Industry Briefs 3-11-24

Industry Briefs are provided as a free service to our readers. Company news information may be sent to brice.w@thecityjournals.com. The submission deadline is one week before publication.

ASSOCIATIONS

• ChamberWest Women in Business, in partnership with Mujeres Unidas De Utah, are conducting a Women’s Professional Clothing Drive through April 30. Donors are asked to drop off clean, gently used women’s business attire and accessories at any of these locations: ChamberWest, 3540 S. 4000 W., No. 240, West Valley City; Granite Credit Union, 3109 W. 4700 S., Taylorsville; or the Kearns Library, 4275 W. 5345 S., Kearns.

CONSTRUCTION

• AJC Architects, based in Salt Lake City, has named Dijana Alickovic Rambo as principal architect. Prior to joining the company in 2016, Rambo worked at Prescott-Muir Architects, also in Salt Lake City, from 2011-16. She earned an undergraduate degree in 2005 and a Master of Architecture degree in 2008 from the University of Utah’s College of Architecture and Planning.

CONTESTS

• Nine companies will participate in the pitch competition during the 2024 Wilson Sonsini Entrepreneur & Investor Life Sciences Summit, presented this month by BioUtah and the University of Utah Technology Licensing Office. In addition to the nine, there will be over 20 additional companies posting their investment materials at the pitch hall accessible through the Whova app. Presenting at the summit will be Signpath Pharma, Bloom Surgical, Diagnostic Ventures, PolarityTE, Spire, RespirAI Medical, 3Dio, Stingray Therapeutics and Aged Diagnostics.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

• Utah has the highest share of its population living in prosperous communities and the lowest share living in “distressed” communities, according to a study by EIG. Its Distressed Communities Index study shows that more than half (55.3 percent) of Utahns live in a prosperous ZIP code and only 0.4 percent live in a distressed ZIP code area. The number is 7.6 percent in at-risk areas, 16.4 percent in mid-tier, and 20.4 percent in a “comfortable” area. Nationally, 15.6 percent of the population lives in a distressed ZIP code area and 24.4 percent live in a prosperous ZIP code area. The index wraps seven economic indicators into a single measure that ranks communities and sorts them into five tiers. Mississippi is last, with 45 percent of its population in a distressed area. Details are at eig.org/dci.
• The most expensive Airbnb in Utah costs $16,018 (with taxes and fees included) per night, according to a study by BestBrokers. It researched every state’s most expensive site. Park City Colony Estate costs $12,282 per night, or $16,018 with fees and taxes included. The most expensive site in the U.S. is The Riverbend House in Aspen, Colorado, at $55,729 per night with fees and taxes. The least expensive is a home in Medoro, North Dakota, at $994. Details are at https://www.bestbrokers.com/2024/02/06/the-most-expensive-airbnb-in-every-u-s-state/.
• A debt of $40,000 is an amount which Utahns consider a person not being “marriage material,” according to a study by DatingAdvice.com. It surveyed people to determine at what level debt would severely constrain a couple’s financial freedom or deter a commitment. The national average is $52,024. The lowest number is in Montana, at $10,000. The highest is in Wyoming, at $100,000. Details are at https://www.datingadvice.com/studies/how-financial-obligations-impact-dating-in-america.
• Utah is ranked No. 37 on a list of “Best States for Tiny Houses,” compiled by LawnStarter. It compared the 50 states on the legality of constructing a tiny home, considering the suitability of building in an urban setting based on average yard acreages and in a remote environment based on off-grid lifestyle-friendliness. The top-ranked state is Vermont. The bottom-ranked state is New Jersey. Details are at https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/studies/best-states-for-tiny-houses/.
• Ogden is ranked No. 5 and Salt Lake City is No. 31 on a list of “Best Cities for Spa Lovers,” compiled by Pool Gnome. It compared nearly 500 of the biggest U.S. cities based on three categories, considering the number of spas, average consumer ratings and local demand among six total metrics. The top-ranked city is New York City. The bottom-ranked city is Cicero, Illinois. Details are at https://poolgnome.com/blog/studies/best-cities-spa-lovers/.

EDUCATION/TRAINING

• In a collaborative effort, BioUtah, other industry experts and Weber State University have announced that WSU will launch a 100 percent online regulatory affairs post-baccalaureate certificate this May. Registration is open, and the certificate is structured to be a pathway for those in life sciences to break into a high demand field within the industry. The program will consist of curricula in regulatory drugs and biologics, regulatory devices and diagnostics, compliance and more. It can be completed in two semesters. Students also have the option to complete a semester-long capstone internship over an additional semester. Applications are being accepted until April 15 at weber.edu.
• The Utah State Board of Education has recommended Collaborative Classroom’s SIPPS program under the Utah Literacy Initiative, designed to advance literacy education in the state. SIPPS is a research-based intervention program designed to address the diverse literacy needs of students in grades K–12. By providing explicit instructional routines and structured literacy approaches, SIPPS equips educators with the tools necessary to accelerate student growth in foundational reading skills. Collaborative Classroom is a nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring that all students become proficient readers, writers and critical thinkers. Since 1980, its programs have impacted over 8 million students and 328,000 teachers nationwide.
• The Small Business Administration’s Utah District Office is accepting applications through April 28 from small businesses for the T.H.R.I.V.E. Emerging Leaders Reimagined Program. This is the first year that the office will be supporting two cohorts, one in Kaysville and the other in St. George. The program is a free, six-month executive-level training aimed at empowering small-business owners with the knowledge, tools and resources to elevate their enterprises to new heights of success. Combining online learning modules with in-person sessions, the program focuses on leadership enhancement, strategic financial management, market innovation, and fostering a thriving company culture. The program runs from June 18 through December. Applications are being accepted at sbathrive.com. An informational webinar takes place at 11 a.m. March 11, with registration available at https://bit.ly/THRIVE_UT.
• The Noorda College of Osteopathic Medicine, Provo, recently had the public opening for its Medical School Campus. The 140,000-square-foot, four-story building is at 2162 S. 180 E. and is an academic building for faculty, staff, teaching hubs, and for the approximately 800 students.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

• SadieB Personal Care, a University of Utah student startup, has launched eight hair shampoos and conditioners in 507 Target stores and the Target website. Co-founder and CEO Sadie Bowler is pursuing a marketing degree at the UofU’s David Eccles School of Business. She began working on SadieB with her sister Abby when she was a junior in high school. During her freshman year of college, she launched the company with 16 products with support from the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, an entrepreneurship program at the university. SadieB has a Girl Advisory Board that consults on product development, social media, brand messaging and more. The company has also partnered with Girl Up, a movement to advance girls’ skills, rights and opportunities to be leaders, and is supporting them as they launch new mental health education and resources. Bowler spent three years building the brand and perfecting product formulations before launching in May 2022.

GOVERNMENT

• Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall announced the appointment of Jill Remington Love as the city’s chief administrative officer. Remington Love previously served three terms as the District 5 representative on the Salt Lake City Council, and three stints as council chair, from 2001-13. Her service to the city extended across three mayoral administrations, including as Mayor Ralph Becker’s community and economic development director. After her time in city government, Remington Love served the state under two governors as the executive director of the Department of Cultural and Community Engagement.
• Applications are being accepted for Salt Lake City’s “Love Your Block” grants, aimed at addressing challenges through community-led solutions, improving neighborhoods one block at a time. Ideas funded aim to improve deteriorating spaces, address community concerns, and enhance neighborhood pride through resident-led projects. The program provides micro-grants, technical assistance and one-on-one coaching to residents and businesses in eligible neighborhoods: Glendale, Poplar Grove, Fairpark, Rosepark, Westpointe, Jordan Meadows, Guadalupe, and Ballpark. The 2024 Love Your Block program consists of two grant categories: mini-grants of up to $2,000 to support larger-scale initiatives, including the construction of community tool sheds, public art, vacant lot activation, playground repairs, and placemaking signage; and the Community Action Fund, providing up to $500, allocating funds for shovel-ready and quick-hit projects, emphasizing activities like neighborhood clean-ups, alleyway projects and exterior home repairs. Mini-grant applications are open through March 31. Community Action Fund applications are accepted on a rolling basis through Sept. 30 or when funds have been expended. Applications are accepted via online, paper form, phone call, and in-person meetings.

HEALTHCARE

• Seek Labs, a Salt Lake City-based company developing molecular diagnostic systems and gene therapies, has appointed Cindy Dunkle to its board of directors. Dunkle has 30 years of life sciences experience. She is the chief people officer for Denali Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases. Prior to Denali, she held HR roles at Adverum Biotechnologies and Genentech. Dunkle currently serves on the board of managers for Life Science Cares Bay Area, a collective of Bay Area life sciences companies to address poverty and inequality locally. Dunkle also is the vice chair of BioHive, a public-private nonprofit representing Utah’s collective of life sciences and healthcare innovation companies.

HOSPITALITY

• Lodging Dynamics Hospitality Group, a Provo-based hotel management company, has appointed Kathleen Batesas vice president of operations. Bates has more than 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry, including spending a significant portion of her career operating Marriott, Hilton and other premium brand hotels at every level, from a single property general manager to directing and providing oversight of hotel portfolios on a regional or national level. She also most recently developed, implemented and oversaw hoteling and home-sharing services across a nationwide group of Class A multi-family communities.

INVESTMENTS

• Mobile software company Mobly has raised $2.5 million in seed funding in a round led by Peterson Ventures, with participation from Vitalize Venture Capital, Peak Ventures, Tenzing Capital, Upstream Ventures and Service Provider Capital, as well as several angel investors. Taylor Jones, principal at Peterson Ventures, will join Mobly’s board of directors, and Caroline Casson, partner at Vitalize, will be a board observer. Mobly said the funding will allow it to further scale go-to-market operations, expand its engineering team, and accelerate the development of new enterprise features and capabilities. Mobly was founded in 2023.

NONPROFITS

• The Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation has donated $2.2 million to the Antelope Island Learning Center and Utah Water Ways for Utah’s water conservation and educational outreach efforts. Funding for the Antelope Island Learning Center will be routed through the Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation, an advocate for entrepreneurial thought in conservation, and will create an educational curriculum for the center. In April 2022, Antelope Island State Park announced plans to renovate and expand the visitor center and include a new, state-of-the-art learning center and giant-screen 3D theater. The theater is expected to host over 100,000 visitors annually. The Antelope Island Learning Center is expected to open in July 2025. In partnership with Ducks Unlimited, revenue from the ticket sales of the film will be used to fund conservation projects on the Great Salt Lake.

PARTNERSHIPS

• Gnarly Sports Nutrition, a Salt Lake City-based creator of sports nutrition supplements and protein powders, has announced its partnership with Tactic Functional Nutrition, which offers functional nutrition and lifestyle coaching to athletes and nonathletes across the globe. Tactic will exclusively offer Gnarly Protein, Collagen, Creatine, Preworkout and Hydration products to support its athletes’ and clients’ fitness and nutrition goals.

PHILANTHROPY

• Make-A-Wish Utah and 38 Jersey Mike’s Subs locations in the Salt Lake City area are having their 14th annual March “Month of Giving” campaign to support local charities. During the month, customers will have the option to round up their purchase to the nearest dollar or donate $1, $3, or $5 when placing their order. The campaign will culminate with Jersey Mike’s “Day of Giving” on March 27, when local Jersey Mike’s restaurants will give 100 percent of the day’s sales to Make-A-Wish Utah. On Day of Giving, local Jersey Mike’s owners and operators throughout the country will donate their resources and every dollar of sales to more than 200 different charities, including hospitals, youth organizations, food banks and more. Last year’s campaign total was $21 million. Since it began in 2011, Jersey Mike’s has raised more than $88 million for local charities.
• Klim, a Rigby, Idaho-based company specializing in snowmobile, motorcycle and off-road riding gear, is donating $100,000 over several years to Utah State University’s Outdoor Product Design and Development program. The donation will be used to purchase equipment and improvements to the program.

REAL ESTATE

• Northmarq has announced that Rawley Nielsen, Mark Jensen and Darren Nielsen have joined the company’s multifamily investment sales platform in its Salt Lake City office. Rawley Nielsen and Jensen are managing directors. Darren Nielsen is senior vice president. They will be responsible for supporting clients and growing the company’s multifamily advisory business throughout Utah, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. Rawley Nielsen has two decades of experience in private client and institutional investment sales. He joins the company after eight years at Colliers International in Salt Lake City, where he served as president of investment sales. Jensen has 20 years of experience in multifamily investment sales and development in Utah and the surrounding region. Most recently, he served as executive vice president of investments at Colliers International in Salt Lake City.
• Patrinely, a Houston-based real estate firm, has leased 19,917 square feet of office space in 650 Main to Michael Best & Friedrich LLP, a law firm with more than 400 attorneys and legal professionals across 17 offices. 650 Main is a 10-story, 335,000-square-foot Class A office and retail development. Financial terms were not disclosed. CBRE handles the office leasing assignment for the building with Nadia Letey, senior vice president, and Roman Bernardo, senior associate, as lead leasing agents working under the direction of Dennis Tarro, executive vice president/principal of Patrinely, along with Phillip Moore of Patrinely. Michael Best was represented by Lora Munson of Colliers.

RECOGNITIONS

• Rocket Tutors, a team from West High School that is building a business to provide free one-on-one online math tutoring, won first place and the $10,000 Sue Gibson Grand Prize at the 2024 High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge final event. Twenty teams made it to the final event in this business-idea competition open to all high school students in Utah. They competed for $30,000 in cash and scholarships. The competition is hosted by the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, an interdisciplinary division of the David Eccles School of Business at the University of Utah, and sponsored by Zions Bank. Rocket Tutors team member Syna Aggarwal said she started the business with her brother, Arya, after a personal experience with needing a tutor. Rocket Tutors will provide tutoring free through donations from companies and individuals. The donors receive a tax benefit and opportunity to make an impact on people’s lives, while the Rocket Tutors will collect a small transition cost to cover business expenses. Earning second place ($5,000) was Munk Skateboarding of American Fork High School. The third-place ($2,500) winner was Sailrugs of Herriman High School. The Top Online Vote Award ($500) was won by Non-Residual Infusion Bag of Skyline High. All finalists received $100 each and $1,000 Lassonde Studios Founders Scholarships. College of Science Scholarship ($2,000) was won by The Pee Ball of Weber High School. The $2,500 Community Impact Award was won by the Catalyst Center of the Davis School District for its work to inspire young entrepreneurs. The High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge is the youth version of the collegiate Utah Entrepreneur Challenge, which offers $100,000 in cash and prizes this year.

RESTAURANTS

• Andy Barron and Eric Price have signed a five-unit franchise development agreement across Utah with Vicious Biscuit, a fast-casual biscuit company. Price is a professionally trained chef with more than 20 years of experience. The locations will be in Logan, Ogden/Clearfield, Salt Lake City, Provo/Orem and St. George. The restaurant chain currently has locations in Carolinas and Florida. Its first restaurant opened in 2018 and opened five more company-owned locations thereafter. It began franchising in early 2023, with seven franchisee deals totaling nearly 40 units in development.

RETAIL

• Bricks & Minifigs, offering Lego products, has opened a store at 5644 S. Redwood Road, Taylorsville. It is the company’s fifth Utah location. The franchise owners are Josh and Kristen Brereton. Bricks & Minifigs has more than 100 locations nationwide.

SPACE

• Northrop Grumman Corp. recently completed the first Booster Obsolescence and Life Extension motor segment for the next-generation Space Launch System solid rocket booster. BOLE adds nearly five metric tons of payload capacity for SLS Block 2 Moon and Mars missions above the enhancements already in work for the SLS Block 1B configuration slated to fly on Artemis IV. The new solid rocket boosters will be used on Block 2 beginning with Artemis IX, when all the recovered and refurbished shuttle-era steel cases have been spent. The BOLE booster incorporates carbon fiber technology and a weight-saving composite case. Combined with other upgrades, it generates 11 percent more total impulse than the current five-segment solid rocket boosters. The first BOLE demonstration test is scheduled for this year, featuring a full-scale static test, with all five segments integrated and horizontally fired in a test bay.

TECHNOLOGY

• Qualiti.ai, a Lehi-based tech startup focused on test automation solutions, has hired Tim Stewart as chief technology officer and received an investment from Crosslink Capital. The amount was not disclosed. Stewart previously worked as a senior director at Qualtrics, where he led multiple products and teams.

WEALTH MANAGEMENT

• Diversity Advisor Network, a Sandy-based wealth management firm, has appointed Kevin Bendix as chief legal officer. Based in San Diego, Bendix is a former partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP, where his practice focused on developing large-scale defense strategies for his clients. He was also a specialist advisor on deals for a number of the country’s leading private equity firms and their portfolio companies.