Business First-Columbus articles from October 1995

Business First-Columbus archives from October 1995

Banc One ties nest egg to credit card. (new credit card tied to 401k retirement accounts)
October 30, 1995... Critics worry cards may sap 401(k) savings Banc One Corp. is about to make it easier for people to tap their retirement accounts long before retirement. Early next year the bank will introduce a credit card that is tied directly to savers'...

Dispute leaves patients in lurch. (conflict between the United HealthCare of Ohio and American Health Network of Ohio)
October 30, 1995... Insurer, doctors split over contracting Amy McKenzie has a problem. The Westerville mother of two must decide whether to find another pediatrician for her sons or stay with her doctor and pay the higher fees that will soon be required to...

Competitor acquires Scientific Columbus. (Rochester Instrument Systems Inc.'s acquisition of Scientific Columbus Co.)
October 30, 1995... Rochester firm plans to move up to 60 jobs As many as 60 workers at Scientific Columbus are facing the loss of their jobs unless they agree to relocate to Rochester, N.Y. Scientific Columbus, which had been a subsidiary of Esterline...

KinderCare seeks 5 sites for new day-care centers. (KinderCare Learning Centers Inc.)
October 30, 1995... KinderCare Learning Centers, the largest day-care company in the United States and in Central Ohio, plans to build five new centers in the area over the next two to three years. KinderCare CEO Sandra Scarf was in Columbus on Oct. 25 visiting...

Commerce National target 3 Ohio cities for expansion. (Commerce National Bank)
October 30, 1995... After four years in business, Commerce National Bank is planning expansions into Cincinnati, Cleveland and Dayton. The $79 million-asset bank, which caters to small businesses, has gotten up to speed quickly since principal and CEO Thomas D....

GM plan may drive down number of dealer showrooms. (planned restructuring of General Motor Corp.'s dealer network)
October 30, 1995... General Motors Corp. is driving toward a remake of its dealer network. The world's largest automaker will reportedly spend up to $1 billion in an effort to revamp. its dealer system by the turn of the century. As part of a larger program...

Accel International Corp. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
October 30, 1995... Company Name: Accel International Corp. Exchange: NASDAQ Symbol: ACLE Company Profile Accel International Corp., through subsidiaries, provides life, health and property-and-casualty insurance. The company sells individual and group...

Business First is tops on Columbus business news.
October 30, 1995... Business First has provided Greater Columbus with strong, local business coverage and analysis since September 1984. Often referred to as the authority on the local business community, Business First's goal is to provide concise yet complete...

Buyer to halt production at scale firm. (Fancor Inc.; Thurman Scale Co.)
October 16, 1995... Production will cease at Thurman Scale Co. following the sale of the Columbus-based manufacturer of truck scales to a Missouri company. Kansas City-based Fancor Inc. purchased the nearly 50-year-old company for an undisclosed amount in a deal...

Gemstar targets Hilliard for 82-unit condo project. (Gemstar Homes)
October 16, 1995... Gemstar Homes will begin construction in the next few weeks on 82 upscale condominiums in Hilliard. The $9.5 million project, which will sit on the northwest corner of Roberts and Hilliard-Rome roads, will be built in four phases over the...

Mathews Click seals deal to open office in Indy. (Mathews Click and Revel)
October 16, 1995... Seeking to expand its Midwest influence, Columbus' largest commercial real estate brokerage will open an office in Indianapolis through a subsidiary company. Mathews Click Bauman Inc., formed in 1961, has joined forces with longtime...

Aetna Health Plan restructures, says initiative may cut premiums.
October 16, 1995... Aetna Health Plans of Ohio is restructuring with the aim of cutting administrative costs 25 percent, giving local operations more autonomy and making them more accountable for their financial performance. As a result, Aetna executives say,...

Memphis factor firm plans relocation to Columbus. (Receivables Funding Corp.)
October 16, 1995... A group of venture capital firms, including Columbus-based CID Equity Partners, has invested about $4 million in Receivables Funding Corp., a Memphis-based finance company. Receivables Funding, founded last year, plans to move its two...

Danninger Medical Technology Inc. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
October 16, 1995... Danninger Medical Technology Inc. manufactures orthopedic rehabilitation products. It also designs, manufactures and markets spinal implant devices and instruments through its Cross Medical Products subsidiary. Danninger Medical Technology...

Levi finds fit in retail, plans to open 200 stores. (Levi Strauss and Co.)
October 9, 1995... The Columbus-based retailing arm of Levi Strauss & Co. is moving forward with plans to roll out 200 retail and outlet stores throughout the United States. Over the next five years, Levi's Only Stores Inc. will open 100 Original Levi's Stores...

Worthington Foods Inc. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
October 9, 1995... Worthington Foods Inc. has produced and marketed vegetarian and other healthful foods for 50 years. The company markets its products nationally under the names Worthington, Loma Linda, Natural Touch and Morningstar Farms. Fiscal year 1994...

Atlanta chain eyes Glick's. (Rhodes Inc.; Glick's Furniture Co.)
October 2, 1995... Atlanta furniture retailer Rhodes Inc. is in discussions with Glick's Furniture Co. about buying the seven-store Columbus chain. "We're talking to them," said Robert A. Glick, chairman of the family-owned company that has sold furniture in...

Merchants saddle up for Congress: world's no. 1 horse show pours $100M into coffers. (All-American Quarter Horse Congress)
October 2, 1995... Christmas comes in October for Scott Hartle, owner of Rod's Western Palace. More than 20 percent of Rod's annual retail sales will be made during the upcoming All-American Quarter Horse Congress - a showing even better than the holidays, he...

Checkfree IPO brings out bulls, bears. (Checkfree Corp.; initial public offering)
October 2, 1995... CHECKFREE[R] CORPORATION (Dollars in thousands, except EPS) 1994 1993 1992 Revenues $39,266 $30,892 $22,201 Earnings (loss) ...

Backers push second phase of affordable-home program. (Affordable Housing Associates Inc.; State Savings Bank)
October 2, 1995... Affordable Housing Associates Inc. and State Savings Bank are moving ahead with the second phase of a plan to build 1,000 single-family homes by the year 2000 within the Columbus school district. The affordable housing initiative was started...

Notre Dame game brings out fans' best ticket sales.
October 2, 1995... Just how far did people go to get tickets to the Ohio State-Notre Dame football game? Pretty far, if the stories we heard from OSU's ticket office are to be believed. "We have heard it all," says one staff member at OSU's ticket office,...

Columbus attorney lands U.S. post on Panama panel. (R. Scott Warner)
October 2, 1995... At first glance, you might be surprised at President Clinton's recent appointment of a Columbus business attorney as one of only three members of a high-level diplomatic panel - one that will advise top U.S. and Panamanian officials on the...

Insurer demand prompts Park to add maternity unit. (Park Medical Center)
October 2, 1995... Park Medical Center is getting into the baby business for the first time. The for-profit hospital will begin offering childbirth delivery and obstetrics services to heighten its community profile and attract business from health insurers....

Rep sues Interstate Gas over commissions. (Michael K. Skelton; Interstate Gas Supply)
October 2, 1995... The former chairman of Columbia Gas of Ohio and the company for which he consults are being sued for more than $1.1 million for alleged fraud, misrepresentation and breach of contract. A complaint filed Sept. 22 in Franklin County Common...

Lifeline gains space in transplant to new facility. (Lifeline of Ohio)
October 2, 1995... The Columbus organization that coordinates organ transplant donations has bought a new building that nearly doubles its space. In its new building, Lifeline of Ohio will soon share offices with an organization important to its mission: the...

Secure software holds key to business on the web. (secure online payment systems on the World Wide Web)
October 2, 1995... "In God we trust, all others pay cash" is not a regular sign posted on World Wide Web sites. But it might start popping up if the new breed of secure online payment systems are successful. New online payment systems and digital cash, the...

Duo takes shine to idea of auto detailing service. (Buckeye Detailing Systems owners Bill and Julie Snoeberger)
October 2, 1995... Within a year's time, Bill and Julie Snoeberger got married, bought a new home, had a baby and started their own business. The newlyweds are the proud owners of Buckeye Detailing Systems, an auto detailing business that opened two months ago....

Numbers tell why you aren't making enough sales.
October 2, 1995... There is a sales adage that says your chances for success increase in proportion to the number of sales calls you make. It's amazing how the truth can be so simple. If it's so simple, why don't you do it? Good fundamental sales skills and...

Neoprobe continues rise. (Neoprobe Inc. stocks)
October 2, 1995... Neoprobe increased 11.9 percent to close Sept. 26 at $12.32, the week's top gainer. Among stocks of local interest, 30 increased, 40 decreased and nine were unchanged. On Sept. 20, Neoprobe announced the sale of 575,000 common shares at...

Consolidated Stores. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
October 2, 1995... Taking Stock Consolidated Stores is the largest closeout retailer in the country. The company had stores in 38 states at the end of 1994, including Big Lots, Odd Lots, All for One, Itzadeal!, Toy Liquidators and Toys Unlimited. Sales were...

Walgreen's stock proves to be a potent financial elixir.
October 2, 1995... Dear Mr. Berko: I'm considering investing $5,000 either in gold or 100 shares of Walgreen. Do you have a preference? - D.W., Columbus, Oh. Dear D.W.: In 1979, my Uncle Festus Berko made a personal loan to Walter Green, a pharmacist in...

Lack of shutdown criteria offers reprieve for Columbus SBA. (Small Business Administration)(Small Business Strategies)
October 2, 1995... The good news is the Small Business Administration district office in Columbus won't close any time soon. The bad news is that's no guarantee it won't be on the agency's revised hit list. The agency announced in April that the Columbus...

Small biz tax breaks up for grabs,(Small Business Strategies)
October 2, 1995... Look for a lot to happen this month on Congress' highly touted, hotly debated tax reform package. "I think you'll see lots of action in October, but it doesn't necessarily mean that it will be over in October. Taxes is just one issue within...

Industry guides tell IRS auditors where to look.(Small Business Strategies)
October 2, 1995... Yes, we know. Your industry, be it auto parts, restaurants or funeral service, is like no other. The Internal Revenue Service knows that, too, and though you might not like the idea, they want to know more about how you go about your business....

Better service, lower cost? Hah! ... say phone critics.(Telecommunications)
October 2, 1995... Insurance agent Mike Sergakis switched long-distance telephone companies because he thought he'd save a few bucks. But more than three months after he switched, the new carrier had transferred only half of the 14 telephone lines at Sergakis &...

Cellular faces new challenger. (personal communication services)(Telecommunications)
October 2, 1995... Are you ready to ruuuuumble? In this corner, we have the champion, King Cellular. Weighing in at 305 pounds, he's the workhorse of the industry, despite his age and appetite. And in thiiiis corner, we have the challenger, the PCS Kid. Kid,...

Utilities wrestle over poor, rural subsidies. (telecommunications utilities in Ohio)(Telecommunications)
October 2, 1995... The fate of the telecommunications bill before Congress has yet to be decided, but this has not stopped state regulatory agencies from moving ahead with their own versions of telecommunication reforms. The Public Utilities Commission of...

Phone static: Ameritech joins cable on hot seat. (Ameritech Corp.)(Telecommunications)
October 2, 1995... Ameritech's recent reliability problems couldn't have come at a better time for its future competitors. Local phone companies, including Ameritech, have generally enjoyed public confidence in their service, despite the monopolistic nature of...