2019 COMMUNITY REPORT
2019 COMMUNITY REPORT
POPULATION: 282,572
- US Census Bureau (Q Facts)
MEDIAN AGE: 34.4(National Median Age: 37)
- US Census Bureau (Q Facts) Built on a visionary Irvine Master Plan 60 years ago, ours is a world-class city that easily stacks up to
any other city in America in terms of what it offers its residents and businesses.
This Community Report covering 2019 includes many impressive statistics and facts that provide a snapshot of Irvine as well as insight into the extraordinary commitment the Greater Irvine Chamber has made as a catalyst for the overall economic vitality of this community and its residents.
Situated in the center of Orange County, Irvine was master planned to be an economic powerhouse. Its business centers are home to an impressive list of leading companies in technology, innovation, biotechnology, medical, and communications sectors—21st-century businesses like Allergan, Amazon, Blizzard, Cylance, Edwards Lifesciences, Google, and Oracle, to name a few.
The Greater Irvine Chamber is a vital community partner, executing its mission at a high level to champion the business community through economic development work focused on attracting foreign and domestic investment, advancing international trade, and attracting high-paying jobs to Irvine to retain our talent pool. Additionally, Destination Irvine brings to the city several millions of dollars in local economic activity each year. We are also a leading business organization dedicated to advocating on behalf of the business community to federal, state, and local government.
The Greater Irvine Chamber is engaged in a variety of partnerships that directly support the community. Our partnership with the Irvine Public Schools Foundation advances the Chamber’s goal of ensuring a highly-skilled, 21st-century workforce for Irvine’s future while helping to fund programs
for today’s students. As a partner with the City of Irvine, the Greater Irvine Chamber has outreached to companies worldwide to highlight the benefits of locating or expanding their business to Irvine.
With nearly 1,000 members and community partners, the Greater Irvine Chamber is the nucleus of the local business community and serves as a key convener of
the various groups that make up this incredible city. Each year we provide more than 400 opportunities for members to learn, connect, and grow their businesses. With millions of dollars in closed business through our leads groups, our members are supporting each other, retaining tax dollars locally, and stimulating the local economy.
Our award-winning organization has achieved a 5-Star Accreditation, the highest rating awarded by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. We are staffed by a highly-skilled team of professionals, governed by a visionary Board of Directors composed of executives from leading companies throughout the greater Irvine area, and supported by diverse member businesses, coalition partners, and dedicated member volunteers.
On behalf of the Greater Irvine Chamber staff and Board of Directors, I thank you for your contributions to our exemplary city. I invite you to join us and be a part of our winning team as we continue our mission to advance the economic vitality of greater Irvine.
Bryan Starr, President/CEO
2 www.greaterirvinechamber.com
MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT/CEODear Irvine Business Leader,
Educational Attainment
Workforce/Industries – Employment Number of people working in Irvine: 276,430Number of companies in Irvine: 18,580 (27,858 business licenses in Irvine)
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www.greaterirvinechamber.com
IRVINE
ORANGE COUNTY, CA
3RDlargest city in Orange County
Fast Fact: There are over 900 tech companies in Irvine
3.0%Unemployment in Irvine
MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME: $95,573
IRVINE SNAPSHOT
SINCE 2005:
SAFEST CITY IN AMERICA(population over 100,000) - Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
- US Census Bureau (Q Facts)
- JobsEQ
- US Census Bureau (Q Facts)
#5 US SMALL CITY - OVERALL
& TOP 10 IN ALL CATEGORIES - fDi Magazine, American Cities of the Future 2017-201870.5%BACHELOR'S DEGREE OR MORE
Cultural Diversity:
White 45.1% Asian 39.2% Hispanic 9.2% Black 6.2%
CULTURAL DIVERSITY
White Asian Hispanic Black
Multirace Other* *(includes Pacific Islander/
Some other race/American Indian)
47.7%
2%
9.7%
41.8%
3%
5.3%
The Greater Irvine Chamber is a vital community partner, executing
its mission at a high level to champion the business community through economic development work focused on attracting foreign and domestic investment, advancing international trade, and attracting high-paying jobs to Irvine to retain our talent pool."
97%HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION
Irvine was master planned to be an economic powerhouse. The original Irvine Master Plan—and subsequent nurturing of that vision by Irvine's elected officials, city management, business leaders, and residents—sustains the balance and quality of life we enjoy. This same vision is why Irvine has achieved a global business reputation, an organic diversity, and an enviable level of economic vitality. We are the epicenter of Southern California’s innovation ecosystem. Fueled by thriving life science and information technology sectors and strong sub-sectors including medical device, ophthalmology, aesthetics, software development, cyber security, digital arts and gaming, and all things AI, VR and AR, our 21st-century industries and our commitment to education, safety, and quality of life position Irvine well for the future.
89,853 Professional, Scientific, Management, Administrative, Information & Waste Mgmt. Services29,812 Manufacturing
17,591 Wholesale Trade
12,799 Retail Trade
870 Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, Mining
35,467 Finance & Insurance, Real Estate Rental & Leasing
21,269 Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, Hospitality
12,051 Construction
45,597 Educational Services, Health Care, Social Assistance, Public Administration
7,211 Other Services (except Public Administration)
3,910 Transportation & Warehousing, Utilities
4 5www.greaterirvinechamber.com www.greaterirvinechamber.com
CHAMBER HIGHLIGHTS
The Greater Irvine Chamber serves the vision of the Master Plan: making Irvine the best place to live, work, play, and do business. The health and vitality of the community is our business. For our members, the business community, public and private sector, partners, and the residents of Irvine, the Chamber delivers real value through effective business advocacy, business outreach and retention, multi-million-dollar lead-generating forums, community outreach, K-12 and beyond programs, and events intentionally designed and executed to help businesses grow and our community prosper. This is your Chamber at work.
2019 YOUR CHAMBER CONVENER: WE CONNECT YOU
Business OutlookBusiness Outlook featured Chris Thornberg, Founding Partner, Beacon Economics, and Chris Schwarz, Faculty Director, Center for Investment and Wealth Management, University of California, Irvine. The event brought together 800+ business executives, providing key insight on trends influencing the economy.
Women of InfluenceThe Women of Influence Forum welcomed more than 400 attendees and featured Gina Osborn, President, G-Girl Productions; Former Special Agent, FBI; Marisa Wayne, Owner, Grit Cycle; and Kim Shepherd, Former CEO, Decision Toolbox.
Celebrate IrvineCelebrate Irvine recognized recipients for the Business of the Year, Nonprofit of the Year, Entrepreneur of the Year, Young Professional of the Year, and Business Philanthropist of the Year awards.
40 Under 40Forty of Orange County’s most talented professionals under the age of 40 were recognized during the Greater Irvine Chamber’s inaugural 40 Under 40 reception in front of a sold-out crowd of nearly 500 attendees.
Fast Fact: The Greater Irvine Chamber represents and supports over 150,000 employees through membership!
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The Member Referral Program The Member Referral Program took off as a reward to current members who find and refer new members. Those who help sign up new members receive a gift certificate to a member restaurant – it’s a win-win-win!
The Greater Irvine Chamber advocated on 31 bills and achieved a 71% success rate. The Chamber has continued to provide access for its members to government officials, stakeholders, and policy makers. The Chamber held a candidates forum to help inform the electorate prior to the election and has continued to bring the business and government communities together.
Greater Irvine Chamber Leads Groups actively engage more than 150 Chamber members on a weekly basis. The groups
continue to grow, resulting in the addition of a 6th Leads Group this year.
$14 MILLION
IN NEW BUSINESS
Legislative Advocacy & Government Affairs
71%Success Rate
6 7www.greaterirvinechamber.com www.greaterirvinechamber.com
ECONOMIC VITALITY
GREATER IRVINE CHAMBER ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
The Chamber’s economic development work focuses on what matters.The Business & Workforce Development Committee focuses on business attraction, retention, the education and business connection, growing the innovation ecosystem, and developing talent and workforce readiness.
The International Development Committee focuses on strategic foreign direct investment, industry sector development, export assistance, global trade, sustaining an international-American chamber network, and producing the Orange County World Trade Week Breakfast & Forum. Highlights include:Business Outreach Rally — this multiple award-winning business retention program connects us with hundreds of businesses each year. The commitment of our volunteer business owners and managers makes this possible. Twice-yearly, 30-50 volunteer Chamber members make in-person visits to connect with and survey our businesses. They deliver our valuable Business Outreach Resource Guide informing businesses about the networks and resources available to help them grow their enterprises. To date, more than 450 members have participated, nearly 4,000 companies have been contacted, with more than 1,000 surveys completed, and more than 40 interventions managed.
Career Readiness — Irvine Career Discovery Day, produced in collaboration with Vital Link, United Way, and Irvine Public Schools Foundation, brought more than 250 students face-to-face with Irvine’s career opportunities at Parker Aerospace, Google, Kelley Blue Book – COX Automotive, Vincit California, EON Reality, Edwards Lifesciences, and Zillow.
Fast Fact: Orange County's GDP of $298 billion is larger than that of 28 states!
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Everything the Chamber does is to advance Irvine's economic vitality. We are an outwardly-focused, results-driven Chamber fueled by the energy and commitment of our volunteer leadership, members, partners, and professional staff. We help businesses grow with multi-million-dollar generating leads groups and connect businesses with growth strategies and retention resources. We help businesses explore new markets and export their products and services. We attract new companies and foreign direct investment that strengthen our industry sectors. And we help education and business better prepare local talent to sustain our 21st-century economy. We are your Chamber at work.
FDI Mission grows Irvine’s global reputation.Irvine returned to the U.K. in 2019 with an impressive delegation headed by the Chamber’s CEO Bryan Starr and leaders from the business community. Meeting with more than 28 expansion-ready life science and technology U.K. companies, the delegation made the case that Irvine/Orange County is a smart choice for their U.S. expansion plans. Working with OCO Global, London & Partners, One Nucleus, TechUK, and Association of British Healthtech Industries, the delegation re-engaged with companies met in 2017 and 2018, partnered in a thought leader event, and produced a well-attended Tower Bridge Reception hosting more than 150 guests from life science and technology industries.
2019 Life Science ShowcaseEleven expansion-ready U.K. companies and 14 executives attended the Chamber’s Irvine/Orange County Life Science Showcase. Thanks to Octane’s Medical Technology Innovation Forum, UCI Beall Applied Innovation, Allergan, Medtronic, 11 Health & Technologies, University Lab Partners, OC Soccer Club Stadium, Hoag Memorial Hospital, UCI Health, CHOC Children’s Research Institute, MemorialCare and dozens of Irvine Ready! partner companies contributing time and expertise, we impressed with our strongest assets.
Three U.K. companies announce their plans to expand to Irvine! Forte Medical, oneclick Cloud and Visitor Chat have made formal announcements of their plans to establish a presence in Irvine! All companies credited the Irvine Ready! Gateway package experts and receptivity of our innovation ecosystem.
Orange County World Trade Week Breakfast & Forum
Topping 550 attendees in 2019, the Chamber-led celebration of trade in Orange County is produced with the support of 45 International-American business associations, companies, and trade organizations dedicated to expanding trade and export opportunities for our businesses. This year’s event featured a keynote address by Steve Wagner, Global Managing Director, Experian Decision Analytics, and an Export Success Stories panel including executives from Technologent, Taco Bell, and Worldwide Environmental Products, Inc.
Mission delegation (l-r) Leigh Volkland, Edwards Lifesciences; Sesha Neervannan, Allergan; Kaitlyn Nguyen, City of Irvine; Jason Lantgen, JLL; Kate Klimow, UCI Beall Applied Innovation; Steven Small, UCI Medical Center; Lynn Stewart, Cal State Fullerton; Carlos Oregon, Thinkbox Technology Group; Bryan Starr, Greater Irvine Chamber; Andy Downer, Horizon Consumer Science; Linda DiMario, Greater Irvine Chamber; John Russo, City of Irvine; Bill Carpou, Octane.
Octane LaunchPad:
UCI Beall Applied Innovation:UCI affiliated startups and inventions attracted $18 billion in last two years.
Total capital infusion (to date) $2.4 BILLION
Capital infusion $286M INTO 45
LAUNCHPAD COMPANIES
5 Acquisitions at $330 MILLION
557active patents
3.1 BILLION in affiliated startup funding regional economic impact in Orange County
10,300+ JOBS CREATED
45 UCI-IP-Based
Startups to date
Destination Irvine 2019 Highlights
8 9www.greaterirvinechamber.com www.greaterirvinechamber.com
GREATER IRVINE CHAMBER VISITORS BUREAU DESTINATION IRVINE
DESTINATION IRVINE
$7,732,420 Total economic impact:
FY 2018-2019 (14% increase over fiscal 2017-2018)
142 BOOKINGS31,839 ROOM NIGHTS
PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL VISITOR
SPENDINGTotal Spending in 2018:
$750,000,000
11%
14%
29%
23%23%
Key Food & Beverage Accomodations Arts & Entertainment Retail Transportation
Visitor Spending in Irvine($ Millions) Food & Beverage: $175Accomodations: $220Arts & Entertainment: $167Retail: $85Transportation: $103
Fast Fact: California's small businesses generated more net new jobs than in Texas and Florida combined.
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IRVINE
Hotel Bookings and Economic ImpactWorking with Irvine’s 21 hotels, Destination Irvine continues to deliver year-over-year record results in meetings and sports events identified, solicited, and booked, generating increased revenue for the city and its businesses.
Destination Irvine positions Irvine and its hotels as a smart choice for meetings, sports events, and leisure travel. The Chamber’s role in bringing meetings, conventions, sports events, and leisure travelers to stay in Irvine hotels is the driving focus of Destination Irvine. Collaborating with Irvine’s 21 hotels, we sustain aggressive direct sales and innovative travel marketing initiatives that continue to generate millions to the economy of Irvine – using visitor spending to help sustain our quality of life.
It is estimated that without visitor spending, resident households in Irvine would each pay
$543 MORE A YEAR in state and local taxes.
$47.8MThe travel industry
contributed $47.8 million in local and state taxes.
$274MThe travel industry supported
5,870 Irvine jobs and was responsible for adding
$274 million in wages to the local economy.
$750M In 2018, traveler
expenditures for Irvine came to an estimated
$750 million, an increase of 20.8% over 2017, far exceeding the rate of
growth in preceding years due to increased visitation.
▶ Destination Irvine ran an independent Expedia campaign from September-May resulting in 37,727 Irvine room nights booked with a total revenue to the hotels of more than $5.8 million.
▶ Launched a new sports-focused video that highlights the Orange County Great Park Sports Complex, Great Park Ice & FivePoint Arena, along with William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center and Momentous Sports Center.
▶ Promoted Irvine to more than 100 media at 6 media events resulting in more than 30 million impressions in more than a dozen outlets including Houston Family Magazine, LA Family Travel, Seattle Refined, PBS Family Travel, Travel Inc, Dream Vacation, The Epoch Time SportsEvent Magazine, Smart Meetings, Traveling Dads, and Along for the Trip.
OC Joint Marketing Campaign Destination Irvine participated in quarterly OC Joint Marketing Campaigns with Expedia. The campaigns ran July-September, November-January and April-June. The campaigns resulted in 31,523 Irvine room nights booked with a total revenue to the hotels of more than $4.9 million.
2019 AwardsORGANIZATION AWARD IN RECOGNITION OF:
Marcom Competition Platinum Award 2019-2020 Official Irvine Visitors Guide
Marcom Competition Gold Award“Irvine, The Sports Center
of Orange County” sports-focused video
Marcom Competition Honorable Mention “Meet in Irvine, CA” meeting-focused video
Hermes Creative Awards Gold Award “Meet in Irvine, CA” meeting-focused video
Hermes Creative Awards Honorable Mention 2018-2019 Official Irvine Visitors Guide
Videographer Awards Award of Distinction “Irvine, the Sports Center of Orange County”
Videographer Awards Honorable Mention “Meet in Irvine, CA”
Dan Han* (Chair)Agapay
Vivian AtkinsonExpress Employment Professionals
Andrew BernsteinJackson Tidus
Carissa Bechtloff MemorialCare Shared Services
Diane Blake* Sonesta Irvine
Massis ChahbazianThe Printery
Anthony CosenzaConcordia University Irvine Jeff Davis*
Irvine Company
Barry Draskovich, PMPParker Hannifin Corporation, Parker Aerospace
Michael DrennenCox Business
Rachel DunningtonGoogle
Ville HouttuVINCIT Kate Klimow*
UCI Beall Applied Innovation
Justin LaJoieZillow Group
Isaiah LeslieRegal Court Reporting, Inc. Brian MontesScaleocity Works
Eric Morgan* FivePoint Albert NapoliMetropolitan Water District of SoCal
Dr. Shelly NealBrandman University
Sesha NeervannanAllergan
Scott NortonHoag Health
Carlos Oregon*
Thinkbox Technology Group
Barry L. Rodolff*
The Rodolff Law Firm, APC
Scott SchultzRH Morris Insurance & Financial
Paul Simonds*
Curt Pringle & Associates
Lisa ThomasTaylor Digital
Traci Tran*
White Nelson Diehl Evans LLP
Leigh Volkland*
Edwards Lifesciences
SILVER
10 11www.greaterirvinechamber.com www.greaterirvinechamber.com
LEADERS CIRCLE
Leaders Circle members are among the most influential companies and organizations in Irvine and Orange County and take pride in being identified as sponsors for all Chamber events and activities.
The Leaders Circle membership offers greater involvement, presence, and access to higher-level executives.
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GREATER IRVINE CHAMBER LEADERSHIP
2019/2020 BOARD OF DIRECTORS
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IRVINE HOTEL PARTNERS FUELING IRVINE'S
ECONOMIC VITALITYIrvine’s hotel collection offers local companies,
meeting planners, and travelers from around the globe a variety of options for their meetings and business travel. These hotels fund the Chamber’s tourism and economic
development promotions and activities.
The Greater Irvine Chamber and City of Hope Orange County are committed to passionately advocating for the interests of the Orange County community. The
Chamber is focused on improving the community’s economic health, and City of Hope Orange County strives to improve cancer health—it’s a partnership that goes hand in hand.”
- Annette Walker, President, City of Hope Orange County
GOLD
PLATINUM
DIAMOND Leaders CircleTHE ELITE MEMBERSHIP GROUP OF THE GREATER IRVINE CHAMBER
Irvine John Wayne AirportIrvine Spectrum
Irvine John Wayne AirportIrvine Spectrum
Irvine Marriott •Marriott Irvine Spectrum
MISSION STATEMENT: TO ADVANCE THE ECONOMIC VITALITY OF GREATER IRVINE.
Greater Irvine Chamber36 Executive Park, Suite 100 Irvine, CA 92614
Phone: 949-660-9112Email: [email protected]
GreaterIrvineChamber.comIrvineChamberEconomicDevelopment.comDestinationIrvine.com
HOTEL IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT (HID):Irvine’s Hotel Improvement District was established at the
request of the hotels and is enabled by City Ordinance. The hotels agreed to a 2% assessment on sold rooms in addition to the 8% Transient Occupancy Tax collected and retained by the City of Irvine. The intent of the assessment is to fund tourism sales and marketing, business attraction and retention, and
programs that produce revenue for hotels, restaurants, retail, and the city’s General Fund. The HID selected the Greater
Irvine Chamber and Destination Irvine to manage and deliver this scope of work with.
Destination Irvine, and the Greater Irivne Chamber
promote Irvine as a destination, which drives hotel sales.
8% Hotel Tax to be collected:
$16,300,000 projected revenue
collected in FY 2018-2019 – 100% accrues to city’s
General Fund
2% ASSESSMENT & ROI1.5% of assessment funds tourism, promotion, and economic development;
0.5% goes to City of Irvine for arts and cultural events.
Destination Irvine Delivers! Return on Investment for FY 2017-2018: $8,473,000 direct spending in Irvine.
1.5%PARKS AND
RECREATIONPOLICE AND
SAFETYFIRE DEPARTMENT PUBLIC WORKS TRANSPORTATION SCHOOLS
.5% ARTS AND CULTURAL EVENTS
PUBLIC/PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP : AT WORK FOR IRVINE
Greater Irvine Chamber dollars received from city’s General Fund: $0Greater Irvine Chamber dollars received from Irvine’s 8% Hotel Tax: $0
GENERALFUND
2018 PRESIDENT’S "E " AWARD WINNER FOR EXPORT SERVICES
ORANGE COUNTY BUSINESS JOURNAL BEST PLACES TO WORK
2018 & 2019
U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FIVE STAR
ACCREDITED