Quantum Energy Holdings LLC will permanently close is facility in Largo in April. About 112 workers at the site will lose their jobs, the company said in a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification sent to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. The Feb. 5 WARN notice said the facility at 8550 Ulmerton Rd. is closing on April 10 because of a strategic business realignment. Quantum Energy Holdings' notice also covered workers at four subsidiaries: Utility Sales Management LLC, Utilities Marketing Group LLC, EnergyCare LLC and Sales Verification Company LLC. About 10 employees are expected to stay on with Utility Sales Management, but they will work from another location, the WARN said.
Six Tampa Bay Wave companies are among the 10 selected to present their startup ideas to a panel of judges at the Florida Polytechnic University and eMerge Americas Start-up Pitch Night Monday night in Lakeland. They're competing for the chance to be fast-tracked directly into the 2020 eMerge Americas Global Startup Showcase, the annual premier technology event connecting the Americas held at the Miami Beach Convention Center. Four of the participating Wave companies are in Wave's current accelerator cohort: Exiom, Rentit, Reptrics and Sole Venture. Two others, ClienTell and InEvent, are alumni of Wave's TechDiversity accelerator.
Inflow Technologies, a distributer based in Bangalore, India, won't become part of Tech Data Corp. Inflow Technologies exercised its right to withdraw from closing the deal that was announced in mid-December, Tech Data said in a news release. Inflow has paid a break fee to Tech Data (Nasdaq: TECD), an IT distributor headquartered in Clearwater and the largest company based in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area. Tech Data didn't say why Inflow Technologies backed out of the deal or release any financial details. The disclosure comes two days before Tech Data shareholders vote on Tech Data's plan to go private in a $6 billion acquisition by funds associated with Apollo Global Management.
Kast Construction is buying out the Kolter Group's ownership interest in Kast. Financial terms were not disclosed in a news release announcing the deal. Kolter, a real estate development firm based in Delray Beach, founded Kast 15 years ago and since then, Kast has become the largest general contractor in Palm Beach County and one of the largest privately held construction companies in the southeast United States. Both companies have been involved in projects in St. Petersburg including ONE St. Petersburg, a 41-story condominium tower in downtown St. Petersburg developed by Kolter and built by Kast. Kolter Group will continue to be a client of Kast for its future projects, the news release said.
Macy's Inc. will consolidate customer service work at two facilities, including its office in Clearwater facility. The retailer announced the consolidation as part of an updated strategy and three-year plan designed to stabilize profitability and position the company for growth. A major part of the plan is campus consolidation. Offices in San Francisco, downtown Cincinnati and Lorain, Ohio will close, as will a customer contact center in Tempe, Arizona, while Clearwater and another facility in Mason, Ohio will remain open, a news release said. Over the next three years, Macy's also plans to close 125 of its least productive stores nationwide, but has not yet announced which stores will close.
Clearwater Marine Aquarium has partnered with Page Development Group and Choice Hotels’ Ascend Hotel Collection to develop Winter the Dolphin’s Beach Club Hotel. The 91-room hotel will be at 655 S. Gulfview Blvd, in Clearwater Beach. The site currently is home to Quality Hotel Clearwater Beach Resort. “We are excited to convert this hotel to a new brand with an extensive renovation and include the CMA mission, " Steve Page, president of Page Development, said in a news release. The eco-friendly hotel, named in honor of the star of the Dolphin Tale movies, will be dolphin and marine life-themed. Proceeds from each room night will go directly to the care, education, research and conservation of marine mammals through the work of Clearwater Marine Aquarium. The hotel is part of the Ascend Hotel Collection portfolio, which includes one-of-a-kind, upscale, boutique hotels in urban and resort locales. It will be managed by Tampa-based McKibbon Hospitality.
Lumina, a predictive analytics firm in Tampa, has a new strategic partnership with VersaTech, a Columbia, Maryland comapny that provides technology services to the public sector. VersaTech plans to tap Lumina's artificial intelligence-driven platform, Radiance, which is designed to keep people and places safe and secure, Allan Martin, Lumina CEO, said in a news release. The partnership will accelerate rowth opportunities across VersaTech's existing customer portfolio with a specific focus on healthcare and suicide prevention efforts for veterans and active service members, workplace violence mitigation and personnel security, the news release said. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri will chair a working group established by the National Sheriffs' Association, looking at facial recognition technology. The group will study technological issues and appropriate guidelines for law enforcement. It will include law enforcement, industry representatives, government officials, and other relevant parties, according to a news release. "Far too often, myths are overwhelming facts on how facial recognition is used. Nevertheless, law enforcement needs to be confident and communities need to trust that what is being used is both legal and constitutional,” Gualtieri said in the news release.
Weatherford Capital, a family owned private investment firm in Tampa, took part in a $38.5 million Series C funding round for The Zebra. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, The Zebra says it is the nation's leading, independent insurance comparison site. The company had nearly $37 million in revenue in 2019, up 200 percent from the previous year, a news release said. Accel led the latest funding round, which included Ballast Point Ventures, a growth equity investor in Tampa, and other current investors — Silverton Partners, Daher Capital, Floodgate Fund, and The Zebra’s CEO, Keith Melnick.
Jana Partners, a New York-based investment firm , said it will nominate at least two people to the board of directors of Tampa-based restaurant company Bloomin' Brands (Nasdaq: BLMN). In a filing with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission, Jana said it would nominate John Paul Gainor Jr., who is the former president and CEO of International Dairy Queen Inc., and Scott Ostfeld, a partner and co-portfolio manager at Jana. If there is a third opening on the board, Jana said it also would nominate Jennifer Fanjiang, Jana's chief legal counsel and chief compliance officer. The push for new directors comes a few months after Bloomin' said it would explore and evaluate strategic alternatives, including a possible sale of the company. Jana said it owns about 7.4 percent of the outstanding stock of Bloomin', the parent company of Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba's Italian Grill, Bonefish Grill and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse. In 2018, Jana successfully pushed for the addition to Wendy Beck to the Bloomin' board.
Ridership on the Cross-Bay Ferry increased 62 percent in January 2020 compared to the same month in 2019. There were 10,634 passengers last month, versus 6,554 passengers in January 2019, a spokeswoman said. January 2020 saw more people riding the ferry on weekdays, primarily Wednesdays and Thursdays. Since the season began in November 2019, a total of 33,144 passengers have ridden the Cross-Bay Ferry between the St. Petersburg downtown waterfront and downtown Tampa.
Tampa Bay Tech Software CEOs, part of the Tampa Bay Tech organization, met with leaders of Midtown Tampa to tour the buildings and learn more about the overall vision for the urban development. "Midtown Tampa is looking forward with collaborating with Tampa Bay Tech as we plan to make our 1.7 million square foot mixed-use development a vibrant hub for great entrepreneurs and technology companies in Tampa Bay," Nicholas Haines, CEO of The Bromley Companies, said in a news release. Bromley is developing the 22-acre development, slated to open in January 2021. Tampa Bay Tech Software CEOs includes leading businesses, executives, and entrepreneurs in Tampa Bay's technology community.
