Irvine-based enVVeno Medical Corp. (Nasdaq: NVNO) has appointed Jennifer Bright as chief financial officer.

Bright replaces previous CFO Craig Glynn.

“In addition to overseeing our financial strategy and operations, Jennifer will play a critical role in strengthening our financial infrastructure, supporting our commercialization efforts for VenoValve, and expanding our relationships with institutional investors and analysts,” Chief Executive Robert Berman said in a statement.

Bright, counting over 25 years of financial and strategic leadership experience, has worked at several medical device and pharmaceutical companies such as Biolase, Apria Healthcare and Smile Brands. She also holds technical accounting and auditing experience from PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.

Shares of the medical device maker, focused on the treatment of deep venous disease, were up 1.7% to $3.68 apiece with a market cap of $65 million during midday trading.

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Radio DJ PJ Ellis entertained the audience throughout the evening at the event, held at The Halls Wolverhampton, on Thursday June 5, and Express & Star photographer Steve Leath was on hand to capture the event on camera.

Check out our collection of images from the glittering evening which was attended by a host of special guests including Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands, and Wolverhampton West MP Warinder Juss MP.

Express & Star Business Awards 2025

The winners of the Express & Star Business Awards 2025 at The Halls, Wolverhampton

Richard Parker, West Midlands’ Mayor, at the Express & Star Business Awards 2025

Jan Jennings, on behalf of sponsors Richardson, presenting the Business Person of the Year Award won by John Joseph Donovan (JJX Logistics) – collected on his behalf by colleagues

Small Business of the Year Award presented by former E&S business editor Simon Penfold to winners Bowers & Jones

Express & Star Business Awards 2025 at The Halls Wolverhampton

Host PJ Ellis at the Express & Star Business Awards 2025 at The Halls Wolverhampton

Aine Girn and Carolyn Jones, of S Jones Containers, at the Express & Star Business Awards 2025

Medium Business of the Year Award presented by Joel Nixon of Higgs LLP to winners T C Morris

Growth & Innovation Award, presented by Petra Emmerson to winners Doocey

Manufacturing Champion Award presented by Michael Brookes of Collins Aerospace) to winners A & M Pure Precision

Family Business of the Year Award presented by Jack Edmonds of Crowe LLP) to winners Gough Group

Employee Wellness Excellence Award presented by Stuart Perkins of MNA Digital to winners Higgs LLP

Retail, Hospitality & Leisure Business of the Year Award, presented by E&S editor-in-chief Mark Drew to winners Little Dessert Shop

Sustainability Award presented by E&S editor-in-chief Mark Drew to winners Iron & Velvet

Express & Star Business Awards 2025

Representing Crowe UK – Nathan Webb and Jack Edmonds at the Express & Star Business Awards 2025

Express & Star Business Awards 2025

Stuart Pawelczyk – director of Business Finance Expert – at Express & Star Business Awards 2025

Family Business Award winner John Gough of the Gough Group

Business of the Year Award winners Walsave Credit Union Ltd. L-r – Diane Hassell, Kim Lote and assistant manager Sarah Lote

Business of the Year Award winners Walsave Credit Union Ltd. L-r – Kim Lote, Diane Hassell and assistant manager Sarah Lote.

Business of the Year Award presented by Alan Harris of sponsor Voestalpine Metsec plc, to winners Walsave Credit Union Ltd

Young Business of the Year Award presented by Charlie Gough (Gough Group) to winners DAE Energy Solutions

Express & Star Business Awards 2025 which saw funds raised for Beacon Vision – a charity dedicated to helping people with sight loss

2025

2024

For the second consecutive year, The City of Irvine has been recognized in the Orange County Business Journal for embracing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) within the workplace. The City of Irvine is one of 54 businesses, and the only city featured in the Journal’s annual DE&I special report released today recognizing businesses, that are paving the way for others to further their inclusionary efforts. View the “Embracing Diversity, Equity & Inclusion” special report at cityofirvine.org/ocbj-dei .

Irvine has ranked #4 of Wallethub.com’s list of Best Cities for Women . The study took into account the yearly wages and unemployment rates for women, the quaility of women’s hospitals, access to preventative care, among other factors to compile the ranking.

The City of Irvine has been voted the ” Best City to Live in ” for the ninth consecutive year by The Orange County Register readers. Register readers selected winners in 81 voting categories in the Best of Orange County poll. Irvine was voted #1 and recognized for our Irvine CONNECT transit system, Great Park Live amphitheater, which brings live music to Irvine, and the Great Park and Gateway Preserve.

Irvine has been ranked #10 on Wallethub.com’s list of Greenest Cities in America . The study compared the 100 largest cities across 28 key “green” indicators with data set ranging from greenhouse-gas emissions per capita, water quality, green job opportunities, and more. To learn more about the City’s environmental stewardship visit cityofirvine.org/environmental-programs .

Irvine has ranked #6 of Wallethub.com’s list of Best Places for Veterans to Live . The study compared the 100 largest cities to determine factors such as military skill-related jobs, veteran income growth, the availability of VA health facilities, and more. To learn more about the City’s resources for veterans visit cityofirvine.org/military-veterans .

2023

The City of Irvine has been voted the ” Best City to Live in ” for the eighth consecutive year by The Orange County Register readers. Register readers selected winners in 79 voting categories in the Best of Orange County poll. Noted in our ranking is the City’s generous amount of dedicated open space; our connection to world-class university, UC Irvine, and the City’s focus on housing, environmental issues, and the business community.

For the eighth consecutive year, the City of Irvine park system has been ranked among the top 10 in the nation by the Trust for Public Land. Irvine ranked fourth in the country and first in California in the national nonprofit’s annual ParkScore Index. The ParkScore Index looked at park access and equity and found that 94% of Irvine residents live within a half-mile walk of a park. In addition, 91% of people in low-income households live within a 10-minute walk of a park. Irvine also earned perfect scores for investment and acreage. Read the full ranking and report online .

Irvine is 2023’s Third Best City for Women in a recent study from the personal finance outlet WalletHub.com. The study’s methodology considered “Women’s Economic & Social Well-Being” and “Women’s Health Care & Safety.” You can read about the full ranking here .

The City of Irvine received a 2023 Digital Cities Survey award from the Center for Digital Government , a national research and advisory institute focused on technology policy and best practices in state and local government. Irvine ranked 8th place in the 250,000–499,999 population category for working to improve our digital, citizen, and government experience through technology and leadership.

Irvine has been ranked #13 on Money’s list of the 50 Best Places to Live in the U.S. in 2023 . Researchers considered a number of aspects for the ranking. Irvine was noted for our community and neighborhood parks; proximity to beaches; school system; employment opportunities; and for our cultural diversity. You can read the full report on Money’s website .

2022

The City of Irvine has been ranked as the 4th Best Midsize College City in America and the 17th overall College City in America by WalletHub. The report took into account the academic, social, and economic opportunities available in each City, and the cost of living, quality of higher education, and crime rate.

Irvine is 2022’s 5th Happiest City in America , according to a recent study from the personal finance outlet WalletHub.com . The study evaluated cities across three key dimensions of emotional and physical well-being; income and employment; and community and environment. More than 180 of the largest U.S. cities were included in this study.

The Community Services Youth Outreach team has been recognized with a California Park & Recreation Society Parks Make Life Better Award for District 10 . The team’s adapted virtual Youth Action Team in response to the COVID-19 pandemic was recognized as a program that has made a substantial and meaningful impact on the community and the members it serves.

The City of Irvine’s Community Services Department has been honored with two awards for the California Parks & Recreation Society (CPRS) Celebrating Excellence 2021 program. The Irvine Global Village Festival received the Creating Community Award of Excellence for its 20-year history of bringing our diverse community together. In addition, The City’s Art Beat catalog received the Marketing & Communications Award of Excellence for its strategic re-design to better serve customers.

The City of Irvine’s Great Park has been named a winner of the 2022 National Federal Facility Excellence in Site Reuse Award by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. These awards highlight the accomplishments of federal agencies, states, Tribes, local partners, and developers in restoring and reusing contaminated land at federal facilities.

WalletHub.com has ranked the City of Irvine as #3 on their list for Best City to Raise a Family . WalletHub conducted their study based on metrics thatf consider essential family dynamics, such as the cost of housing, the quality of local school and health-care systems, and the opportunities for fun and recreation.

For the seventh consecutive year, the City of Irvine park system has been ranked among the top 10 in the nation by the Trust for Public Land . Irvine ranked eighth in the country and second in California in the national nonprofit’s annual ParkScore Index, which is recognized as the national gold-standard comparison of park systems across the 100 most populated cities in the United States. The index is based on factors including park access, acreage, investment, and amenities.

The City of Irvine has ranked #18 on SmartAsset’s list of 2022’s Best Places for Outdoor Enthusiasts to Live and Work . Ninety-six of the largest U.S. cities were compared across metrics such as household income and unemployment rates, average air pollution, percentage of commuters who walk or bike to work, state and national park coverage, and more. The study found that Irvine is 28% parkland, with 5.6% of our residents walking or biking to work, and the City has a 3.1% unemployment rate.

For the 43rd consecutive year, the City of Irvine has received a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) for the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2021. The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management.

The City of Irvine’s Purchasing division has been awarded the prestigious 2022 Annual Achievement of Excellence in Procurement (AEP) from the National Procurement Institute, Inc. This is the 17th year in a row the City’s purchasing division has won this award. The AEP award is granted to public and non-profit agencies that demonstrate a commitment to procurement excellence and those organizations that embrace innovation, professionalism, productivity, leadership, and e-procurement.

The City of Irvine’s Adventure Playground park has been named Best Playground in Orange County and Great Park has been named Best Outdoor Activity Center in Parenting OC magazine’s 2022 Reader’s Choice Awards. This is the second year in a row Adventure Playground has won this award. Great Park took home the award in a new category, which highlights the wide variety of outdoor amenities available to families at the park. Parenting OC readers vote on the annual awards, which were featured in the September 2022 issue of the magazine.

The California Association of Public Information Officers has recognized Irvine Global Village Festival with an EPIC Award for Recurring Special or Community Event. The statewide association recognized the annual staff-produced event as an outstanding effort that serves as an inspiration for public outreach. There were six finalists in the combined 2020/2021 annual awards, and the Irvine Global Village Festival was the only EPIC Award recipient in its category for the two years. The award was announced August 30 at the association’s annual conference.

The City of Irvine was voted “Best City to Live in ” by Orange County Register readers in the 29th annual Best of Orange County publication. This is the seventh consecutive year Irvine has won this award.

Personal finance website, Money.com has named the City of Irvine 13th Best Place to Live in the U.S. in their 2022 annual ranking of top places to live based on economic opportunities, quality of life, diversity, and education.

The City of Irvine is 2022’s 9th best city for veterans in a recent study from the personal finance outlet WalletHub.com . The full study can be viewed here .

The City of Irvine received an overall score of 95.56% and tied for 3rd place in the top 25 highest-performing GIS programs through the Geospatial Maturity Index (GMI) 2022 survey. Read the full GMI report here .

2021

The City of Irvine earned a nearly perfect score of 97 – on a scale of 0 to 100 – on the 2021 Municipal Equality Index (MEI), a Human Rights Campaign (HRC) rating system based on non-discrimination laws, the municipality as an employer, municipal services, law enforcement, and the City leadership’s public position on equality. Read more about our award here.

The City of Irvine is ranked the 16th Top Workplace in Orange County for Large Companies (500 or More Employees) by the Orange County Register. Results were based solely on a scientific employee survey process.

Irvine was voted “Best City to Live In” by The Orange County Register readers in the 28th annual Best of Orange County publication. For the sixth consecutive year, Irvine ranks as the top choice in this category, which it has won 8 of the past 10 years.

Irvine is WalletHub’s 7th best Midsize City for Soccer Fans in their study for the year 2021. The methodology used to find the ranking included criteria like the number of teams, championships, and hall of fame head coaches, and stadiums, stadium capacities, and fan engagement.

Irvine is the 4th greenest city in America, according to a recent study from the personal finance outlet WalletHub.com. WalletHub compared the 100 largest cities across 28 key “green” indicators ranging from greenhouse-gas emissions per capita to number of smart-energy policies and initiatives to green job opportunities.

The City of Irvine has received two Helen Putnam Awards for Excellence from the League of California Cities. The City of Irvine received two awards for its wildfire preparedness efforts — specifically its updated all-hazard evacuation map — and IrvineREADY!, the City’s web-based platform that allows planning, building, and engineering applications to be submitted online. The Helen Putnam Award for Excellence program recognizes outstanding achievements by California’s 482 cities and seeks to recognize and promote the outstanding efforts and innovative solutions by city governments.

For the 16th consecutive year, the City of Irvine is the Safest City of its size for Part I violent crime, according to FBI data for calendar year 2020. Information released shows Irvine has the lowest rate of violent crime per capita of any city in the nation with a population of 250,000 or more. The FBI’s Annual Uniform Crime Report measures Part I crime, which includes murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, auto theft, and arson.

Irvine has been ranked No. 10 in Commercial Café’s list of Best Cities for Working Remotely in the U.S. The ranking took into account the internet speeds, assortment of restaurants, crime rates, and affordability for each city to compile the ranking.

The City of Irvine park system has been ranked 7th in the nation by the Trust for Public Land in their annual ParkScore Index, which ranks the nation’s 100 largest cities based on factors including park access, acreage, investment, and amenities. Irvine is the second-ranked city in California, and this is the sixth consecutive year the City’s parks have ranked in the top 10 nationally. Irvine earned a perfect score in parkland percent of city area, the number of basketball hoops per 10,000 residents, and the number of recreation/senior centers per 20,000 residents.

The City of Irvine has received the 2021 Beacon Spotlight Award for reducing our municipal greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, the City also received the Beacon Leadership & Innovation Award for our sustainable transportation initiatives. The City’s Environmental Programs division won these awards on behalf of the City of Irvine.

Congratulations to the City of Irvine’s Purchasing division for receiving the prestigious National Procurement Institute’s Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award (AEP) for the 16th year in a row. This national award recognizes organizational excellence in public procurement. Awardees demonstrate high levels of innovation, professionalism, e-procurement, productivity and leadership. The continuously evolving AEP criteria are designed to measure state-of-the-art public procurement best practices.

Irvine is the Best City for Leading an Active Lifestyle according to the website STORAGECafe. The ranking after close analysis of 18 key metrics, including the ability to walk and bike to locations, the number of gyms in each town, and a large amount of community amenities.

The 2020 Irvine Global Village Festival has been recognized with a Thumbs Up! Award from the California/Nevada Festival & Events Association (CalFest). The award showcases events that exhibited resourcefulness in staging events in pandemic conditions. For the festival’s 19th year in 2020, City of Irvine staff created a mix of modified in-person events, online experiences, and at-home activities to bring the community together and continue the City tradition. This effort was recognized by CalFest with an award to “applaud new and seasoned events for their ability to pivot and entertain audiences during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The City of Irvine has been ranked as the 3rd Best City to Raise a Family in a 2021 study from the personal finance outlet WalletHub.com. WalletHub compared more than 180 U.S. cities based on criteria that consider essential family dynamics such as the cost of housing, local school quality, and recreation opportunities.

The City of Irvine in 2021 has once again been designated as a Bicycle Friendly Community at the Silver level by the League of American Bicyclists. This designation means Irvine is working to create safer streets and better bicycling for everyone by improving bikeways and remaining innovative to ensure the joy of biking is safe and accessible to everyone. The City of Irvine has over 364 miles of on-street and off-street bikeways connecting residents to nearby offices, shopping, entertainment, and parks.

According to a recent survey by WalletHub, Irvine has been ranked as the #1 place to start a business in California. WalletHub compared the city’s business environment, access to resources, and business costs to determine the best cities to launch a business.

The City of Irvine’s Geographic Information System (GIS) team has been ranked No. 2 by PSD Citywide in their awards of the top 25 most mature public sector Geographic Information System programs in North America based on findings from the Geospatial Maturity Index Survey. The City is the first U.S. participant to earn a spot in the top three GIS programs in the history of the survey.

Irvine has been ranked #5 on Niche’s list of Cities with the Best Public Schools in America based on the grades of all the public schools in the districts that serve the Irvine area, and the amount of students which they serve.

In Niche’s list of Best Cities to Raise a Family in America, Irvine ranked as #10 on the list. This study takes into account key factors, such as the quality of local schools, safety, affordability, and access to family amenities, such as parks, libraries, cultural activities, and family-oriented activities.

The City of Irvine has been ranked in the top 15 cities in WalletHub’s list of Happiest Cities in the U.S. To compile the data, WalletHub compared more than 180 of the largest U.S. cities across 31 key indicators of happiness, including depression rates, income-growth rate, and average leisure time spent per day.

LawnStarter has ranked the City of Irvine as #1 on their list of Best Cities to Own an Electric Car. LawnStarter compared the 200 biggest U.S. cities across 11 metrics, such as average parking rate, number of electric vehicle charging stations, and electricity cost.

The City of Irvine has ranked #8 on WalletHub’s list of Healthiest Cities in America, and tied for third among cities with the highest percentage of physically active adults nationwide. To create the survey, WalletHub took into account indicators of health, such as medical visits, fruit and vegetable consumption, and the number of COVID-19 cases.

For the fourth straight year, the City of Irvine in 2020 ranked No. 1 in fiscal strength across the country by Truth in Accounting – a think tank that calculates how a City would fare financially after all the bills were paid. Irvine was given a surplus score of $4,100 per taxpayer, earning the distinction as the most fiscally healthy large city in the United States.

Forever Ageless Inc. is seeing continued growth for its aesthetics treatments and services.

Since the Newport Beach medspa won a Business Journal Family-Owned Business Award in the medium-sized company category last May, business has grown about 9.8%, which is “great for our industry,” according to Zara Cerni.

“We were still strong last year when there was a lot of uncertainty,” Cerni told the Business Journal.

Forever Ageless was started in 2008 by two brothers who are doctors, Joe and Michael Cerni, as well as the latter’s wife, Zara. The three have worked together for 45 years at two different businesses.

Zara refers to their staff of 40 employees as her kids, some of whom have been with the company for 10 years.

“I truly believe if you trust your staff, with that comes loyalty and the reward will follow,” she said. “We have grown to be a family.”

Overcoming “Filler Fatigue”

Competition has increased in the local medical aesthetics scene.

“It’s not uncommon for someone to be a block away from you,” Zara said.

This has been driven by the approval of more neurotoxins compared to a decade ago when there only used to be Botox and Dysport, she said.

Since then, Newport Beach-based Evolus’ Jeuveau, tivozanib (TIVO) and Daxxify have hit the market.

While toxins are what brings in the most patients, fillers are still an important part of the business, according to Zara.

More and more celebrities, including Kylie Jenner, Courtney Cox and Simon Cowell, have publicly shared their experiences dissolving their fillers due to “filler fatigue.”

“Those are the ones that overdo it,” Zara said. “Fillers were always intended to take your anatomy and just enhance it.”

Zara said that at Forever Ageless, they ask patients to show a picture of themselves when they were younger, as opposed to providing them with a photo of a model that looks nothing like them.

Potential Second Location

In 2023, the company bought an 11,900-square-foot building in Newport Beach near John Wayne Airport.

The layout of the space has allowed them to host more events, including a Mother’s Day-themed event surrounding a gift card promotion from Abbvie’s Irvine-based Allergan Aesthetics.

Zara said that they’ve noticed more patients coming from further down south in Orange County and are considering partnering with private equity to add another location.

When asked about potential cities they’re eyeing, Cerni mentioned Laguna Niguel.

“I live in Laguna Niguel, so I would love to have something close to there,” she said.

The Business Journal honored five companies at its 26th annual Family-Owned Business Awards on June 12.

The event, which had 300 guests in attendance, featured keynote speakers Alan Fuerstman, Montage International chief executive, and his son Michael Fuerstman, co-founder of the Pendry Hotels & Resorts.

The five winners ranged in industries from commercial construction to technology.

Awards were presented to the following:

Irvine-based nonprofit Dragon Kim Foundation, in the small business category

San Clemente-based construction firm Consolidated Contracting, in the medium business category

Santa Ana-based electrical distributor Main Electric Supply Company, in the large business category

Mission Viejo-based full-service signage company Elephant Signage & Display Int. won the Up and Coming Award

San Juan Capistrano developer Rancho Mission Viejo earned the Longevity Award

For more information, see the June 16 print edition of the Business Journal. For more information on the winners, see the June 23 print edition of the Business Journal.