The company that invites you to "discover your perfect wedding" has found its perfect home - in Downtown Escondido.

Trademark Venues, an event planning company that owns and operates several of the region's most storied and exclusive wedding venues, has taken up shop in the former Draper's and Damon's building at the southeast corner of Grand Avenue and Broadway in the heart of downtown.

They are also opening a bridal boutique in the adjacent space this month.

The company is one of the hottest names in the wedding planning industry. Recently, "Bachelor in Paradise" alumni Chris Randone and Krystal Nielsen celebrated their engagement with a lavish party held at Ethereal Gardens, one of Trademark's signature venues. 

The company's representatives said they are proud to call Escondido the home base of the operations, which includes wedding venues in Escondido, San Marcos and a future location in Bonsall. 

"We saw the building and we absolutely fell in love with it," said Kevin MacGregor, Trademark Venue's marketing director. "We see the growth and potential and how downtown is changing so much and we wanted to add to that."

What they do

From outside the Grand Avenue storefront on a Wednesday morning, you can see the hustle and bustle inside of the newly refurbished building, as members of the coordination team get set to meet with clients to go over the details of their dream wedding. 

Trademark specializes in what MacGregor called "handcrafted weddings" - a wedding planning experience that seeks to create a deeply personal wedding day, and a process that touches on everything from dance lessons to wine tastings and every step in between.

At the center of the process are the venues:

• Ethereal Gardens, located on a 40-acre organic farm on the upper reaches of Escondido which the website describes as "an 'out of the box' venue that is completely private and not just another golf course, winery, banquet hall or hotel. Here we are open to creative ideas and outside vendors such as florists, photographers, photo booths, food trucks and so much more."
• Green Gables, the iconic hilltop venue along near Woodland Parkway in San Marcos, described on the website as an "enchanting secluded wonderland. In the shade of a lush, landmark forest, this historic garden estate is surrounded by ivy-covered arbors, blooming rose gardens, trickling fountains, picturesque statuary, and thousands of bright twinkling lights."
• The Twin Oaks House and Gardens, which features a fully restored 1891 historic home along Deer Springs Road in San Marcos, described as a "secluded vintage venue that features artistic and poetic gardens inspired by love, imagination and tranquility."

Couples start their journey with Trademark by touring each of the three venues. Once they select a venue and reserve a date, the journey begins.

"We handcraft the wedding and tailor it to make your perfect day," MacGregor said. "We see the venues as the backdrop and help the couple decorate it as they've seen it in their dreams."

That includes the road to the wedding, where Trademark offers custom wedding packages tailored to each couple. This includes dinner-style options, the colors, the furniture, props, dance lessons, wine and food tastings, the decor and more. 

"Whether you are accenting our orchard barn, brick and timber chapel, starry night meadow, nature pond, English garden, cut stone fireplace, passion vine greenhouse, garden pergola, tree house, turn post gazebo or historic forest. at Trademark we have your perfect backdrop," MacGregor said. 

And Trademark offers total privacy and exclusivity with each wedding - they only book one event per day, and couples have the venue for nearly 12 hours. 

"We don't want you rushing on your special day, it is 100 percent your venue for the day," MacGregor said. 

A home in Escondido

For most of its existence, Trademark's wedding coordinators and client relations staff have operated on-site at the venues, but MacGregor said that company CEO Karen Sherman envisioned a hub that would serve as home base.

Enter downtown Escondido, where the location of the iconic Draper's and Damon's women's clothing store had been vacant since April 2017.

It was love at first sight, MacGregor said. 

"We specialize in taking historic landmark properties, like Green Gables and Twin Oaks, and paying tribute to their history," MacGregor said. "We fully understand and appreciate that we are taking care of the building," MacGregor said. "Jay Leno once said about his collection of cars that he didn't own them, but was merely taking care of them for the next owner, and that's how we feel about the building."

Inside, the building bursts with new life, the showroom full of shimmering chandeliers, tables adorned with sleek champagne flutes and wedding decor and other props showcasing the company's wares. 

MacGregor said that the business has been well received by neighbors, the Chamber of Commerce, the Downtown Escondido Business Association, and the City of Escondido.

"Everything is easy when it's meant to be," MacGregor said. "It's been all smiles and everyone has been very welcoming and helpful."

MacGregor said that from a personal perspective, the rebirth of Escondido's historic core is profound. 

"I grew up in Carlsbad, and I couldn't believe how much Escondido has changed the past few years," MacGregor said. 

And employees have been well-received downtown, as they frequent spots like the Burger Bench and Kettle Coffee & Tea in large groups, boosting the local economy.

"We can directly see our footprint in downtown and are excited to see where it leads," MacGregor said. "And I am a car guy, so Cruisin' Grand is a nice treat on Friday nights."

Additionally, MacGregor said, in each city where Trademark has a venue, it actively promotes local vendors to its clients.

Escondido's economic development manager Michelle Geller praised the addition of Trademark to downtown, which she said complements a number of existing businesses, potentially making Downtown Escondido a one-stop shop for the couples planning their big day.

"Trademark Venues' new location on a prominent corner at Broadway and Grand is a great addition to our downtown," Geller said. "There are many complementary businesses nearby like Something Old, Something New Bridal Boutique, The Grand Tea Room and SIP Wine & Beer. I can definitely see future brides, grooms and their friends making a day of it in Downtown Escondido while they plan their big day."

Escondido is proud to be the new home of Trademark Venues and looks forward to their continued growth and success. 

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The outdoor flea-market style events drive thousands of people to local streets for the vendors, food, music acts, and activities, but street vendors - not the shops - historically benefit from the foot traffic.

In Downtown Escondido, a small, but significant change to its semi-annual Grand Avenue Festival has made the street fair a win-win for local businesses and outdoor vendors alike.

Rather than lining the streets with vendors in front of the businesses, which is usually the case at street fairs, the fair's organizers moved the booths to both sides of the center median running down Grand Avenue between Centre City Parkway and Ivy Street, leaving the sidewalks and storefronts visible to visitors.

Grand Avenue Festival organizers piloted the change at the October 2018 installment to rave reviews and record sales days from shops and restaurants. They are ready for an even bigger reception at the spring installment on Sunday, May 19.

"We found it to be a huge success and a welcomed relief for a lot of businesses," said Chris Cochran, marketing and development director for the Escondido Chamber of Commerce. "Our goal now is to have that redesign in perpetuity. We're not going back to the old way."

How successful was the new setup? Just ask Ray Alto, owner of La Tapatia Mexican restaurant, which sits near the western edge of the festival between Orange Street and Escondido Boulevard. 

Alto's restaurant got so busy during the October Grand Avenue Festival, that they ran out of many items on the menu.

"Carne asada burritos were really popular that day, and by the afternoon, we couldn't make anymore," Alto said. "When the booths were on the sidewalks, people couldn't walk through, so we were covered up. By putting them in the middle of the street, the sidewalk was open and a lot of business came our way. It was one of our best days ever."

Alto wasn't alone: Cochran said that Susy Q's Diner, Rosie's Cafe, Plan 9 Alehouse and several other businesses also posted record sales days.

"It was a huge success that was welcomed by the Downtown Business Association and its merchants," Cochran said.

Alex MacLachlan is the president of the Escondido Downtown Business Association, which represents the historic core's merchants. 

MacLachlan said the association has spread the word to businesses about the new-found opportunity at their quarterly merchant meetings and through other communications. 

Some businesses would shutter their doors during the festival, concerned they would lose money staying open, MacLachlan said. Now, however, businesses are seeing opportunities with the sidewalks open and their storefronts visible. 

"We let them know that it's a good chance to reach out to new customers and to find ways to attract attention to their businesses," MacLachlan said. "We advocate for the merchants, and part of that is to let them know that this is going on, so we are still trying to get the world out that this is a big opportunity twice a year to get new customers and hopefully repeat business."

The revamped format has been in the works since 2017 when the business association and Chamber of Commerce approached the fair's contract operator, Kennedy and Associates, with the idea, which MacLachlan said drew out of inspiration from the Adams Avenue Street Fair in San Diego.

"We wanted to make it a positive for our merchants and we experienced that at the Adams festival, where we saw ice cream shops, restaurants, and other merchants participating, doing displays out on the sidewalk," MacLachlan said. "It was a good vibe and really easy for us to do that in Escondido, and we felt it would be super positive for the merchants when they got used to it and trusted that it would be a good opportunity for them."

To accomplish the logistical shift, the organizers got approval from the city to expand the street closure from Juniper to Ivy Street to the east and close a segment of Escondido Boulevard and Broadway. 

The new format is also a hit with the vendors, Cochran said: the Chamber Commerce has received 50 more vendor requests than the previous installment in the fall.

"It's growing, and I think a lot of people are excited about the direction in which the fair is headed," he said. 

The Grand Avenue Festival, previously known as the Grand Avenue Street Faire, is rooted in a pair of longtime festivals that occurred in the city's historic downtown - a fall arts fair run by the city and the Felicita Foundation and a spring festival put on by the business association. 

When the city and foundation turned their attention towards completing the California Center for the Arts, they turned to the Chamber of Commerce to keep their fair going. And in the early 1990s, a city committee recommended the chamber and business association merge the two events into the semi-annual affair that continues to this day.

Today, visitors - organizers expect as many as 25,000 over the course of the day - can walk up and down six blocks of historic Escondido, perusing and shopping more than 400 vendors for unique hand-crafted gifts and imports, enjoying international cuisine and catching local entertainment on the Maple Street Plaza and Chase Bank lawn stages. 

For the kids, there's the Creative Kids Corner at Juniper & Grand, and fine arts aficionados can enjoy the Art in the Garden at Heritage Garden.  And for the furry, four-legged friend, there are the Dogs on the Lawn at the Chase lawn area on Grand & Orange, where dogs - and their two-legged companions - can compete in contests to win some fantastic prizes provided by PetSmart Escondido.

And of course, on either side of Grand and along the street fair route are the businesses - doors wide open, ready and inviting customers to enjoy downtown.

If you go:

Details: The Grand Ave Festival, Escondido, takes place in our historic downtown on Grand Ave from Center City to Ivy. You'll be able to shop from hundreds of vendors for unique hand-crafted gifts and imports, and enjoy international cuisine, local entertainment, and much more! Such as the Creative Kids Corner at Juniper & Grand, and Art in the Garden at Heritage Garden! And be sure to bring your furry, four-legged friend to the Chase lawn area (Grand & Orange) for the Dogs On The Lawn contests to win some fantastic prizes provided by PetSmart Escondido!

Events all summer

Please make sure to visit the Visit Escondido special events calendars for the latest happenings in Escondido, including these upcoming events:

The San Dieguito River Park JPA is celebrating 30 years of environmental preservation, recreation, and education. Join us for the San Dieguito River Park 15k / 5k / 1k / Tot Trot trail runs!  Race will be held on trails that are mostly flat with some rolling hills. Courses are a mixture of trails, sidewalk, and hard pack dirt trails. Both events in partial view of Lake Hodges and the beautiful San Dieguito River Park area. 5 Years and under FREE with parent entered.

This free community event features rockin' live music, fabulous food vendors, and a wealth of children's activities and games for everyone to enjoy. The day's festivities will conclude with a special performance by the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing Band and, of course, dazzling fireworks display starting at 9:00 p.m. You won't want to miss this annual North County tradition!

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When you pour a glass and taste one of Vesper Vineyards' wines, Alysha Stehly wants you to taste San Diego.

A fourth-generation farmer, Alysha and her husband Chris Broomell is the duo behind the Escondido business.

For nearly 20 years, TransPower has been on the cutting edge of zero-emission, clean-tech heavy-duty powertrain technology - in short, creating electric-powered big rigs. 

Earlier in April, the company announced a major breakthrough - the completion of two multi-year projects in which they and one of the company's major investors successfully developed, tested, and evaluated advanced zero-emission electric yard tractors and Class 8 trucks. 

The success of the demonstration project puts TransPower one step closer towards the commercialization of cost-effective, environmentally friendly powertrain technology, said Joshua Goldman, TransPower's vice president of sales and marketing. 

"It's an honor after many years, many of us having worked for 20 years on zero-emission power train technologies, to be on the cusp of the commercialization of environmentally friendly drivetrain technology," Goldman said. "The biggest advantage of the technology is zero tailpipe emissions and the affordability of that homegrown electric fuel, and by going to zero emissions, our fleet partners are able to fuel their vehicles on site, operate vehicles in a clean and quiet environment, and help the branding of their company, given the strong sustainable message that zero-emission trucks provide."

TransPower's projects were funded in part by a $6 million grant from the California Energy Commission under its Alternative and Renewable Fuels and Vehicle Technologies Program, as well as investment from Meritor, Inc. (NYSE: MTOR), a leading manufacturer of axles and brake systems.

Yard tractors, commonly referred to as yard dogs, are semi-tractors that are used at locations such as cargo yards and warehouses to haul semi-trailers short distances. 

The electric yard tractors built under the recently concluded demonstration projects are operating at Dole Fresh Fruit's terminal at the Port of San Diego; the IKEA Distribution Center in Tejon; Grimmway Farms and Harris Ranch in the San Joaquin Valley; and Blue Diamond Almonds and Raley's in Sacramento. They have already accumulated more than 15,000 drive hours, a huge step towards validating that the electric drive trains can handle the workload of their gas-powered counterparts. 

The project's success has brought TransPower major interest from some of the world's biggest players in the commercial truck manufacturers and parts suppliers, including Kalmar Ottawa, Peterbilt, O.E.M. Company, and Meritor, which increased its strategic investment in the company to accelerate the production of the trucks and yard tractors. 

TransPower has received grants and contracts to convert 100 additional yard tractors and trucks to electric drive for use in California. They've operated in Escondido since 2016, after moving from Poway, and Goldman said the company has really enjoyed its new home. 

"It's been a great place to integrate technology, the permitting and politics have been favorable, and we were able to find great facilities and get them for a reasonable price," Goldman said. "And it's close to the boss's house," referring to founder and CEO Mike Simon, who actually started TransPower in his Escondido garage.

Baker Electric 

With year-round sunshine and an environmentally conscious population, California has been at the forefront of the residential solar industry.

Originally, solar-powered homes were on the fringe of the mainstream, considered financially out of reach for most homeowners.

But over the years, falling prices of electrical solar power, financial incentives for homeowners and developers to install them, and government requirements to include them on new development (California is the first state to require solar power for all new homes beginning this year) spurred an explosion in the residential solar industry over the past 15 years.

In Escondido, longtime electrical contractor Baker Electric seized the opportunity, starting Baker Electric Solar in 2007. Today Baker Electric Home Energy has become one of Southern California's largest installers of residential solar panel systems and home batteries. 

"When you look back to some of the first residential solar customers, the early days, a lot of reasons people did it were environmentally driven, it was a very green movement," said Keith Randhahn, Baker Electric's Director of Engineering. "And that is still a motivation for a lot of the movement towards renewables. But beyond that, the financial return has helped the growth of the industry."

Randhahn said that the lower cost of solar energy and the ability now to capture energy in home batteries makes it a financially viable alternative to fossil fuel energy from the power grid.

"People are able to consume power and live the lifestyle they like, run the air conditioning in their home when they want and not feel guilty about it," Randhahn said. 

For Baker, a fourth-generation family-owned company that has been in business since 1938, the move into residential solar has proven to be a boon: the company's solar division has grown from a dozen employees in 2007 to more than 200 currently, and all of the electricians are union-trained, setting them apart from many of their competitors, Randhahn said. 

And the company practices what it preaches: in 2009, Baker installed an 85,000-watt rooftop installation that reduces the company's carbon dioxide emissions by 106 tons annually. Over 25 years, that's roughly the equivalent of planting 2,275 trees or taking 507 cars off the road. 

The company, which ranks No. 1 in market share in the Southern California service area, has installed over 10,000 residential solar systems. Recently, Baker Electric Home Energy hosted State Sen. Brian Jones, who learned about their growth, diversification, and the recent move into their new 50,000-square-foot division headquarters.

Escondido has been a perfect location, Randhahn said. 

"It's perfectly situated and central, which allows us to reach south Orange County, southwest Riverside County, and the Inland Empire and cover a pretty broad geographic territory," Randhahn said. "And it has a very business-friendly environment, sufficient workforce, and a well-educated population."

Bimbo Bakeries USA

When Lorenzo Servitje founded Mexican bakery Grupo Bimbo in 1945, he did it with an eye towards sustainability.

"It was his purpose to build a sustainable, highly productive, and deeply humane company," said Leslie Adebayo, the corporate sustainability manager for Grupo Bimbo's US company, Bimbo Bakeries USA. "The company still lives by that motto, our current CEO, Lorenzo's son, believes it is imperative that we focus on sustainability."

That commitment to environmental sustainability trickles down to each of the company's bakeries, including its Escondido location near Palomar Medical Center.  On March 28, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency presented the company with a certificate from its Energy Star Program after earning Energy Star certification at 14 of its facilities in 2018, including the Escondido bakery. 

This marks a record for the most facilities receiving Energy Star certification in one year across all industries. The certification signifies that the industrial plant performs in the top 25% of similar facilities nationwide for energy efficiency and meets strict energy efficiency performance levels set by Energy Star. 

The Escondido bakery will also likely receive recognition of its own in the next few months for completing the Energy Star Challenge for Industry, which calls on industrial sites to reduce their energy intensity by 10 percent within 5 years.

As one can expect, baking bread is an energy consuming task, using large amounts of natural gas and electricity in the baking process, Adebayo said. 

At the Escondido bakery and other locations, Bimbo has cut down on electrical usage by installing a system that shuts down the plant's system of conveyor belts - which are operated by 150 motors at any given time - when nothing is on the bakery line. 

"In a 24/7 operation, that adds up significantly," Adebayo said. "They have it at Escondido and are implementing it at every bakery. It's not always the easiest thing to implement, but Escondido was perfect, and the system has worked great."

The other big energy-saving addition at the Escondido plant came in 2017 by the way of a one-megawatt solar array. Covering the full roof area and some of the plant's covered parking, the system produces one-third of the power needed to operate the plant. 

"It has been a tremendous boon," Adebayo said. "The solar array helped us drop the energy by 10 percent, meeting the Energy Star Challenge."

Bimbo's sustainability mantra extends to its commitment to being good neighbors in the city in which they operate. 

In Escondido, Adebayo said, they produce a relatively low amount of waste and use a catalytic oxidizer that eliminates the "bread smell" - and associated carbon dioxide emissions - from escaping the plant.

"We've been good partners with the city," Adebayo said. 

The three businesses represent just a microcosm of the environmentally conscious firms and companies throughout the city - including the city itself. With the combined efforts, Escondido continues to do its part to leave the earth a little greener and a little better.

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From creating and maintaining systems to building new apps and infrastructures, software engineers can be found at nearly every company these days across every industry. And, with the rise of virtual reality, AI, and mobile and smart technology such as the Internet of Things, software engineers are at the forefront of some pretty exciting developments that promise to transform businesses. In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that there will be around 1.4 million more software development jobs in the country than applicants who can fill them in 2020. Institutions and other tech education programs can't seem to produce job candidates fast enough, resulting in the emergence of more coding schools, including one in Escondido. 

On February 27, hundreds gathered at the California Center for the Arts for the annual State of the City Address and City Council awards.

Each year, the council recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to improve the quality of life in Escondido through volunteer service. The city accepted nominations from the public, and a council subcommittee composed of John Masson and Michael Morasco narrowed down the nomination field to the group of nine winners.

This year, four of the nine honorees were businesses or business owners - William Toone of ECOLIFE Conservation, The Grand Tea Room's owners, Louisa and the late Bob Magoon, local landscape architect Glen Brouwer and Henry Avocado Corp.

"We are really fortunate to have such an engaged and active business community in Escondido," said Michelle Geller, the city's economic development manager. "The award recipients were selected for their invaluable contributions in the areas of conservation, business, service above self, and leadership."

ECOLIFE Conservation Efforts Get Council Nod

Imagine a world where man and nature coexist in harmony, where the improvement of human life and the protection of natural resources are not mutually exclusive.

This has been William Toone's vision for nearly four decades. In 2003, Toone, a conservation biologist, founded ECOLIFE Conservation with this noble goal as its mission.

Today, the Escondido-based nonprofit both educates and takes part in conservation and sustainability efforts across the globe: It educates thousands of children about sustainable agriculture practices and installs fuel-efficient stoves in poor communities in Mexico and Uganda that both improve the health and quality of life of the people who use them and protect the habitat of vulnerable species.

It was for this reason that the Escondido City Council presented Toone and ECOLIFE with the environmental conservation award during the Feb. 27 Escondido City Council Awards ceremony.

The honor has raised interest in the community in ECOLIFE's work, Toone said, and he welcomes the added exposure.

"It's a real honor," Toone said this week of the award. "The interesting thing is that in the short period of time since we've received it, it's made a big difference, as people have asked for more information about us.

"One of the challenging things with the organization is that we are 15 years old, but if you asked people if they have heard of ECOLIFE, the answer would most likely be no," Toone continued. "I believe the work we are doing is very important, and recognition like this helps spread the word. Without it, the word doesn't get out, and we would fail at our mission."

The Grand Tea Room: Business and Volunteerism

Nestled along a row of Grand Avenue storefronts in Downtown Escondido, the charming Grand Tea Room and its energetic owner Louisa Magoon have been fixtures in the city's core since opening in 2011.

Magoon started the business after years in the corporate side of the restaurant industry, drawing inspiration from similar tea rooms that she and her friends would frequent in south Orange County. While she searched around the county for a spot for her vintage-style tea house, she said her heart was set on opening in Escondido, her home for the past two decades.

"We lived in Escondido, and the thought of the Grand Tea Room on Grand Avenue seemed so cool," she said.

Louisa and her husband Bob landed the spot in early 2011 and opened the business in August of that year. It has been a hit ever since, as ladies and daughters come dressed in their dantiest attire and sip on tea and eat tiny cakes, sample marmalades, and buy memorabilia from the companion gift shop.

And the shop stays busy: on any given Saturday, more than 100 people will drop in or make reservations, Magoon said.

"We've gotten to the point where we've hosted bridal showers, and now we're hosting the baby showers for those brides," Magoon said. "I just really enjoy getting to know the customers."

Geller said that Louisa and her late husband Bob - who passed away in December after a long battle with cancer - received the business award not only for the success of the business, but their presence in the downtown business community.

"Not only does she run a successful business, she is very engaged with the Downtown Business Association, she's always donating to different events and volunteering her time and resources to the betterment of downtown," Geller said. "She is an example of a successful business, but she still volunteers so much of her time to help downtown Escondido."

Downtown Escondido, Magoon said, is a special place, and she enjoys being involved, getting to know her neighbors and fellow business owners, and giving back."It's been wonderful," she said about her involvement with the Downtown Business Association.

Magoon took time away during the bustling lunch hour to talk about the award, which she called a great honor."I feel honored, it didn't even occur to me that someone would nominate me," Magoon said. "But thank you, whoever that is."

Glen Brouwer: Service Above Self

There's an old saying: "If you're good at something, never do it for free."

Don't tell that to Glen Brouwer, a landscape architect who has called Escondido home for decades.

In early 2018, downtown merchants approached the city with a partnership opportunity to beautify Grand Avenue by purchasing trees, plants, and materials to replace the dying eucalyptus trees that lined the street.

The city was able to find funding to remove the trees, but the Downtown Business Association needed to find someone to design the new landscaping - at a steep discount.

Enter Brouwer, who owns Carlsbad-based Integration Design Studio Inc. Introduced to the city and the association by the city's landscaping contractor Steve Smith, Brouwer said the opportunity to give back to the community that he called home for all but a handful of years since moving to the United States from Canada as a child was too good to pass up.

He designed the landscaping for free.

"Glen stepped up and donated time and work creating a professional landscape plan for our medians along Grand Avenue," Geller said. "I don't know how much it would have cost to hire his firm. It probably would have put the project out of the realm of being able to do it."

His selfless act landed him the City Council award for "Service above Self."

Brouwer, who said he wishes he could do more work in his hometown, was surprised by the award."I was totally surprised, because I didn't do it for an award, I just saw it as an opportunity to give back in that way and help the Downtown Business Association," Brouwer said.  "I thought it was a good project to do, and it was something where I thought the DBA does great things for that area of Grand Avenue and I think that area needs some revitalization."

Henry Avocado: Staying True To Its Roots

Henry Avocado has deep roots in both Escondido and the avocado industry and continues to thrive today. The company just transitioned into a new headquarters, a packing and distribution center that it moved to in late 2018. The new 50,000-square-foot, two-story facility is 20 percent larger than the previous site. While remaining in Escondido, this move was made to accommodate the company's growth and to increase efficiency.

It was this choice to remain in Escondido that netted the company the biggest award of the day: Mayor Paul McNamara's Mayor's Award.

"The mayor recognizes the importance of the agricultural industry to Escondido, it's where our roots lie," Geller said. "Henry Avocado deciding to permanently put its headquarters here and expand was something the mayor really wanted to highlight. They are a family-owned business that has been here for a long time."

Staying in Escondido was a no-brainer for company president Phil Henry, who describes the city as having "a good business climate...and actually a good climate as well," he laughed.

Being located on Escondido's Harmony Grove Road gives the company a central location among its Southern California customers and easy access to Interstate 15 and Route 78. Henry Avocado was built on strong relationships with business associates and customers, which gives the company more reason to stay and grow in Escondido, according to Henry. Additionally, Escondido's economic development team is focused on expanding core industries like agriculture, making Henry Avocado's expansion one that fits within the City's strategic goals.

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