New Santa Ana | Category Archives: Business

Downtown Santa Ana community update presentation set for May 13

Posted on May 11, 2015 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Entertainment, Santa Ana 3 Comments

For Immediate Release

Media Contact: Ryan Chase President, Downtown Inc. info@downtown-inc.com (949) 292-1404

Downtown Community Update Presentation

The Community is invited for an update on downtown hosted by Downtown Inc. Wednesday, May 13th – The Frida Cinema (305 E. 4th St.)

May 8, 2016 – Downtown Inc. is asking neighbors, artists, residents, businesses, and friends to attend a presentation and update on downtown Santa Ana.

Topics will include some exciting reveals and also popular topics of discussion from Parking and Biking to Economic Development, the Arts and more. The presentation will highlight recent accomplishments and downtown milestones, and announce Downtown Inc.’s 2015-2016 strategies to create a mutually-supportive and better connected DTSA. Continue reading→

Mayor Pulido’s annual State of the City address set for June 10

Posted on May 9, 2015 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Entertainment, Miguel Pulido, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Santa Ana’s annual State of the City Breakfast is set for 6/10/2015 from 7:30 am to 9:00 am at the Bowers Museum, located at 2002 N. Main St., in Santa Ana.

This event will feature, as is customary, keynote speaker Mayor Miguel Pulido. Continue reading→

Meet author and businesswoman Tina Aldatz at Libreria Martinez tonight

Posted on May 9, 2015 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Entertainment, Latino Leaders, Literature, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Meet author and businesswoman Tina Aldatz tonight, Saturday, May 9th, from 5:30 pm – 8:00 pm at Chapman University’s Libreria Martinez, located at 216 N. Broadway, in Downtown Santa Ana.

Tina Aldatz’ childhood dreams of an improved life for her and her family were grounded on an unshakeable confidence that would lead the young fashionista to create a multimillion-dollar designer shoe accessories company, Foot Petals Inc. In this intimate, no-holds-barred autobiography, Tina candidly shares her humble yet tumultuous upbringing and lessons learned throughout her life that served as the impetus in her eventually calling her own shots. Filled with wit, wisdom, and unrelenting honesty, From Stilettos to the Stock Exchange offers a detailed look into the life of a very creative and successful “serial entrepreneur”. Continue reading→

New study confirms that Santa Ana is a terrible place to open a new business in

Posted on April 30, 2015 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Santa Ana 6 Comments

Many of us already knew it but a new study by Wallet Hub has confirmed that Santa Ana is a terrible place to try to start a new business.

Santa Ana was ranked #143 on a list of the top 150 cities in which to start a new business. Santa Ana was ranked just below Anaheim, at #141 and just above Oakland, at #143.

Santa Ana came in dead last in terms of having an educated workforce – at #150, which was one of the reasons the city scored so low overall in terms of being a city one should open a new business in. Continue reading→

Get together at the DTSA Farmers’ Market set for tonight

Posted on March 26, 2015 by Art Pedroza Posted in Alcohol, Business, Entertainment, Food Leave a comment

A Downtown Santa Ana Get Together is set for tonight, March 26, 2015, from 5-8pm at 307 N. Spurgeon St., in DTSA.

This will be an opportunity to meet and share the good news and cheer with your fellow downtown artists, businesses, residents and friends. Continue reading→

Poll: Should DTSA be a Wellness District or a Drinking District?

Posted on March 15, 2015 by Art Pedroza Posted in Arts and Culture, Business, Health and Medical, Santa Ana 36 Comments

Do the people of Santa Ana want a Drinking District or a Wellness District?

Downtown Santa Ana merchants and community groups, including Building Healthy Communities, will be at this Tuesday’s Santa Ana City Council meeting, to propose that the city establish a Downtown Wellness District strategy to foster retail and services that are authentic to our city’s Latino character, according to the O.C. Register.

The idea is to serve the people of Santa Ana and further diversify the visitors coming to DTSA by rebranding the area as Calle Cuatro Marketplace.”

We have been saying for some time that the hipster gentrification of DTSA has not served the majority of our residents and has in fact been part of an ongoing effort to push Latinos out of DTSA and cater to people who don’t live here. Continue reading→

Mayor and City Council urge residents to shop in Santa Ana

Posted on February 19, 2015 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Civic Affairs, Santa Ana 2 Comments

City of Santa Ana

Community Alert: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL ENCOURAGE RESIDENTS TO SHOP LOCAL. SHOP SANTA ANA.

SANTA ANA, CA (February 19, 2015) – With multiple award-winning restaurants, the City of Santa Ana has been recognized as a destination for food lovers and according to Forbes Magazine, as one of the Coolest Places in the Country to live. Now, the Mayor and City Council want to encourage residents to explore all the City has to offer in their new ‘Shop Local. Shop Santa Ana’ video. Continue reading→

Will the new Norms Restaurant owner improve the Santa Ana location?

Posted on January 11, 2015 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Food, Restaurants, Santa Ana Leave a comment

After more than 65 years of family ownership, Southern California’s iconic Norms restaurant chain has been sold. The flashing neon and 24-hour sizzling grills have been a Los Angeles institution since Norman Roybark opened his first location near the bustling music scene at Sunset and Vine in 1949 and will continue on under new owner Jim Balis, according to L.A. Magazine.

The Norm’s in Santa Ana has been on the corner of 17th and Main St. for as long as I can remember. They are open 24 hours and are always busy. Service can be spotty, as noted in Yelp, where they have only 2.5 stars. But their breakfast meals are awesome and I love that they serve soup and salad with many of their dinners. And you can’t beat their half a sandwich with soup and salad lunch. Continue reading→

Unum Sunglasses finishes 1st year by donating to Santa Ana Wrestling team

Posted on January 11, 2015 by Art Pedroza Posted in Alex Flores, Business, Charities, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Unum Sunglasses Celebrates First Year By Giving Back To The Community

Company contributes portion of sales to Santa Ana Wrestling team

January 10, 2015 (Santa Ana, CA) – Unum Sunglasses is celebrating its first anniversary with the accomplishment of its goal to give back a portion of its sales to the community.

The company behind the Aviator and Wayfarer sunglasses recently donated $1,500 to the Santa Ana Athletic Foundation that will help support the students on the Santa Ana Wrestling Team. The donation is part of Unum’s goal to foster a new generation of leaders who understand the power of community engagement. Continue reading→

$151M in tax credits available to Santa Ana businesses

Posted on January 8, 2015 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, california, irvine, Santa Ana, Taxes Leave a comment

City of Santa Ana, Downtown Orange County

Community Alert: Santa Ana Businesses – $151 Million In Tax Credits Available Through State Program

Santa Ana, CA (January 8, 2015) – On Monday, January 5th, The Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) opened the California Competes program and began accepting applications for businesses that want to add jobs in California. The state will provide $151 million in tax credits this fiscal year to small, medium and large companies across the state.

Last fiscal year, GO-Biz awarded $28.9 million to 29 companies that are planning to create 6,000 jobs and invest more than $2 billion in the state. Continue reading→

Mortgage Professional America Magazine’s Hot 100 for 2015 includes six from Santa Ana

Posted on December 8, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Real Estate, Santa Ana Leave a comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DENVER, Colo (Dec. 8, 2014) — Six people from Santa Ana-based companies have just received one of the mortgage industry’s highest honors.

Glenn Stearns, chairman and founder at Stearns Lending; Katherine Le, president at Stearns Lending; Brian Hale, CEO at Stearns Lending; Kathleen Vaughan, executive vice president of national third-party production at Stearns Lending; Kevin DeLory, regional sales manager at Carrington Mortgage Services; and Raymond Brousseau, executive vice president of mortgage lending at Carrington Mortgage Services, have been named as six of Mortgage Professional America Magazine’s Hot 100 for 2015. This list, compiled annually, honors 100 people who have made waves in the mortgage industry over the last year. Continue reading→

Expert on urban strategy to speak about DTSA’s economic potential on 12/12

Posted on December 8, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Entertainment, Santa Ana 4 Comments

Jeb Brugmann, a renowned expert on Urban Strategy, will be making a presentation about an analysis he has prepared regarding Downtown Santa Ana’s economic potential for food, health and wellness, culture and recreation, on December 12, 2014, from 8:30 am to 10:30 am, at Santa Ana’s First Presbyterian Church, located at 600 North Main St., in DTSA.

Brugmann’s report concludes that the greatest available source of buying power for both retail and service operations in DTSA is the residents of Central Santa Ana. Most of the new businesses in DTSA have completely ignored these residents, perhaps to their own detriment.

Brugmann’s findings are supported by other successful downtown “wellness district” projects in the U.S., which have also focused on retail and services for the established local resident population. Continue reading→

Black Friday DTSA deals are on all weekend!

Posted on November 28, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Deals, Santa Ana Leave a comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Ryan Smolar, Consultant to Downtown, Inc., (213) 268-4924, info@downtown-inc.com

Shop Black Friday in Downtown Santa Ana

Downtown Santa Ana is OC’s “Shop Local” Headquarters this Black Friday Weekend

Downtown Santa Ana’s eclectic mix of independent clothing stores, record shops, restaurants and craft beer establishments are offering incredible sales, deals and cool events this Black Friday weekend.

“DTSA is an unexpected hub for unique gifts, deals and a great shopping experience” said Ryan Smolar, consultant to Downtown Inc., “where else can you buy special release albums and sneakers, get 40% off both suits and and street clothes, enjoy live and cultural performances and checkout handmade goods from over 200 local makers?” Continue reading→

Santa Ana’s Unum Sunglasses releases their new polarized aviator style collection

Posted on November 24, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Alex Flores, Business, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Unum Sunglasses Releases New Polarized Aviator Style Collection

Popular fashion eyewear available in two colors and suits varying ages and tastes

November 24, 2014

(Santa Ana CA) – Unum Sunglasses announces the release of a new Aviator Style collection to join its brand of fashionable eyewear. The new collection is the second product released by the company which launched with its Wayfarer style sunglasses in the summer of 2013.

Aviator sunglasses are popular with the military and on university campuses, and are known for the signature curve of the lens that slightly wraps the temple of the face. Suitable for both younger and older crowds, Aviator sunglasses offer customers two color options, ‘Nocte’ – a classic black lens, and a midnight blue shade called ‘Frigus.’ Continue reading→

Respected OC web design agency rebrands as Devise Interactive

Posted on November 19, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Arts and Culture, Business, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Ephex Online Rebrands as Devise Interactive to Incorporate Broader Talent

Rebrand, including name change, reflects dynamic growth of respected digital and brand agency

Santa Ana, CA – Nov. 19, 2014 – Respected Orange County web design company, Ephex Online, recently underwent a full transformation to become the new and improved, Devise Interactive. With this newly evolved venture, Devise Interactive will officially become a full service brand agency.

“Devise Interactive is an accurate representation of what our team has grown into. We are more than web designers; we devise brands and amazing digital applications. It has been a long time in the making, but we can truly say it has been worth the wait, because it portrays what we are all about,” said Dalip Jaggi, Founder of Devise Interactive. Continue reading→