A top tourism marketing official in Chicago has been selected to lead Visit San Antonio, spearheading the group’s efforts to help the city’s visitors industry regain its footing in the pandemic-induced slump.

Marc Anderson, chief operating officer of Choose Chicago, will be become Visit San Antonio’s new president and CEO on June 1.

San Antonio’s public-private tourism marketing organization has been without a permanent top executive since January when Casandra Matej left to take the same position at Visit Orlando.

On ExpressNews.com: Head of San Antonio’s tourism agency leaving to helm Orlando group

“I am thrilled to join the Visit San Antonio team and this vibrant community that is poised for not only an incredible recovery, but extensive growth in the coming years,” Anderson said in a statement. “As the seventh-largest city in the United States, San Antonio is experiencing a renaissance unlike many cities in our country.”

Visit San Antonio board chairman Jeff Arndt said Anderson was selected from 10 finalists.

Anderson’ spent the last five years in senior executive positions at Choose Chicago. Prior to that, he served for almost eight years as a regional director of marketing for The Peninsula Hotels.

Anderson became Choose Chicago’s COO in February 2019.

“I would say he recognizes that the recovery of the San Antonio tourism industry is the top priority right now,” said Arndt, CEO of VIA Metropolitan Transit.

Over the last six weeks, San Antonio hotels have started to fill rooms again on weekends. But the convention business remains in tatters, and many hotels are two-thirds empty during the week.

Chicago, like San Antonio, has seen its convention business upended from the pandemic. But a crucial difference is that local and state rules have prevented gatherings of more than 50 people at Chicago’s McCormick Place, the largest convention center in North America.

While conventions have been few and far between at San Antonio’s Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, there are no state capacity rules and city rules allow meetings of more than 1,000 persons.

The rules imposed on McCormick Place did not sit well with Anderson, according to Crain’s Chicago Business.

On April 16, it cited an email that Anderson wrote to his Choose Chicago colleagues, announcing his departure. He encouraged them to advocate to reopen Chicago for meetings and conventions during a “pivotal moment in our history.”

He said Chicago was at “grave risk” of losing group meetings scheduled not only for 2021 and the first quarter of 2022, but “possibly forever.”

Michelle Gonzalez, a spokeswoman for Choose Chicago, said Anderson was not available for an interview Monday.

On ExpressNews.com: Visit SA: San Antonio’s tourism might not fully recover until end of 2023

Visit San Antonio board member Henry Feldman, who was on the search committee for the top executive, called Anderson “a visionary” who has ideas to help bring back San Antonio’s tourism industry.

“I think he’s going to be the guy to make San Antonio see one of the fastest tourism turnarounds in the country,” said Feldman, who owns La Quinta Inn & Suites By Wyndham at the South Texas Medical Center.

Visit San Antonio, which receives the majority of its operating funds from the city’s hotel tax, is operating on a $21.3 million budget for the current fiscal year, which started in October 2020. That’s down from $38 million the prior year.

The tourism marketing organization has 54 employees, down from 85 before the pandemic.

But the organization Anderson is leaving, Choose Chicago, is operating under even more difficult conditions.

It’s slashed its tourism promotion budget to $16 million from $30 million and, staffing for Choose Chicago is around 40, half of what it was before the pandemic. All of its employees are furloughed one day a week.

On March 31, Choose Chicago said it was not renewing the five-year contract of CEO David Whitaker.

randy.diamond@express-news.net

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A new deal with Foxconn Technology Group cuts billions of dollars in tax breaks for the world’s largest electronics maker. There are new signs of in-person work returning downtown as a trio of companies sign new leases for office space. And as Chicago’s tourism bureau loses two of its leaders, what will tourism look like in the city this summer?

Crain’s Chicago Business reporter Danny Ecker takes us behind the headlines.

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Foxconn Technology Group and Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers announced an agreement today that involves a cut of billions of dollars in tax breaks in exchange for a smaller facility in the southeast part of the state, according to a report.

The deal was slated to be approved tomorrow at a meeting of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., according to the Associated Press.

Details of the new deal were not immediately disclosed, the AP report said, but it cited a source that said the potential tax breaks for Foxconn will be cut by billions of dollars and will preserve breaks worth over $10 million.

Former Gov. Scott Walker reached the original deal in 2017 with the company, which involved almost $4 billion in incentives, according to the report. That deal was based on Foxconn’s pledge to construct a huge $10 billion facility near the Illinois border to make flat screen panels and that would creat up to 13,000 jobs, according to the report.

The company, however, has continually cut back its plans for the site and did not meet employment markets for state tax credits, the report said. according to the state economic development agency, Foxconn employed 281 people in 2019 in Wisconsin, AP said.

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A German investment firm has acquired a majority stake in Cleverbridge, an e-commerce software company founded by University of Illinois alum Craig Vodnik.

EMH Partners, a private-equity company based in Germany, has agreed to buy a 65 percent stake in the company, which sells e-commerce billing software. Most of Cleverbridge’s employees are split between Cologne, Germany, and Chicago—where Vodnik, its CEO, is based. . Terms of the deal were not disclosed, though Vodnik and his co-founders will remain with the firm.

The company has 300 employees, including about 100 in Chicago. Vodnik says Cleverbridge will hire another 10 to 20 people in Chicago this year.

The business is expanding from consumer-focused e-commerce into business-to-business, a transition fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic. “A lot of customers had a consumer side and a division that also did B2B,” Vodnik said. “As consumers became comfortable buying direct. businesses needed to make it easier to buy and renew in a self-service way.”

Cleverbridge, founded in 2005, has long been profitable. But the new investment will help the company grow more quickly, providing capital for acquisitions., Vodnik said. 

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Chicago, Illinois, April 19, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Clune Construction (Clune) is proud to continue its long-standing tradition of promoting from within by announcing the promotion of 13 talented professionals in all of its regions to Senior Vice President and officer-level positions.

“From day one, I have been amazed at the way each of these individuals have embraced their roles at Clune.” said Dave Hall, CEO of Clune Construction. “I am proud to see each of them continue to rise to become leaders within our company.”

Clune is proud of its culture of promoting from within. One-half of Clune’s Executive Board members started with the company as interns and the average tenure of a Managing Director is 17 years. Additionally, 20 percent of Clune’s employees have been with the company for more than 10 years.

Clune Promotions by Region:

Chicago:

Lisa De Lor (Vice President, Director of Human Resources): De Lor has 12 years of experience in Human Resources in the construction industry. During 2020, Clune benefited from De Lor’s leadership and quick action during the COVID-19 pandemic. She also leads Clune’s innovative benefits program. De Lor is a certified Professional in Human Resources by the Human Resource Certification Institute and a SHRM-CP by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). She has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Purdue University.

Denise Moy Duffy (Senior Vice President, Marketing): Duffy has 14 years of marketing experience in the CRE industry. She brings a unique and well-rounded perspective to Clune’s Marketing team. Duffy was named to Crain’s Chicago Business’ Notable Marketing Executives list in 2020, and is also a member of Chief, a private network focused on connecting and supporting women leaders. She has a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing, and a Bachelor of Arts in Asian Languages and Literature from the University of Iowa.

Elizabeth Jessen (Vice President, Senior Project Manager): With 13 years of construction experience, Jessen has established herself as an effective leader in the industry. She has proved herself to be an impactful team player at Clune, and has fostered strong relationships with many of Clune’s high-profile clients. Jessen has a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Villanova University.

Will McGowan (Senior Vice President, Project Executive):  McGowan has 24 years of construction industry experience, overseeing a diverse portfolio of high-end interior build outs for some of the Chicago area’s most respected companies. He has earned a reputation for adhering to a project’s schedule and budget, while maintaining strong client relationships. McGowan has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Building Construction Management from Purdue University.

Dan Nielson has been promoted to Vice President, Senior Project Manager. He began his career at Clune as an Intern, and now has 12 years of construction industry experience. During his tenure, he has completed more than 1.5 million square-feet of high-end interior build-outs. Nielson has a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering Technology from Western Illinois University.

New York:

Edward McCann (Vice President, Team Leader): McCann has 20 years of experience in the construction industry. He started his career as a superintendent and later transitioned into project management. In his role at Clune, McCann has managed projects in some of New York’s most iconic buildings, including the recent renovation of 200 Park Avenue. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies from City University of New York (CUNY).

Greg O’Neill (Vice President, Regional Comptroller, New York): In his role, O’Neill oversees financials for all New York projects. He has been in the construction industry in an accounting capacity for 10 years, and has been integral to the improvement of Clune’s systems and operating procedures. O’Neill is also well respected among the New York area’s subcontractor community. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Business and Finance, and an MBA from Quinnipiac University.

Washington, DC:

Ronnie Clinton (Vice President, Field Team Leader): With 31 years of construction industry experience, Clinton is able to manage the most complex projects, while maintaining positive relationships with all of his clients. He has earned a reputation as a natural team leader, and a strong role model and mentor to the Superintendents he oversees. Clinton earned his Survey Technology Certificate from Cantonville Community College and he holds an Engineers Certificate from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. 

Richard Crouch (Vice President, Field Team Leader): Crouch has 33 years of experience in the construction industry, and has been with Clune for 13 years. He brings a consistent, steady approach to his projects. Having successfully executed some of the most complicated construction projects in the Washington, DC area, Crouch is one Clune’s most requested Superintendents.

Paul Stupka (Senior Vice President, Team Leader): Stupka has 22 years of experience in the construction industry, starting out with Clune as an Intern. He has been instrumental in the growth of Clune’s Mission Critical department in the Mid-Atlantic region. Stupka now manages the area’s largest Mission Critical team. He has a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Marquette University, and holds a LEED AP certification.

West Region:

Denise DeSisto (Vice President, Project Executive, Los Angeles): DeSisto has 32 years of experience in the construction industry, and has a diverse portfolio of successful projects for high-profile clients. Throughout her career DeSisto has been recognized for her dedication for executing complex project on tight schedules while maintaining strong relationships with clients.

Errol Lolin (Vice President, Project Executive, San Francisco): With 15 years construction industry experience, Lolin has overall responsibility and accountability for his projects. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from California State University – Northridge and is LEED AP certified. Lolin is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE).

Nhan Nguyen (Senior Vice President, Project Executive, Los Angeles): Nguyen has 22 years of construction industry experience and a track record of leading successful projects for high-profile clients throughout Southern California. In addition, Nguyen is a key member of the West Region Operations and is a strong mentor to new and developing Clune employees.

 

About Clune Construction

Clune Construction is an employee-owned, national general contractor, providing construction management services for some of the most respected companies in the world. With offices in Chicago; Dallas; Los Angeles; New York; San Francisco; and Washington, DC, Clune manages over $1 billion in commercial and mission-critical projects annually. Clune’s mission is to provide exceptional construction services to its clients and business partners; inspire its more than 600 employees; lead with integrity, commitment and purpose and deliver results, which always exceed expectations. Learn more at www.clunegc.com.

 

###

• Will McGowan_2019
• Nhan_Nguyen

Charlotte Norgaard
Clune Construction
(312)609-3643
cnorgaard@clunegc.com

Source: Clune Construction

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A record amount of venture capital funding flowed to Chicago startups in the first quarter, and acquisitions are soaring as markets surge. Reporter John Pletz joins host Amy Guth to discuss.

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Plus: New office leases announced in West and East Loop, Blue Cross bosses pocket pay hikes, the strength of the Chicago-area warehouse market continues even as Amazon pulls back, and civil rights leaders push a compromise over elected school board.

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One of the stalwart local organizations is the Hyde Park Angels. Founded in 2007 with connections to the University of Chicago’s Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation, it is now headquartered in the Merchandise Mart and has built relationships with Northwestern and DePaul and other universities in the area as well as a host of small business incubators.

The managing director is Pete Wilkins, 51, an entrepreneur himself who started up several businesses before assuming his current role six years ago. An edited conversation with Wilkins, whose book “Purpose First Entrepreneur” is slated for publication this fall, follows. 

Crain’s: Angel investors once did their investing as individuals in an ad hoc manner. But your group is highly organized. How many angels are part of Hyde Park?

Wilkins: We have over 100 investors. More than half of them were founders of their own companies at one time and most have been CEOs and occupied board seats at multiple companies. A member may be an individual who has sold a company and is taking time off and has some time to engage with younger entrepreneurs. Another angel may still be active in running a Fortune 500 company. We aren’t actively recruiting more investors right now. But when we are, we are typically looking for people who have scaled up their companies with significant success. We are also looking for a diversity of experience, ethnicity and gender. There are areas we want to build on, like health care. We are already strong in logistics. We have a member who is the chief procurement officer for one of the largest retailers in the world. We also have a former COO of a logistics company that was sold to UPS.

How much money are they expected to invest? 

There is no exact answer to that. Different people have different tolerances for risk. In most cases, you should not expect to have more than 5 or 10 percent of your investment capital dedicated to alternative investments like venture capital. This is a risky asset class. As an angel investor, you are backing business owners who believe they can disrupt industries with something that is new, and maybe shifting landscapes in the process. Some people who want to diversify their portfolios with younger companies while mitigating risk might be better advised to put their money into a basket of high growth stocks. 

You raise your money in separate funds? 

We track investments in buckets of capital spaced in three-year increments. For example, we aggregated $28 million for our Cohort 3, which ran from 2014 to 2016. The market value of that cohort today is $100 million, meaning that we’ve been able to quadruple our original investment already. Some 80 percent of that money has already been returned to our investors. We’re getting bigger all along: Cohort 1 backed just eight companies. In the first quarter of 2021 alone we invested in 10 companies. We currently are invested in 54 portfolio companies overall. 

Angels seem to invest in a wide range. What kinds of checks do you write?

True seed investors are typically writing checks of between $25,000 and 250,000. Although we do invest in seed rounds, Hyde Park is likely to be investing between $750,000 and $1.5 million for our first investment in an A round. The total A round including all investors will typically be between $5 and $8 million. Beyond the seed and A rounds you see B rounds being led by larger Chicago venture firms like Valor Equity and Jump Capital who are writing much larger checks. As we invest in either seed or A rounds, we are likely to be part of syndicates of multiple investors. In building a portfolio it can be more effective to invest $1 million and then have two other investors each put in $1 million each. That way you reach more companies and spread out your risk.

Business owners always want to know what percentage of a company they have to be prepared to give up in return for capital. 

In the early rounds the founder should retain the majority of ownership. And in fact, most venture capitalists want to invest in people who have a large ownership stake to align incentives with growth. But for an early-stage company it’s hard to set a valuation; one popular way to avoid a formal pricing is to set up a vehicle called SAFE, which is a Simple Agreement for Future Equity. It’s a promise for the investor to receive future shares, usually with a cap set. In negotiations like this, it’s important for the business owner to have an experienced lawyer at hand. The lesson the entrepreneur has to understand is that she can give up some ownership percentage in order for the company to grow much bigger, or hold on to 100 percent ownership of a company that, without capital, may remain much smaller. 

What kinds of categories of business are you investing in?

To begin, we invest only in the Midwest, with 85 percent of our companies in Illinois. We invest in logistics, direct-to-consumer and workflow software. We’re in healthcare and financial technology, personalized nutrition and cannabis. We cover a wide spectrum, though there are niches like healthful foods where we have clustered investments. In that grouping we are invested in Market Wagon, Farmer’s Fridge and Simple Mills. As a matter of fact, HelloFresh from Germany just acquired our ready-to-eat meal company, Factor, for $277 million last quarter. We are also invested right now in ShipBob, a Chicago firm that is emerging as a leader in e-commerce fulfillment. 

Are you investing in ideas or people or something else? 

The biggest thing we do is try to figure out a product/market fit. We are looking at traction for the core business, and revenue may be the best way to measure that, though it may be just as important to look at user engagement and other key performance indicators.

We are also looking at the vision of the owner and their ability to articulate how their product and service will capture market interest. What is their logic in coming to market? What resources to they need to make this an enterprise of scale? In the end, human capital helps maximize financial capital. We don’t need to see a 40-page business plan. But we do need to understand from you how you intend to introduce a product or service that will fundamentally change peoples’ behavior and make them want your product, and then keep on wanting it. It’s hard to change people: remember that when seat belts were introduced in cars they were a good idea, but nobody started using them until laws got passed. 

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., April 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Casa Sandra’s new Sandra Plasencia line of skincare products is filled with a variety of effective skincare solutions. Newly available through several different online retailers, the fledgling product line capitalizes on the venerable experience of its founder, who has spent her entire career serving in the health and wellness industry.

Casa Sandra owner Sandra Plasencia has been a staple of the Chicago salon and spa scene ever since she opened up her establishment Nights Nails & Spa back in April of 2004. Over the intervening years, Plascencia worked hard to build a loyal customer base and establish herself as a go-to local business. As she’s gone along, one of her biggest mottos has continued to be the simple fact that “you have only one skin, take care of it!”

In 2020, Plasencia decided to take her operation onto the national stage by launching her own, eponymous line of skincare products. These were founded on the deep, comprehensive knowledge that Plasencia had developed over the decades that she had plied her craft.

The ambitious entrepreneur has brought all of that experience to bear with each item created under her own label. According to Plasencia, “In our formulas, we include the finest quality, highest performing ingredients in the highest concentrations that yield the desired results.”

The founder adds that “the development process focuses on high concentrations of standardized botanical extracts.” She clarifies that each of these formulas is backed by clinical testing and includes the latest technologies, particularly the inclusion of peptides to aid in the anti-aging process and the preservation of the skin.

Throughout the pandemic, the availability of her services in the form of her own hand-crafted products was a critical part of what kept Plasencia’s temporarily-hobbled spa services afloat. At this point, the pandemic is beginning to recede and local Chicago business is starting to bustle again.

Nevertheless, Plasencia’s ambitions have only increased as her products have continued to gain momentum. The personal message of the brand combined with its effective results continues to resonate with both past Chicago customers as well as a new, growing national audience.

About Casa Sandra: Founded in 2004, Sandra Plasencia officially rebranded her company as “Casa Sandra” in 2020. This came two years after she had created her own line of beauty and skincare products also named Sandra Plasencia. The brand has begun to rapidly expand outside of the greater Chicago area, spreading the Plasencia label across the nation in the process.

Please direct inquiries to:
Tracey Larner
(954) 758-8639
[email protected]

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ActiveCampaign is 18 years old, but the company took off five years ago, when it raised outside funding. Since then, the company has grown from 16 employees to more than 850, hiring 300 of them last year. ActiveCampaign says it expects to top 1,000 workers this year.
 
The subscription-software company raised $100 million in January 2020. Since then it has grown from $100 million in recurring annual sales to $160 million, says CEO Jason VandeBoom. The company declined to say whether it’s profitable.

He says the company will use the funding to continue refining a product that’s now in use in 170 countries and expand into new markets. ActiveCampaign relies on having a product that’s intuitive and low-touch so it doesn’t require a lot of support, which can make servicing the company’s 145,000 customers expensive. 

“It’s about how do we reach more customers?” VandeBoom said. “It’s a massive undertaking and opportunity. With the capital, we can invest where it makes sense.”

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United selected the three destinations because they allow U.S. travelers who comply with local pandemic restrictions to enter, a spokeswoman said. The carrier has never flown those routes before.

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Last month Delta Air Lines Inc. announced new flights to Reykjavik starting in May after the island nation said it would allow visitors who have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. The European Union continues to have broad border restrictions to help control spread of the Covid-19 virus and several variants.

The network additions also show how U.S. airlines are eager to spur overseas trips. In March, international travel volumes remained 76% below 2019 levels, according to Airlines for America, the industry’s lobbying group. The new United routes reflect a 61% increase for searches for Croatia, Greece and Iceland flights at its web site over the past month, the carrier said.

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