Thank you for being one of the first readers of the CT Business Weekly! We really appreciate the support after our first edition last week.
If you like what you see, it would mean a lot to us if you share this newsletter with a few friends or colleagues who might be interested.
This week’s header photo and the one from last week are by Rusty Watson on Unsplash.
The Breakdown
Headlines from around CT
Housing Market Activity on the Rise
This has been a prolific July for the issuance of new Connecticut housing permits. According to the Department of Economic and Community Development, there was a 10.5 percent increase from last year which resulted in the highest total since 2015.
According to the CT Post, New Haven was the community with the most new permits issued and Westport was second. The Post also noted that properties with five or more units comprised nearly 58 percent of all new housing permits issued.
“Connecticut has seen an uptick in demand temporarily due to COVID-19,” Donald Klepper-Smith, chief economist and director of research for New Haven-based DataCore Partners, said. “That’s because, in this kind of environment, home means everything.”
Mystic Aquarium to Import 5 Beluga Whales
It looks like one of the top tourist destinations in the state is getting a few new guests from Canada. This may seem like a cute story but read on to find out how government agencies, external forces, and scientific interests collided to arrive at this outcome.
Over 1,100 CT Businesses Closed Due to COVID-19
Yelp data from March 1 - July 10 revealed that 1,162 businesses in Connecticut shut down, either permanently or temporarily, due to the pandemic. Yelp reported that over 132,000 businesses nationwide closed their doors at some point.
Legislators Ask Lamont to Reopen Job Centers
While economic recovery is occurring on a macro level, many are still struggling to find work after losing their jobs. The Day pointed out that non-farm employment in the Norwich-New London-Westerly region has decreased significantly more than the rest of the state compared to last year. For that reason, local legislators are asking Governor Ned Lamont to reopen the American Job Centers, including the one in Montville which serves this area.
This may not be crucial for business, but we would deeply regret not sharing the most exciting news in Connecticut this week.
36 Connecticut Businesses Earn Place on Inc. 5000
From CT by the Numbers: “Three of the 36 Connecticut business earned a slot in the top 500 – software company Diameter Health, based in Farmington, was ranked at number 334. Financial services firm Eastern Asset Funding, headquartered in Greenwich, was number 396, and Green Street Power Partners, an energy company in Stamford, was number 448. Also reaching the top 1,000 fastest-growing companies was Ecochlor, a North Haven manufacturing company.
MGM Springfield to Lay Off 1,000
Though this casino is in Massachusetts, it’s right over the border and surely there are folks living in Connecticut affected by this. For local businesses, it could mean decreased spending in the area and more people now actively in the job market.
Amazon Opens 2nd Wallingford Facility
“Over the last decade, Amazon says it's created more than 8,500 full and part-time jobs,” in Connecticut, the Hartford Business Journal reported.
Startup Spotlight
See Click Fix
SeeClickFix makes software to help cities collect and address citizen requests. Their goal is to create stronger communities and more efficient governments.
From a Fast Company write up highlighting SeeClickFix as an innovator in the civic tech space:
“New Haven resident Ben Berkowitz created the SeeClickFix app to allow locals to quickly report non-emergency issues (broken meters and streetlights, potholes, and even excessive noise from ice-cream trucks). Officials can track, manage, and reply within the app. It has since expanded to some 300 municipalities across the country.”
That client list includes the cities of New Haven, CT, Bridgeport, CT, Burlington, VT, Albany, NY, Oakland, CA, and Cambridge, MA, among others in Connecticut and across the nation. SeeClickFix has even helped New Haven and other cities in their pandemic response efforts.
The company now has around 40 employees and keeps its offices in downtown New Haven, where Berkowitz also runs MakeHaven.
Bookmark for Later
A national trend or piece of news worth keeping in mind
Inside Uber and Lyft's fight over gig worker status
Labor law, research, and advocacy is adopting a skeptical view of independent contractors because of the potential for exploitation.
On-demand service providers such as Uber and Lyft will be the example many point to in this ongoing national debate, but construction, manufacturing, healthcare, and many other industries use similar models that may need revising as policies begin to change.
Notable Non-Profit
The Hartford Foundation for Public Giving describes its mission as “committed to bringing together resources, both human and financial, to improve the lives of all residents.”
HFPG runs a variety of community development programs, including a COVID-19 fund and support system for area non-profits focused on leadership development, grant writing, and research. Their work is meant to serve seven distinct outcome areas, including student progress, employment opportunity, basic human needs, and civic engagement, among others.
Anyone interested in supporting these causes and more can subscribe to their newsletter or donate here.
Trivia
Did you know that manufacturing represents a healthy portion of Connecticut’s economy?
While many are quick to write it off or say it’s an outdated industry, manufacturing accounts for over 11% of the state’s GDP and 9.5% of its workforce, according to the National Association of Manufacturers, citing the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis data. Based on most measures, it’s the third-largest industry in Connecticut behind finance/insurance and real estate.
Upcoming Events
In normal times, this section will contain a listing of events (networking, conferences, etc.) around the state. For now, we’re posting online events that may be of interest and a handful of in-person events for broader interests.
Now until Monday, August 31 - Bridgeport Regional Business Council Community Bingo -"Print It, Shop & Support Local, Return It, Win Prizes" while supporting the business communities of Bridgeport, Stratford, and Trumbull, 20 prizes available! You do not need to be a BRBC member to play.
Tuesday, September 1, 8:30 a.m. - Automating Anything with Zapier, hosted by Digital Media Sync and KNOWN coworking
Tuesday, September 1, 12 p.m. - Alexis Boylan, Director of Academic Affairs at the Humanities Institute of the University of Connecticut, discusses her book Visual Culture
Tuesday, September 1, 8 p.m. - Race, Politics and Sports w/ Doug Glanville: A CT Mirror Special Event
Wednesday, September 2, 5:30 p.m. - Planning, Economic Development, and Housing Committee Meeting
Wednesday, September 2, 5:30 p.m. - Bushnell Park: Picnic in the Park September Kick-Off - this is a 3-week series where picnic-goers can support local restaurants and other small businesses!
Thursday, September 3, 10:30 a.m. - Product Management Live Chat with Google
Friday, September 4, 5 p.m. - Pratt Street Patio performances: Orice Jenkins
If you found this newsletter from social media or a friend emailed it to you, we’d love to have you join our community as a subscriber!
Why We Launched the CT Business Weekly
Keeping up with the news can make a big difference in a working professional’s performance and their company’s bottom line, especially in these rapidly changing times.
We want to help you make better, more informed decisions on a week-to-week basis.
Our team at Connect Media runs two sports news sites and also covers workplace trends for a national business publication. We do social media, blogging, web copy, and research writing for small business and non-profit clients as well. There were a few observations from these experiences that led us to launch the CT Business Weekly.
First, very few people have the time to read all of the relevant news in their field. There is no simple way to stay on top of trends in the local regulatory environment, labor supply, and consumer markets. These are going to be three focus areas of our coverage and eventual reporting.
Second, traditional media is limited in its ability to provide thorough, informative business journalism. Cuts over the past few decades have decimated newsrooms, with local coverage being hit particularly hard. Today, one would be hard-pressed to find a website that serves as the “front page” of Connecticut business news. We’re hoping to fill that role for the roughly 1.8 million people working in this state.
If you ever have a topic of interest or feedback, please feel free to email: aman.kidwai@goconnectmedia.com.