Business memo 11/19/01

Realtors meeting scheduled for Nov. 27

The Cape Girardeau County Board of Realtors will hold its annual meeting Nov. 27 at the Drury Lodge.

Registration for the luncheon session will be at 11:15 a.m.

Judith Lange will be guest speaker for the event.

Schnucks presents money to United Way

Schnucks Markets Inc. presented a check for $320,000 to the United Way's September 11 Fund this month.

The funds, which include la $100,000 corporate gift from Schnucks, were raised from contributions from Schnucks customers between Sept. 21 and Oct. 28. During that time, customers added "scanned contributions" of $2, $5 and $10 to their grocery totals.

Customers of Schnucks and Logli Supermarkets participated in the drive. Logli is a division of Schnucks, with four stores in Rockford, Ill. Schnucks Markets operate 91 stores in Illinois, Indiana and Missouri, including Cape Girardeau.

The funds were presented by Craig D. Schmuck, chairman and CEO of Schnucks Markets, to Gary Dollar, president and CEO of the Greater St. Louis Area United Way.

Operating small business topic of workshop

"How to Start & Manage a Small Business" is the topic of a Small Business Development Center workshop, to be held Nov. 29 at Dempster Hall, Room 102, from 6:15 to 9:15 p.m.

Topics of this workshop include: financing a small business, including sources of financing; legal forms of organization; the who, what and where of permits, licensing, etc.; financial analysis; and developing a business plan.

More information is available by calling the Small Business Development Center (573) 986-6084.

Rice marketing meeting scheduled in January

The United States Rice Producers Association will conduct a rice marketing panel discussion that will give rice farmers an update of how checkoff funds are used to promote their products.

The conference, to be held Jan. 24-25 at the Grand Casino Convention Center in Tunica, Miss., is designed to give rice, cotton, soybean and corn farmers the opportunity to hear about the experiences of other farmers and the different ways conservation tillage works for them.

Farmers can learn the latest in till procedures, weed control, diseases and research from numerous academic and producer speakers.

The U.S. Rice Producers Association, representing rice farmers in Mississippi, Missouri, Texas, California, Louisiana and Arkansas, is the only organization solely representing the views of the U.S. rice farmers.

Nolen Canon, chairman of the USRPA Board, is a rice, soybean and cotton farmer near Tunica, Miss.

Spartech, FastCore reach agreement

Spartech Corp., which has headquarters in St. Louis, has entered into a joint venture arrangement for technologically advanced custom-engineered wheels with FastCore, LLC.

The new venture will operated under the name Spartech Industries-Advanced Technology Wheels.

Bradley Buechler, Spartech chairman, president and CEO, said the new venture would complement Spartech's custom-engineered wheels business that includes the tread-cap wheel operations in Warsaw, Ind.; the no-flat urethane-based tire facility acquired last year in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.; and the tread-cape wheels facility being built at Tupelo, Miss., scheduled to open in January.

Spartech, a producer of engineered thermoplastic materials, polymeric compounds and molded products, has two operations in Cape Girardeau, Spartech Plastics at 2500 Spartech Drive and Spartech Compounding on Nash Road.

New executives at General Motors

Robert Lutz, the former Chrysler car designer hired in September to help jazz up General Motors' vehicle lineup, has been named chairman of GM's industry-leading North American operations.

The 69-year-old Lutz, who is credited with helping develop the sporty Dodge Viper and Prowler while at Chrysler, succeeds Ron Zarrella, who resigned to become chairman and CEO of eye care products maker Bausch & Lomb. Zarella had worked there from 1985-1994 before moving to GM.

The world's largest automaker also announced Tuesday that Gary Cowger, group vice president of manufacturing and labor relations, has been named president of GM North America.

Lutz joined GM in September from Exide Technologies after a 39-year career in the auto industry.

Good profit reports for three retailers

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, and Home Depot, the nation's largest home improvement retailer, each reported higher profits for the third quarter, meeting Wall Street's expectations.

JCPenney Co. Inc., meanwhile, said stronger sales of items such as women's apparel allowed the department-store chain to earn a third-quarter profit in contrast to a loss a year ago.

The results reported Tuesday come as many retailers struggle to attract customers and boost sales as the economy slows.

Philip Morris to change name to Altria

Philip Morris Companies announced Thursday it's shedding a corporate name long associated with the Marlboro Man and the women of Virginia Slims ads. The tobacco, food and beer conglomerate will dub itself Altria Group Inc. (pronounced al-tree-uh), as soon as shareholders approve the change.

The new name will clear up confusion between the parent company and its tobacco operations, and better reflect its growth into a company that makes and sells products including Nabisco cookies, Miller beer and Kraft foods, chairman and chief executive Geoffrey C. Bible said.

The new corporate moniker is a derivative of a Latin word, "altus," which means to "reach higher," the company said.

Shares of Philip Morris were up 41 cents to close at $47.99 on the New York Stock Exchange, and were up another 10 cents in extended trading. The name change was announced after the markets closed.

-- From staff, wire reports