was previously president of Irvine Co.’s resort division for 11 years.
— Paul Hughes
RESTAURANTS
Taco Bell Corp. of Irvine signed its second franchiser for Australia and New Zealand, more than doubling the number of units it plans in the two countries to 110. New Zealand-based Restaurants Brands NZ Ltd. plans 60 locations by 2024 across New Zealand and two parts of Australia: New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory around the capital of Brisbane. Collins Foods Ltd. said in October that it plans to open 50 locations by 2021 in the Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia states.
— Paul Hughes
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. in Newport Beach named Roger Theodoredis chief legal officer and Tabassum Zalotrawala chief development officer. Theodoredis has worked for food companies Chiquita, Mead Johnson Nutrition, WhiteWave Foods, and Danone in legal oversight roles. Zalotrawala was most recently a vice president overseeing design, construction and facilities at Panda Restaurant Group in Rosemead. Chipotle said the hires complete its 10-person executive team, almost all of them new hires.
— Paul Hughes
