FAIRFIELD COUNT Y
BUSINESS JOURNAL
YOUR ONLY SOURCE FOR LOCAL BUSINESS NEWS • westfaironline.com ALEXANDER Bob Rozycki SOULE
Vol 48, No. 26 • June 25, 2012
FCBJ TODAY Angel tax credit spurs sixfold increase in startup investments … 3
Charged up Malloy touts energy efficiency in restoring state’s top ranking BY ALEXANDER SOULE
casoule@westfairinc.com
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A small investment in small business on Main Street … 7
s Gov. Dannel P. Malloy sees it, Connecticut can soon recover the once-lofty reputation for energy efficiency it has since ceded to California and Massachusetts. He might get the state there quicker by setting his sights on the Bay State’s new as-of-right siting policy, which allows towns to designate districts for alternative energy projects to give developers expedited approval for their projects. While Stamford has an energy improvement district with a similar goal, Connecticut has yet to roll out the concept statewide as Massachusetts has. In a speech this month to a Stamford gathering of the Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Malloy said his goal is to have
In the field: new HealthyCT insurance plan gets $76M … 8 Gold coastal property: Greenwich office building sold … 11
How ‘bout a business that has 500,000 people spending 25 bucks a pop? 17 The two stresses on corporate philanthropy … 18 The list: do-gooders … 16 Also … “Our strategy in Connecticut is to unleash the power of private capital … We want to trigger and support a technology race.” 4
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Charged up, page 6
Europe calling?
Tom Indoe samples some of Newman’s Own skillet meals at the company’s Westport offices during a taste test.
Overseas manufacturers eye state peers, governor hints
On every shelf – but not for sale BY ALEXANDER SOULE
casoule@westfairinc.com
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alad dressing makers, it turns out, benefited in the recession as diners restocked their refrigerators rather than going out to eat. With the biggest companies in the industry scouting acquisitions, according to one market research firm, Paul Newman’s handpicked man has this message: Newman’s Own is not for sale. Given the company’s motto – “Shameless exploitation in the pursuit of common good” –
Newman’s Own occupies its own unique niche in the American consumer-product landscape as it readies to give out $30 million to charitable causes in its 30th year of operation. But it bears reminding that Unilever scooped up Ben & Jerry’s, which itself had a singular corporate do-good ethic. Only in 1999, the year before the UnileverBen & Jerry’s deal, Newman had voiced concern about the increased competition from bigger On every shelf, page 6
BY ALEXANDER SOULE
casoule@westfairinc.com
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ov. Dannel P. Malloy is forecasting not just a rebound in local manufacturing – he is predicting European companies will soon announce acquisitions of Connecticut precision manufacturers to get a prefab U.S. production line. Speaking at a Hartford conference in midJune co-sponsored by the Connecticut Business & Industry Association, Malloy did not say whether he knew of specific deals already in the works. Europe calling?, page 6
Stamford’s downtown draw • 2