Jan Norman

Register to install online paywall

ocregister.com — The Orange County Register is launching an online paywall, which means that readers who want to browse the newspaper online must buy a subscription or pay a daily rate to have access to the website beginning next week. A limited amount of content such as weather, traffic, movie listings, the calendar of events and headlines of local news stories will remain free.

Building company culture

ocregister.com — Anand Gala got his first taste of the restaurant industry at age 11, when he stood on a milk crate to operate the cash register and deep fryer in one of the 12 Jack in the Box franchises his mother owned. Today, at 39, he owns Costa Mesa-based Gala Corp., franchisee of 18 Applebee's and nine Famous Dave's restaurants.

Big idea conference yields wide variety of firms

ocregister.com — Richard Loewe makes a device that automatically regulates tire pressure. Gareth Pronovost has an appliance to chill beer as it pours. Franck Boistel is making sandals based on original Aztec designs. Nicholas Hu has a wireless brain pressure monitor. They are just four of the approximately 200 entrepreneurs who answered a call seeking the best business idea in Southern California.

Why the dour mood, entrepreneurs?

ocregister.com — Tim Telles and his wife, Trenny, opened the Tribeca hair salon in Aliso Viejo in early 2007, just as the Orange County economy was starting to slide. They planned to rent space to other stylists to meet their operating costs, but it took more than five years to do so.

Aching feet inspire O.C. entrepreneur

ocregister.com — Fashionable shoes can be a pain. Christina Prandini merely wanted, but couldn't find, some type of padding to ease the discomfort but keep the fashion. When a friend who worked at a mattress manufacturer showed her a piece of bedding gel, her first thought was how nice it would feel on her feet.

How O.C. entrepreneurs got started

ocregister.com — Sam Nelson and Valerie Stowski started their own businesses after being laid off in the recession. Kimberly Anderson and Suzanne Grayson turned their long-time professional skills into companies that reflect their personal styles. These four new business owners exemplify Orange County's entrepreneurial enterprises that have grown despite a deep recession and slow economic recovery.