Winston-Salem Journal articles from September 2004

Winston-Salem Journal archives from September 2004

Wachovia plans to increase its appeal to the wealthy in Northeast, Southwest.
September 30, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 30--Wachovia Corp. aims to increase its profile in the Northeast and Southwest by expanding its wealth-management division. The bank, based in Charlotte, said yesterday that it is buying Tanager Financial...

Winston-Salem, N.C., men reflect national shift back toward formal dress.
September 30, 2004... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 30--When Wachovia Corp. invited employees to dress down in 2000, Richard Macon started wearing more casual clothes. "If I'm not meeting with a customer, I can wear casual," said Macon, a senior vice president...

Winston-Salem, N.C., 'muscle' shop helps hot-rodders beef up classic cars.
September 29, 2004... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 29--The people who come in to buy parts for their vintage high-powered cars at Classic Muscle on Kelley-Moore Drive make up a diverse group. Classic Muscle is a division of Modern Chevrolet, which is one of...

Lawmaker says Dell considering Winston-Salem, N.C., area for factory.
September 29, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 29--Dell Inc. is keenly interested in the Triad for a $190-million manufacturing plant, but it could be months before a site decision is made, the leader of the N.C. Senate said yesterday. Sen. Marc...

Universities advised to choose medical-research inventions carefully.
September 29, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 29--Successfully licensing new products from medical research is harder than it looks, and universities need to choose carefully before backing new inventions, technology officials said during a biotechnology...

Airport officials say NBC drama 'LAX' has little to do with reality.
September 28, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 28--GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Security guards and members of the city's bomb squad run through an airport terminal, hoping to defuse a bomb before the state's governor arrives for a visit. Outside on the runway, a...

Marketing technique turns into business venture for Winston-Salem, N.C., man.
September 28, 2004... Byline: Jeanne Sturiale Sep. 28--Robby Dilmore markets his business, Westside Chrysler Dodge Jeep Inc., with mass media, direct mail and the Internet. And, often, with beams of light in the night sky. That's when Dilmore switches...

Triad region of North Carolina optimistic over August drop in jobless rate.
September 25, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 25--Another sharp monthly drop in the Triad's jobless rate had some employment officials expressing more confidence in the economy yesterday. The unemployment rate for the Triad metropolitan statistical...

Clemmons, N.C., seminar shows executives benefits of lean manufacturing.
September 24, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 24--CLEMMONS, N.C. -- Disciples of lean manufacturing know there is a see-it-to-believe-it element required to convince companies to embrace a strategy that emphasizes productivity gains through eliminating...

Blue Cross and Blue Shield offers free flu shots to North Carolina customers.
September 24, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 24--Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina is offering free flu shots to its 3 million members this season, a service that it said makes good health sense. The offer also makes good marketing sense,...

Harris Teeter to close Winston-Salem, N.C., store.
September 24, 2004... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 24--Harris Teeter Inc. plans to close its store at 401 Jonestown Road at Centre Stage Shopping Center by Oct. 5. This will be the supermarket chain's second store closing in western Winston-Salem in a little...

Winston-Salem, N.C., welcomes eclectic new shop.
September 23, 2004... Byline: Mary Giunca Sep. 23--Kelly Petersen pointed to the floor lamp, with its star base, curvy stem and gold-striped shade that looked like it had come from the Cat in the Hat's wardrobe. The lamp, Petersen said, epitomizes the...

Many corporations pay little federal income tax, watchdog groups say.
September 23, 2004... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 23--Two tax-watchdog groups said yesterday that many of the country's largest and most profitable corporations, including some in North Carolina, pay little or nothing in federal income taxes. Wachovia Corp,...

North Carolinians likely to pay more on winter heating bills this season.
September 23, 2004... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 23--Consumers' wallets already thinned by high gasoline prices will likely be trimmed further by higher winter-heating bills. Experts said they expect that costs for heating oil and natural gas will probably...

Office tower on Main Street in Winston-Salem, N.C., draws tech, software firms.
September 23, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 23--It's a place that is attracting interest from software and technology companies. No, not the Piedmont Triad Research Park. It's Winston Tower Main. The newly renovated office building on North...

Winston-Salem, N.C., gymnastics center has seen business expand, thrive.
September 22, 2004... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 22--From its first classes in the poultry and pigeon building at the Dixie Classic Fairgrounds to its existing 27,700 square-foot home on Country Club Road, business at Salem Gymnastics Sports Center has soared....

Winston-Salem, N.C., sports commission to launch campaign to eliminate debt.
September 22, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 22--The Greater Winston-Salem Sports Commission said yesterday that it plans to conduct a fund-raising campaign aimed at retiring about $132,000 in debt accumulated in the 2003-04 fiscal year. The...

Tobacco stocks reel from concerns over government's racketeering case.
September 22, 2004... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 22--Tobacco stocks fell in heavy trade yesterday amid investors' concern over a potential negative outcome for big tobacco companies in the government's $280 billion racketeering case against the industry. ...

Winston-Salem Journal, N.C., business briefs column.
September 21, 2004... Sep. 21--K&W CAFETERIAS INC. SAID YESTERDAY that Jimmy Sizemore has been named the president of the family-owned restaurant chain based in Winston-Salem. Sizemore has been with the company for 37 years, most recently as an executive vice...

Winston-Salem, N.C., storage container stores sees size of products increase.
September 21, 2004... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 21--It wasn't too long ago that Abner Wright thought he would never be able to sell 50-gallon storage boxes in his Space Savers Inc. stores. But storage boxes keep getting larger and larger, and consumers...

Wautauga County, N.C., warned not to take low unemployment rate for granted.
September 21, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 21--A flourishing tourism industry and having Appalachian State University as an employer enables Watauga County to post one of the lowest year-round unemployment rates in North Carolina. But a group...

Winston-Salem, N.C., audio-visual firm honored for support of guardsmen.
September 17, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 17--A local audio-visual company has won an award from the federal government for its support of National Guard and Reserve employees, a recognition given to only 15 companies nationwide this year, federal...

Customers want added value, lecturer says at Winston-Salem, N.C., forum.
September 17, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 17--Businesses, whether providing services or making products, must give customers added value if they want to thrive in a global economy driven increasingly by price, said the president of GMAC Insurance's...

North Carolina jobless rate stays at 5 percent in August.
September 17, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 17--The state's unemployment rate was unchanged in August at 5 percent, but economic officials expressed confidence yesterday that North Carolina's recovery is moving forward. North Carolina's rate...

Greensboro, N.C., airport panel inspects noise-monitoring sites.
September 16, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 16--GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The members of the Citizens Advisory Committee of the Piedmont Triad International Airport Authority inspected several noise-monitoring sites around the airport Tuesday, a visit...

Executives fear economic recovery has peaked, Duke University survey says.
September 16, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 16--Worries that the U.S. economic recovery has peaked topped the list of concerns of chief financial officers in a survey released yesterday by Duke University. The September survey by the Fuqua School of...

Tobacco giant Reynolds American expects profit for year.
September 16, 2004... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 16--Reynolds American Inc. said yesterday that it expects to post a profit of between $645 million and $675 million in 2004 thanks to cost-cutting and savings from the merger of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. and...

Greensboro, N.C., airport awards contract for phase 1 of third runway project.
September 15, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 15--GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The Piedmont Triad International Airport awarded the contract for the first phase of its third runway construction project to a West Virginia company yesterday after the initial low...

Banks in North Carolina's Triad region track national trend of marketing savvy.
September 15, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 15--Triad banks are tracking closely a national trend of financial institutions pursuing more bang from their marketing buck. In a survey of 178 banks, the American Bankers Association reported that their...

Teamwork key to success of Winston-Salem, N.C., manufacturer.
September 14, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 14--PennEngineering Fastening Technologies has attached the future of its Winston-Salem operations to advanced manufacturing and a new generation of teamwork. Its 270 local employees don't operate "in...

US Airways' Winston-Salem, N.C.-area employees wary of re-entering bankruptcy.
September 14, 2004... Sep. 14--US Airways Group Inc. says its business as usual, but 1,700 of its employees in the Triad are wary of the company's intentions after its second bankruptcy filing in two years. The airline, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy...

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts' auditor will not finish until law firm completes tasks.
September 14, 2004... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 14--Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc.'s auditor will not finish its review of the company's financial statements until an independent law firm completes "additional procedures" that the auditor requested, Krispy Kreme...

Pension plans of larger firms in Forsyth County, N.C., considered well-funded.
September 11, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 11--Forsyth County's largest employers are bucking a national trend in which 81 percent of corporate benefit plans are considered underfunded. According to a recent report by Wilshire Associates Inc., an...

Lewisville, N.C., hardware store owners change Western Auto name to their own.
September 10, 2004... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 10--LEWISVILLE, N.C. -- The owners of a longtime hardware store in Lewisville are waiting to see how well their family name will take hold with customers. Ronnie Smitherman, and his wife, Betty Jo, recently...

Wilkesboro, N.C., entrepreneur opens antique mall in closed furniture store.
September 8, 2004... Byline: Monte Mitchell Sep. 8--WILKESBORO, N.C. -- When Gray Brothers Furniture Co. closed this summer after being a retail cornerstone for 75 years, it left a gaping hole along Main Street. But unlike some other Wilkes County...

Regional biotechnology committee to meet in Winston-Salem, N.C.
September 8, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 8--Since the spring, some of the heavy-hitters in the Triad's biotechnology community have gathered to discuss ways to promote the industry. Their work will continue this fall. The Piedmont Triad Advisory...

Study shows American workers need to save more for retirement than in past.
September 8, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 8--American workers will have to work longer and save more to build money for retirement -- and its partly their own fault, according to a study by Aon Corp. The amount employees need to retire...

Family plans to retain ownership of Winston-Salem, N.C.-based cafeteria chain.
September 8, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 8--K&W Cafeterias Inc. plans to remain a family owned business following the death of Gary Allred, its president and chief executive, an executive said yesterday. Allred died Friday at age 58. He served as...

Southern Community Financial buys mortgage firms in Mecklenburg County, N.C.
September 8, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 8--Southern Community Financial Corp. said yesterday that its main banking subsidiary has made its first non-bank purchase to gain entry to Mecklenburg County. Subsidiary Southern Community Bank & Trust of...

Winston-Salem, N.C., building-supply company eyes expansion opportunities.
September 7, 2004... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 7--Smith-Phillips Building Supply does not act its age. The 124-year-old Winston-Salem company is not the old, stodgy business that its age might imply. Instead, it is a company on a growth track. ...

Winston-Salem, N.C., furniture retailer salutes Virginia manufacturer's stand.
September 4, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 4--In the midst of a bitter struggle over the future of the U.S. furniture industry, a Winston-Salem family retailer decided the time was right to show its appreciation to a beleaguered Virginia manufacturer....

Reynolds American tobacco company grants 'performance shares' to executives.
September 4, 2004... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 4--Reynolds American Inc.'s board has adopted a long-term incentive plan and granted "performance shares" valued at about $10 million to six top executives, the company said yesterday in a regulatory filing. ...

Greensboro, N.C., jeanswear maker VF Corp. continues cutting jobs, expenses.
September 3, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 3--VF Corp.'s three-year-quest to aggressively cut expenses has pared the Greensboro manufacturer's jeanswear production to one U.S. sewing plant after a decision to close two plants in El Paso, Texas. ...

Minnesota medical-device firm may contract services to Wake Forest University.
September 3, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 3--A medical-device company based in Minnesota is in talks with officials at Wake Forest University Health Sciences to contract out some tissue-engineering services through the medical school, choosing Wake...

Dallas woman sues Sara Lee Corp. for alleged job discrimination.
September 3, 2004... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 3--A Dallas woman has sued Sara Lee Corp. for employment discrimination and accused the company's top official of withdrawing a job offer after she allegedly refused to continue a sexual relationship with him....

Winston-Salem, N.C., gets drive-through veterinary products service.
September 3, 2004... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 3--In Forsyth County, drive-through services can be found in such businesses as restaurants, banks, pharmacies and dry cleaners. Now, the county can add veterinary hospitals to the list. Reynolda...

U.S. textile-trade groups to seek cap on cheap Chinese imports.
September 2, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 2--U.S. textile-trade groups said yesterday that they would pursue safeguards targeting the threat of Chinese imports flooding the U.S. market once quotas expire Jan. 1. The groups -- the American...

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts opens smaller version of retail store in Greensboro.
September 2, 2004... Byline: Brian Louis Sep. 2--Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. opened yesterday a smaller version of its traditional retail store in Greensboro to test an initiative aimed at bringing the "Hot Doughnuts Now" experience to more people. The...

CORRECTION: Winston-Salem, N.C., medical center uses new data-links to clinics.
September 1, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 1--The story slugged WN-DATALINK-HOSPITAL, filed for Sep. 1 by the Winston-Salem Journal, N.C., contained an error in the ninth paragraph. The story incorrectly reported that Northern Hospital of Surry County...

Winston-Salem, N.C., medical center uses new data-links to remote clinics.
September 1, 2004... Byline: M. Paul Jackson Sep. 1--A patient receives a magnetic-resonance imaging scan in a Mount Airy clinic operated by Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. Within seconds, the scans are beamed to the medical center in Winston-Salem for...

Wallburg, N.C., soapmaker finds success, fulfillment, takes business slowly.
September 1, 2004... Byline: Fran Daniel Sep. 1--WALLBURG, N.C. -- In the past three days, Norma Barnes-Mackin has made about 1,000 bars of soap in her studio in Wallburg. And she's just getting started for the fall season. She'll need a lot more...

Truliant Federal Credit Union sets up link with Mexico's largest credit union.
September 1, 2004... Byline: Richard Craver Sep. 1--Truliant Federal Credit Union is establishing a relationship with Mexico's largest credit union that both expect will be mutually beneficial for serving Hispanic members. Three representatives of Caja...