Business Courier Serving Cincinnati - Northern Kentucky articles from September 1999

Business Courier Serving Cincinnati - Northern Kentucky archives from September 1999

Chamber health plan at risk.(Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce)
September 3, 1999... Membership discounts called 'discriminatory' The Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce could lose hundreds of members if it can't resolve a regulatory problem that has eliminated its ability to offer discounts on health insurance to small...

SDRC chief shoots for next level.(Structural Dynamics Research Corp. CEO William Weyand)
September 3, 1999... CEO William Weyand hopes fast growth and acquisitions will make the firm a global force. When William Weyand took over as CEO of Milford-based Structural Dynamics Research Corp. two years ago, the board of directors charged him with...

L.A. firm completes Chiquita Center purchase.(Lowe Enterprises Inc.)
September 3, 1999... Major deal carries rumored sale price tag of $76 million Lowe Enterprises Inc., a diversified national real estate company active in commercial and hospitality property investment, management and development, has purchased the towering...

Digging up management.(Loveland Excavating)
September 3, 1999... Three years after its formation, the Brennan Group was doing just fine, said owner Matt Brennan, but he had yet to find the right combination for big-time growth, sales and profits for the residential and land development company. Then...

Messer contract mix: employees bring in profits.(Frank Messer & Sons Construction Co.)
September 3, 1999... Firm ready to build $90M parking facility Frank Messer & Sons Construction Co. of Bond Hill presents an ideal model of regional cooperation. While some companies get hung up on specializing in either the Northern Kentucky or Ohio...

Bell converting from safe haven to growth stock.(Cincinnati Bell Inc.)(Company Profile)
September 3, 1999... Dividend gone, IXC deal pending Cincinnati Bell Inc.'s most recent and largest deal, a merger agreement with Texas-based fiber network carrier IXC Communications Inc., is transforming the company away from the telephone utility stock for...

Turbulence over for airport.(Butler County Regional Airport in Ohio)
September 3, 1999... With the county now in charge, the facility looks at a regional role The buzz of activity on a recent afternoon at the Buffer County Regional Airport belied years of ugly headlines. Near the airports temporary terminal, a young couple...

Mercy Hamilton lead efforts for uninsured.
September 3, 1999... Community leaders join to build, fund new clinic Mercy Hospital of Hamilton/Fairfield spent nearly $400,000 keeping a Hamilton clinic going that served the poor and uninsured. That effort resulted in the formation of a community group that...

What price Nordstrom?(Cincinnati, Ohio's Nordstrom department store)
September 10, 1999... As the famed retailer slumps, some question just how much the store is worth to the city. For nearly a decade, it has been the Holy Grail of downtown development, widely viewed as the linchpin to restoring the city's center as a retail...

Newest banks get in black.(Anderson Bank and Spring Valley Bank)
September 10, 1999... Community startups quick to profitability Cincinnati's two newest banks will each finish 1999 in the black, marking the next chapter in a hugely successful decade for community bank startups in the Tri-State. Both Anderson Bank and...

Kenwood Dealer Group closes Auto Center USA.
September 10, 1999... Chance to open Kings Mazda eased decision It didn't take long for Robert Reichert to determine his company's entrance into the dedicated late-model used car business was not working out. While Kenwood Dealer Group opened Auto Center...

Chiquita counting on EU reform for turnaround.(Chiquita Brands International Inc.)
September 10, 1999... Stock price has dipped below $7 For the better part of a decade, Chiquita Brands International Inc. has been waiting. After the 1992 initiation of a European banana quota system that gives preferential treatment to bananas grown in...

Andersen could leave town.(Arthur Andersen and Co. might transfer office in Cincinnati,Ohio, to northern Kentucky)(Statistical Data Included)
September 17, 1999... Big Five accountant seeks new office space One of the most prominent companies in downtown Cincinnati, Big Five accounting firm Arthur Andersen, is looking for new office space and could end up leaving the city for Northern Kentucky and...

Power trades burn Cinergy.(CINergy Corp.)
September 17, 1999... Operations reviewed after heat wave losses Cinergy Corp. will announce plans for its energy supply, trading and marketing business as early as next month, ending speculation that has continued since the company suffered a $73 million loss...

U.S. Financial fattens sales, contracts after acquisition by MONY.(US financial Life Insurance Co.; Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York)(Statistical Data Included)
September 17, 1999... "The dogs are eating the dog food," said CEO Paul Aniskovich after his specialty insurance firm took flight under the wing of a New York group. Sometimes, things just work out the way they're supposed to. That's how it's been for Paul...

Vertical Solutions experiences rapid growth.(includes interview with company president and founder Ron Wegmann)(Company Profile)(Statistical Data Included)
September 17, 1999... Since January, staff has jumped from 24 to 45 In 1984, Ron Wegmann founded Vertical Solutions Inc. as a one-person consulting firm. Fifteen years later, he is tackling growth-management issues both locally and globally. Today, Vertical...

Mid-year Colliers report: Midwest markets strong.(office market)(Statistical Data Included)
September 17, 1999... Demand stays high in local industrial sector Office markets in the central region of the United States are at the top of their cycle. While the number of proposed new projects has declined in several markets, a significant amount of new...

GE shifts production overseas.(General Electric Aircraft Engines)
September 24, 1999... Evendale engine plant asks suppliers to move General Electric Aircraft Engines, faced with big price drops, is aggressively pushing its local suppliers to move jobs to cheaper foreign countries. GEAE has also initiated plans to...

Hofbrauhaus rolls out specs on local pub.(Hofbrauhaus America LLC to establish pub in Cincinnati, Ohio)
September 24, 1999... A riverfront Hofbrauhaus will cost $6.5 million to build, employ 110 people, brew up 4,800 barrels of beer a year and produce first-year sales of $5.5 million, according to an offering document being circulated by Hofbrauhaus America LLC. ...

Bell forms separate e-commerce group.(Cincinnati Bell)
September 24, 1999... Cincinnati Bell is combining its electronic commerce initiatives into a single unit, with hopes more firms will sell products online. Cincinnati Bell is creating a new business group, eCommerce Solutions, in an effort to consolidate its...

Ad giant buys ex-P&Gers' marketing company.(Innovative Customer Solutions LLC, a firm set up by former employees of Procter & Gamble Co., has been acquired by Grey Advertising Inc.)
September 24, 1999... Three-year-old Kenwood firm acquired by Grey Advertising A Kenwood-based marketing company, launched three years ago by former Procter & Gamble Co. executives, has been acquired by one of the nation's largest advertising agencies. ...

Giage plans growth after software launch.(Giage Ltd.)
September 24, 1999... Firm expects to open office in Silicon Valley Four months after joining the Giage Ltd. team, CEO Dan Meyer is overseeing the software development company's first commercial product launch and making plans for rapid growth. Giage's...

Fifth Third bids for branches in Phoenix.(Fifth Third Bancorp.)
September 24, 1999... Wells Fargo-Norwest merger opens door A year ago, customers of State Savings in Arizona discovered their bank's signs had changed to a rather unusual name that was foreign to the western half of the country: Fifth Third Bank. Now...

'Angels' heavenly for Ohio start-up firms.(angel investors)
September 24, 1999... More private placements needed, study says A first-of-its-kind study of private placements in Ohio has found investment dollars are freely flowing in the state, but the examination concludes more can be done to funnel private capital into...

Union Central diversifies, sees large expenses.(Union Central Life Insurance Co.)
September 24, 1999... Total costs, benefits rose almost 19 percent After a quiet few years marked by consistent growth, Union Central life Insurance Co. powered its way back into the limelight this past summer, selling one affiliate and buying two others in a...

P&G's restructuring already having an impact.(The Procter & Gamble Co.)
September 24, 1999... Iams acquisition a prime example Procter & Gamble Co. and its new chairman and CEO Durk Jager have been moving fast since the company announced details of its sweeping Organization 2005 restructuring. The new program, announced early this...

Right-of-way ordinances hurt telecom firms.(Dayton, Ohio)
September 24, 1999... Dayton chamber protests cable council's actions The area's biggest chamber of commerce is putting a million-dollar government partnership under a microscope. The Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce is taking the Miami Valley Cable Council...

Metro service links to Mason, Lebanon.(Cincinnati, Ohio)
September 24, 1999... Shuttle buses to deliver riders to workplaces A partnership between Cincinnati Metro and Warren County will be busing workers almost to the front doors of the county's major employers by the end of 1999, as part of a one-year pilot project....