Briefcase – November 2018

BRIEFS

Colorado Tech Shop Inc. was awarded a $10,000 grant as part of the Longmont Economic Development Partnership’s Advance Longmont Target Industries Grant program. The company provides electrical product design, engineering, manufacturing and assembly services.

CLOSING

Broomfield-based Ball Corp. plans to stop production at its beverage packaging facility in San Martino, Italy, by the end of this year. The plant, which was built in 1981, employs about 70 people. Ball announced in July that it would close a packaging plant in Brazil. Over the past two years, Ball has opted to shut down its food-can production line in Springdale, Ark.; beverage-packing plants in Alabama, California and Texas; and a can-production facility in Germany.

Boulder-based PivotDesk, an online marketplace for office sharing, will shut down Dec. 6 after five years of operation. It directed users to the company’s parent, Industrious, one of the largest providers of flexible workspaces. Industrious purchased PivotDesk last year. Anyone in the PivotDesk network is eligible for a free day of coworking at any Industrious location.

CONTRACTS

Boulder-based Wana Brands is licensing its edibles to Grassroots Cannabis, Illinois’ largest medical cannabis company, to have their edible products available to medical cannabis patients across the state.

Quantum Xchange, a secure communications and encryption provider, is partnering with Zayo Group Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ZAYO) for dark fiber that will be used to provide the first Quantum Key Distribution network in the United States. Zayo, based in Boulder, is providing access to almost 500 miles of existing optical fiber spanning from Boston to Washington, D.C. Quantum Xchange will use the dark fiber to activate the initial leg of its QKD network. QKD provides more secure data protection along fiber routes.

SunTech Drive LLC partnered with Stanford University and Google for an energy-related Internet of Things project. The project, which is tied to the Department of Energy’s NODES (Networks of Distributed Energy Systems) initiative, will coordinate and control consumer loads and distributed-energy resources out to the edge of the grid. SunTech Drive’s Pico family of universal variable-speed motor controllers will be the end nodes driving each of the individual loads and upgrading installed systems to “smart” loads.

The University of Colorado’s Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility partnered with B Lab, a nonprofit group that helps companies assess their social and environmental impacts. B Lab administers the B Impact Assessment, which is used to certify that companies meet the rigorous standards required to become a B Corp. As part of the new partnership, the CESR will help B Lab map the assessment to the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which aim to address global challenges such as poverty, inequality and environmental degradation. CESR will be mapping the B Impact Assessment questions to the SDGs through December. B Lab will then incorporate the mapping into the B Impact Assessment and develop an impact management platform module scheduled for launch at the beginning of 2020.

Evo Hemp, a Boulder-based hemp food company, expanded its footprint into Whole Foods and H-E-B supermarkets. The company, which is registered with the Secretary of State under Hemp Health LLC and makes the Hemp Bar, will be in 105 additional Whole Foods stores in the Northeast, Northern California and Pacific Northwest, effectively doubling its Whole Foods network. The brand also signed a deal with 122 H-E-B stores in Texas and now can be found in more than 4,000 retailers nationwide.

JBA Wealth Management Group, a Fort Collins-based financial services firm, joined LPL Financial’s national network of brokers and advisers. The JBA team is made up of eight advisers, including founder Dan Johnson, and has offices in Fort Collins and Scottsbluff, Neb.

The Stanley Hotel and AEG Presents Rocky Mountains signed a partnership agreement that will result in 60 nights of entertainment at the historic Estes Park hotel. The expanded relationship will combine AEG’s booking services with the iconic hotel venue.

Office Evolution, a coworking and virtual office franchise headquartered in Louisville, will outsource all live reception and live answering services for its corporate and franchise-owned locations to Davinci Virtual Office Solutions.

EARNINGS

Noodles & Co. (Nasdaq: NDLS) reported rising revenues in the third quarter of fiscal year 2018. Sales for the quarter that ended Oct. 2 were up 2.2 percent to $116.7 million from $114.2 million during the same period in 2017, according to the Broomfield-based restaurant chain’s quarterly earnings report. Noodles reported net income of $1.1 million, or 2 cents per diluted share, compared with a net loss of $8.3 million in the third quarter of 2017, or 20-cent loss per diluted share. Comparable restaurant sales were up 5.5 percent companywide, including a 5.2 percent increase for company-owned restaurants and a 7.6 percent increase for franchise restaurants.

Broomfield-based Vail Resorts Inc. (NYSE:  MTN) posted losses of nearly $83.7 million, or $2.07 per share, in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2018. Those losses are up from about $57.1 million during the same quarter last year. Revenues for the ski resort operator in the fourth quarter, which ended July 31, were $211.6 million.

Xero Shoes, maker of lightweight shoes and sandals, grew its sales 80 percent for the six months that ended June 30, 2018, compared with the same period in 2017. Sales for the company, whose official name is Feel the World Inc., grew from $2.4 million in 2017 to $4.3 million in 2018, according to a semiannual financial filing the company made with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Net income grew from nearly $79,000 for the period ended June 30, 2017 to $344,000 for the same period ended in 2018. Direct-to-consumer represents the largest percentage of sales at 60 percent of total sales in the six months ended on June 30. However, direct-to-consumer made up 64 percent of total sales the same period the prior year. Amazon sales grew from 17 percent of total sales in 2017 to 24 percent in 2018. Wholesale/ distributor sales represented 16 percent of total sales in 2018; it represented 19 percent of total sales in 2017. Gross profit for the six months grew 77 percent to $2.3 million. Xero’s operating expenses grew year-over-year by 71 percent, due largely to an increase in employees from 14 in June 2017 to 27 in June 2018. In December 2017, the company said it had 20 employees. Its net gain per common diluted share grew from 1 cent to 5 cents, and its diluted shares decreased slightly from 6.43 million in 2017 to 6.39 million in 2018.

EVENTS

Platte River Power Authority is hosting a series of listening sessions for residents and businesses in Estes Park, Fort Collins, Longmont and Loveland to hear viewpoints on PRPA’s plans for the development of future electrical power sources. Sessions will be held Nov. 5 at the  Longmont Museum, 400 Quail Road in Longmont, and Nov. 15 at Embassy Suites, 4705 Clydesdale Parkway in  Loveland.

The Northern Colorado Manufacturing Partnership will hold its 2018 Parents Manufacturing, Design & Engineering Night at 5 p.m. Nov. 15 at Woodward Inc. in Fort Collins. The free event will allow parents and students to meet with local manufacturers and educators and experience the industry. Included in the event is a tour of the Woodward headquarters along with multiple interactive booths. The Rocks! Workforce Committee, a part of the manufacturing partnership, also coordinated with educators and manufacturers to host seven student tours for several school districts. The tours will take students to Associated Thermoforming Inc., Bi Inc., Creative Foam, Nordson Medical, MKS Instruments Inc., Tecomet Inc. and Tomar Inc. Poudre, Thompson, St. Vrain Valley and Boulder Valley students are all eligible for tours and school districts in Larimer and Weld counties are considering tours as well.

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