Business briefs

Making a chain

Mike Hanners, who sells just about everything from ATVs to pavestones at his Hanners Wholesale on Highway 25 south of Jackson, is forging the second link in Cape Girardeau.

The new store at 67 Plaza Drive in the Town Plaza Shopping Center will focus on motorcycles, ATVs and accessories as a showroom to highlight some of his better-selling items, Hanners said. He plans to open for business this week.

Among those items will be Redcat and Kazuma off-road motorcycles and ATVs, as well as helmets, tools and other accessories.

The decision to open a satellite store in Cape Girardeau is an attempt to generate more business by moving closer to a larger number of customers, Hanners said. "There are a lot of people in Cape who want to get to us, but they don't shop in Jackson as much as we want them to," Hanners said.

Hanners started out in Pocahontas in 1992, moving to his current location about two miles south of Jackson on Highway 25 in 1999. If the store is a hit, Hanners said, "I will go bigger or whatever I need to do."

Insurance office opens new location

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Country Wide Insurance Agency held a grand opening ribbon cutting at its new location, 820 N. Main Suite B. Country Wide Insurance Agency offers all items of insurance specializing in commercial. The business is open 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and by appointment by calling 481-9873.

New bank branch opens

The Bank of Missouri's newest branch at 2492 E. Main St. in Jackson is open for business. The bank is the first business to open along what Jackson leaders hope will become a commercial corridor from the new Interstate 55 interchange to Shawnee Boulevard. The 3,900-square-foot facility will be led by branch operations officer Christy Bock.

New Wave Communications opens

SIKESTON, Mo. -- New Wave Communications held a ribbon cutting recently for its Customer Care Center, located at One Montgomery Plaza. Jim Gleason is New Wave president/chief executive officer.

Loan company opens

DEXTER, Mo. -- Sun Loan Company of Dexter recently opened with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Ste. Genevieve Branch Of Kerry Americas Is Closing

STE. GENEVIEVE, Mo. -- The Ste. Genevieve facility of Kerry Americas (known previously as Custom Industries or Formulated Foods located in Pointe Basse Plaza), has announced that it would be closing the Ste. Genevieve plant in February 2008.

Jim Egan, director of Communication Programs for Kerry Americas, said an extensive analysis of company operations was conducted to optimize company assets.

"Through that analysis, the costs at our various locations were examined and we looked at where we could combine our operations," he said. "We learned we just need to move production at some of our locations and we will cease operations at the Ste. Genevieve plant."

Some of the production presently underway in Ste. Genevieve will be moved to the Affton plant. Other locations may also get some of the work, he said.

The plant here employs about 55 people, and Egan said the company is still working through helping them find new jobs.

Kerry Americas manufactures sweet ingredients for confections, cereals and bakery items.

New addition for hotel

DEXTER, Mo. -- Ground was broken recently for a new 29-room addition to the Oak Tree Inn at Dexter. Management of the motel says that the operation is regularly at near-capacity and more room is needed to accommodate regular customers.

New salon opens on North Pacific Street

Two area hair stylists have struck out on their own to open a new salon, Bella Salon and Giftique, at 20 N. Pacific St. Kelley Callow and Carrie Myers, formerly of Concepts Styling Salon, are joined by Amanda Abner, also formerly with Concepts, and Ashley Essner and Lacey Landgraff to offer a full-line salon with hair coloring, extensions, manicures, pedicures and makeup.

Party shop opens new location

The former Academy of Scuba Training building at 2005 N. Kingshighway has undergone renovations to become a new retail outlet for Younghouse Party Decorations and Costumes.

Cape Girardeau issued a building permit recently for an estimated $163,500 renovation of the 6,232-square-foot building. Plans include scrapping the 14-foot-deep swimming pool on the lower level, owner Rob Younghouse said.

The upper level of the store, which opens onto a parking lot off Kingshighway, will become the second outlet for the family costume and party business, Younghouse said. The store will be called Younghouse Party Central.

The lower level, which is accessed from the parking lot behind the building, will become the headquarters of Midwest Energy Inc., the business led by his wife, Laura Younghouse, that operates 11 Amerimart convenience stores in the region, Rob Younghouse said.

The location on North Kingshighway will have a visibility that the current location lacks, he added, but there are no plans to close the current store near the Interstate 55 and Highway 74-Dutchtown exit, Younghouse said.

Insurance office opens

Linda B. Morton has opened a new Nationwide Insurance office at Sunset Boulevard and Independence Street that will be staffed by Jack Johnson and Cathy Fowler. Johnson will be the office manager, bringing more than 40 years' experience in insurance as a sales manager for two major companies and a stint as an independent agent. Fowler, a licensed agent, will bring experience in running a small business. Most recently she was the food and beverage manager at the Cape Girardeau Country Club.

Name change

The CPA firm of Begley, Janssen, Young & Birk LC has changed its name to Begley, Young, Unterreiner & White LLC. The firm will remain at 2103 Themis St. and is a successor to the firm originally established in 1948 by Robert J. Early. The firm has three partners and eight additional professional staff. The firm also announced that Catherine W. White was added as a partner in the CPA firm.

Location change

Crouch, Farley & Heuring PC, a CPA firm, has moved from Scott City to a new location at 623 S. Silver Springs Road. The firm has been in business for more than 30 years. Rick Heuring opened the Scott City office as Heuring Accounting Services in 1983 and it merged with Crouch, Farley & Heuring of Farmington, Mo., in 2005. The firm also has an office in De Soto, Mo.

Comfort Inn and Suites opens in Miner

MINER, Mo. -- Comfort Inn & Suites by Choice Hotels held its grand opening ribbon cutting Tuesday morning at its 109 David Lane location in Miner. Comfort Inn offers 64 rooms, of which 16 are suites, one with a Jacuzzi. On-site amenities for the customers are: a business center, fitness center, 25-person meeting room, pool and spa, breakfast bar and wireless Internet. Owners of the business are: Ghanshyam Patel, Rasiklal Patel and Hiren Maisuria; the general manager is Nipul Patel and the assistant manager is Jeremiah Engelmeyer.

Agency has new location, employees

SIKESTON, Mo. -- County Wide Insurance Agency not only has a new home, it also has two new faces.

The business is now located in the Alliance Bank building, 820 B. North Main St. The agency is in Suite One, located on the north side of the building. "It provides easier access to our agency for our customers," said Lisa Grissom, branch manager. "Everyone knows where Alliance Bank is located and will be able to find us quickly and easily."

More parking is also available at the new location.

The agency specializes in commercial insurance, which includes workers' compensation, commercial property, commercial auto and general liability, Grissom said.

"We also do personal, auto, home, life and health insurance," said Curtis Tumbleson, producing agent. "We do everything."

Tumbleson, who joined the agency in August, has several years of experience working in life and benefits insurance. Tumbleson has recently begun to work with both large and medium-sized commercial accounts.

Also new to the CWI team is Bart Ziegenhorn, who joined the agency in September.

Bank branch honored

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- The Southern Missouri Bank on Highland Drive in Poplar Bluff was honored as Branch of the Month for October.

Auto parts store opens

Advance Auto Parts opened its new Cape Girardeau location at 257 N. Kingshighway store manager Jerry Dancer said.

Dancer, who has two years under his belt with Advance Auto Parts, moved to Cape Girardeau from Eddyville, Ky., to take over the store. He said he has 22 years' experience in retail auto parts and 25 years' total retail experience.

For Dancer, it is a return to Cape Girardeau, where he worked about seven years ago. "At that time, I worked for one of our competitors," he said.

Within a few blocks of the new location, consumers can find auto parts at O'Reilly Auto Parts, 370 N. Kingshighway and Auto Tire and Parts-NAPA at 212 S. Kingshighway. Asked what Advance will offer that will get customers to turn into their lot instead of a competitor's, Dancer said, "You could say customer service. That is our No. 1 priority, that is our main priority. Honestly, it is basically help the customer, having the customer come in with a problem and fixing the problem."

All Advance Auto Parts stores are corporate-owned stores, not franchises.

Safety award

Artisan Contracting Inc. of Cape Girardeau was given the first-ever Mine Construction Maintenance and Repair's Safety Contractor of the Year award, a joint presentation of the U.S. Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration and the International Union of Operating Engineers and the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers. Artisans Contracting was nominated by Illinois Cement Co. of LaSalle, Ill. Company president Larry Frankum said in a prepared statement, "While it is gratifying to receive such a wonderful award as this, we must not forget how fragile a good safety record is. We must constantly remain diligent in pursuit of maintaining safe work sites."

ReStore opens

The Cape Area Habitat for Humanity's ReStore, after several delays, is open.

When leaders of the regional Habitat chapter announced plans for the store in July, they hoped for an opening later in the summer. But now the store at 117 N. Middle St. is stocked and ready to go, said store manager Jim Bequette.

The store is ready for shoppers needing ceramic tiles, ceiling tiles, lighting kits for ceilings and walls and bathroom fixtures such as vanities and toilets, he said.

Habitat ReStores specialize in selling surplus building supplies donated by homeowners, contractors, retailers and wholesalers. All the money from sales at the ReStore, minus amounts for rent, utilities and the salary for Bequette's part-time position, will be used to support the construction of Habitat homes in the region.

The ReStore has two main purposes: The first is to raise money for Habitat for Humanity. The second is to keep valuable building supplies out of area landfills.

The ReStore will be open from 9 a.m. to noon Thursday, 12:30 to 5 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. Donations will be accepted during those hours as well, Bequette said.

Anyone seeking to make a donation who cannot bring the material to the store during operating hours should call 651-9080 to set up an appointment, he said. The ReStore doesn't want donors leaving material on the store lot.

The list of acceptable items is long, but general requirements apply -- used materials, such as appliances, must be in good shape. The store will not accept upholstered furniture and will not accept televisions or computers. Building supplies such as roofing materials, lumber and drywall must generally be new, clean and undamaged.

Cape Electrical sold, going to 'the next level'

Cape Electrical Supply, a fixture of the Cape Girardeau business scene for more than 50 years, has been sold to a group of investors that include top managers and a Chicago-based equity firm.

The company, founded in 1953 by J.P. Tlapek, was owned by John C. Tlapek, who purchased it in 1986, and John Daniel, said Allen Toole, president of the company.

Svoboda, Collins LLC of Chicago took a major stake in the new company with Toole, Tlapek and Daniel taking minority interests, Toole said.

The company, which is primarily a wholesaler, distributes electrical and communications products to commercial, industrial, residential, institutional and utility customers. Cape Electric has grown into a company with 18 locations in four states and 140 employees, with sales in 2006 of about $70 million, Toole said.

There will be no changes in management or employees, Toole said. "We viewed it as an opportunity to take the company to the next level, remain independent and continue doing business in the fashion we were," he said. "We will continue growing and control our own destiny."

Cape Electric, which is on Kell Farm Drive near Bloomfield Road, operates a nearby retail outlet called Southfork Lighting.

Holiday Inn Express wins quality excellence award

The Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites Cape Girardeau has received the InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 2007 Quality Excellence Award. The award is given to hotels achieving distinction in all aspects of their operations. IHG is the world's largest hotel group by number of rooms.

The 2007 Quality Excellence Award adds to the service tradition at the Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites Cape Girardeau. The hotel won the IHG Newcomer Award in 2006 following the hotel's debut in June of 2005. The all-suite 102-room property is owned & operated by Midamerica Hotels Corporation of Cape Girardeau.

The hotel was honored at a special ceremony held during the 2007 IHG Americas Investors & Leadership Conference in Dallas, Texas, Oct. 22-24. Karla Clifton, general manager of the Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites Cape Girardeau accepted the award.

Employment firm honored for second time in 2007

FARMINGTON, Mo. -- Workforce Employment Solutions, an employment firm with 11 regional locations, has been recognized by Staffing Industry Analyst as one of the fastest growing private staffing firms in the U.S. To qualify, a company must average a minimum of 25 percent annual growth for the period 2002 through 2006.

During that time frame, the company grew from a Southeast Missouri company to one with offices in Missouri, Illinois, Texas, Kansas and Iowa, said Marlene Brockmiller, president of the company. In addition to industrial staffing, Workforce offers clerical and administrative staffing as well as a recruiting arm to land top managers for regional companies.

Workforce began operations in Farmington in 1994.

Bottled water produced locally

Schaefer's Water Centers has announced it is producing bottled water at a new plant in Perryville, Mo. Schaefer's Water Centers, owned by Riverside Water Technology Inc., whose president is Michael J. Schaefer of French Village, Mo., has been in business for 30 years as a distributor of bottled water.

According to a news release, the company is now bottling spring water from a source in Illinois and purified drinking water at a new bottling plant. The company remodeled its facilities about a year ago and included a bottling plant, but "immediately came to the realization that the building was too small," wrote Diane Geile of the company.

In addition to the new bottling plant, the company is expanding its warehouse to accommodate the increased business, the release said.

Livestock market changes hands

PUXICO, Mo. -- Harold Murray of Doniphan, Mo., recently bought the Puxico Livestock Market, LLC.

Since Murray took ownership, he said, he has pressure-washed and sanitized everything, has torn down old wooden pens and replaced them with metal, painted, and generally cleaned up the market and adjoining restaurant.

Scheduled sale dates will remain the same as under the previous owner: horse and tack sales will be held ever first, third, and when necessary the fifth Saturday of each month. The first cattle sale will be held the first Thursday of the new year and every week thereafter. All sales begin at 6 p.m., and Murray said that oats and hogs will also be sold.

Murray is licensed and bonded and will be working with three other auctioneers: Tim Martin, Jim DeJournett and Tim Samons. Murray also operates the Harold Murray and Son Auction Barn and Collin Harold's Western Store near Doniphan. His wife, Lynda Murray, owns Collins and Associates Realty, also near Doniphan.

Tourism award

Pinecrest Azalea Garden of Oak Ridge received the Spotlight Award during the 2007 Governor's Conference on Tourism at Lake of the Ozarks. Each spring, Gene and Linda Penzel's 52 acres of blooming rhododendron and azalea attract thousands of visitors to the region. The award recognizes a business or organization that is not usually associated with the tourism industry for noteworthy contributions.