Other items of interest from the Orange County Business Journal
Foothill Ranch-based Wet Seal Inc. reported an almost-9% drop in same-store sales for the four weeks through May 26. It was the ninth straight month of falling same-store sales for Wet Seal, which sells clothing and accessories for teens at 470 of its namesake stores in addition to 84 Arden B stores geared to young women.
Tilly’s Inc. posted a 21% increase in fiscal first-quarter profit through April 28, compared with a year earlier. The Irvine-based action-sports clothing retailer reported a 16% increase in quarterly sales to $96.5 million. It was Tilly’s first quarterly financial results since it went public on May 4.
Anaheim-based Fisker Automotive Inc. said it has sold more than 1,000 of its hybrid sedan this year for more than $100 million in revenue through April 30. The company also said it has secured $174 million in private investments so far this year.
Huntington Beach-based ModularWind Energy Inc. tapped Gregor Gnaedig as chief executive. Former chief executive and co-founder Myles Baker is now the company’s chief technical officer. Modular Wind Energy makes blades for wind turbines. It moved to Orange County from Long Beach in 2010.
ITech Medical Inc., a Huntington Beach-based healthcare-technology company, agreed to buy medical-products distributor BIOflex Medical Magnets Inc. of Oakland Park, Fla. Terms weren’t disclosed.
Costa Mesa-based Morgan Drexen, which provides software and paralegal services to law firm, is making efforts to hire more veterans. The Costa Mesa-based company is posting jobs on veterans’ websites and also is collaborating with the state Employment Development Department to identify job candidates.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Kwan approved the sale of a 12.5-acre estate in Newport Coast known as One Pelican Hill after objections by Newport Beach-based developer Irvine Company were sorted out. One Pelican Hill Road was sold at auction to Japan Times publisher Toshiaki Ogasawara for $18.5 million. The sale was completed after representatives of the buyer agreed to keep an Irvine Co. lien in place until some unfinished construction on the property is completed.
Santa Ana-based Wahoo’s Fish Taco will open a restaurant with a bar specializing in tequila-infused drinks at 7891 Warner Ave. in Huntington Beach. The 5,300-square-foot venue will be its largest in California .
Asiana Grill Yoshinoya reopened in Fullerton following a closure of several months. The site, which formerly operated as Yoshinoya in Fullerton, was converted to a fast-casual design and will feature fast food served in bowls.
Brent McMahon, chief executive of McMahon RV in Irvine, opened a new RV business on the site of a former Ford dealership in Westminster. McMahon also plans to sell motorcycles, bicycles, all-terrain vehicles and watercraft on the 20-acre site.
Two Orange County companies—Glaukos Corp. and Dealer Socket—made a list of the 100 top private technology companies in North America compiled by the Red Herring website. Glaukos is a Laguna Hills-based medical device company DealerSocket is a software developer in San Clemente.
Paul Cosgrove of Laguna Niguel pleaded guilty to federal charges stemming from bribes paid foreign officials to obtain business while he was the sales head of Rancho Santa Margarita-based Control Components Inc. Sentencing was set for Aug. 27 in Santa Ana. Control Components manufactured service-control valves for energy companies. Cosgrove and five other former company executives were indicted in 2009.
ECONOMIC INDICATOR
UP: The outlook for economic growth in Southern California, according to California State University, Fullerton’s Leading Economic Indicator index, which saw a 1.39% increase for the first quarter compared with the fourth quarter of 2011. The index, which measures various segments of the region’s economy, reached 105.75 in the first quarter. It is based on a 2004 benchmark reading of 100. The recent report projected economic growth in the region for the next three to six months.
