April had a few showers as we started the second quarter of 2024, but it also brought Superheroes to Sunstone! The big highlight was Irvine Tech Week, highlighted by the first-ever Dream Run – the Irvine Tech Week 5K and FirstGen Fun Run!
Amazing Happenings
We started the month with a rare natural phenomenon – a full solar eclipse. Work ground to a halt around 11 a.m. April 8 as we all went outside to see this amazing display (through our special solar glasses, of course). There won’t be another full solar eclipse in the United States until Aug. 23, 2044, so the time spent was well worth it.
Irvine Tech Week moved to April this year, and Sunstone Management, Inc., played a large role again as both a sponsor and event host. We helped launch the week with a press conference in our own presentation area that attracted Councilwoman (and Irvine Tech Week founder) Tammy Kim as a speaker and multiple reporters, including one from the Orange County Register. Irvine Tech Hub Executive Director Melissa Pang said the number of events had doubled for 2024, in no small part thanks to Sunstone and its partner company, American Lending Center.
Sunstone hosted one panel about using public-private partnerships to accelerate economic development, and co-hosted two half-hour panels with ALC about small business loans and alternative financing.
The Big Run
Our founder, John Shen, came up with the concept of a Dream Run to celebrate pursuit of the American Dream. It quickly turned into a fundraiser for the Sunstone Community Fund and fund administrator Jayro Sandoval took the bull by the horns, so to speak, organizing with big assists from Jennifer Huang and American Lending Center’s Emily Wang, Chingy Norton and Rachel Lee. When all was said and done, there were nearly 400 registered runners, a sponsors’ list more than 20 names long, and 100 volunteers. The final figures aren’t quite ready, but a significant donation will be made to the Community Fund.
Congratulations to the entire team from both Sunstone and ALC for a job well done. I can’t wait to do it again next year!
Sunstone Cities
The second Sunstone Economic Development Challenge @ USC Price, where USC graduate students work with municipalities to create forward-thinking economic development plans, was the place to announce formation of Sunstone Cities, LLC, our new consulting service branch for cities.
We had already started working with city staff at Anaheim and had a contract with Lakewood to do the same when we formalized Sunstone Cities. It now has its own website and Jayro Sandoval and Ryan Phoung are hard at work with a business plan, reaching out to municipalities of all shapes and sizes.
I’ll admit to a special feeling about this initiative thanks to my 20+ years in the Long Beach city government ranks. I’m excited about making more public-private partnerships work.
The Next Generation
One of our key goals is to nurture young entrepreneurs, especially through the California State University system. The first big university pitch contest of the spring happened in April – the Sunstone Innovation Challenge at the Institute of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Cal State Long Beach.
This also has a special place in my heart, since our first university partnership was with Long Beach and Wade Martin, the executive director of the Institute of Innovation & Entrepreneurship. Wade helped launch the systemwide Sunstone CSU Startup Launch Competition, which took place the first week of May.
As you can see, April was a busy month. Thanks for sharing it with us.
And as always, be a Sunstone.
©Sunstone Management, Inc. 2024
More About Sunstone Management
Sunstone Management is a diversified private capital sponsor firm headquartered in Southern California. Identified by Financial Times as one of America’s Fastest Growing Companies three years in a row. In the latest Pitchbook rankings, Sunstone Management was #15 in the third quarter of 2023 nationally, and #18 in the fourth quarter.1
Note: Investment advisory services offered through Sunstone Advisors, LLC, an SEC registered investment adviser. The information does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and are not guaranteed.