LABJ FORUM – The Home Stretch

For many Americans, Labor Day weekend marks the end of family vacations, beach outings, backyard barbecues and high gasoline prices. Kids go back to school. Some businesses start working harder as employees return from vacation and the holiday shopping season approaches. So the Business Journal asks:

Now that the summer is over, what are your plans for the rest of the year?

Gordon Gibson

President

Gordon Gibson Construction Inc.

We do eight or 10 projects at a time, and construction is year-round. I have a vacation coming in November. I’m going to Singapore, Borneo and Brunei with a friend of mine. It’s a guided adventure. We’re going to see wild orangutans and do nature tours. I’ve been to 80 countries. In April we’re going to Libya.

Dan Glavin

Vice President

Mobile MessagingWireJack

We have a few products coming out involving athletes in the NFL. Now the summer is over, we’re in launch mode. They’ll be available before Thanksgiving. This fall, several of the executives and I will be touring the mobile tech conferences in London and San Francisco. I’m also finalizing my last year of getting my MBA in finance and marketing at USC. I took a lighter course load over the summer and now I’m making my big push. The quiet time is over.

Lee Perron

Senior Vice President of Operations

Adelphia Communications Inc.

This summer our team has worked around the clock, seven days a week on our fiber optic upgrade and our new high definition TV and video on-demand. I did take one weekend off and took my family to Mexico where I took a big nap. I plan on relaxing this fall by completing our 2005 budget. I’m really looking forward to the holidays, when I’ll do a lot of cooking and drinking a lot of fine California wine. I have a cellar with about 2,200 bottles. And I’m an amateur chef, so we do a lot of entertaining.

Charles Lesser

Chief Financial Officer

True Religion Apparel Inc.

From now until Thanksgiving, it’s the most important time for us as we ship for back-to-school and Christmas. We’re adding people to deal with our buoyant business. For me personally, I didn’t go on vacation because my company is growing dramatically. So it’s not the end of a quiet time here.

Jeff Richards

Director of Business Development and Marketing

Rothenberg Sawasy Architects Inc.

I wanted to go out of the country but I didn’t get to it. With the opening of a new office in Beijing and preparations for our company’s 25th anniversary, I’m actually looking forward to taking some time off. And now I’ll have a break from attending weddings every weekend. Now that the summer is over I plan on watching a lot of football and spending time with friends and family. It’s sometimes nice to stick around home. You forget how nice it is here in L.A.

Jason Kelley

Business Development of Sales

Medwell Inc.

I’m much more busy in the summertime doing things with family and friends. Mostly going to the beach with family. Now I’m getting ready for the football season. I don’t go to games, I just watch at home, with family, but it’s still far less busy. Summer is a lull time for the company because we primarily deal with doctors and the majority of them take their vacations in the summer, so they’re in and out. So now were starting to get the big push until about December when it will be quiet again.