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APRIL 2016  
FEATURE STORY
/ SAN JOSE RANKED BEST PLACE FOR MINORITY-OWNED BUSINESSES
#whysj
A study released this month by the website Nerdwallet ranked the San Jose metro area as the  best place for minority-owned businesses. 

The study's criteria included average revenue per minority business ($317,979), minority-owned businesses per 1,000 residents (46), growth in minority-owned businesses from 2007-2012 (28%), and Small Business Administration guaranteed loans per 100,000 residents ($12,722,174).  The high ranking was also driven by minority median income - which, at $83,406 in 2014, was the highest among all of the 178  metro areas studied, and  minority median household income as a percentage of overall median household income ,  which in 2014 was 90%. 

The study analyzed business climate, local economic health and financing opportunities based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau's Survey of Small Business, U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey and the U.S. SBA.  The top 10 included metro's such as  Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Washington (4th),  Madison, Wisconsin (5th), and  Austin-Round Rock, Texas (10th).  California was well represented in the rankings with six metro areas in the top 25, with  San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward the next highest ranked at 6th.  

For more information,   contact   Chris Burton , Senior Business Development Manager.
 
SMALL BUSINESS
/ CELEBRATE SMALL BUSINESS WEEK IN SAN JOSE
#sjgrowth
San Jose City Hall Rotunda will host Keynote speaker Maria Contreras- Sweet, 24th SBA Administrator and a member of President Obama's Cabinet as part of her national broadcast, streaming live on May 6.  

The 5th Annual Summit on Entrepreneurship and Innovation brings together Silicon Valley business and City leaders, entrepreneurs, and investors to encourage business growth in Silicon Valley.  The addition of workshops on Accessing Capital, Understanding Financials for Borrowing, and Using Technology and Social Media for your Business, with simultaneous translation in Spanish and Vietnamese expands the event's appeal even further.

The program runs from 8 am to 1 pm.  Admission is free but you need to register here. F
or more information contact  BJ Sims with work2future

INTERNATIONAL
LONDON VS SAN JOSE 
#FlySJC
Celebrating the upcoming launch of direct service  flights between London Heathrow (LHR) and Mineta San José International Airport (SJC), British Airways has produced a short video that highlights the importance of this connection.  The video features two local entrepreneurs, Rob Katcher of San Jose's Hiku and Charlie Osmond of London's Triptease, as they go head to head in a pitch to determine if London or Silicon Valley is the world's capital for entrepreneurship and creativity.
 
Starting on May 4, direct flights will carry 430 inbound and outbound passengers daily between San Jose and London on Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner planes. OED encourages the business community to book flights on new direct international air service offered from SJC to London, Frankfurt, Vancouver, Beijing, Tokyo, and destinations beyond. 

For more information on SJC air service, contact Joe Hedges, OED's International  Programs Manager. 

SOUTH SAN JOSE
/ TABUCHI ELECTRIC OPENS NORTH AMERICAN HQ IN SAN JOSE
#BuiltInSanJose
Tabuchi Electric, a leading solar inverter manufacturer based in Osaka, Japan, has officially opened its new North American headquarters at 5225 Hellyer Ave in Edenvale. The site will accommodate 35 employees by the end of Q2 2016 and includes warehouse, R&D, repair and office space. The facility will become a central gathering hub for South Bay solar partners and other industry members.

The company's solar-plus-storage solutions are grid-friendly plug-and-play systems optimized for energy management and cost performance.  "Demand for solar-plus-storage technology is growing because Americans want to make the most out of clean, low-cost solar energy," said Tabuchi CEO, Toshihiro Kaihoshi. "Tabuchi has more than 90 years of experience building power electronics, and we've applied that expertise to build reliable products to meet the demand across North America. We're proud to have a new home in San Jose and help cement the region's reputation as a world center of clean technology innovation."

Welcome to San Jose, Tabuchi!  For more information,   contact   Chris Burton , Senior Business Development Manager.
 
LIFESTYLE
/ MAKING A SPLASH IN 2016-SAN JOSE'S YEAR FOR BEER & CRAFT DRINKS
#sjplace
2016 is shaping up to be a big year for beer and other craft drinks in San Jose, and their presence will not be pint sized. 

It's no secret that microbreweries are growing in number across the country, taking a sizable share of the market traditionally held by large multinational brands. Did you know that 44% of 21-27 year olds have never tried a Budweiser? San Jose has been experiencing a surge of interest in home-grown brewers, and as the nation's 10th largest city, we have a population that will support this growing industry.

Gordon Biersch, San Jose's largest brewery opened in 1997 in Japantown and is a household name.  In the past three years we've seen four microbreweries open and three of them have clustered in the South University area, largely because of the available industrial space. Strike, Hermitage, and Santa Clara Valley Brewing are within a few blocks of each other, with critical mass as a spot worth noting for tourists or beer lovers. Several other craft brewery and spirits projects are in the works, including Uproar Brewing in the SoFA district. 

Read the full SJEconomy.com blog post, and for more information,  contact Reena Brilliot , Business Development Officer. 
 
DEVELOPMENT SERVICES
Left to right:  Project Expeditor Jeannie Young, Permit Center Manager Joyce Liu, and STI/ITI Program Manager Lisa Joiner met this March with the architectural team of Splunk on plans for their new headquarters.

/ NEW STAFF LEAD EXPEDITED PLAN REVIEW PROGRAM
#sjworks 
With a speedy "one-start permit process," unlimited review scope, preliminary design review, and coordinated inspection services, the City's
STI/ITI Expedited Plan Review program has helped numerous companies build and improve their facilities in San Jose within desired timeframes while meeting stringent state and local building codes. 

Now, we welcome new staff to lead this program. Senior Engineer Lisa Joiner, a veteran of the Building Division, is the new program manager for the expedited plan review process for STI/ITI projects. A graduate of Stanford and a licensed structural engineer (SE) and certified access specialist (CASP), Lisa holds a wealth of plan review experience that will benefit project applicants. Joyce Liu, the former program manager and long-time face of the STI program, has been serving in her new Division Manager role covering the  Permit Center and Expedited Plan Review since late last year. Jeannie Young, formerly working in economic development at Redwood City, joined the City of San Jose in February as the new Development Services Project Expeditor---a helpful liaison for project applicants along the entire path of project application through project review. 

For more information, contact  Lisa Joiner, STI/ITI Program Manager, at 408-535-7757, or  Jeannie Young, Development Services Project Expeditor, at 408 -535-7902. 
 
Find Your Place
#WHYSJ
 
 
 -Nerdwallet
HOW WE HELP

OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIGITAL BROCHURES & PRESENTATIONS

San Jose Brochure

/ Downtown San Jose Brochure

 

BUSINESS ASSISTANCE

PROGRAM FACT SHEETS

  
For more information, call 408.535.8181 or contact Chris Burton  
  
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