PUBLIC COMPANY OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
ENTRAVISION COMMUNICATIONS
Since 1996, Entravision Communications has been successfully engaging U.S. Latinos. With a vision to advocate for Latinos in the U.S., founder Walter Ulloa purchased a small TV station in El Centro, California. He aspired to bridge the information gap experienced by Latinos and started on a lifetime path of delivering trusted news and premier entertainment to all U.S. Latinos.
Today Entravision is a leading global advertising, media, and ad-tech solutions company connecting brands to consumers by representing top platforms and publishers. Entravision’s portfolio includes digital media properties and advertising technology platforms that deliver performance-based solutions and data insights, along with over 100 TV and Radio US broadcast stations that feature nationally recognized, Emmy award-winning talent. Entravision’s digital and technology business comprises five core businesses: Entravision Digital, Smadex, Entravision Cisneros Interactive, Entravision MediaDonuts, and Entravision 365 Digital.
GENIUS BRANDS INTERNATIONAL
Headquartered in Beverly Hills, Genius Brands International, Inc. is a NAS- DAQ publicly traded global children’s media company that creates and licenses animated entertainment content. Led by award-winning creators and producers, the company distributes its content worldwide in all formats.
Genius Brands International’s guiding light is “Content With a Purpose.” The company partners with award-winning creators, producers and educators to develop enriching, diverse programming. From early learning to STEM-based content, lessons in inclusivity, and global citizenship, there is something for everyone from toddlers to tweens. The Genius Brands portfolio features hit preschool properties Stan Lee’s Superhero Kindergarten, Rainbow Rangers and Llama Llama, award-winning toddler brand Baby Genius, the all-new KC!POP Quiz and more.
GUESS, INC.
GUESS was established in 1981 by the Marciano brothers, who left the south of France in pursuit of the American dream. Inspired by a European influence, the Marcianos redefined denim. One of their initial designs was a stonewashed, slim-fitting jeans, the three-zip Marilyn. GUESS quickly became a symbol of a young, sexy and adventurous lifestyle.
Throughout the decades, GUESS invited people to dream with its iconic and timeless advertising campaigns that turned unknown faces into famous models. In 2004, the company expanded with a new retail concept for its contemporary collection called Marcia- no. In 2007, the G by GUESS retail concept was born, gaining its Southern California aesthetic from the Marciano brothers’ personal passion for the young, California lifestyle. Today GUESS is a truly global lifestyle brand with a full range of denim, apparel and accessories offered in over 80 countries around the world.
KORN FERRY INTERNATIONAL
Korn Ferry is a global organizational consulting firm that works with its clients to design optimal organization structures, roles, and responsibilities. Korn Ferry helps these clients hire the right people and advises them on how to reward and motivate their workforce while developing professionals as they navigate and advance their careers. Korn Ferry’s 10,000 experts in more than 50 countries deliver on five core areas: organization strategy, assessment & succession, talent acquisition, leadership & professional development and total rewards.
Through the Korn Ferry Charitable Foundation, the organization is working to provide direct relief to those affected by natural disasters; fund scholarships and programs; and make grants to charitable organizations working to enhance our communities. Grant recipients include American Red Cross, Black Girls Code, Communities in Schools, Fundacian Forge, LEADership Education and Development, the Trevor Project, and many other vital and impactful organizations.
PRIVATE COMPANY – ENTERPRISE BUSINESS OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
DELUXE MEDIA
Founded in 1915, Deluxe is the world’s leading creation-to-distribution company, offering global, end-to-end services. Through unmatched scale, technology, and capabilities, Deluxe enables the worldwide market for professionally created media. Deluxe’s customer-first leadership, combined with its end-to-end suite of localization, distribution services, and media technology, creates a service offering that is unrivaled in breadth, scale, and global scope. Through its Deluxe One technology platform, skilled staff and attention to service, Deluxe has the innovation, capacity, and experience to meet and exceed any customer’s expectations.
Deluxe’s ownership, Platinum Equity, is a global M&A&O firm that specializes in mergers, acquisitions, and operations of companies that provide mission-critical products, services, and solutions in diverse industries. Together, they strive for operational excellence and customer satisfaction as the primary media services provider in the world. In addition, the Deluxe Corporation Foundation focuses on long-term solutions that help people, businesses and communities thrive and grow.
JAM CITY
Jam City is an award-winning entertainment company providing unique and deeply engaging mobile games that are played by tens of millions of people across the globe. Led by CEO Chris DeWolfe (former MySpace co-founder and CEO) and COO Josh Yguado (former 20th Century Fox executive), Jam City is the creative powerhouse behind some of the highest-grossing and most enduring mobile games.
Jam City’s global franchise Cookie Jam has generated more than half a billion dollars, and Panda Pop has more than 140 million downloads to date. The company also maintains a go-to entertainment studio, having developed immersive, narrative-rich mobile games around iconic entertainment brands. The company’s popular RPG game Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery was the #1 game in more than 40 countries at its launch in 2018. Jam City has nine studios located in Los Angeles, Berlin, Buenos Aires, Bogota, Burbank, Cedar Falls, San Diego, San Francisco, and Toronto.
PRIVATE COMPANY – MID-SIZED BUSINESS OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
NuFACE
NuFACE was founded in 2005 by a family of beauty experts – aesthetician Carol Cole, along with her daughters Tera Peterson (also an aesthetician) and Kim Morales. NuFACE is the leader in at-home microcurrent beauty devices. Using its flagship technology, microcurrent, NuFACE’s award-winning products are clinically shown to help tone, firm, and reduce the look of wrinkles, providing both visibly instant results and cumulative benefits.
Just this year, NuFACE launched their biggest tech advancement in 11 years with the MINI+ and TRINITY+ devices – expanding the brand’s current FDA-cleared device range. With this launch, the brand also released their smarter-than-ever Bluetooth-enabled NuFACE App that easily connects with devices and unlocks exclusive advanced treatments with different depths of microcurrent targeting different layers of the skin. NuFACE is an omnichannel business with its products distributed across professional, prestige, and specialty retail, direct-to-consumer, eCommerce, home shopping, and international channels.
PELICAN PRODUCTS
Located in Torrance with 200,000 square feet of manufacturing and office space, Pelican Products has grown into a global enterprise with 11 manufacturing facilities, 23 international sales offices, and multiple advanced case centers, network stations, and service centers around the world. Global expansion, along with smart acquisitions and new product introductions, have all added to the success Pelican realizes today. Pelican wholeheartedly embraces the calling and the duty that it has lived up to for more than 45 years.
Contributing to communities and embracing philanthropy has allowed Pelican to foster valuable relationships and connections. From volunteer services to donations, Pelican has been passionate in making a real difference in the lives of others in collaboration with employees and allies alike. Providing resources to those in need has helped in the development of local communities and strengthened mutual hope, trust, and reliability.
PRIVATE COMPANY – EMERGING BUSINESS OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
PRODUCEPAY
Founded in 2014 by Pablo Borquez Schwarzbeck, a fourth-generation farmer, ProducePay is an L.A.-based company transforming the fragmented global produce industry into a more connected, sustainable, and profitable supply chain. Produce-Pay’s marketplace provides growers and buyers with unprecedented access to market and financial solutions that help eliminate over 50% of unnecessary economic and food waste.
For the past eight years, ProducePay has trail-blazed a new mode of agricultural technology and innovation with a farmer- and produce-first approach. Historically, the produce sector has been left behind when it comes to modernization and inclusion in an efficient and digitized market. ProducePay’s comprehensive understanding of pro- duce agriculture has allowed the company to put the produce grower at the center of its services and technological pursuits. ProducePay is committed to bringing customized and specialized solutions to the produce supply chain, while empowering produce growers to be on the frontlines of innovation and modernization.
RYFF, INC.
Ryff is creating a new advertising economy by helping content owners and brands unlock the potential of untapped inventory to dramatically alter the way brands reach audience and content production is funded. Ryff provides a 21st century solution to a form of advertising that is almost 100 years old: brand placement. Ryff ingests any visual media and make it available with photo-realistic brand and product integration automatically, without human intervention, at scale in real-time.
Ryff is also a sponsor of the 2022 Outfest Legacy Awards, the premiere awards show and fundraiser dedicated to celebrating LGBTQIA+ movers and shakers in the film and television industry. Ryff is also a supporter of Chapman University Dodge College of Film and Media Arts in Orange, the National Film and Television School in Buckinghamshire, England and the Johnny Carson Center for Emerging Media Art in Lincoln, Nebraska.
RSM INTERNATIONAL TECH COMPANY OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
CHANNEL FACTORY
Channel Factory is a global technology and data plat- form that maximizes both performance efficiency and contextual suitability, delivering contextual performance for advertisers on YouTube. Channel Factory’s CEO & founder, Tony Chen, went from double majoring in piano performance and economics at Rice University to building a comprehensive software platform, ViewIQ, that helps brands and agencies buy YouTube and digital video more effectively.
ViewIQ has enabled Channel Factory to create high-performing, brand-safe, and brand-suitable media campaigns for advertisers across the world, such as McDonald’s, Nissan, NASCAR, Coty, LEGO and more. Channel Factory has since been named a Cynopsis and AMMA award-winning technology innovator. It is continuing to develop and advance its proprietary technology while expanding offices internationally, growing self-service solutions, and building a community of diverse creators to support a more inclusive and conscious digital ecosystem.
DATA DIRECT NETWORKS
Data Direct Networks is transforming the way customers are storing, managing and using their data for differentiation and discovery. Unmatched performance and scale coupled with expertise gained through more than 20 years’ experience means DDN helps customers store and access more data faster, on premises and in the cloud. DDN simplifies the complex and brings intelligence to challenging workflows. With a comprehensive portfolio, DDN powers the world’s data intensive workflows in all industries.
DDN is the global leader in at scale data storage. For more than two decades, DDN products have helped cus- tomers extract value and manage their data better, faster, and safer. No matter how challenging, DDN has a system to help meet and exceed the needs at hand.
GLOBAL TRADE LEADER OF THE YEARÂ FINALISTS
MAGNITE
Magnite was born in 2020 when the programmatic ad pioneers at Rubicon Project teamed up with the CTV experts at Telaria. To accelerate its CTV ambitions, Magnite acquired CTV leader SpotX and ad management platform SpringServe in 2021. Now, Magnite is the industry’s largest scaled, independent CTV/video ad platform. Though CTV and video are now as important to Magnite as ever, the company remains committed to its roots as an omnichannel SSP.
Thousands of publishers around the globe rely on Magnite’s technology to sell advertising on their own terms and across every channel and format – including CTV, desktop, mobile, and audio. Likewise, Magnite helps the world’s leading agencies and brands reach millions of consumers efficiently, safely, and while respecting their privacy. The Magnite team is made up of hundreds of people across North America, EMEA, LATAM, and APAC, and its stock is traded on NASDAQ as MGNI.
VIKING RIVER CRUISES
Viking was founded in 1997 with the vision that travel could be more destination focused and culturally immersive. In 2000, the company purchased Europe’s KD River Cruises in order to grow its fleet, to leverage 40 years of river cruising experience and to acquire rights to prime docking locations in key European cities.
The company expanded into the American market in 2000, establishing a sales and marketing office in Los Angeles. Since then, Viking has grown to be the leading small ship travel company, offering river, ocean and expedition voyages on all seven continents. With an operational office in Basel, Switzerland, Viking provides destination-focused itineraries for curious travelers. Each journey includes a shore excursion in every port and an onboard and onshore enrichment program that provides deep immersion in the destination through performances of music and art, cooking demonstrations, informative port talks and carefully selected guest lecturers.
HSBC SUSTAINABLE COMPANY OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
CHG-MERIDIAN
CHG-Meridian is the leading international tech- nology manager and financing expert in the IT, industrial, and healthcare technology sectors. Nearly 1,200 employees across 28 countries manage a technology portfolio worth $7.8 billion (2021). The company’s headquarters is in Weingarten, Germany.
CHG-Meridian finances and manages international technology projects in a holistic, digital, and sustainable manner. Acting independently of banks and manufacturers, CHG-Meridian supplies the necessary assets to its customers, which include large corporations, small and medium-sized enter- prises, hospitals, and the public sector. It has been managing its customers’ technology investments for more than 40 years, covering the entire life- cycle from procurement and use to data erasure, refurbishing, and remarketing. CHG-Meridian’s business model has been based on the principles of the circular economy since 1979 and has been car- bon-neutral since 2021. To achieve this, the company avoids, reduces, or offsets all CO2 emissions generated by our business activities.
PROVIVI
Created in 2013 by Nobel Laureate Dr. Frances Arnold and co-founders Pedro Coelho and Peter Meinhold, Provivi is a principles-based crop protection company with a mission to apply state of the art technologies to improve life and aspirations of farmers across the globe. The company’s focus is to create a new foundation for safer, affordable, and sustainable crop protection.
Provivi uses pheromones to protect large acreage row crops from major damaging insects, recently announced a $10 million investment by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. This amount adds to Provivi’s recently announced $45.5 million C2 fundraising round. This investment in Provivi aims to further advance the foundation’s charitable objective of developing new crop innovations designed to meet the needs of smallholder farmers. The funding will support the production and distribution of crop protectants to address insect pests that have a disproportionate impact on small-scale producers within developing countries.
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS ADVOCATE OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
SCALI RASMUSSEN
Entrepreneurs and business owners in automotive, retail, manufacturing and distribution, hospitality and other leading sectors count on Scali Rasmussen to manage the full range of legal issues that arise for thriving companies. Scali Rasmussen’s targeted counsel includes big picture perspectives and industry insights that keep organizations protected and their business moving forward when issues and challenges appear.
Working from its five offices across California, Scali Rasmussen helps clients make the most of new opportunities. They use their brand of business legal common sense to resolve challenges. As attorneys who “think big,” they also can help international entrepreneurs establish and grow their presence in the United States. Whether devising practical regulatory programs for car dealerships, ensuring data privacy compliance across 50 states, or set- tling complex breach of contract claims, their attorneys focus on preventing issues from becoming hurdles.
WORLD TRADE CENTER, LOS ANGELES
Stephen Cheung and his dual roles as president of The World Trade Center – Los Angeles (WTCLA) and new president/CEO for LA Economic Development Corp (LAEDC) make him and his teams significant international business advocates. His leadership for the World Trade Center in this not-for-profit public benefit organization has been a vital resource dedicated to attracting foreign direct investment to the Los Angeles region and facilitating global business opportunities between Los Angeles and international companies.
The WTCLA has created a step-by-step guide on “How to Do Business in Los Angeles County” for inves- tors and budding businesses; and has compiled data and resources for each of the 88 cities located in LA County to assist businesses with uncovering the region’s potential. WTCLA provides essential matchmaking and con- sulting services to connect the right business partners and service providers to international companies looking to grow their businesses in the Los Angeles region.
INTERNATIONAL SUBSIDIARY OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
GRIFOLS
Grifols’ leadership in essential plasma-derived medicines enables patients with rare and chron- ic diseases – sometimes life-threatening – to lead healthier lives. These patients often have no alternative treatments. Grifols produces its lifesav- ing medicines, made from plasma proteins, thanks to the generosity of donors who entrust their dona- tions to Grifols’ growing global network of donor centers, the world’s largest.
Grifols is also a leader in transfusion medicine, helping ensure the safety of the world’s blood supply. In addition, we provide biological materials, including plasma, for life-science research and further manufacturing, and the company has a comprehensive portfolio of tools, information and services that enable hospitals to efficiently deliver medical care. The company’s more than 27,000 employees, based in more than 30 countries and regions, work to provide our trusted products and services as part of a sustainable business model in more than 110 markets.
MOOSE TOYS
Moose Toys creates, manufactures, and markets toy brands across many categories. The action figure, arts, craft & activity, collectible, doll, games, plush, preschool, and youth electronics toy aisles are where customers find Moose Toys’ “WOW” toy brands! Using groundbreaking designs, Moose Toys is constantly thinking outside the (toy) box and pushing innovation boundaries, trailblazing the way in toy design with some of the world’s favorite toy brands, such as Treasure X, Kindi Kids, Goo Jit Zu, and Little Live Pets (to name a few).
The Moose Toys doesn’t just dream of making kids happy. They actually do it. With philanthropy weaved into the very being of Moose and the unwavering commitment from the Moose family to give back, The Moose Happy Kids Foundation was born. With the help of some inspiring partnerships, Moose is working to make a positive difference
to children and their communities, to help them access the pure power of play.
COMMUNITY INVESTMENT CHAMPION OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
TALINO VENTURES PBC
Talino Ventures PBC is the Los Angeles-based global venture studio building next-generation financial inclusion technology companies. Despite working with cross-border teams and multiple time zones, Talino Ventures has built three digital banks, one serving global immigrants, one global remote workers, and underserved small businesses. Talino has won awards and partnered with leading public and private institutions such as the FDIC, USAID, Asian Development Bank, World Economic Forum, East West Bank, and the Sovereign Wealth Fund of Bahrain.
Talino empowers low and middle-income communities with greater access to financial inclusion technologies in order to graduate them into the emerging middle class. Further, Talino has provided over 1,000 scholarships for kids’ science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. The company also sponsors and organizes several community events across Los Angeles County.
THRIVE MARKET
Thrive Market is an American e-commerce membership-based retailer offering natural and organic food products. Every product on Thrive’s virtual shelves must meet rigorous standards for quality, sustainability, and affordability. By 2016 the company’s founders had raised $141 million across three rounds of funding following its launch in November 2014.
The company’s Thrive Gives has been its promise since day one: for every paid membership, Thrive donates a free membership to someone in need. Thrive is also carbon neutral by purchasing carbon credits and matching 100% of its facilities’ electricity use with renewable energy certificates. Moving forward, Thrive will set science-based reduction targets, continue ground-only shipping and invest more in regenerative agriculture to be carbon negative by 2025. Two of Thrive’s three warehouses are TRUE Certified for Zero Waste, meaning it reduces, reuses, or recycles materials and diverts at least 90% of solid waste away from landfills.
Return to 2022 International Business Awards Recap here.
