Finance and Commerce Daily Newspaper, MN articles from April 2004

Finance and Commerce Daily Newspaper, MN archives from April 2004

St. Paul ad firm takes aim at the high school market.
April 1, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Nine Twin Cities high school districts have opened their student newspapers to regional and national advertisers under an agreement between St. Paul-based Campus Media Group Inc. and J&S Printing of Birmingham, Ala. ...

March survey shows improvement in manufacturing.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff A monthly survey of the U.S. business economy showed a strong performance in the manufacturing sector last month, according to the National Association of Credit Management. The NACM Credit Manager's Index, which rates...

Minneapolis-based Periscope named advertising agency for Buca.
April 3, 2004... Byline: staff Minneapolis ad agency Periscope has been named agency of record for Buca, Inc. the Minneapolis-based chain of 105 Buca di Beppo and Vinny T's of Boston family style Italian restaurants. The account had been handled by...

Minneapolis native Chuck Porter is chief strategist for Toronto-based MDC Partners.
April 3, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Chuck Porter, a Washburn High School graduate who later received a degree in advertising from the University of Minnesota, is a busy executive with multiple titles these days. When he's in Miami, he is chairman of...

Minnesota's building code brings steep learning curve for construction industry.
April 3, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson When Minnesota adopted the 2000 International Building Code last spring, some observers predicted a steep learning curve for contractors, subcontractors, engineers and architects who build to the code. State...

Martin/Williams Advertising names vice president of broadcasting.
April 6, 2004... Byline: staff Stan Prinsen has been named vice president and director of broadcast production at the Minneapolis-based advertising agency Martin/Williams Advertising after a six-month stint at Fallon Worldwide, where he worked coordinating...

Duffy Worldwide expanding to Stone Arch Plaza.
April 6, 2004... Byline: staff One month after the announced spin-off of Fallon Worldwide's Duffy Worldwide graphic design business unit, the 12-employee firm has leased 3,500-square-feet in the Stone Arch Plaza office building. Renovation in Duffy's...

U.S. Bancorp funds positioning for growth.
April 6, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson U.S. Bancorp's asset management unit got doses of good and bad news at the end of March, but company officials insist that the unit's post-merger consolidation and expansion plans remain on track and nearly on time....

Campbell Mithun finalists for Dish Network branding.
April 7, 2004... Byline: staff Minneapolis-based ad agency Campbell Mithun is one of three finalists for the branding campaign of EchoStar's Dish Network. No estimated client spending was available for the branding campaign, although Dish Network's...

TV stations brace for onslaught of political advertising.
April 7, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Television advertisers beware: The already aggressive 2004 presidential campaign between expected Democratic nominee U.S. Sen. John Kerry and Republican President George W. Bush could mean fewer regular TV ads this year...

Local plumbers provide pipeline for those in need.
April 8, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson When Paul Berg was asked about the "Water's Off" plumbing assistance initiative for low-income seniors, he recalled the story of an 87-year-old woman who needed help a couple of years ago. The woman wasn't as...

Minneapolis-based HomeServices of America buys Prudential Carolinas Realty.
April 9, 2004... Byline: staff HomeServices of America Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate, announced on Thursday that it purchased Prudential Carolinas Realty along with its related entities, Professional Home Mortgage Lenders and Preferred Carolinas...

Most women are still being shut out of the venture capital industry funding world<P>.
April 10, 2004... Byline: staff writer The role women play in most American institutions has grown rapidly in the last several decades - to the obvious benefit of national economic performance, household incomes and simple justice. But somehow, the...

Ecolab sells Chicago-based grease management firm.
April 13, 2004... Byline: staff Ecolab Inc. has sold its Chicago-based Facilitec grease management business to National Fire Services of Gurnee, Ill. Facilitec's 2003 sales were $20 million. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. "While a sound...

Vicom purchases Satellite Broadcast's Florida accounts.
April 13, 2004... Byline: staff Vicom Inc. purchased the accounts of Florida subscribers for private cable operator Satellite Broadcast Corp. and its affiliates. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Vicom's Multiband division will immediately begin...

Money transfer shops marketing themselves to Hispanic community.
April 13, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger The Minneapolis-St. Paul area is home to financial services providers and ad agencies involved in the fast-expanding, multi-billion-dollar money transfer business whose main demographic is Hispanic-speaking immigrants....

KKE converts former auto shop to frozen custard restaurant.
April 13, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson A south Minneapolis building that used to be known for oil changes and brake jobs will soon be the home of the city's first frozen custard establishment. Minneapolis-based KKE Architects is designing a project...

Bill would aid development of key city block.
April 14, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson City officials are seeking help from the Legislature in their efforts to redevelop the long-underused Nicollet Hotel block in downtown Minneapolis. The city wants to remake the block - bordered by Third Street,...

Grocery ads put spotlight on kids.
April 14, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Abandoning traditional grocery advertising that features freshly washed produce and customer testimonials, Stillwater-based Cub Foods on Monday began airing a series of TV commercials that spotlight the mayhem of family...

St. Paul Travelers gets a new look.
April 16, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger St. Paul Travelers - the company that was formed in the $16 billion merger of The St. Paul Companies and Hartford, Conn.-based Travelers Property Casualty on April 1 - unveiled a spare new corporate logo this week that...

Officials urge care when hiring debt collectors.
April 16, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson Minnesota businesses can learn a lesson or two from the misfortunes discovered last month by dozens of their peers - misfortunes suffered at the hands of a Crystal-based debt collector, according to the Minnesota...

Photo Control to merge with Brainerd video firm.
April 16, 2004... Byline: staff New Hope-based Photo Control Corp. said Thursday that it has reached a deal to merge with Nature Vision Inc. of Brainerd. Under terms of the agreement, Photo Control will exchange about 1.8 million shares of its stock for...

Minneapolis-based Regis purchasing Holiday Hair chain of 153 salons.
April 17, 2004... Byline: staff Minneapolis-based Regis Corp. said it would acquire Holiday Hair, a chain of 153 salons predominately located in Pennsylvania. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The transaction is scheduled to close April 18 and...

Elliot Park's once-notorious Lenox undergoes transformation.
April 17, 2004... Byline: Burl Gilyard In 1991, the Star Tribune described the Richmond apartments at the corner of South Ninth Street and Portland Avenue on the edge of downtown as "the city's most dangerous dwelling." The notorious building was the scene...

Minneapolis Marketing Briefs: April 17, 2004.
April 17, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Slashed school budgets and the scramble for alternative funding sources for programs deemed expendable have raised acceptance of youth marketers seeking to establish advertising presences in schools. A Harris...

Commercial real estate broker adding 20 jobs at Twin Cities office.
April 20, 2004... Byline: staff Commercial real estate broker Colliers Turley Martin Tucker announced plans on Monday to recruit and hire 400 new employees nationally. Half of those positions will be at the firm's headquarters in St. Louis. Locally, the...

Ceridian Corp. buys Denver-based Recruiting Solutions.
April 20, 2004... Byline: staff Bloomington-based Ceridian Corp. announced Monday that it has purchased Recruiting Solutions International, a Denver firm that provides Web-based software for recruiting and workforce management. Terms of the deal were...

Compromise revives SBA lending program.
April 20, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson When lawmakers belatedly passed the 2004 funding bill for the U.S. Small Business Administration in early April, they made almost everybody happy by adding $3 billion to the agency's cornerstone 7(a) loan program. ...

Metro Transit aims to win back riders.
April 20, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Metro Transit buses revved up Monday morning after a 44-day driver strike ended, and the public transportation provider temporarily rolled back its beverage ban and announced other incentives as part of an advertising...

U.S. Bancorp has milestone $1 billion income quarter.
April 21, 2004... Byline: staff U.S. Bancorp marked a milestone Tuesday when it reported its first $1 billion income quarter. Profits and earnings per share for the Minneapolis banking company both climbed 14 percent over the year earlier as efforts to...

Wells Fargo success keeps growing across the board.
April 21, 2004... Byline: staff Wells Fargo & Co. CFO Howard Atkins provided another in a long string of upbeat quarterly messages Tuesday, reporting net income of $1.8 billion for the first quarter, an increase of 18 percent from a year earlier. Earnings...

Crestmark Bank buys Manchester Commercial Finance.
April 21, 2004... Byline: staff Troy, Mich.-based Crestmark Bank acquired Minneapolis-based Manchester Commercial Finance. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. With offices in Richmond, Va.; Milwaukee, Wisc.; Denver, Colo. and Kansas City, Kans.,...

Dinkytown theater presents challenges for property owner.
April 21, 2004... Byline: Burl Gilyard The former Varsity Theater in the Dinkytown neighborhood of Minneapolis is among the more unusual commercial properties on the market in the Twin Cities. The theater's towering bumblebee-colored, yellow-and-black...

Salvation Army plans $10.2 million in projects.
April 21, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson The Salvation Army is ringing in the construction season with a series of building and renovation projects in Minneapolis. The faith-based organization, which provides social services ranging from substance abuse...

U.S. Bancorp building at heart of tax court dispute.
April 22, 2004... Byline: Burl Gilyard Owners of major downtown Minneapolis office towers routinely appeal the assessed value of their buildings to the Minnesota Tax Court. That's hardly news. "Most of them file every year. That's kind of part of their...

Health House is expanding reach thanks to some corporate help.
April 22, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson A St. Paul-based nonprofit program that promotes clean indoor air and resource efficiency through health-conscious building practices is getting a boost from some big corporate hitters. The American Lung...

Residential building permits up 5 percent in March.
April 22, 2004... Byline: staff Residential construction activity in the Twin Cities compares favorably with last year in two out of three categories, according to March building permit data released Wednesday by the Builders Association of the Twin Cities....

Minnesota SBA confronts shifting currents in lending program.
April 23, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson Independent hometown banks have been disappearing for a long time, victims of their industry's steady march toward consolidation. Minnesota is a notable exception, though. Laws here give small banks more...

Minneapolis ad agencies emerge from slump.
April 23, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Minneapolis ad agency income rose an estimated 5.38 percent in 2003 as the advertising industry continued recovering from a three-year economic slump. Fee income at the 10 largest Twin Cities-based ad agencies...

United Properties names director of Corp. Real Estate Services division.
April 24, 2004... Byline: staff United Properties this week announced the hiring of Kevin Farrell to serve as Executive Managing Director to lead the company's Corporate Real Estate Services. Farrell will oversee the 80-person division, which represents...

MN Advertising Briefs April 24, 2004.
April 24, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Metro Transit lost more than passenger fees during the 44-day bus strike. The Twin Cities transportation provider also lost an estimated $229,670 in ad revenue. Jim Macchitelli, Metro Transit's marketing manager,...

Former single-family home being renovated for use as condominiums.
April 24, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson When Daniel and Electra Fife owned the property at 1926 Pleasant Ave. S. back in the 1800s, they couldn't have imagined that their simple plot of land would one day accommodate nine homes priced at up to half a...

Marketing firm, Fame, will be ruled by committee - for now.
April 27, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Nearly one month after Tina Wilcox's resignation from Minneapolis retail marketing firm Fame, the 50-employee shop has named a management committee to rule until a permanent leader is named. Following the drum-roll...

Master plan: Developer seeks creative use for industrial space.
April 27, 2004... Byline: Burl Gilyard The old industrial building at 1121 Jackson St. N.E. isn't exactly the sexiest building on the block. The drab exterior suggests butterscotch pudding gone bad. Around back, a chain link fence surrounds what looks like...

Twin Cities asset managers fill key posts.
April 27, 2004... Byline: staff A handful of Twin Cities investment managers played musical chairs on Monday as two of the metro's top asset management companies filled some key openings. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans announced that it was filling a...

Anixter International to purchase Eden Prairie firm.
April 27, 2004... Byline: staff Distribution Dynamics, an Eden Prairie-based distributor of fasteners and other products for original equipment manufacturers, announced Monday that it has agreed to sell most of its assets and operations to Illinois-based...

Wilson's Leather announces agreement for $35M in financing.
April 27, 2004... Byline: staff Wilson's Leather, a Minneapolis-based retail provider of leather outerwear and accessories, announced Monday that it has agreed to sell nearly 18 million shares of company stock to two investors at $1.95 per share. The...

NRG selects New Jersey city for new headquarters.
April 28, 2004... Byline: staff Minneapolis-based NRG Energy Inc., hoping to be closer to its power-generating facilities in the Northeast, said it has selected West Windsor, N.J., as the preferred site for its new corporate headquarters. "While the...

Building owners make case for preserving tax reforms.
April 28, 2004... Byline: staff writer Owners of commercial real estate are worried that state lawmakers could roll back some of the changes in the property tax reform of 2001. Last week, Kent Warden, executive director of the Greater Minneapolis...

Associated Banc-Corp firms up Twin Cities position.
April 29, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson Wisconsin-based Associated Banc-Corp's bid to buy First Federal Capital Corp of La Crosse., Wis., gives it a promising opportunity in the Minnesota banking market. Associated, a $15.5 billion bank holding company...

Arts center next piece of Burnsville project.
April 29, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson Burnsville officials, continuing their drive to create an attractive and vibrant downtown, are seeking proposals for a development that would include a 750-seat performing arts center on prime city-owned land. ...

Dairy Queen serving up national TV campaign.
April 30, 2004... Byline: staff Edina-based International Dairy Queen has launched the first national TV campaign in the company's 64-year history. Designed to attract more customers to the chain of frozen treats and hot food, the campaign includes four...

Yellow pages battle gets down and dirty.
April 30, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Dex Media this week launched a series of customer testimonial ads targeting rival Yellow Book in an escalating squabble between the two yellow pages publishers. Created by New York ad agency Foote, Cone & Belding,...

Toronto company buys stake in Minneapolis-based ad agency, mono.
April 30, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Toronto-based ad holding company MDC Partners Inc. plans to buy a minority stake in Minneapolis ad agency mono. An MDC spokeswoman declined to disclose details of the deal after it was announced on Wednesday - less...