Winston-Salem Journal articles from September 2002

Winston-Salem Journal archives from September 2002

Martinsville, Va.-Based Furniture Company's Earnings Improve.
September 30, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 30--Hooker Furniture Corp. reported a significant improvement in earnings for the third quarter ended Aug. 31 over the same period a year ago, primarily because of increased shipments of imported products and...

Charlotte, N.C., Colleges Are Early Bird Customers for BellSouth Long Distance.
September 28, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 28--CHARLOTTE, N.C.--BellSouth Corp. didn't have to wait long to get its first long-distance customer in North Carolina yesterday. Officials at Salem Academy and Salem College in Winston-Salem signed up...

Aerospace Firm Expands Clemmons, N.C., Plant.
September 27, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 27--Frisby Aerospace Inc. in Clemmons has been selected by its parent company as the site for a major expansion project, officials said yesterday. Triumph Group Inc. said that it would build a $9 million...

BB&T Corp. to Buy Wheaton, Md.-Based Equitable Bank.
September 27, 2002... Byline: Jane Seccombe Sep. 27--BB&T Corp. said yesterday that it plans to buy Equitable Bank of Wheaton, Md., in a $52.6 million stock swap that would expand its presence in the fast-growing Washington metropolitan area. Equitable...

Latino Community Credit Union Eyes Winston-Salem, N.C., for Branch Spot.
September 27, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 27--Winston-Salem is at the top of the Latino Community Credit Union's list of possible sites for branches, the credit union said yesterday. "We did a market analysis and Winston-Salem was top in the list in...

Jobless Rate Falls in Winston-Salem, N.C., Region.
September 27, 2002... Byline: Jane Seccombe Sep. 27--The unemployment rate in the Triad dropped sharply to 6 percent last month, but an economist warned that it's still too early to see a firm improvement. The Triad unemployment rate in July was a revised...

Winston-Salem, N.C.-Based Medical Device Company's Product Hits Grocery Stores.
September 27, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 27--ALR Technologies Inc., a medical-device company based in Winston-Salem's downtown research park, began selling its first product in some Triad grocery stores this week. The tiny, electronic ALRT Med...

Winston-Salem, N.C., Shopping Center and Pub at Odds of Proposed Chick-Fil-A.
September 27, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 27--North Carolina Fox and Hound Inc. are suing the owners of the Thruway Shopping Center and Chick-Fil-A over a plan to build a fast-food outlet on part of the center's parking lot. The suit, which was filed...

Tobacco Companies Request Access to Witnesses.
September 27, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 27--A tobacco company lawyer asked a Greensboro federal judge yesterday to let the tobacco companies talk to witnesses -- who also might be members of a class suing the industry -- to help defend themselves in...

Raleigh, N.C., Property Management Firm Plans to Build for Research Firms.
September 25, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 25--A property-management company based in Raleigh said yesterday that it plans to build another speculative building in the Piedmont Triad Research Park for research and technology-based tenants. The...

Lowe's to Build More Than 60 Stores in New York, New Jersey.
September 25, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 25--Lowe's Cos. Inc., the No. 2 home-improvement retailer, said yesterday that it plans to build more than 60 stores in the New York metropolitan area and northern New Jersey over the next five years. With...

Winston-Salem, N.C., Area Sees Home Sales Rise 18.9 Percent.
September 24, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 24--Home sales in the Winston-Salem area increased 18.9 percent in the first eight months of 2002 compared with the same period last year, according to a report by a local real-estate appraisal company. ...

Winston-Salem, N.C.-Area Firm Creates Business Certification Program.
September 24, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 24--The International Certification Institute, a private testing company based in Mocksville, has developed a certification program that aims to measure business-school students' grasp of business fundamentals....

Orders for U.S. Residential Furniture Drops 5 Percent in July.
September 24, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 24--New orders for U.S. residential furniture fell 5 percent to $1.8 billion in July compared with $1.9 billion in July 2001, according BDO Seidman LLP's survey of manufacturers. July orders were 11 percent...

North Carolina's Triad Semiconductor to Relocate.
September 21, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 21--A fledgling semiconductor company is moving from Wake Forest University's business incubator to the downtown Piedmont Triad Research Park. Triad Semiconductor, which develops integrated-circuit chips...

North Carolina Jobless Rate Drops Sharply to 6.3 Percent.
September 21, 2002... Byline: Jane Seccombe Sep. 21--North Carolina's unemployment rate dropped sharply to 6.3 percent in August, the lowest level since February, according to figures released yesterday by the N.C. Employment Security Commission. The...

Satellite-TV Company Accuses Two North Carolina Men of Intercepting Signals.
September 21, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 21--The nation's top satellite-television provider has accused three Forsyth County men of illegally intercepting the company's satellite signals, allowing them to receive all of its television channels at...

Krispy Kreme Rescues Its Sign from World Trade Center Store.
September 21, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 21--Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. received a special delivery yesterday: a sign that says "doughnuts" from its 5 World Trade Center store that was destroyed in the terrorist attacks last year. The Winston-Salem...

Furniture Manufacturer to Cut Jobs, Close Plant in Winston-Salem, N.C., Area.
September 20, 2002... Sep. 20--Thomasville Furniture Industries Inc., a major Triad employer, said yesterday that it will cut 425 local jobs and close one of its plants in an effort to reduce costs and improve competitiveness. The nationally known manufacturer...

Court Approves Greensboro, N.C., Textile Manufacturer's Reorganization Plan.
September 20, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 20--A bankruptcy court has given final approval for Guilford Mills Inc.'s reorganization plan. The textile manufacturer, which filed for protection from creditors in March, is set to emerge from bankruptcy...

Bar Appoints Former North Carolina Supreme Court Justice to Task Force.
September 20, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 20--A partner with Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Burley Mitchell, has been named to an American Bar Association task force that is examining ways to restore the public's trust in corporate America. ...

Developers Begin Selling Business Lots in Davidson County, N.C.
September 19, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 19--Two area real-estate developers have begun selling lots for a business-only development on 72 acres south of Winston-Salem in northern Davidson County. The development is called Millers Creek Business...

FCC Allows BellSouth into North Carolina's Long-Distance Telephone Market.
September 19, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 19--The Federal Communications Commission signed off yesterday on BellSouth Corp.'s entry into North Carolina's long-distance telephone market, a move that the company said would increase competition and...

New Winston-Salem, N.C., Black Chamber to Host Business Street Festival.
September 18, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 18--The new Winston-Salem Black Chamber of Commerce will hold its first Black Business Street Festival on Saturday on Highland Avenue between Fifth Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. To highlight the...

Couple Opens Independent Pharmacy in Winston-Salem, N.C.
September 18, 2002... Byline: Jane Seccombe Sep. 18--In a world where big drugstores rule, pharmacists Ike and Kristi Vlahos are venturing into rough territory. The young Winston-Salem couple has opened a small independent pharmacy on busy Jonestown Road....

Winston-Salem, N.C., Propane Products Maker Reports Rise in Profit.
September 18, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 18--Blue Rhino Corp. reported a strong increase in fourth-quarter profit yesterday compared to the same period last year as revenue surged during its peak summer-sales period. Despite the good news, Blue...

Family Announces Scholarship to Honor High Point, N.C., Businessman.
September 18, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 18--Relatives of the late Phil Chang, a Korean immigrant and business leader in the Triad, said yesterday that they have established a scholarship fund to honor the memory of Chang and to give back to the...

Former RJR Nabisco Executive Publishes Novel of Corporate Greed.
September 17, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 17--A novel of corporate executive greed -- The Midas Compulsion -- written by a former RJR Nabisco Inc. executive, John W. Dowdle, should garner some interest in Winston-Salem. After all, Dowdle, 76, was a...

Owner of Winston-Salem, N.C., Coffee Shop Aims for Barista Training.
September 14, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 14--Cecil C. Spencer calls his new coffee shop a "kiosk with a roof" because he had originally planned to start the on business in a kiosk in downtown Winston-Salem. Instead, he opened Twin City Coffee, an...

North Carolina Lawmaker Urges State to Prepare for Changes in Technology.
September 14, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 14--North Carolina and the state legislature can handle many of the changes that technology is making on the world, but it is ill prepared to tackle some issues, Sen. Linda Garrou, D-Forsyth, said yesterday....

North Carolina Economic Developers Discuss Plans to Help Firms Flourish.
September 13, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 13--GREENSBORO, N.C.--Economic developers need to do more to help small, high-growth companies flourish in their areas and keep existing ones from moving elsewhere instead of trying to recruit businesses...

Wachovia Cuts Back on Foreign-Exchange Services.
September 13, 2002... Byline: Jane Seccombe Sep. 13--Wachovia Corp. has stopped offering its foreign-exchange service to nonbank customers. Until last month, anyone could drop by a Wachovia branch in Winston-Salem and order foreign currency, usually at...

Winston Salem, N.C., Area Should See Improvement in Employment Rate.
September 12, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 12--The Triad should begin to see employment improve in the fourth quarter, according to an economic report released by Wake Forest University this week. In the latest economic downturn, the Triad "has...

Winston-Salem, N.C., Human-Resources Firm Adds Unit.
September 12, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 12--A small Winston-Salem human-resources business has added a division that trains and places administrative-support workers in temporary, contract or permanent positions. Williams, Roberts, Young, a...

Wake Forest Accounting Students Rank First on National CPA Exam.
September 11, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 11--Accounting students at Wake Forest University's Calloway School of Business and Accountancy ranked first in the nation for their performance on the 2001 Certified Public Accountant, or CPA, exam. It is...

Winston-Salem, N.C., Biotechnology Firm Has High Hopes for Key Crops.
September 10, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 10--Two plants that produce critical ingredients for a drug and over-the-counter product being developed by Pilot Therapeutics Holdings Inc. should grow successfully in North Carolina based on test crops...

North Carolina Remains in Extreme Drought Despite Recent Rain.
September 7, 2002... Byline: Michael Biesecker Sep. 7--Officials say that the Piedmont region remains in an extreme drought and water conservation is still needed, even though several drenching thunderstorms in the past two weeks have helped make local yards...

Winston-Salem, N.C.-Based Supermarket Offers Shoppers 'Endless Selection'.
September 7, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 7--When Becky Stanley of Greensboro could not find a specific brand of orange marmalade at her local Lowes Foods store, she tired to track down King Kelly Marmalade Co., the manufacturer of the product, on her...

Health Insurance Premiums Increase Nationwide 12.7 Percent.
September 7, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 7--Health-insurance premiums in the United States increased 12.7 percent between the spring of 2001 and the same period this year, the biggest increase since 1990, according to a survey by The Kaiser Family...

Winston-Salem, N.C.-Based Reynolds Tobacco Share Price Falls.
September 7, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 7--Shares of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. fell 9.7 percent yesterday after the company said that profit for the third quarter and full year would be much lower than forecast because of increased promotion...

Winston-Salem, N.C., Golf Club Owners Ask for Rezoning to Allow Development.
September 7, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 7--The owners of Hillcrest Golf Club in Winston-Salem are asking the city to rezone 161.5 acres at the corner of Stratford Road and Somerset Drive which would allow for office, residential and retail development....

North Carolina Foundation Commits Tobacco Money to Biotechnology Company.
September 6, 2002... Sep. 6-- Leaders of a foundation that receives half the state's tobacco settlement said yesterday that they have tentatively committed $2 million to a fund that would invest it in Pilot Therapeutics Holdings Inc., a Winston-Salem...

BB&T Renovations in Winston-Salem, N.C., to Accommodate Workers.
September 5, 2002... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 5--BB&T Corp. is renovating its parking deck at Cherry and Second streets, making structural repairs and upgrading to accommodate more BB&T employees at the bank's headquarters building nearby. The $2 million...

Winston Salem, N.C., Executive Courts Offer to Move Biotechnology Firm.
September 5, 2002... Byline: Kristi E. Swartz Sep. 5--Floyd H. "Ski" Chilton, the chief executive and founder of Pilot Therapeutics Holdings Inc., shuttled between the capital cities of North and South Carolina yesterday, meeting with state officials to...

R.J. Reynolds Tobacco's Stock Declines Sharply.
September 4, 2002... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 4--Shares of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. fell yesterday as a sharp sell-off on Wall Street offset news that the company would be added to the Standard & Poor's 500 Index -- a move that usually boosts a...

BB&T Offers Online Service for First-Time Investors.
September 3, 2002... Byline: Jane Seccombe Sep. 3--BB&T Corp. is offering an online service for first-time investors that lets them easily invest in stocks and index securities. The new service is simple, affordable and is available through the BB&T...