Foothill Ranch’s loanDepot spent about $173 million in marketing and advertising during the first nine months of 2020, up 30% from the same period a year ago, filings pertaining to its forthcoming IPO indicate.
See Peter J. Brennan’s front-page story for more on what’s ahead for Anthony Hsieh’s fast-growing mortgage lender, which is prepping to become one of OC’s largest public companies.
Ad spending appears to have only gone up in 2021, with a steady slate of ads running during last week’s NCAA football championship game, and CNN’s impeachment coverage, among other venues.
The non-bank lender’s “Home Means Everything” television campaign “represents a significant opportunity to build upon our strong momentum, reach a large potential customer base, and continue to increase our brand awareness,” the company’s IPO filings said.
It’s not just brand awareness among potential customers that loanDepot seeks, based on recent ad placement. The company’s been running its spots frequently on CNBC this month, suggesting it’s looking to build its brand on Wall Street and with potential investors too.
It’s about a 3 mile straight shot along Jamboree Road from Tesla’s forthcoming sales center in Irvine to the next traffic light—not far from Kia Motors America’s Irvine base—along that busy road, seemingly a good stretch for a test drive.
See page 4 for more on the $800 billion carmaker’s plans to expand into the city.
While a bevy of permits have been filed with Irvine for the new location, Tesla would do well to make a few calls to neighboring Tustin, whose police have jurisdiction over portions of Jamboree Road. They have been aggressively ticketing speeders on Jamboree over the past few months.
Parking tickets, rather than speeding tickets, would appear to be the larger concern in Laguna Beach for fellow EV-maker Rivian, which earlier this month got sign-off from that city’s planning commission to convert a long-vacant movie theater in the heart of the city’s downtown area into a multi-use facility.
While Rivian models would be on display at the spot, along a busy stretch of Coast Highway, it wouldn’t be an outright dealership, the company indicates.
The Laguna Beach Historic Preservation Coalition, unsurprisingly, objected to the project.
Reports this month indicate Irvine’s Rivian is nearing another funding round, which would value the company close to $25 billion. It was valued around $10 billion as of mid-2020.
Brian Sicknick, the Capitol Police officer killed while defending Congress from rioters, was a military veteran who served in both Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Desert Shield.
Sicknick was 42, and one of three brothers. Another of the siblings, Ken, was a fraternity brother of mine a long time ago on the East Coast.
The family has asked that his death not be politicized. “Brian is a hero and that is what we would like people to remember,” Ken said in a statement.
Brian’s family last week requested any donations be directed to the United States Capitol Police Memorial Fund.
