| San Diego Business Journal

World TeamTennis Moves Headquarters to Carlsbad

The headquarters will be run by Chris Renner, who was named the league’s new CEO in July.

SeaWorld and Former CEO to Settle SEC Fraud Charges

They have agreed to pay more than $5 million.

Sycuan to Hire More Than 700 Workers

The positions are for the casino's hotel and resort expansion.

Mobile West Growth Shows It Can Hold the Alcohol

BREWING: Canning Co. Adds Sleeves to Its Services

When Matt Woempner wanted a change in career from the high-tech world a few years ago, he didn’t turn to his financial advisor. Instead, he tapped a couple of buddies from his soccer team for guidance.

CPC Makes Sure Its Clients Don’t Get Lost in Online Crowd

SOFTWARE: Acquisition By Elite SEM Should Add To Co.’s Marketing Muscle

For Rick Backus, chief executive officer and founder of San Diego-based CPC Strategy, a little reinvention has gone a long way for his online marketing agency.

S.D. Named 10th Most Fun City in America by WalletHub

The company compared 182 U.S. cities based on 65 key metrics, including movie costs, open hours of breweries and fitness centers per capita.

Plant Power Fast Food Taps a Hunger for Change

DINING: Plant-Based Cuisine Aims to Transform Typical Menu and the World

When Jeffrey Harris launched Plant Power Fast Food, the San Diego-based, GMO-free, plant-based restaurant chain, in 2015, his idea was not to cater to vegans and/or vegetarians — although they are surely welcome — but to offer a healthier alternative to omnivores in a space where it can have the most amount of impact on the most amount of people possible.

Goodwill Industries Unveils Community Employment Center

Partners with Civic San Diego.

SANDAG Names New Executive Director

The San Diego Association of Governments has appointed Hasan Ikhrata as its new executive director.

Homegrown Meats Goes National With Whole Foods Market

The San Diego-based grass-fed and grass-finished beef jerky producer, will debut four of its flavors through Whole Foods Market stores nationwide.

Co., Port Partner on Kelp Aquaculture Program

ECONOMY: Eco Friendly Crop Would Sell to Chefs, Ranchers and Farmers

Early last year, Leslie Booher and Torre Polizzi, founders of Sunken Seaweed LLC., made their way down to Ensenada, Mexico, and snuck into the Offshore Mariculture Conference, all in hopes of meeting Paula Sylvia, the Port of San Diego’s program manager of aquaculture, and speak with her about their desire to help preserve kelp in California.

Lytx Endows UCSD Fellowship

The Lytx Graduate Fellowship for Masters of Science in Business Analytics is the first of its kind investment for the recently-launched graduate-degree program.

CPC Strategy Acquired by Elite SEM

San Diego-based CPC Strategy, an internet marketing company, has been acquired by New York-based digital marketing agency Elite SEM.

Barons Market to Open New Otay Ranch Location

The 21,000 square foot space plans to bring approximately 50 jobs to Eastlake.

New Owners Were Open to Possibilities of A Garage Door

SERVICE: Small Biz Sees Steady Revenue Growth, Tries Mobile Marketing

Jerry Leone knew little about manufacturing before he sold Leone’s Building Service janitorial company and purchased San Diego-based A Garage Door for $900,000 in 2016.

Much at Stake in S.D. Convention Center Expansion

An ophthalmology organization, a pharmacists group and an architectural and commercial lighting trade show and conference want in. They would bring tens of thousands of people with spending power of millions of dollars and a capacity to book thousands of room nights.

Hertzog Promoted to COO of Innovative Employee Solutions

Kara Hertzog is a third-generation employee at the San Diego-based payroll and human resources administration company.

Artisanal Store and Its Customers Grow Together

RETAIL: From Plants To Decor, Customers Help Curate Products

On any given day, Chad Anglin starts his morning by dropping off his first- and third-graders off at Spanish immersion school before heading to one of his two retail stores.

Anderson Named San Diego Tourism Marketing District Executive Director

Colleen Anderson's first order of business is to manage the funding grant application process for fiscal year 2020, which begins in October.

Lamming Named COO and President of RAR Hospitality

The hotel management group oversees 18 hotels, including the Four Points by Sheraton San Diego and Fairfield Inn & Suites in Oceanside.

Hawaii-Based SoHa Living Opens in Carlsbad

This is the company's first outlet in San Diego County.

Razor Launches Ride-Sharing Service in San Diego

Razor Share is the latest to provide scooter ride-sharing in the county.

S.D. Cos. Chosen to Help Run Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing Program

San Diego-based Center for Sustainable Energy and GRID Alternatives, among other statewide nonprofits, have been chosen to run California’s new Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH) program.

Bold Brew Gets Good Retail Presence, Aims for $1.5M Seed Money

RETAIL: Co-Founders Went Through the SDSI Accelerator

It seems fitting for Jack Doheny and Jake Solomon, founders of Bold Brew Coffee, to have first met at a coffee stand.

Heater Co. Has Right Material For Growth

PRODUCTION: Oasis Sees Innovative Role in Science And Tech, Including AI

Although Oasis Materials Corp. was originally founded in 2005, its president and founder, Frank Polese, considers 2012 the year his company officially started.

Luna Grill Names New Executive Chef

Ron Oliver is a cookbook author and former chef de cuisine of the Marine Room in La Jolla.

Hotel Group Views Customers as Partners, Creating a Lasting Loyalty

TOURISM: Hotel Group Views Customers as Partners, Creating a Lasting Loyalty

Six years ago, while having dinner at one of the 18 hotels he either owns and/or manages, Robert Rauch, founder and CEO of RAR Hospitality, saved the life of one of his guests.

United Way of S.D. County Names New President and CEO

United Way of San Diego County has selected Nancy Sasaki.

Port of San Diego Backs Aquaculture Project

Sunken Seaweed will open its seaweed farm at the Grape Street Pier No. 1.

McManus Named VP/Station Manager of KUSI

Media executive Denise McManus has been named vice president/station manager of San Diego’s KUSI television.

Coffee Could Be Something Special in Local Agriculture

AG: High-End Crop Targets The Pricey Specialty Market

According to the San Diego County Farm Bureau, San Diego is the top grower of domestic avocados and the No. 1 nursery and floral county in the nation. But these days, local farmers have their eyes set on a new crop: coffee.

S.D.-Serving Better Business Bureau Expands to Arizona

The Better Business Bureau segment that serves San Diego, Orange and Imperial counties has merged with BBB Greater Arizona.

Aroma Listens to Its Retailers, Keeps Eye on Economy

RETAIL: Housewares Co. Relies on Business Sense And Wide Product Line

Although keeping a relatively low public profile since launching 41 years ago, San Diego-based Aroma Housewares, mostly known for its rice cookers and multicookers, has managed to become a recognizable name in the small kitchen electric appliances industry.

Pop-Up Trend Gives Retail a Fun-Size

RETAIL: Versatile Uses Include Promotional Events

When sisters Anne Buehner, 33, and Mary Carr, 26, who have branding and retail experience collectively, noticed an absence in agencies dedicated to creating pop-up experiences in San Diego recently, they joined forces to launch their creative firm, & Boom Unlimited, last year.

Axis Renewables Opens More International Offices

The new locations will help the company keep up with the growing demand in those regions.

Hotel Industry Is Building on Its Solid Metrics

TRAVEL: In 2018, 77.5% Occupancy Expected; Biz Travel Makes Up 10%

On paper, San Diego doesn’t look very good as far as the hotel industry is concerned.

Civic San Diego Closes $10M Tax Credit Investment with Ajinomoto Foods

The investment will help finance the addition of a third manufacturing production line in 2019 in Otay Mesa and is expected to generate close to 100 new jobs in the next two years.

Restaurant Group’s Biz Model Is Risky But Rewarding

For David and Lesley Cohn, president and co-founders of Cohn Restaurant Group, the San Diego-based, family-run business which owns and operates 25 restaurants in Southern California and Hawaii, what makes their company successful is the same thing that makes it, for a lack of a better word, difficult.

#9 Fastest Growing Private Company

Special Report: Fastest-Growing Private Companies

Deanne Gustafson had been an avid bottled-kombucha drinker for years when, during a 2013 trip to Bend, Oregon, with now-husband Jared Gustafson, she discovered kombucha was also on tap.

Going Places

Tourism: Marketing Agencies Also Take Their Expertise on the Road

Just this June, three months after applying through a rigorous bidding process, San Diego-based Greenhaus, a destination marketing agency that specializes in placemaking and brand development for travel, tourism, hospitality and real estate, was selected to run the Visit Santa Barbara campaign, with hopes of boosting the Central California coast county’s presence as a top travel destination.

#7 Fastest Growing Private Company

Special Report: Fastest-Growing Private Companies

It was his own battle with obesity that lead Drew Canole, founder of Organifi, down a path of educating others about making healthy choices and living healthy lives.