 | Mon. Sep. 26, 2011 Hancock will run ‘Who Knew’ ad campaign through December
Boston-based John Hancock Funds said it is extending its “Who Knew” advertising campaign through the end of the year. Featuring ads on TV, in print, and online, the campaign launched in February and was originally scheduled to run for six months, the company said. John Hancock has long engaged in brand advertising, but the “Who Knew” initiative is the first time that ads have focused specifically on the firm’s mutual funds. The campaign was created by Hancock’s long-time ad agency, Hill Holliday of Boston. RXi splits into two public companies
Worcester-based RXi Pharmaceuticals will split into two publicly traded companies. The first, called Galena Biopharma, will focus on developing targeted cancer therapies and will be headquartered in Portland, Ore. RXi will be spun off later this year and will continue to work on RNAi-based therapeutics --- the company’s original mission. RXi was founded around the work of Craig Mello, a professor of molecular medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and a Nobel Prize winner for his work in RNA interference. Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council announces merger
Two local organizations that help minority-owned businesses have agreed to merge. The organizations are the Initiative for a New Economy and the Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council. The merger is expected to be completed later this year. Plans call for council chief executive Fred McKinney to head the merged organization. The council recently received a $1.4 million grant from the US Department of Commerce to launch the Boston Business Center. Mass. gas prices drop 7 cents a gallon
The average price of gas in Massachusetts is $3.559 a gallon in the latest weekly survey from AAA, down 7 cents from the previous week’s average, AAA Southern New England said this morning. Local gas prices have now fallen 10 cents a gallon over the last two weeks. The national average for a gallon of gas is $3.49. A year ago at this time, the Massachusetts average price was $2.59 a gallon. The national average price for gas is $3.49. MassHousing closes loan for Lowell apartment complex
MassHousing, the state’s affordable housing bank, said that it has closed a $45 million loan for the acquisition and the preservation of the Westminster Village Arms apartments in Lowell. The buyer is Westminster Preservation LP, an affiliate of the Related Cos., MassHousing said. Of the 432 apartments, 400 are subsidized by a Section 8 Housing Assistance Payment contract, which was due to expire next May. As part of this financing, the owner secured a 20-year renewal and extension of the Section 8 contract. Menino to mark openings of four new Brighton businesses
Mayor Thomas M. Menino is scheduled tomorrow to mark the grand openings of four new businesses on Washington Street in Brighton that collectively have created more than 45 jobs. The businesses are Hoshi-Ya Japanese Restaurant, Naked Pizza, Treats on Washington Street, and Abbotts Frozen Custard. The businesses opened with $30,000 of investment from Brighton Main Streets and the city’s Office of Business Development; that seed money leveraged more than $700,000 in private investment, Menino’s office said. Horizon Beverage holds ground-breaking for Norton facility
Horizon Beverage Co., a distributor of wine, spirits, and beer, is holding a ground-breaking ceremony today for a new facility in Norton. When the facility is completed next year, Horizon will relocate its headquarters and operations center, along with nearly 400 jobs, to the new, larger site from its existing facility in Avon. Plans also call for Horizon to create 35 jobs. The site in Norton is a vacant former General Motors plant that Horizon purchased earlier this year. Dunkin’s international exec leaves after 4 months
Dunkin’ Brands, the Canton company that operates Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin-Robbins, said that its international president is leaving after four months on the job. Dunkin’ Brands declined to say why Neal Yanofsky is leaving, but a company spokesman said it was a “mutually and amicably reached decision.” The Harvard-educated Yanofsky joined Dunkin’ Brands in May to be the first president of international operations, reflecting the company’s desire to expand overseas. AMSC posts 1Q loss of $37.7 million, signs new deals
American Superconductor , the Devens company alleging that a Chinese maker of wind turbines was involved in the theft of its technology, reported a net first quarter loss of $37.7 million. First-quarter revenues were also down sharply . AMSC said the decline is due primarily to a lack of revenue from Sinovel Wind Group, a former Chinese customer that AMSC is alleging was involved with stealing its technology. AMSC said it has signed new contracts worth nearly $100 million. Forge creates ads for Dragon speech-recognition software
Boston ad agency Forge Worldwide said it has created a series of TV ads for the Dragon brand of speech-recognition software from Burlington-based Nuance Communications Inc. The campaign includes radio ads, online banner ads, and microsite updates as well as humorous TV spots. The campaign uses the tagline, “Bring Your Ideas To Life By Talking, Not Typing.” The ads are set to run this fall in Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Seattle, and San Francisco. Harvard endowment posts big investment gain
The Harvard endowment, the nation’s largest, earned 21.4 percent on investments for the fiscal year ending June 30. The endowment grew $4.6 billion to $32 billion and contributed about $1.5 billion to the university’s operating budgets. The Harvard investment performance was roughly in line with gains earned by other large funds tracked by consultant Wilshire Associates. It was Harvard’s second consecutive annual investment profit since the endowment suffered a sharp 27 percent loss it the university's's 2009 fiscal year. |
