Winston-Salem Journal articles from April 2006

Winston-Salem Journal archives from April 2006

Local businesses get more calls for fix-ups, officials say.
April 28, 2006... Byline: Fran Daniel Apr. 28--Business from customers doing remodeling started picking up eight months ago at Bob Grubbs' Carpet Designers Inc. in Winston-Salem. "When you see the remodels starting to crank up that means that the new...

Bank's profit rises 16 percent.
April 27, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 27--Putting more emphasis on deposit and loan growth, especially in new markets, enabled Southern Community Financial Corp. to post a 16 percent increase in net income yesterday. The bank, the parent...

Market makeover? Turning its reputation around.
April 27, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 27--HIGH POINT -- The International Home Furnishings Market has a reputation as the world's top trade show for previewing the latest styles -- and for being an inconvenient place to shop -- according to...

Reynolds expects return from investment in smokeless tobacco.
April 27, 2006... Byline: Brian Louis Apr. 27--The decision by Reynolds American Inc. to take on new debt and leave much of its cash pile alone for its planned $3.5 billion purchase of Conwood was a good move, company officials and analysts said. ...

BB&T seeks to move some operations offshore.
April 27, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 27--BB&T Corp. is looking more favorably at taking some back-office operations offshore to increase productivity and boost revenue, the bank said at its annual shareholders meeting yesterday. John Allison,...

Developers ready to build retail, office space in Winston-Salem, N.C.
April 27, 2006... Byline: Fran Daniel Apr. 27--Developers Michael Kelley and Stephen Austin are ready to develop their $5 million Shoppes on Hanes Mall Boulevard at the corner of Jonestown Road and Hanes Mall Boulevard. Kelley Austin Properties LLC...

Reynolds American plans to buy smokeless-tobacco firm.(Company overview)
April 26, 2006... Byline: Brian Louis Apr. 26--Reynolds American Inc. returned to its roots yesterday when it announced plans to buy Conwood, a smokeless-tobacco company, for $3.5 billion. Reynolds American's main operating subsidiary -- R.J. Reynolds...

Toyota driven by site criteria.
April 25, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 25--North Carolina is in the running for a potential Toyota Motor Corp. assembly plant, but the region may be limited in suitable sites, economic developers and site selectors said yesterday. The amount of...

Triad hotels follow national trend of offering services targeting women.
April 24, 2006... Byline: Fran Daniel Apr. 24--The bath products recently added to the rooms at the Greensboro-High Point Airport Marriott have proved so popular that guests are taking them home. The hotel usually had leftovers before it upgraded its...

Timco to get a new CEO.
April 24, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 24--Timco Aviation Services Inc. said yesterday that it is replacing its chief executive after settling its debt default with a senior lender. As part of an effort to resolve its latest financial crisis,...

Mount Airy, N.C.-based firm to close a business and Fredericksburg, Va., plant.
April 24, 2006... Byline: Brian Louis Apr. 24--Shares of Insteel Industries Inc. of Mount Airy tumbled 19 percent yesterday despite strong quarterly results reported by the company. The company also said it plans to close its industrial-wire business...

Targacept's debut on Wall Street is somewhat underwhelming.
April 22, 2006... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Apr. 22--When Targacept Inc. landed on Wall Street last week, the debut didn't go as well as expected. The company, based in Winston-Salem, set its initial public offering price at $9 a share -- yet finished...

BB&T bank had its lowest level of nonperforming assets in more than 10 years.
April 21, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 21--An increased emphasis on deposits and revenue based on fees enabled BB&T Corp. to post a 9 percent increase in net income yesterday. Net income was $431 million in the first quarter compared with $395...

Bank stands firm on eminent-domain position despite company's complaints.
April 21, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 21--Taking an unusual position on eminent domain has helped BB&T Corp. attract new customers and national brand recognition. But the policy also has drawn its first public criticism from an...

Fledgling chicken wings franchise picks up sales as customer comments spread.
April 21, 2006... Byline: Fran Daniel Apr. 21--In 2002, Sam Ballas and Steve Kontos of Winston-Salem saw a business gold mine in a wings restaurant on Country Club Road. The business partners have since turned East Coast Wings into a fast-growing...

Textile maker Unifi tables plan to sell; Yadkinville plant will see changes.
April 21, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 21--Unifi Inc., a Greensboro textile-manufacturer, said yesterday that it has shelved plans to sell or merge the company in favor of focusing on internal cost-cutting and potential acquisitions. Part of...

North Carolina sues cigarette makers over disputed settlement payments.
April 21, 2006... Byline: Brian Louis Apr. 21--North Carolina sued R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. and other major cigarette-makers yesterday in state court over disputed payments from a 1998 agreement. North Carolina joins several other states, including...

Bank stands firm on eminent-domain position despite W.Va. company's complaints.
April 20, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 20--Taking an unusual position on eminent domain has helped BB&T Corp. attract new customers and national brand recognition. But the policy also has drawn its first public criticism from an...

Winston-Salem, N.C., convention center undergoes $2.6 million renovation.
April 19, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 19--A major facelift at the Benton Convention Center is well under way, with a goal of making the property a more attractive companion to the downtown Marriott and Embassy Suites hotels. The first phase of...

Four Southeastern cities contend for assembly plant.
April 18, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 18--Greensboro has been identified as a potential site for a Toyota Motor Corp. assembly plant, according to news reports, but the community faces competition from at least three other Southeastern areas. ...

Bank has best net.
April 18, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 18--A big increase in fee-based revenue enabled Wachovia Corp. to post record net income of $1.73 billion in the first quarter, the bank reported yesterday. Wachovia also said that its wealth-management...

Grading to start soon on development.
April 18, 2006... Byline: Fran Daniel Apr. 18--Tribek Properties in Charlotte plans to begin grading land for a development consisting of retail, office and residential units in northwest Winston-Salem within 45 to 60 days. The $55 million Village at...

Krispy's sales continue fall; it expects loss.
April 18, 2006... Byline: Brian Louis Apr. 18--Sales continue to drop at Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc., the company said in a regulatory filing yesterday. The company also said it expects to report a loss for its fiscal fourth quarter and full year...

Grad market.
April 16, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 16--Emily Leonhardt has a piece of advice for Triad universities and their students when it comes to landing a job before graduation. "Universities ought to dedicate a senior-year course to job hunting," said...

Timco faces debt woes.
April 14, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 14--The financial condition of Timco Aviation Services Inc. has deteriorated to the point that the Greensboro company said yesterday that it may be compelled to merge with a company owned by its majority...

JetBlue chooses Raleigh, Charlotte.
April 14, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 14--JetBlue Airways Corp., one of the nation's leading low-fare carriers, said yesterday that it is passing over the Triad in favor of offering four daily flights from Charlotte and Raleigh to New York. ...

Technology upgrades, more staff to allow new services, company says.
April 14, 2006... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Apr. 14--The boxes scattered on the floor at SolidSpace LLC illustrate a busy company. The company, based in Winston-Salem, has updated some of its computer and Internet systems and plans to add new Web-based...

Aon to cut local jobs.
April 13, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 13--Aon Consulting said yesterday that it is eliminating information-technology jobs at its Winston-Salem operations as part of a companywide restructuring aimed at reducing internal expenses. Al...

Shares decline in trade debut.
April 13, 2006... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Apr. 13--Shares of Targacept Inc. lost ground yesterday in its long-awaited first day of trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market as wary investors continued to shy away from risky biotech stocks. The biotechnology...

Winston-Salem Journal, N.C., business briefs column.
April 12, 2006... Apr. 12--PIKE ELECTRIC SHARES FALL ON NEWS OF LOWER PROFIT: Shares of Pike Electric Corp. fell 15 percent yesterday after it said that profit would be less than Wall Street analysts had forecast. The company, based in Mount Airy, expects...

Summer rates could hit $3 a gallon, club says.
April 12, 2006... Byline: Brian Louis Apr. 12--The AAA Carolinas auto club warned yesterday that a gallon of regular gasoline could reach $3 a gallon this summer. Gas prices have surged this spring, and the increases show no sign of letting up. The...

Motorists getting second reduction in rates.
April 12, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 12--North Carolina motorists will get a second reduction in their insurance rates this year because of a settlement announced yesterday by the N.C. Department of Insurance and the N.C. Rate Bureau. The...

Quick, firm's 1st female partner, will have multiple duties in post.
April 12, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 12--Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC said yesterday that Elizabeth "Betty" Quick is the new managing member for its Winston-Salem office. It is the latest accomplishment for Quick, 57, in a career of...

Winston-Salem Journal, N.C., Retail Notes column.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Fran Daniel Apr. 10--MCDONALD'S SPACE IS SET TO BE FILLED: As the saying goes, "location, location, location." The former McDonald's on Healy Drive is finally under contract to sell after about a year. Mac McCormack, the...

Behind the Headlines: Hard work and a gamble.
April 9, 2006... Apr. 9--Dr. Anthony Atala, the director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, captured headlines around the world last week with news that seven of his patients were thriving with bladder tissue made in his laboratory from...

Premium on health: A bottom-line effect.
April 9, 2006... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Apr. 9--Every day at the office, co-workers Jennifer Faulwetter and Karen York put on their sneakers and go walking. The two employees at Salem Logistics, a private package-shipping and tracking business in...

Digital world grows wider.
April 8, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 8--Imagine a local auditorium or museum where guests take an interactive, large-screen tour in real time with people and scenes from around the world. How about doctors studying a three-dimensional model...

Company wants $356,209 in incentives.
April 8, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 8--A national financial-services company that specializes in clearing payment transactions is requesting up to $356,209 in incentives from the Winston-Salem City Council to open a local operation. A public...

Dell keeps focus clear.
April 6, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 6--Dell Inc. said yesterday that it is placing more emphasis on finding the right balance between work hours, production and quality, both internally and with suppliers. The company also said as part of...

Garage-door-maker's site to have room for training, exercise.
April 6, 2006... Byline: Fran Daniel Apr. 6--Amarr Garage Doors is building a $2 million research-and-development center that will provide it with more resources for product and people development. Amarr, which makes and distributes residential and...

Strong start in '06 expected to slow for home furnishings.
April 5, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 5--The home-furnishings industry benefited from an upswing in consumer interest during January, with orders increasing 6 percent from a year ago, according to a monthly survey of manufacturers released...

Job-fair-goers look for opportunities.
April 5, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 5--Ron Holt said he has heard that there is demand for skilled workers in the Triad, but he is struggling to land a job, even with 21 years of experience in the automotive sector. Holt was one of about...

Sale is not expected to affect jobs at unit in Winston-Salem.
April 4, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 4--A change in ownership of General Motors Acceptance Corp. is not expected to affect jobs at its personal-lines division in Winston-Salem, a GMAC spokeswoman said yesterday. General Motors Corp. said it...

Unions file with NLRB to organize RJR.
April 4, 2006... Byline: Brian Louis Apr. 4--Another attempt at unionizing production workers at R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. is well under way. The United Tobacco Alliance for a Voice and Freedom said yesterday that a petition was filed with the...

Winston-Salem, N.C.-area job growth slows to 0.7 percent.
April 3, 2006... Byline: Richard Craver Apr. 3--Winston-Salem's turn at setting the pace of job growth for the state is over. The Winston-Salem metropolitan statistical area had job growth of just 0.7 percent, or about 1,400 jobs, from February 2005...

Reynolds forms excise-tax battle plan.
April 2, 2006... Byline: Brian Louis Apr. 2--The fight over proposed cigarette-tax increases between tobacco interests and health advocates in state legislatures across the country has become an annual struggle. This year is no different with...

Bids on eBay.
April 2, 2006... Byline: Tim Clodfelter Apr. 2--Mike Smith has learned that you can run a thriving business "in your pajamas at home" -- if it's on eBay. Smith, a contractor from Kernersville, has used eBay to turn a hobby of collecting sports...

From one to many; company started with WFU and expanded.
April 1, 2006... Byline: Jeanne Sturiale Apr. 1--When UCLA takes the floor tonight against LSU in the second game of the Final Four semifinals, Ben Sutton won't just be paying attention to the score. He's also concerned about the bottom line. ...