Business Journal-Portland articles from November 1997

Business Journal-Portland archives from November 1997

Retailer's lament: good help is hard to find. (Portland-area retailers experience shortage of store employees)
November 28, 1997... As they move into the heart of the holiday season, many Portland-area retailers remain understaffed and desperate to fill temporary posts. "We are still having major difficulties. It's been the toughest year any of us have ever seen," said...

Airport contract could score $18M for Blazers' unit. (Trail Blazers Inc. wins advertising contract from San Diego International Airport)
November 28, 1997... The Trail Blazers Inc. unit that sells advertising in airports is closing in on a seven-year San Diego contract that could generate some $18 million. The Blazers' airport division expects to finalize a deal on Dec. 2 to sell back-lit display...

Vancouver firm nears completion of Iceland smelter. (Columbia Ventures Inc.)
November 28, 1997... Ken Peterson's dream of building a $110 million aluminum smelter is rapidly becoming reality in remote Grundartangi, Iceland. Peterson, president and chief executive officer of Columbia Ventures Corp. in Vancouver, Wash., said his Icelandic...

Grieving gripers gouge insurers. (consumer complaints against Portland managed care insurers mount)
November 28, 1997... State report details best and worst among providers Managed care bashing is on the rise. Complaints about managed care health insurers from their clients leaped nearly 30 percent in 1996 over the previous year, according to a just-released...

Shifting gears to follow the money. (KeyPoint)(includes related article on Case-in-Point software)(Company Profile)
November 28, 1997... Some corporations make dramatic changes in direction, leaving skid marks and debris in their wake as they shift from one strategic lane to the next. Other companies tend to just drift away from the main route, often ending up in the ditch....

Hearing clinic consolidator inks $18M to build network. (HealthCare Capital Corp.)
November 28, 1997... HealthCare Capital Corp. a Portland-based consolidator of hearing clinics, has signed a deal with a New York investment firm to plow $18 million into its effort to build a national audiology network. HealthCare, publicly traded on the Alberta...

Port reports increase in barge traffic. (Port of Portland)
November 28, 1997... The Northwest river barge industry is breaking records at the Port of Portland. Commerce along the Columbia' and Snake rivers in October generated more than 4,130 containers that were either unloaded or loaded from barges in Portland. For...

Vancouver telecommunicator is off to a shaky IPO start. (Electric Lightwave Inc.)
November 28, 1997... Electric Lightwave Inc. didn't exactly illuminate Wall Street with its Tuesday initial public offering. Electric Lightwave, a Vancouver, Wash.-based competitive local exchange carrier, set an initial price of $16 per share for its 8...

Northwest wholesale food suppliers ready to merge. (Stone Mill Kitchens Inc.; Freshmark Foods)
November 28, 1997... Following the trend toward larger grocery chains and consolidation in the grocery industry, two Northwest companies that supply food stores with refrigerated salads, dressings and dips are joining forces. Stone Mill Kitchens Inc., a Portland...

Northwest has much to offer Russian Far East. (Jan Kalicki, counselor for the U.S. Dept. of Commerce)(Interview)
November 28, 1997... Such names as Sakhalin, Khabarovsk and Magadan are unfamiliar to Oregon business people, but may not be for long. Jan Kalicki, counselor for the U.S. Department of Commerce and a specialist in international trade and investment, considers the...

Employers continue to use more temporary workers. (Portland, OR)
November 28, 1997... With the local economy continuing to boom, area companies which provide temporary employee services are enjoying good times, too. In fact, across the nation, temporary employee services are raking in the dough. That's the word from...

Taking bumps out of snowboarding. (Incline Inc.)(includes related article on company founders)(Company Profile)
November 28, 1997... Incline Inc., a Southeast Portland start-up company, hopes to take some of the danger out of snowboarding with a new shock-absorber device that allows snowboarders to blast down mountains with greater control and safety. The firm is...

Building giant BMC West buys local sash/door firm. (Hillsdale Sash and Door)
November 28, 1997... Portland-area residents decide consolidation is the way to go these days When opportunity knocked in Portland, building materials company BMC West kicked in the door. San Francisco's BMC bought well-known millwork distributor Hillsdale...

Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
November 28, 1997... NASDAQ: SCHN 3200 N.W. Yeon Ave., P.O. Box 10047, Portland, Ore. 97210 Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. is involved in the collection, processing and recycling of scrap steel and other metals, and manufactures finished steel products at its...

Small Oregon banks flourishing.(Industry Overview)
November 21, 1997... Fueled by a strong economy and fallout from big-bank mergers, stocks of Oregon's small banks rocketed in the past 12 months. Most exceeded the solid gains posted by bank stock indices, and a few spectacular performers doubled their share...

Pamcorp lawsuit threatens state, Port of Portland. (intends to file third-party lawsuit against Oregon)
November 21, 1997... Four years after the Pamcorp deal unraveled in one of the most high-profile flops in Oregon history, the resulting lawsuit threatens to haul more state agencies and the Port of Portland into court. Defense attorneys for Simat Helliesen &...

Lacamas combines profit, progress. (Lacamas Laboratories)(Company Profile)
November 21, 1997... When Allen Erickson's strategy pays off, its payoff is two-fold. He makes a lot of money, and the powdered chemicals he produces contribute to huge strides in the world of medicine. Lately, it's been paying off. Erickson is founder and...

Rival alternative health groups adding practitioners. (Axis Healthcare and ChiroNet)
November 21, 1997... Two chiropractic networks are expanding to include other alternative health providers, sweetening the deal they have been dangling in front of insurers looking to diversify outside the mainstream. Axis HealthCare, formerly the Chiropractic...

Port of Vancouver ready to raise dough and its profile.
November 21, 1997... The Port of Vancouver may not be the biggest port in the Northwest, but it's thinking big. "We need to put the word out that we're here and not in Canada," said Wait Morey, director of terminal services for the Port of Vancouver. Despite...

QFC acquisition raises questions for Northwest wholesalers. (Quality Food Centers Inc.; Associated Grocers Inc.; Supervalu Inc.)
November 21, 1997... Fred Meyer Inc.'s acquisition of Seattle's Quality Food Centers Inc. barely shook the ground in Oregon. Most in Fred Meyer's home turf viewed it as one more step forward by the Portland-based retailing giant. But in Seattle, the purchase evoked...

South of the border, orders are shorter. (shipment of Christmas trees to other countries)
November 21, 1997... In the next few weeks, nearly nine million Christmas trees will be cut, baled and shipped out of Oregon to other states and countries. But even as the trees leave the state, growers here continue to grapple with a vexing problem: shrinking...

Planar purchase costly now, but should pay later. (Planar Systems Inc.)
November 21, 1997... Fiscal year 1997 was a period of transition for Planar Systems Inc., and now they're getting ready for a whole new ball game, according to a pair of analysts who follow the company. The future holds higher earnings, but slower earnings per...

Log-export market is being felled by Japanese economy.
November 21, 1997... The average price of Northwest logs sold to Japan has nosedived in what some industry experts are calling the state's worst log-export market in more than a decade. Prices for a benchmark grade of Douglas fir plunged between 25 percent and...

Medical group pulls out of physician/insurer network. (Oregon Medical Association; Oregon Medical Electronic Network)
November 21, 1997... Peregrin Medical Review is retrenching its efforts to develop the Oregon Medical Electronic Network, an on-line information product designed to save time at physicians' offices. Peregrin, a privately-held software maker in Beaverton, had...

WTD Industries Inc. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
November 21, 1997... NASDAQ: WTDI 10260 S.W. Greenburg Road, Suite 900, Portland, Ore. 97223 WTD Industries Inc. is one of the 10 largest volume producers of lumber products in the United States, with 12 mills in Oregon, Washington and Vermont. it employs...

Retailers pounding on the Pearly gates. (Pearl District, Portland)
November 14, 1997... Portland's Pearl District is on its way to becoming a real gem. At least that's the hope of the many retailers, artists and restaurateurs moving into the industrial area just north of West Burnside Street downtown. The merchant march toward...

Grass gets greener for Deep E Co.
November 14, 1997... Deep E Co., a producer of hemp shoes and backpacks, wants to raise $1.5 million to take its environmentally-correct products to the next level. The company, which is backed by actor Woody Harrelson, will offer directly to the public 300,000...

Flu bug's no pain to feisty hospitals: workplace visits quick profits. (local corporation providing in-house influenza shots)
November 14, 1997... While Oregonians are fighting the flu this season, hospitals are rolling up their respective sleeves and battling each other over the business of providing influenza shots in-house for local corporations. Occupational medicine is a...

Power faces shortage of media fans. (Portland Power women's basketball team)
November 14, 1997... With a quarter of its season all ready over, the Portland Power women's basketball team is still struggling to sell this year's television and radio advertising. Off to a fast start on the court, the Power has been slow to the hoop in terms...

Barrett: no more nasty surprises. (Barrett Business Services Inc.)
November 14, 1997... Caught off-guard by some misleading revenue figures, executives at Barrett Business Services Inc. warned Wall Street on Oct. 20 that third-quarter earnings would fall well below analyst's estimates. The warning caused a 23 percent tumble in...

Rubber man plans to turn Big Poly into big business. (Griffith Rubber Mills)
November 14, 1997... Some people graph sales charts in their offices to focus on company goals. Scot Laney, president and co-owner of Griffith Rubber Mills, has Eleanor, a 10-inch, greenish-grey, widemouthed bass. What better motivation Could there be for...

OGI takes its management program north to Tacoma. (Oregon Graduate Institute)
November 14, 1997... The Oregon Graduate Institute's management program is establishing a presence in the Tacoma, Wash. area to meet the needs of Intel Corp. employees in the Puget Sound area. Fred Phillips, head of the graduate institute's department of...

Qualcomm solves Now Software's money problems. (QUALCOMM Inc.; Now Software Inc.)
November 14, 1997... Now Software knew it needed to make a big change. Earlier this week it didn't just change, it disappeared. This past August, Now Software began discussions with a potential buyer. The local software company's board had decided it was time to...

Qualcomm: rapid growth, new products. (QUALCOMM Inc.)
November 14, 1997... Qualcomm Inc. quickly assumed a position in the front ranks of major technology companies with a presence in Portland when it announced the acquisition of Now Software. The San Diego-based company is on a pace to do $2 billion in business...

PennCorp names Paul Patsis to lead financial division. (PennCorp Financial Group Inc.)
November 14, 1997... New York-based PennCorp Financial Group Inc. has selected Portland executive Paul Patsis to oversee a group of 10 subsidiaries. Patsis began the year leading PennCorp's Portland subsidiary, Marketing One, which sells mutual funds and...

Entrepreneurial attitudes need to change, says OEF. (Oregon Entrepreneurs Forum)
November 14, 1997... A new report critiquing Oregon's entrepreneurial environment will serve as a rallying point for boosters eager to create better conditions for fast growth, sponsors of the report said. Released today by the Oregon Entrepreneurs Forum and...

Nike continues looking for a 'second home' in the West. (Nike Inc.)
November 14, 1997... Despite sluggish domestic footwear sales and a bruised corporate image because of foreign factory conditions, Nike Inc. still needs more space. And there are several states willing to provide some. Nike spokesman Lee Weinstein said this week...

Making environmental remedies is also lucrative. (Naiad Technologies Inc.)
November 14, 1997... Naiad Technologies Inc. has raised $2.7 million so far in a second offering coming on the heels of several product debuts. Naiad, which makes environmental remedies for hazardous liquids primarily in the research and health fields, has three...

Portland facsimile products firm joins Seattle-based AVT. (Applied Voice Technology Inc.)
November 14, 1997... Portland-based Americans International Facsimile Products Inc. (AIFP) changed its name to CommercePath and altered its corporate strategy when it was acquired this month by Applied Voice Technology Inc. (AVT). AVT, an $80 million...

Puget Sound sportswear companies cut production; so far, consolidation is not for Nike and Columbia. (Puget Sound, Washington)
November 14, 1997... Manufacturers of sporting goods seem to be having a hard time in Western Washington lately, while Oregon companies are plugging along. Two of Washington's growing companies are shuttering facilities here, saying they can achieve better...

Maker of audio accessories set to turn up volume. (Phoenix Gold International)
November 14, 1997... Phoenix Gold International needs to pump up its volume of high-end audio accessory sales if it wants Wall Street to sing its praises. The Portland-based maker of high performance audio equipment, primarily for the automotive market, finished...

ZipLock producer prepares for war; electronic software delivery company hires Alan Miksch to team up with founder Charles Jennings. (Portland Software)(Company Profile)
November 14, 1997... Portland Software already had Mr. Outside. Now it's brought in Mr. Inside to guide the fast-growing software company to the next stage of corporate development. Alan Miksch, who spent 17 years running a Hewlett-Packard division and three...

Alternative medicine thrives in Northwest; climate is right for practitioners of diverse care methods. (acupuncture)(Focus on Health Care)
November 14, 1997... Elizabeth Goldblatt, an accomplished pianist, practiced 12 to 14 hours daily for years. The result? Persistent bursitis in her elbow. Eventually, the pain was so bad that she sought help. A doctor offered to prescribe anti-inflammatories. But...

Alternative care needs insurers to be on board; the trend is to extend coverage beyond conventional care. (alternative medicine)(Focus on Health Care)
November 14, 1997... Alternative medicine is like recycling paper - you have to close the loop. It doesn't matter if the world is filled with naturopaths and chiropractors if medical insurance won't cover the expense. For years, alternative medical care has been...

Alternative school, mainstream vision. (National College of Naturopathic Medicine)(Focus on Health Care)(Interview)
November 14, 1997... Clyde Jensen, president of the National College of Naturopathic Medicine in Portland, has prescribed an entrepreneurial remedy to boost the school's finances. Enrollment at the 40-year-old naturopathic school has jumped in recent years and...

Cooperate, don't compete, naturopaths say; it only makes sense to use the best of alterative and mainstream practices.(Focus on Health Care)
November 14, 1997... According to legend, the ancient Chinese paid their doctors only while healthy - if they became sick, the doctor wasn't doing his/her job. This makes sense to two local naturopathic physicians, Rita Battenburg and Pamela Jeanne. Both women...

Naturopathic power-lunching menu.(Focus on Health Care)
November 14, 1997... Everyone's looking for that edge in business, whether it means reading Tom Peter's Thriving on Chaos or hiring your own personal business coach. Now there's something more to think about when you're prepping for that power lunch. Kathy...

Kitchen Kaboodle: homegrown and proud of it; sales are expected to hit $10 million this year, its 14th under current owners. (Kitchen Kaboodle Store)(Small Business Savvy)(Company Profile)
November 14, 1997... The thought that she couldn't pull off a comeback for Kitchen Kaboodle never crossed Lynn Becraft's mind. "Most people gave me a one-in-a-hundred chance of making it," Becraft said. "But who knows? You're 27, and you just think you can do...

A century of build-it and fix-it strategies. (Robnett's Hardware Store)(Austin Family Business Program)(Company Profile)
November 14, 1997... Robnett's Hardware raises its seventh generation Look for either the oldest brick building or the oldest business in Corvallis, and you'll come to the same place: Robnett's Hardware store. This independently-owned business can trace its...

Making copies the personalized way; High Cascade Printing focuses on the client.(Austin Family Business Program)(Company Profile)
November 14, 1997... High Cascade Printing focuses on the client Tim Rausch was about to become the victim of downsizing when he made his big move. At the age of 25, he worked for a franchise copy shop that announced it was going out of business. Wasting no time,...

Self-management drives General Tool & Supply Co.; innovations in product and personnel build a winner.(Austin Family Business Program)(Company Profile)
November 14, 1997... John Derville, Sr. worked as a Morse telegraph operator until the teletype machine made his job obsolete. In 1927, he joined a friend who had started a tool manufacturing company a few years before and bought out the friend shortly thereafter....

Hats off to haberdasher living customer service: a Portland tradition with a Swedish heritage. (Haberdasher Inc.)(Austin Family Business Program)(Company Profile)
November 14, 1997... The legacy of John Helmer, Haberdasher, Inc. dawned with this century. At the age of 14, John Helmet Peterson began a three-year apprenticeship at a fabric store in his native Sweden. Twenty-one years later, he and a partner opened the Man's...

Slow but steady: expansion isn't part of niche player's strategy. (Consolidated Business Machines Inc.)(Austin Family Business Program)(Company Profile)
November 14, 1997... Even though an increasing number of retail businesses are using computers and information systems to tally sales, James Kennedy has proven that a business can still make money selling and servicing cash registers. After all, his business,...

The Laceys have big plans for rebuilt bomber; there's nothing static about this 50-year-old small business. (Lacey's Bomber Restaurant & Catering)(Austin Family Business Program)(Company Profile)
November 14, 1997... Other than competitive pricing and homemade food, Lacey's Bomber Restaurant & Catering Co. is distinctly different from other restaurants on the same block. It's the only one with a vintage B-17 bomber on display. The plane was flown in...

Pastor's dream to make wine now a reality. (Weisinger's of Ashland)(Austin Family Business Program)(Company Profile)
November 14, 1997... Throughout his 20-year career as a Presbyterian minister, John Weisinger dreamed of growing grapes and running a winery. The desire started moving toward reality after he retired from the clergy. He visited son Eric in Europe in 1988, and...

A steaming cup of long-term market share; one hundred years of entrepreneurial spirit. (Boyd Coffee Co.)(Austin Family Business Program)(Company Profile)
November 14, 1997... Boyd Coffee Co. president Richard Boyd said the company still has the same entrepreneurial spirit it possessed when started in 1900 by his grandfather, Percival Boyd. The Boyd brothers, Richard and David, took over the family business, a...

Asian market forces could affect Nike.
November 7, 1997... Economic unrest in Southeast Asia could boost corporate profits at Nike Inc. if lower currency rates translate into lower production costs at Nike plants. But those gains may be offset by lower sales in Nike's fastest-growing sales region if...

Television Webmaster: KOIN-TV's new site interactive and news-driven. (World Wide Web site)(includes related article on Internet Broadcasting System)
November 7, 1997... KOIN-TV's new site interactive and news-driven KOIN-TV has brought aboard a Minneapolis-based Web site development and management company to create an interactive, news-driven site for the local CBS affiliate. KOIN's venture likely will up...

Wilshire raises $300M to enter trust market. (Wilshire Financial Services Group)
November 7, 1997... Eager to boost its purchasing power, Wilshire Financial Services Group is launching a $300 million real estate investment trust, one of the largest mortgage REITs ever created. Wilshire, a repackager of mortgage loans, will spin off $157...

PacifiCorp seals foreign co-op deal.
November 7, 1997... PacifiCorp, as part of its strategy to plug into emerging international markets for electricity, has agreed to lend its energy expertise to a Philippine utility. Portland-based PacifiCorp calls the deal a "cooperative partnership" with...

Boeing leadership takes a big hit. (The Boeing Co.)
November 7, 1997... As The Boeing Co. staggers from the impact of $1.6 billion in charges from production problems this year and another $1 billion expected next year, industry watchers are beginning to wonder what's happening at the helm. And with a...

Demand for Chilean wood increases shipping line demand.
November 7, 1997... Tree plantations in Chile bursting with Radiata pine ready for harvest and Northwest mills hungry for wood, has the Port of Portland pushing for another steamship line that serves South America. Oregon, the nation's largest wood products...

With new entry, In Focus projects fatter market share. (In Focus Systems Inc.)
November 7, 1997... In Focus Systems Inc. is getting ready to launch what it says will be its best-selling product to date. At the end of the month, In Focus will release its LP 420, a 6.8-pound projection device that the company and a financial analyst agree...

Bonded walls interrupt demolition for new hotel.
November 7, 1997... Their reworked design may have received Portland's approval this week, but developers of the proposed Paramount hotel are being denied by the century-old building they're tearing down to make it happen. It appears that when the Aero Club...

New real estate products working for Timberline. (Timberline Software Corp.)
November 7, 1997... No qualifiers are necessary when discussing Timberline Software Corp.'s third quarter. No "good top-line but lagging bottom-line" or "slower sales from older product lines" type statements mar the company's record-setting quarter. The...

Speculation surrounds Jacor's immediate future. (Jacor Communications Inc.)
November 7, 1997... After spending the past 20 months on a buying blitz, Jacor Communications Inc. may now be on the selling block. Speculation is flooding the radio industry that Sam Zell, the Chicago billionaire who controls Jacor, may be considering a merger...

Sublessor targeting techies has big plans for Portland. (Centris LLC)
November 7, 1997... A Bellevue, Wash. company that subleases "wired" executive office suites to high-tech start-ups is planning an expansion into the Portland-area marketplace. Centris LLC plans to be up and running in prominent local office space by the end of...

Schwab invests future in PGA tour, U.S. ski team; sports marketing strategy aimed at other investors. (Charles Schwab Corp.)
November 7, 1997... Sports marketing strategy aimed at other investors Charles Schwab Corp. is teeing off on a multimillion-dollar sports marketing campaign - its biggest in history - by aligning itself with the governing bodies of professional golf and skiing....

Computer lawsuits will be popular in Year 2000.
November 7, 1997... WASHINGTON - Reprogramming computers to solve the Year 2000 problem is generating millions of dollars for hundreds of computer software and hardware shops that have mushroomed across the country. But these firms may soon realize that a good...

Phone company seeks Hispanic clients in Oregon. (Genesis Communications International Inc.)
November 7, 1997... There's another company in town looking for a piece of the local and long-distance telecommunications pie. But this company is interested in a specific, ethnically flavored segment of the population. Genesis Communications International Inc....

McMinnville jet lessor aims to crack Russia market. (Evergreen International Airlines)
November 7, 1997... A pending deal between McMinnville-based Evergreen International Airlines and Korean Airlines may soon clear the way for air cargo shipments between the Portland International Airport and the Russian Far East. While the two airlines are...

Farewell to the Plexiglass ceiling. (resignation of Cheryl Perrin as senior vice president for public affairs of Fred Meyer Inc.)(Interview)
November 7, 1997... After 22 years of service, Cheryl Perrin, senior vice president for public affairs at Fred Meyer Inc., resigned last week. Perrin, 58 years old and a grandmother of eight, has been an outspoken executive at the retail chain and was not shy...

Look for big payoffs in small tech stocks.(Focus on Technology)
November 7, 1997... Investing in the region's high technology companies requires careful scrutiny of individual issuers To discuss the Portland-area technology sector from an investment standpoint is difficult at best. Which sector? Electronic design automation...

Even non-investors benefit from Silicon Forest's surge; high-tech's employment growth boosts state revenues.(Focus on Technology)
November 7, 1997... Canny investors aren't the only ones profiting from the Silicon Forest. Oregonians who don't know a semiconductor from an electronic design automation suite reap big rewards because technology companies are pouring lots of tax revenues into...

Who wins, who loses in Internet sales war? Study reveals that some not-so-obvious Net vendors stand to benefit from the global business exchange.(Focus on Technology)
November 7, 1997... Steve Karakas has his eye on the Internet. The information superhighway has resulted in a whole new medium for advertising, said the Portland advertising executive. The high-tech companies served by his agency, Karakas VanSickle Ouellette,...

Local attorneys grapple with global issues; protection from corporate piracy keeps lawyers busy throughout the country.(Focus on Technology)
November 7, 1997... For Elizabeth Enayati, work begins just after a would-be high-tech company moves out of the garage and just before it secures serious funding. Enayati, an attorney from Menlo Park, Calif., who specializes in emerging technologies, was one of...

Master's program weds high-tech, how-to firm. (master's degrees in management of science and technology at the Oregon Graduate Institute of Science and Technology)(Focus on Technology)
November 7, 1997... Four winters ago, local high-tech industry leaders like Intel Corp. and Hewlett-Packard were looking for business-savvy techno-geeks. They found few people who fit that bill, so they sought the help of the Oregon Graduate Institute of Science...

Fine art investments take a discriminating eye.(Small Business Savvy)
November 7, 1997... In terms of financial investment, the usual choices quickly come to mind. There are stocks and bonds, mutual funds, commodities, or even diamonds - but what about art investment? A relatively untapped segment of that market, according to Guy...

Congress wants to talk to Nike about charges of exploitation.
November 7, 1997... Even members of Congress are criticizing Nike Inc. In a letter expected to be delivered to Nike president Philip Knight today, about 40 U.S. representatives said they want to meet with him and discuss Nike's overseas labor controversy. The...