Hartford Business Journal

G R E AT E R H A R T F O R D ' S B U S I N E S S N E W S w w w. H a r t f o rd B u s i n e s s . c o m For more B2B news visit MAY 9, 2016 Volume 24, Number 23 $3.00 Subscribe online JUNE 9, 2016 Only 4 WEEKS until C T B E x p o . c o m 1 6 T H A N N U A L Index ■ Reporter's Notebook: PG. 5 ■ Week in Review: PG. 6 ■ Focus: PG. 8 ■ The List: PGS. 10 ■ Deal Watch: PG. 12 ■ Movers & Shakers: PG. 18 ■ Opinion & Commentary: PG. 20 FOCUS: BUSINESS OF SPORTS Fighter's Resolve Former insurance professional turned entrepreneur Kipp Kollar has built a multi-million-dollar business hosting grappling tournaments around the world. PG. 8 Ice Cream Royalty A third-generation ice cream manufacturer in Manchester has withstood the test of time, peddling frozen treats to customers as distant as China. PG. 3 UConn seeks millions for Hartford campus naming rights By Gregory Seay gseay@HartfordBusiness.com W hen UConn's downtown Hartford campus bows in 16 months, one deep-pocketed individ- ual or corporate donor can take advantage of a rare fundraising opportunity and name its main courtyard. Donation: $1 million. Too steep? Well, for $500,000 apiece, a few donors can label a new lecture hall, or, for $300,000 less, a computer lab. For $25,000 you can name any one of several reception areas, or a break room for $15,000. In all, the UConn Foundation, the non- profit fundraising and support affiliate of the state's flagship university, has identified naming-rights' opportunities covering 39 rooms and spaces in exchange for dona- tions ranging from $15,000 to $1 million — nearly $7 million in all — at its 117,087-square-foot, $115-million center-city campus. Currently under renovation and construction, the former Hart- ford Times building on Prospect Street will anchor the downtown campus set to formally open in time for the start of fall classes CT docs join lawsuit frenzy against medical- waste giant By Matt Pilon mpilon@HartfordBusiness.com T wo West Hartford physicians have filed a class-action lawsuit accusing one of the country's largest medical-waste dis- posal service providers of illegally jacking up service fees. But they aren't alone. The April 28 complaint against Illinois- based Stericycle — filed by Drs. Murray Well- ner and Harvey Hameroff — comes on the heels of at least 18 similar class-action suits that have been filed in multiple states against the $8-billion public company over the past three years, according to court records. Wellner and Hameroff's complaint, which seeks class-action status, estimates there could be thousands of Stericycle customers in Con- necticut, including physicians, dentists, vet- erinarians, pharmacies and other businesses that generate medical waste, whose aggregate claims against the company exceed $5 million. At the heart of the Connecticut suit, and those that preceded it, is the contention that Stericycle's customer-service agreements were deceptive or misleading. The contracts — several examples have been filed in federal court — list a flat monthly, quar- terly or annual service fee on the front page. But further into the agreement, the fine print says Ste- ricycle has the right to change pricing to account for specific scenarios, such as rising operational costs, or to comply with changes in law. The lawsuits argue that Stericycle routinely Needles are among the medical waste collected by Stericycle. P H O T O | S T E V E C A R R O L L — S T O C K . A D O B E . C O M Continued on page 14 Continued on page 16 Michael Hurley, head of ROI Sports & Entertainment Donors can get their name adorned to UConn's new Hartford campus at the Hartford Times Building. H B J P H O T O | G R E G B O R D O N A R O Name Worth WHAT'S A ?

• Cover