New Santa Ana | Category Archives: Business

Alex Flores wants everyone to own a pair of his Unum Sunglasses

Posted on February 13, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Santa Ana 4 Comments

Santa Ana resident Alex Flores started his new business, Unum Sunglasses, almost on a whim when he realized he wanted to be able to say, when asked what he does, that he is a business owner. Recently Flores took another leap of faith, quitting his day job to be able to spend all his time selling Unum sunglasses.

Flores has a small office in Downtown Santa Ana. We met recently to talk about his business venture over coffee at the Gypsy Den Café. (My favorite is their Dirty Chai – a combination of Chai Tea and Espresso). Continue reading→

Apply now for the OCYE Future Leader’s Scholarship

Posted on February 5, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Charities, Education, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The Orange County Young Executives Future Leader’s Scholarship is now accepting applications. This scholarship is open to high school seniors who aspire to obtain higher education and make a difference within their community. The scholarship is generally aimed toward high-achieving students who also demonstrate continued involvement within the surrounding community.

The award value is a minimum of $3,000, which may increase depending on ticket sales for OCYE events, and will be given to a select student at our March 14th charity gala, benefitting THINK Together – an after school program. Continue reading→

David Nakashima honored with Fairhaven’s Oliver Haskell Care Award

Posted on January 29, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Santa Ana, Seniors Leave a comment

DAVID NAKASHIMA HONORED WITH FAIRHAVEN’S OLIVER HALSELL CARE AWARD

ORANGE, Calif., (Jan. 29, 2014) – When Orange resident David Nakashima finally found the time to pursue his desire to volunteer with hospice patients, he discovered a surprisingly fulfilling new outreach. His presence at OC Hospice in Tustin has brought a great deal of comfort not only to the patients and their families but also to Nakashima himself.

Nakashima is being honored as the January recipient of Fairhaven’s Oliver Halsell Care Award. Fairhaven Memorial Park & Mortuary, with locations in Santa Ana and Mission Viejo, created the recognition program in 2012 to pay tribute each month to individuals who have demonstrated exceptional care in their profession, community and the world at large. Continue reading→

Everest College to host an American Red Cross blood drive on Jan. 27

Posted on January 15, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Charities, Entertainment, Health and Medical Leave a comment

Everest College-Santa Ana will partner with the American Red Cross to host a blood drive on Monday, Jan. 27th. The blood drive will be held from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the campus of Everest College (500 West Santa Ana Boulevard in Santa Ana). Everest College staff and students will be welcoming donors to help them achieve their goal of 27 participants. Continue reading→

Chevron’s Fuel Your School Program benefits 124,262 OC students

Posted on January 6, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Education, Orange County, Santa Ana 1 Comment

For Immediate Release

Chevron’s Fuel Your School Program Benefits 124,262 Students in Orange County

Collaboration with DonorsChoose.org generated $1 million to help fund 1,051 eligible classroom projects for local public school teachers and students

BREA, CALIF., Jan. 6, 2014 – Chevron U.S.A. Inc. and DonorsChoose.org today announced that the 2013 Fuel Your School program generated $1 million in Orange County, benefitting 1,051 local public school classroom projects, including nearly 600 resources to help support science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) curriculum, and impacting 124,262 students. Continue reading→

Santa Ana based contractor wins a $72.7 million Orange County contract

Posted on December 13, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Orange County, Santa Ana, Traffic, Transportation Leave a comment

La Pata Avenue Gap Closure Project

By: Orange County Supervisor Pat Bates

The Board selected Sukut Construction, Inc. of Santa Ana in the amount of $72.7 million to construct the La Pata Avenue Gap Closure Project, which is more than $5 million below the engineer’s estimate.

The Project consists of three components, identified in the Project Plans & Specifications as Schedule A, Schedule B and Schedule C. Continue reading→

Free workshop on how to create a culture of engagement set for 12/18

Posted on December 13, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Education, Entertainment, irvine Leave a comment

Dale Carnegie Training of Orange County is hosting a complimentary workshop, “How Great Organizations Create a Culture of Engagement” on December 18, 2014 – 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM, at Concordia University, in Irvine, located at 1530 Concordia.

How Great Organizations Create a Culture of Engagement is a two hour workshop developed exclusively to introduce how leaders can build a culture of engagement. This workshop is unique because it leverages Dale Carnegie’s research to provide you with specific ideas and insights that can help you make the most impact while developing a culture of engagement. Get the tools you need to drive employee engagement in your organization today! Continue reading→

Johnny Rockets makes a splash as they open for business at the MainPlace Mall

Posted on December 13, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Food Leave a comment

I stopped by the VIP Grand Opening celebration of Johnny Rockets at the MainPlace Mall this afternoon. The private event included an official ribbon cutting, samples of their signature, mouthwatering hamburgers and hand-spun shakes, a live “ketchup” artist in action, gift bags, interview and a chance to meet Chris Carver, Johnny Rockets Senior VP Operations and Cozette Phifer-Koerber, VP Brand Management and Communications, who came up from the corporate office in Aliso Viejo.

This location is owned by Mike Hashim and his son Karim, who were also at the event. Mike has over 25 years in the restaurant business and he said he opened this franchise, his first Johnny Rockets location, in Santa Ana after searching all over Orange County for a good mall location. This restaurant is located near JCPenney, right by Genki Sushi and several other eateries that have clustered near this northern entrance to the Mall. Continue reading→

City announces Santa Ana Small Business Incentive Program

Posted on December 5, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Santa Ana Leave a comment

City of Santa Ana, Downtown Orange County

Community: CITY ANNOUNCES SANTA ANA SMALL BUSINESS INCENTIVE PROGRAM

SANTA ANA, CA (December 5, 2013) – If you are a new business (in business a year or less), have 5 or less employees and are located in a commercial storefront, your business could be eligible to receive a $5,000 reimbursement for start-up business costs that you have incurred during your start-up phase.

Examples of Start-up costs can be, but not limited to: Continue reading→

Local sunglasses business launch party set for 12/12 in Santa Ana

Posted on December 5, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Alex Flores, Business, Education, Entertainment, Santa Ana 7 Comments

Santa Ana resident and community activist Alex Flores is hosting a Business Launch Party for his enterprise, Unum Sunglasses, on Thursday, December 12th, from 6:30pm – 9pm, at 207 N. Main St., in Santa Ana.

The event will feature music by Dj Tytonix. To RSVP email aflores@unumsunglasses.com or call 714-474-8768. Continue reading→

Fire causes over $1M in damage at a Santa Ana marijuana growing operation

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Fires, Marijuana, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Scene from the movie The Pineapple Express, which featured the explosion of an indoor marijuana growing operation

A marijuana growing operation was discovered early Sunday morning, at about 1:10 a.m., when a fire broke out at a business complex in Santa Ana, at the Warner/Fairview Business Park in the 2200 block of South Fairview Street, Santa Ana police Cpl. Anthony Bertagna said, according to the O.C. Register.

Three out of the nine businesses in the shopping center sustained heavy smoke and fire damage. The cause is under investigation, according to ABC News.

The O.C. Register also reported that: Continue reading→

Which small businesses in Santa Ana will you support today?

Posted on November 30, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Santa Ana 4 Comments

Today’s the day to shop Shop Small^® as part of Small Business Saturday^®!

Plus, register any eligible American Express Card to get a one-time $10 statement credit when you spend $10 or more on November 30 in a single, in-store transaction at a qualifying small business that appears on the Small Business Saturday Map. Supply is limited, visit ShopSmall.com to register.*

So which Santa Ana Small businesses will you shop at today? Continue reading→

Johnny Rockets has landed at the MainPlace Mall

Posted on November 24, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Food, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Johnny Rockets has landed at Santa Ana’s Westfield MainPlace Mall, on the lower level, by JC Penney. Click here to check out their menu. Be sure to sign up for their e-club to get special promotions by email and text messages.

Here is what they had to say on the MainPlace Facebook Page: Continue reading→

Hope for the Holidays Business Mixer set for 11/12 in Garden Grove

Posted on November 11, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Charities, Entertainment, Garden Grove Leave a comment

The Hope for the Holidays Business Mixer is set for Tuesday, November 12, 2013 form 5:50 PM to 7:30 PM. Local businesses, Chambers of Commerce and community organizations are meeting for a business mixer to help launch food and donation drives, in conjunction with the Community Action Partnership of Orange County.

It is not a fundraiser but they are asking $20 to defray the cost of food. They are bringing together their corporate volunteers who want to help our OC Food Bank to provide food for the hungry this holiday season. Continue reading→

XpresSpa and Brookstone now open at the John Wayne Airport

Posted on November 9, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Santa Ana Leave a comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 8, 2013

Contact: Jenny Wedge, (949) 252-5182, jwedge@ocair.com

BROOKSTONE AND XPRESSPA NOW OPEN AT JOHN WAYNE AIRPORT

SANTA ANA, Calif. – John Wayne Airport (JWA) is pleased to announce the opening of two new Airport concessions in the Thomas F. Riley Terminal: Brookstone and XpresSpa opened for business November 1, and are located in Terminal B near Gate 10.

Brookstone offers a wide selection of lifestyle travel gadgets for the traveler and is a leader in identifying high quality, functional products that are not widely available from other retailers. XpresSpa is JWA’s only full-service spa offering relaxing massages, manicures/pedicures, waxing, facials and hair styling services. Continue reading→