LAUNCH
Cocoon Medical, a Barcelona, Spain-based medical aesthetics company that makes laser hair removal and body shaping products, is introducing its diode laser platform to the U.S. market through a hub in Tustin.
U.S. operations are running out of Preferred Depot, a business accelerator in Tustin at 2492 Walnut Ave. It provides business development, assembly and packaging, and storage and distribution services.
“There are 2,500 systems in operation around the world, and our signature platform Primelase is our first introduction to the vast U.S. market,” Cocoon Chief Executive Miguel Pardos said in a statement.
Cocoon Medical’s Primelase device offers four different wavelengths and guarantees 4.8-watt maximum power, which provides peak performance for hair removal on all skin types, including tanned skin, according to company officials.
The company claims its device can remove hair from a woman’s legs in under 12 minutes and a man’s back in 4 minutes.
Cocoon Medical was founded in 2010 and sells in 80 countries. The privately held company owns and operates more than 250 medical aesthetic clinics throughout Spain.
Irvine software company Radiologex plans to launch a platform for healthcare professionals that it calls “an all-inclusive, one-stop software ecosystem” on April 1.
The platform provides users the ability to send private and group messages; view, share and store medical files and images; access a medical equipment marketplace; and make payments or process payroll online, among other features.
The launch comes at a time of need in the healthcare sector, company officials said.
Radiologex officials said the platform is critical to providing healthcare professionals with access to information and communication services in times of emergency, such as during the current coronavirus pandemic.
The platform is certified by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology of the U.S. Department of Human and Health Services, according to the company.
It is built on blockchain technology and know your customer (KYC) policies that ensure customer identity authentication. Radiologex recently integrated Trusona’s authentication technology into its platform to bolster its security precautions.
The company said it aims to solve pain points such as a lack of streamlined communications platforms, which hinder healthcare workers’ ability to determine a course of action in a timely manner, and medication and services price-gouging in times of uncertainty.
PRODUCTS
Ilia Inc. in Laguna Beach recently revealed a new serum skin tint, and began its first outdoor ad campaign.
The company is advertising its product on four billboards in Los Angeles from March 15 to April 15. The signs are placed near Credo and Sephora stores, where Ilia Beauty products are sold.
Ilia’s cosmetics products are phthalate, sulfate and paraben free. The company said it prioritizes moisturizing and skin-protecting properties and makeup products that are rich in color.
The brand sells through 600 doors and offers more than 100 clean products with eco-friendly packaging.
Vancouver native Sasha Plavsic founded Ilia in 2011. Chief Executive Lynda Berkowitz joined in 2016 after working for brands such as Perricone MD, Too Faced and Bobbi Brown.
In January, Ilia raised nearly $11.5 million in a Series B round, led by Sandbridge Capital with participation from Silas Capital; both are consumer-focused venture firms in New York.
Silas previously led a $3 million Series A round in 2018.
Cosmetics brands in Orange County include Drunk Elephant, with an office in Newport Beach, which was acquired by Shiseido Company Ltd. for about $845 million last year; and Irvine-based Too Faced that sold to Estée Lauder Cos. for $1.45 billion in 2016.
Newport Beach-based Kadenwood LLC is producing a line of CBD-infused tea bags in partnership with Purity Organics in San Francisco.
The new line is launching with four flavors: chamomile, earl grey, green tea and English breakfast tea.
An 18-count box is expected to retail for $24.99.
Kadenwood controls the Purity Organic trademark for its CBD-infused products, while Purity Organic will retain its portfolio spanning juice, tea, coconut water and flavored sparkling water.
The partnership strengthens Kadenwood’s position as a clean brand with THC-free products, according to Chief Executive Erick Dickens.
“We felt like what we are doing is capturing or piggybacking off a brand that has a 20-plus-year history of being purchased by consumers who are on the cutting edge of organic, clean living,” he said. “We are taking those more progressive consumers and bringing them CBD.”
It’s the latest market expansion for Kadenwood in the last nine months; the company also offers CBD-focused personal care and pet products, the latter of which is expected to come out this spring. It also earns revenue from its research and farming arm.
Kadenwood is backed by Todd Davis, the co-founder of LifeLock Inc., now NortonLifeLock.
The company raised a $10 million round last year and plans a new round soon.
BOARD MEMBERS
Irvine-based In-Charge Energy Inc. added a new board member. Greg Callman, senior managing director and global head of energy technology at Macquarie Capital, was named to the board following a Series A financing round.
Callman joined Macquarie Capital after serving as global director of business development for Tesla Energy, where he led the development of the company’s Supercharger program and fleet electrification program for trucks.
The Series A round was led by Australia-based Macquarie and ABB Technology Ventures, the investment arm of Zurich, Switzerland-based automation firm ABB.
In-Charge provides customized electric vehicle charging systems to commercial fleets, electric vehicle manufacturers and commercial facilities owners. It offers its services to customers of transportation giant Ryder System Inc. (NYSE: R) and local upstart Qmerit, among others.
“In-Charge has the experience and ability to ensure fleets have what they need to introduce electric vehicles without unnecessary complexity and to expand their electric fleets as quickly as needed,” Callman said.
In-Charge is led by Chief Executive Cameron Funk and Chief Operating Officer Terry O’Day. The company has an office near the Irvine Spectrum.
Newport Beach’s Vantis Institute added Dr. Carson Bruns to its advisory board.
Bruns is an assistant professor of mechanical engineering with the ATLAS Institute at the University of Colorado-Boulder and directs its Emerging Nanomaterials Laboratory.
He received his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Northwestern University, where he studied under Fraser Stoddart, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2016 for the design and synthesis of molecular machines.
Bruns is pioneering what the company calls “smart tattooing.” He invented a nanotechnology pigment that is deposited into the skin and changes color when exposed to signals such as ultraviolet light or heat.
His addition to the Vantis team will help fuel technology innovation in medical aesthetics, according to Jessica Oslo, clinical director at Vantis.
Vantis currently offers a follicle replication treatment for hair rejuvenation and recently filed a patent application for a new treatment that delivers both aesthetic and therapeutic agents into the skin.
