Blogs

newsobserver.com blogs

Biz Blog

Streets at Southpoint to house 5 new tenants

Soon Chipotle-lovers will no longer have to leave the Streets at Southpoint in search of the perfect burrito.

The shopping center will welcome Chipotle Mexican Grill this year, along with four other retailers as it gears up to celebrate its 10-year anniversary. Karen Warrick, a spokeswoman for the shopping center, said customers will begin to see construction barricades in March.

Here's a full list of the stores expected to open:

Chipotle Mexican Grill, a fast-food style Mexican eatery with a fresh twist, is taking the place of Mitchell's Hair Styling in the lower-level. Mitchell's will relocate.

Lululemon Athletica, a maker of yoga-inspired athletic apparel, will open in the Main Street section of the shopping center.

Zumiez, a retailer of action sports-related apparel, footwear, equipment and accessories, will fill a vacant space in the upper-level JC Penney wing.

Frozia, a frozen yogurt shop, is having a space constructed in the lower-level Sears wing.

 Charley's Grilled Subs, a restaurant that offers made-to-order deli subs, is filling a vacant space in the food court.

The Streets at Southpoint plans to build more than 15 new stores and  remodel 30 existing stores in conjunction with the anniversary.

NC has fewer jobs today than in 1999 despite population growth

North Carolina has logged no net job growth in the last 12 years, having fewer jobs at the end of 2011 than it did in December 1999, according to a report released today by the South by North Strategies research firm.

In that same period of time, the population grew by more than 21 percent.

The research firm, which specializes in economic and social policy, said in the report that the employment-to-population ratio is at its lowest level since 1976 as the state's growth outpaces the number of jobs it's bringing in.

All evidence points to a sluggish recovery in 2012, making it the fifth consecutive year of negative or minimal job growth in the state, said John Quinterno, and analyst for the firm, in the report.

Syngenta posts double-digit gains, seeks acquisitions

Tags: .biz | Syngenta

Agribusiness giant Syngenta posted double-digit gains in revenue and net income for 2011.

The Swiss company, which employs about 400 at its biotechnology research arm in Research Triangle Park, generated $13.27 billion in sales for the year, a 12 percent increase after adjusting for currency fluctuations.

Net income rose 14 percent to $1.6 billion.

Chief Financial Officer John Ramsay told Bloomberg News that the company is on the prowl for acquisitions to expand both its crop protection and seeds franchises.

Sales of seeds and crop protection products, such as pesticides and herbicides, each rose by double digits. Sales of new products launched since 2006 rose 50 percent.

Total sales in North America rose 10 percent to $3.27 billion after adjusting for inflation.

Syngenta is in the midst of a $71 million, 147,000-square-foot expansion of its RTP campus that will include high-tech greenhouses. Construction is expected to be finished by the end of the year.

Lenovo results defy market's gravity

Tags: .biz

Chinese PC maker Lenovo continued to defy a sluggish market in its fiscal third quarter, posting a 44 percent gain in sales and a 54 percent jump in profits that blew past analysts' expectations.

Aggressive pricing, a strong line-up of products, acquisitions in Germany and Japan and surging smartphone sales in China -- combined with missteps by its competitors -- contributed to the robust results for the quarter that ended Dec. 31.

Although based in China, Lenovo has an executive headquarters in Morrisville that employs about 1,800 workers.

The company, which surged from No. 4 to No. 2 in worldwide PC shipments in 2011, for the first time ranked first in worldwide shipments of PCs for businesses and in desktop models for consumers, CEO Yang Yuanqing told analysts. The company's strength in business computers is a legacy of its 2005 acquisition of IBM's PC business.

"Our strong momentum just got even stronger," he said. "Now Lenovo has been the fastest-growing major PC company for nine quarters."

N.C. Chamber tackles state unemployment system

Tags: .biz

The $2.7 billion debt that North Carolina has incurred to pay unemployment benefits in the wake of the recession has led the N.C. Chamber of Commerce to commission a comprehensive study of the state's unemployment system.

"The key point for us is, we're looking at everything," said Gary Salamido, a lobbyist for the chamber. "We don't know what the solution is yet."

"We know there are a lot of moving parts here and we're finding out that they're all connected," he added. "To look at any of them in isolation probably isn't a fair representation of the challenge we face."

The Chamber has hired a Columbus, Ohio law firm to conduct the study, which will be led by attorney Anthonio Fiore. Fiore spent a decade as the lead lobbyist for labor and employment issues for the Ohio Chamber of Commerce. The study was initiated last month and the target date for completion is April 18.

The firm's mandate is to analyze the state's current unemployment system, including its unemployment insurance laws; identify the best practices of other states; and make recommendations on how to return the state's unemployment insurance trust fund to solvency.

The firm also will look at the benefits the state pays and ways to help the unemployed find jobs.

Solstas adding 500 jobs in Guilford County

Solstas Lab Partners, which does medical and diagnostic testing at labs around the state, announced today that it plans to add as many as 500 jobs to its Guilford County operations over the next five years.

The company employs more than 720 full-time workers and 140 part-time positions at its High Point facility. In addition to adding jobs the company plans to invest about $11.6 million in the facility over the next five years.

Chapel Hill biz emerges as state's major solar player

A Chapel Hill green energy developer has chosen its home base to build one of the state's largest solar energy plants.

If approved by the N.C. Utilities Commission, Strata Solar's proposed 40-acre solar farm in Chapel Hill would be the biggest solar farm in the Triangle.

It's one of two 5-megawatt projects the company proposed this week and among more than a dozen Strata Solar has developed or planned to date.

Strata Solar also proposed a similarly-sized solar project in Howard's Creek, about 200 miles west of Raleigh. The company was founded in 2009 and has about 30 employees.

Life science conference doubles as matchmaker

Tags: .biz

Some of the most valuable sessions at next week's CED Life Science Conference are likely to take place behind closed doors.

About 200 one-on-one meetings have been scheduled between young, entrepreneurial companies, large companies and investors -- up from about 50 last year. The 20-minute sessions will enable the parties to explore strategic partnerships, acquisitions, investments and more.

The soaring popularity of the private partnering meetings, which were first incorporated into the conference two years ago, is no mystery. The No. 1 reason people attend the conference each year is to network, said Dhruv Patel, program director.

In addition, CED and its two conference partners -- the N.C. Biotechnology Center and NC Biosciences Industry Organization -- have invested in new software that enables improved match-making, said Patel. The software enables companies requesting a meeting to  create a multi-media profile that can include a video, business plan and other information about themselves -- as well as the type of partner they're seeking.

Altogether about 800 attendees are expected at this year's conference, including representatives of 40 venture capital firms from across the country. Those numbers are comparable to last year.

Cree launches another lower-cost LED

Tags: .biz

LED lighting company Cree has unveiled another new LED that it's touting as a cost breakthrough.

The new XLamp XT-E announced today by Durham-based Cree, like the XLamp XB-D announced last month, offers twice the amount of light for the same price as the prior generation of LEDs.

So what's the difference?

Lighting companies that want to pay less and get the same amount of light for their fixtures -- by using fewer LEDs -- should gravitate to the XB-D, said spokeswoman Michelle Murray. Those willing to pay the same amount for twice the light are more likely to go for the XT-E.

Size also is a difference. While the XB-D is a smaller LED than its predecessors, the XT-E is the same size and so can be easily incorporated into existing designs.

LED lights are a tiny but fast-growing segment of the lighting market. They cost more up-front but save money in the long run because they are more energy-efficient and last longer. In addition, Cree's new generation of LEDs is narrowing the gap in up-front costs.

The XT-E is available immediately.

Cree has about 2,000 workers in Durham and more than 5,800 worldwide. The company produces its own light fixtures as well as making components that other companies use in their lighting products.

Triangle Capital netting $67 million in stock sale

Tags: .biz

Raleigh investment firm Triangle Capital is anticipating net proceeds of $67 million from its latest secondary offering of stock.

Triangle announced today that it priced 3.7 million shares at $19 per share. The net proceeds deducts underwriting expenses and other costs.

Triangle periodically issues new stock to increase its investment capital.

The company is in the business of making loans to mid-sized, privately held companies. Triangle also takes a minority ownership stake in the businesses in its loan portfolio.

Underwriters of the offering include Morgan Stanley, Morgan Keegan & Co., Robert W. Baird & Co., BB&T Capital Markets, Janney Montgomery Scott, JMP Securities and Sterne, Agee & Leach. The underwriters also have an option to sell an additional 555, 000 shares.

Triangle shares rose 21 cents Monday to close at $19.34, up from its 52-week low of $14.42 in October.

Cars View All
Find a Car
Go
Jobs View All
Find a Job
Go
Homes View All
Find a Home
Go

About this blog

This is your window into the world of Triangle business. It's the source for news on local companies and people who keep capitalism moving. It's your exclusive tip sheet on deals, squabbles and the whimsy that makes this region's industries interesting.

The blog is maintained by the reporters and editors of the N&O business staff, including David Ranii, John Murawski, David Bracken and Mary Cornatzer.

Want to post a comment?

In order to join the conversation, you must be a member of newsobserver.com. Click here to register or to log in.
Advertisements