NewHavenBIZ

n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m | F e b r u a r y 2 0 2 1 | n e w h a v e n B I Z 23 P o w e r 2 5 pushing for them to be vaccinated against COVID-19 at the same time as workers deemed to be essential. In addition to advocacy, BioCT's mission is to grow the bioscience industry around the state through various strategies, such as supporting innovation, collaboration, networking and education. e organization fosters interest among students and young scientists at its incubator, Innovation Commons in Groton. Hocevar and BioCT also work to help startup and emerging bioscience companies grow in the state, and to recruit existing companies to move here, helping to boost the state's economy. Vlad Coric, CEO, Biohaven Pharmaceuticals Under Vlad Coric's leadership, Biohaven Pharmaceuticals is not only developing life-changing pharmaceuticals, it is attracting big names for marketing. Biohaven, which develops drugs for neurological conditions, launched its first commercial product in 2020 aer winning FDA approval for its migraine pill Nurtec ODT. Reality TV celebrities Khloé Kardashian of "Keeping up With the Kardashians" fame, has suffered from migraines, and has become a spokesperson for Nurtec ODT. More recently, the company hired former Beverly Hills 90210 star Tori Spelling to promote the drug. Biohaven is also growing. It recently acquired fellow Elm City biotech Kleo Pharmaceuticals, an immuno-oncology startup, and its Munson Street lab, in a $20 million stock deal. Coric's drug discovery and clinical development experience also includes work with Yale School of Medicine and Bristol-Myers Squibb. Coric led Biohaven's initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange, raising over $500 million in financing. Cindi Bigelow, President & CEO, Bigelow Tea Cindi Bigelow, president and CEO of Bigelow Tea Co. in Fairfield, is the third-generation CEO of the company started by her grandmother, Ruth Campbell Bigelow, in 1945. Bigelow Tea employs about 400 workers and makes 2 billion bags of tea in 150 flavors annually. Bigelow has been working to improve the company's sustainability, a core business value. In recent months, the company announced that all of its electricity is sourced from 100-percent renewable generation sources, such as wind and solar power. Under Bigelow's leadership, the company has grown its footprint and product lines in the past year. e company signed an eight- year lease for a 41,600-square-foot warehouse in Orange at 35 Executive Blvd. It plans to use the space to expand its storage and distribution capacity. is past summer, the company launched its Bigelow Botanicals Cold Water Infusion line. As with regular tea, the infusions include a bag for dipping, but in cold water instead of hot. e line comes in a range of flavors, such as watermelon cucumber mint. Steven Kaplan, President, University of New Haven Steven H. Kaplan, the University of New Haven's sixth president, has overseen its growth in both footprint and academic offerings. Since Kaplan started in his current role in 2004, graduate and undergraduate enrollment has grown more than 60 percent. e university has launched new academic programs to keep pace with changing technology, and it has completed more than $300 million worth of construction projects. Kaplan in 2016 helped launch a multimillion-dollar campaign to shape the university's future for the next century. In early 2020, the university launched its Samuel S. Bergami Jr. Cybersecurity Center, aimed at positioning it as a cybersecurity research and training destination. e campus' new $35 million Bergami Center for Science, Technology and Innovation features high-tech classrooms, engineering and science labs, video production studios, a makerspace and an esports training and competition space. Also this past year, the university announced plans to launch the Connecticut Institute of Technology. e goal, according to Kaplan, is to reinforce the university's standing as a destination for technology education and research. Bruce Becker, President, Becker + Becker Bruce Becker, president of Becker + Becker architects in Westport, is the developer behind the ongoing transformation of New Haven's landmark Pirelli building on Sargent Drive into a boutique hotel. Becker also developed the first luxury apartment skyscraper in New Haven, at 360 State St., a decade ago, a project that features a mix of apartments and ground-level shops. e Pirelli building, at 500 Sargent Dr., has been boarded up and empty, and work on transforming it into a hotel started in September. e building is formerly the home of Pirelli-Armstrong Tire Co., and it is well-known for its unique design, which seems to defy gravity. Becker anticipates it will be ready to open as the new Hotel Marcel New Haven later this year. Becker's firm seeks projects that are "environmental game changers," and the hotel will feature solar power. According to Becker, it will be the first net-zero energy hotel in the country. Alex Twining, CEO, Twining Properties Alex Twining is the developer behind New Haven's Winchester Works building at 115 Munson St., the first phase of his planned Winchester Center technology and life sciences campus at the site of the former Winchester Repeating Arms Co. factory. Winchester Center, as the campus has been named, could eventually include more than 1,000 apartments in addition to retail space, courtyards, and office and lab space, according to the developers. It is a busy future for a site vacated following the gun company's departure. Twining's company, Twining Properties, focuses on mixed-use urban developments, including sites that are close to mass transit, such as this one in New Haven. Twining is behind apartment complexes in several large metro areas, such as Boston and Cambridge. According to Twining, Science Park at Yale has become a "unique hub for innovation and discovery, where biotech businesses can grow and thrive." His company aims to attract more tenants to the space, with lab and office space specifically designed with bioscience companies in mind. Maysa Akbar, President, Integrated Wellness Group Maysa Akbar, president of Integrated Wellness Group, earned national recognition recently as the "Minority-Owned Small Business of the Year." When the U.S. Small Business Administration announced its 2020 Small Business Week Awardees, Akbar was among 10 honorees. Akbar, a clinical psychologist, author and healer, founded Integrated Wellness Group in New Haven 12 years ago. e business aims to promote mental health and wellness through holistic treatment. It provides therapy for adults, children, teens, couples and families. It also offers services such as reiki, massage therapy, art therapy and meditation. Akbar has written multiple books, including "Urban Trauma: A Legacy of Racism," and "Beyond Ally: e Pursuit of Racial Justice." Her work focuses on how people of color are existing in a state of crisis — due to conditions like poverty, violence, drug abuse and poor housing — which continue oppression today. She also provides keynote addresses, webinars, workshops, training and coaching aimed at helping others be successful. Continued on page 24

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