Hannah Welk

Los Angeles

Editor-in-Chief at Los Angeles Business Journal

Reporter @LABJnews, @USC alum and Chicago native.

Articles

Caruso Tackles Rebuilding L.A.

3 weeks ago | labusinessjournal.com | Hannah Welk

Real estate developer. University of Southern California board member. Civic leader. These are just a few titles that billionaire Rick Caruso currently holds. Lewis Horne, president of advisory services for greater Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire, has known Caruso since attending USC, where they were both involved with Greek life. Even then, Horne said people looked up to Caruso as a leader.
JetZero Sees Flying Wing Plane Demand

1 month ago | labusinessjournal.com | Hannah Welk

The future of commercial aviation could be taking shape inside a hangar next to Long Beach Airport. This is where Long Beach startup JetZero Inc. is developing a “flying wing” aircraft that’s shaped like a B-2 Stealth Bomber, can seat up to 250 passengers and fly across the country using up to 50% less fuel. If successful, the new plane would mark the first fuel-efficient aircraft to hit the mainline commercial aviation market.
OpEd: Film Incentives Must Go Further

1 month ago | labusinessjournal.com | Hannah Welk

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposal to double the California production incentive to $750 million may sound like a lifeline to an industry in need, but to those of us in who have seen up-close the jobs bleed to other states and countries for over two decades, it falls somewhere between “too little, too late” and “better late than never.” As 35-year industry veterans, we share the Governor’s call for action that is “big and bold.” But the devil is in the details.
SimpleClosure Helps Startups Shutter Operations

1 month ago | labusinessjournal.com | Hannah Welk

The tech sector can’t seem to catch a break. After a decade of climbing valuations and billion-dollar funding rounds, companies came crashing down post-pandemic. Venture funding dried up, thousands of startups shut down between 2022 and 2024, and mass layoffs hit large, trillion-dollar tech behemoths. Now amid tariffs originated by the Trump Administration, companies are bracing for the ripple effects that may impact their bottom line.
Rainmaker Raises a $25 Million Series A Round

1 month ago | labusinessjournal.com | Hannah Welk

In 1964, Soviet astronomer Nikolai Kardashev proposed a scale to determine humanity’s level of technological advancement based on how much energy they could tap into. Type 1 civilizations ought to be able to harness and wield all the energy available on the planet – from solar energy to unknown, untapped sources of renewable energy.
Order Mandates VA to House 6K Vets

1 month ago | labusinessjournal.com | Hannah Welk

President Donald Trump invoked an executive order earlier this month aimed at increasing housing for homeless veterans in Los Angeles. The mandate seeks to establish housing for 6,000 veterans at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center by 2028. Renaming the facility the National Center for Warrior Independence, the president said he wants to restore the previous housing capacity of the campus, which was roughly around 5,000 veterans in the early 1950s.
Sunny Buys Fitness Co.

1 month ago | labusinessjournal.com | Hannah Welk

City of Industry-based seller of fitness equipment, Sunny Health & Fitness, has acquired U.K.-based JLL Fitness for an undisclosed sum. The purchase is expected to help Sunny grow its global footprint. “This partnership unites two established industry leaders with a shared commitment to making fitness more accessible, quality driven and empowering,” a press release announcing the sale said.
Guo Discusses Passes and Content Creators

1 month ago | labusinessjournal.com | Hannah Welk

Lucy Guo will unseat Taylor Swift as the world’s youngest self-made woman billionaire, thanks to a tender offer that valued the company she co-founded, Scale AI Inc., at $25 billion, according to Forbes magazine. Her new title doesn’t come without its setbacks. Her road to entrepreneurship involved dropping out of college – a success story for the likes of Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg. Yet it’s a substantial risk for a first-generation Asian American.
LABJ Insider: Cal Lutheran Names President

1 month ago | labusinessjournal.com | Hannah Welk

Last week, Thousand Oaks-based California Lutheran University named John Nunes as its ninth president. He had been the school’s interim president since June. He assumes the new role on June 1. “Dr. Nunes has demonstrated his commitment to Cal Lutheran’s mission and our students every single day since his appointment as interim president, and the board is excited to have him join us on a longer-term basis,” said Board of Regents Chair Ann Boynton.
Longpoint Buys Grand Covina Plaza for $25M

1 month ago | labusinessjournal.com | Hannah Welk

Longpoint Partners, a real estate private equity firm based in Boston,purchased the Grand Covina Plaza in the San Gabriel Valley for $25 million in a deal that closed May 16. The 111,975-square-foot grocery-anchored retail center is home to a Stater Bros Market, Dollar Tree, KFC, 7-Eleven and O’Reilly Auto Parts and is currently at 89% occupancy.