SAN PABLO — Finding the world of fitness was life-changing for Jennifer Hernando, founder and owner of Jenuine Fitness, a San Pablo gym celebrating its five years of operation this month. Hernando debuted Jenuine Fitness, operating out of 510 Training Co. at 1085 Broadway Ave., in 2019, offering both individual personal training sessions and group … Read more
If you like to hike, chances are good that you know AllTrails. More than 60 million hikers use the San Francisco-based hiking app, which offers 400,000 curated trail guides to locations around the world. With more than a billion miles of trails logged, the platform was named Apple’s iPhone app of the year in 2023. … Read more
In a world built by structural engineer David Mar, buildings should bend — not break. California lives with the certainty that the Big One will come. In a major earthquake, buildings might not collapse, but they could become unlivable. While all of us could suffer, low-income seniors are at greatest risk. Even now, affordable apartments … Read more
Dr. Victor Rios is not your typical professor. While growing up on welfare in Oakland, Rios and his three siblings learned to fend for themselves as their single mom bounced from one low-paid job to the next. In his teenage years, Rios’ friend group got sucked into the West-Oakland gang scene, where violence and drug … Read more
A treasure trove of olfactory wonders — lemongrass, rose centifolia, ambergris from the bowels of a sperm whale — are on display at the Aftel Archive of Curious Scents, a modest garage-turned-museum home to hundreds of natural essences, antique tinctures, elusive oils and botanical oddities. After world-renowned perfumer Mandy Aftel spent decades scouring the globe … Read more
Remember the red iPod Nano, a particularly memorable music device from the 2000s that Apple rolled out as a special-edition product? Just before those were discontinued several years ago, Ying Liu, who helped oversee their manufacturing and sale, made sure to grab one — “for sentimental value,” she said. That, it seems, is just Liu’s … Read more
Folks have called Bex Pezzullo a modern-day Johnny Appleseed — with good reason. The Bay Area hospitality industry veteran and sommelier happened to be launching an apple-centric venture at a challenging time, right before the pandemic hit in 2020. So she hit the road to spread the word about her hard cider. It worked. She … Read more
You have probably seen one of the many viral videos: Someone puts on a pair of normal-looking glasses, and they gasp, or break down in tears. Colorblind, for the first time they are seeing the range of contrasts in the fall foliage, or the true color of a loved one’s eyes. The technology behind those … Read more
Catastrophic climate change is looming. The Earth just endured its 12 hottest months in 125,000 years, and scientists say humans can only avert ecological disaster, if we cut greenhouse gas emissions by 40 to 70% by 2050. That may sound daunting, but Oakland entrepreneur Sanchali Pal said it is within people’s power to make meaningful … Read more
Francine Hughes has been working in sports and venue management for more than 20 years, including a stint managing the legendary Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles. “Throughout those experiences I’ve overseen the crafting of best in class fan experiences, as well as the behind-the-scenes operations of major organizations,” says Hughes, who has worked on such … Read more