Category: News

Introducing San Diego’s Economic Pulse

By San Diego Regional EDC,

Economic Pulse – January 2017

Understanding our economy begins with strong data – it’s a phrase people hear us say a lot at San Diego Regional EDC, and for good reason.

Unemployment data, while important, only gives us a piece of the puzzle and many people are still curious as to how it all relates to them…as a business…as a job seeker…and as a San Diego resident.

As we kick off 2017, we want to provide comprehensive research that tells a story about our economy. San Diego’s Economic Pulse, our new research product launching today, is our way of doing that. In addition to tracking unemployment, we will also be keeping tabs on new business establishments, job postings and looking at who’s hiring in San Diego.

This research wouldn’t be possible without the generous support of EDC board officer Phil Blair and Manpower San Diego.

Throughout the year, you will continue to see changes in the way we present our research and talk about data. We would love to hear your thoughts. Join the conversation at @SDregionalEDC or send an email to research@sandiegobusiness.org.

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Local medtech company helps alleviate pain of aging population, expands to EU

By San Diego Regional EDC,

From 2025 to 2050, the 65-and-older population is projected to almost double to 1.6 billion globally, whereas the total population will grow by just 34 percent over the same period. With this, it has become increasingly important to support our aging population, with health and wellness among top priority.

San Diego medical technology company and 2016 MetroConnect participant AVACEN Medical has developed technology to help ease some of the common ailments afflicting seniors. The AVACEN 100 is an FDA cleared, over-the-counter medical device that provides non-invasive, temporary arthritis and muscle pain relief, and muscle relaxation. Using microcirculation enhancement on the palms, the locally-made device helps warm and thin the blood, thereby dissipating heat throughout deep tissues and relieving joint pain associated by arthritis, muscle spasms, sprains and more.

Taking this San Diego-made technology global, the AVACEN 100 has just received the CE (Conformité Européenne) Mark approval to treat widespread pain associated with fibromyalgia. The CE Mark allows AVACEN to market its AVACEN 100 to the European Union’s 28 member countries where many prescription drugs, available in the U.S., have been rejected by regulatory officials for treating fibromyalgia pain.

Founded by Tom Muehlbauer in 2009, AVACEN’s revolutionary technology was originally developed to help alleviate his sister-in-law’s chronic pain. The company currently sells in two countries, with plans to expand into 10 more over the next year (thanks in part to the CE Mark). Sales have climbed to more than $1.5 million, with more than 20 percent of the sales coming from international markets.

San Diego superstars recognized in Forbes

By San Diego Regional EDC,

At the start of each year, Forbes recognizes young entrepreneurs, innovators and leaders across business, education, media and more. In the 2017 iteration, San Diego had strong representation across sectors, further solidifying our region as a world-class city where young talent thrives.

Introducing San Diego’s 20-something superstars listed in Forbes 2017…

  • Chad Amonn, Cofounder, Inova Drone (manufacturing): Chad founded Inova Drone, a TechStars company developing small drones for commercial and governmental applications, including public safety and infrastructure inspection. Inova Drone was one of the first companies in Qualcomm’s Robotics Accelerator, and was recently a part of WTC San Diego’s 2016 MetroConnect program.
  • Vinny Green, Director, Business Development, Snopes (media): Leading business development for fact-checking site Snopes, Vinny and his team doubled annual site traffic to over 13 million unique visitors in October. A local, Vinny graduated from MiraCosta Community College.
  • Melissa Gymrek, Assistant Professor, University of California San Diego (science): With research institutions and universities creating a major economic impact in San Diego, scientists like Melissa play a crucial role in building our San Diego’s innovation economy. Recognized for her work in genetics and with a patented algorithm for part of the genetic sequencing process, Melissa is on the forefront of San Diego’s scientific research.
  • James Heller, Cofounder, Wrapify (marketing): Growing up as a car enthusiast, James used his passion to launch Wrapify, a San Diego startup that pays drivers to wrap their cars with advertisements. With $3 million in sales and 35,000 drivers, the company’s unique platform has caught on in 27 cities. James attended CSU San Marcos.
  • Braydon Moreno & Coby Kabili, Cofounders, Robo 3D (manufacturing): Founded in an apartment in Pacific Beach in 2012, Robo 3D now pulls in $4.7 million in annual earnings with its high-speed consumer-based 3D printers. Part of WTC San Diego’s 2015 MetroConnect program, Robo 3D received programmatic and financial support to increase its exporting capacity in new international markets.
  • Josh Watson, Esports Operation Manager, Psyonix (gaming): With the huge success of the game Rocket League, downtown San Diego-based gaming company Psyonix has been pushing its way into eSports in recent years with SDSU grad Josh Watson leading the charge. His work includes production of the Rocket League Championship Series Live International Finals, which was viewed by over 1 million people worldwide.

What the retail slump means for San Diego

By San Diego Regional EDC,

Now that the holidays are behind us, let’s take a look at some of the data. Early indicators point to another strong holiday shopping season in 2016, beating already lofty forecasts for retail sales1. San Diego’s employment grew by 12,100 in November, as retailers staffed up to meet the surge of shoppers2. But a lot of that hiring is seasonal, and these seasonal boosts are trending down. In fact, growth in retail trade employment has slowed dramatically over the past two years to a mere 0.1 percent.

Local employment in retail trade remains 2.8 percent below the pre-recession peak; 11 percent of regional unemployment comes from the industry3. This is because shoppers are increasingly turning to online retailers rather than brick and mortar stores – a trend that has continued to grow since the advent of e-commerce giants like Amazon.com (see chart below).

Traditional retailers are struggling to compete. Last week both Macy’s and Sears announced hundreds of store closures, which will bring thousands of layoffs across the U.S. In San Diego, Macy’s apparel store in Mission Valley will be shutting its doors, leaving 140 people without jobs4.

Changes in technology have had a profound impact on the economy and the composition of jobs. And while the tech boom has brought about gains in productivity, e-commerce and automation are displacing retail workers. These are jobs that are mostly held by women, and where more than half are held by people under the age of 355.

EDC will keep a close eye as these trends develop. Look out for our next monthly employment report on January 20.

Sources:

  1. National Retail Federation: https://nrf.com/news/retail-sales-see-solid-gains-first-half-of-holiday-season
  2. San Diego December 2016 LMI Release: http://www.labormarketinfo.ca.gov/file/lfmonth/sand$pds.pdf
  3. EMSI; CA LMI; BLS; Infogroup
  4. Macy’s Press Release: http://www.wsj.com/articles/PR-CO-20170104-910412
  5. EMSI; CA LMI; BLS; Infogroup