GOLDEN ARCHES MAY BE GOING UP IN WAL-MART HERE

Don't be surprised to see some Golden Arches in the Cape Girardeau Wal-Mart Superstore in the near future.

McDonald's Corp., the king of fast foods, and Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the retail giant of merchandise, formed a quasi-partnership early last year, and they like what has evolved.

It started in Visalia, Calif., where a McDonald's opened inside a Wal-Mart store, and the alliance spread. By September 1993, a cluster of the McDonald's-Wal-Mart operations were present in the St. Louis area.

Cape Girardeau may be next. A spokesman in the Wal-Mart corporate offices at Bentonville, Ark., neither confirmed nor denied the possibility. But we understand that such a venture may be in the offing before summer.

It would mark the first McDonald's along Interstate 55 in Cape Girardeau. McDonald's restaurants are at 1925 Broadway in Cape Girardeau and 2220 Highway 61 East in Jackson.

Industry experts say it's no surprise to see the relationship between the two blossom. A number of retailers and fast-food chains have hooked up.

Fast-food operations, including McDonald's, have found success in mall settings. Other combinations such as Kmart and Little Caesar's Pizza, Bradlees and Pizza Hut, and Caldor's and Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs have teamed up successfully.

The Wal-Mart and McDonald's alliance offers the restaurateur both a semi-captive audience and new places to sell its food. The benefit to the retailer is that turning over space to a nationally known restaurant chain can produce increased revenues per square foot of store space.

"The agreement is sort of a partnership," said Don Shinkle, a Wal-Mart official.

For companies the size of McDonald's, with more than 9,000 restaurants in the U.S. and 13,500 worldwide, and Wal-Mart, which has nearly 2,000 general merchandise stores and 310 warehouse discount stores, the scale of the joint ventures to date is barely a blip on the corporate radar.

The key to co-branding, as the practice is called, is whether there is enough traffic to cover the restaurant's costs. Restaurant experts say it has a very good chance of working in stores that attract great numbers of people like Wal-Mart.

In its quest to put burgers where the buyers are, McDonald's Corp., headquartered in Chicago, has opened outlets at gas stations in scattered parts of the nation. The kiosks and counters, situated in or beside convenience stores at the stations, are the latest test of a marketing philosophy that also has put McDonald's in hospitals, airports and aboard airplanes.

One of its McTruck Stops is along Interstate 55 near Pevely, Mo.

McDonald's opened gas-station outlets at five sites in 1993 -- at a Texaco station in Beebe, Ark.; two Shell stations in Naples, Fla.; an Amoco station in Indianapolis; and a Mobile station off the Massachusetts Turnpike near Springfield.

Food service inside mass retail establishments has a long history: Remember the luncheon counters at Woolworth's operations?

One of the nation's largest buyers and sellers of new and used office furniture, OFMCO, headquartered at Sikeston, opened a retail operation in downtown Cape Girardeau this month.

Don Lowe, president of OFMCO, purchased the 25,000-square-foot former Montgomery Ward store in January 1991. The interior and exterior were completely remodeled, and the building was leased to a Cape Girardeau used-office-equipment dealer in February 1991. Office Furniture World remained open in the store until last month.

OFMCO, which has been in the wholesale used-office-furniture business for more than 20 years, opened a retail operation in a portion of the building recently.

OFMCO's primary business is wholesaling used furniture to retail outlets throughout the U.S., but the firm has a couple of other retail outlets at Sikeston and Springdale, Ark.

OFMCO purchases used furniture from many sources, including some Fortune 500 companies. When a company goes into a major refurbishing project, OFMCO bids on the used furniture.

The upstairs portion of the building will become loft apartments. Lowe announced earlier that eight 1,000- to 1,200-square-foot apartments will be constructed. The remaining ground-level space is being remodeled for lease.

Styles on Video, a business that provides computer-enhanced videotapes of potential hairstyles and is marketed at beauty salons and group events, has received an Excellence in Business award from the Missouri Small Business Development Center.

The business, launched by a Millersville couple -- Scott and Lysa Rhodes, with the assistance of the Southeast Missouri State University Small Business Development Center, was nominated for the award by Buz Sutherland, center director.

"The two are real entrepreneurs," said Sutherland. "They have the enthusiasm and business moxie to make this business and others a success."

Sutherland assisted the couple in developing a business plan and obtaining financing.

"I wouldn't consider starting a business without the center," said Lysa Rhodes.

The Missouri organization is a network of 12 regional centers, two technology centers and eight procurement assistance centers primarily on university and college campuses throughout the state. The centers contribute to economic growth of the small-business sector by providing one-on-one counseling, management training, technology assistance and access to local and statewide resources.

Our Never Say Die award of the week goes to Betty Colyer and Witz Restaurant employees.

Colyer, who operates the East Cape Girardeau, Ill., restaurant, served dinner by candlelight Sunday, by necessity, not by choice.

"We were without power from about 11:15 a.m. to 1 p.m.," said Colyer. "Luckily we had the food prepared. We hauled out a lot of candles and explained to customers we were serving dinner by candlelight.

"Most everybody enjoyed the dinner," said Colyer.

Heartland Professional Alarms has opened in Cape Girardeau.

"We're affiliated with First Alert Professional Security Systems," said Steve Langston, owner of the new business. "We can provide burglar systems, smoke alarms and detectors for carbon monoxide and, or natural gas either separately or as a group."

The alarm provides monitoring 24 hours a day.

"The systems operate by placement of sensors in the home," said Langston, who recently returned from a training season at First Alert.

Additional information is available by calling 334-8482.

D&V Merchandise has opened at 709-711 Broadway.

"We have two business here -- Don's Furniture and Vera's Men's Clothes," said Don Howard. Don and Vera Howard are owners of the store.

Vera's Clothes features a variety of name-brand men's clothing, including suits, jackets, slacks, shirts and ties. Don's Furniture offers a full line of furniture except appliances.

The store is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and Saturdays, and from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday.

Lowe's is open at Cape Girardeau, and the new retail home center will celebrate its grand opening Thursday through Sunday.

Customers 18 and older can sign up for a $1,000 shopping spree at the store during grand opening. Other prizes will be presented. Juggles the Clown will entertain with performances Thursday through Sunday. McGruff the Crime Dog, the Purple Dinosaur and Eveready Energizer Bunny will make appearances.

Store hours are 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays.

DBE Inc., an environmental consulting firm, has moved its operating headquarters to Cape Girardeau.

The firm, previously headquartered at Lexington, Ky., is at 648 S. Spring.

DBE Inc., which specializes in hazardous-waste management and reduction, worker-hazard-communication, asbestos, PCB and pesticide waste management, has representatives available for workplace inspections, hazardous materials registration and labeling and other documentation to help assure on-site state and federal environmental regulatory compliance.

The firm can also create waste reduction audits and reports, custom design waste-reduction and recycling programs and employee manuals and incentive programs.

William J. McKinney is president of the firm.

ELSEWHERE:

POPLAR BLUFF -- Countrywide Cable Network Inc. has opened its new Southeast Missouri office at Poplar Bluff. Countrywide, headquartered at Jacksonville, Ark., is one of the largest cable TV programming companies in the South.

POPLAR BLUFF -- Ozark Beauty College of Poplar Bluff has a new owner. J. D. Dunn recently purchased the facility from Zelma Carmichael, who owned the beauty college at 422 Pine for 43 years.

BOAT NOTES:

WYATT -- Casino Magic and Alpha Gulf Coast Inc., operators of Jubilee Casino in Waveland, Miss., presented gaming proposals to Wyatt and Wilson City officials last week.

Both companies discussed sites at Bird's Point north of the two towns and near the old Mississippi River bridge across form Cairo, Ill., as the most feasible for development.,

City officials will study written proposals.