Lawn care business expands in economic climate

Lawrence Concho owes a lot to landscape maintenance. While he was a student majoring in accounting at the University of New Mexico, the job provided enough money to pay for his tuition, fees and living expenses. And when the slowing economy was a reason for Concho losing his job at an accounting firm in Southeast Missouri, he took a proactive approach and turned to landscaping to start a new business.

Elegant Landscape Maintenance serves both the Cape Girardeau and Jackson areas with services such as hedge and shrub trimming and laying down mulch. He said he thinks landscaping is a must for those hoping to sell their homes.

"Buyers look at bathrooms and landscaping the most when looking for a home," Concho said. "It has a better possibility of selling with a little bit of care. Your house is an investment, and if you let it go, that could be costly.

"I work with my clients to meet their needs to see what they want," he said. "Every individual house and yard is different."

Elegant Landscape Maintenance may be reached at 979-7588.

n Anime shop opening new location today: When my wife told me last week the lights were off and merchandise was off the shelves at Yumazu Anime and Collectibles, I feared that Broadway had lost another business. But Olujoke Brimah -- the mother of Umar, the youngster who opened the store in May -- reassured me that the business is only moving, from 520 Broadway to 115 Independence St.

Brimah said utility bills were too high at the old location, forcing the business to temporarily close in early January while the inventory of anime collectibles such as backpacks, costumes, CDs, posters, playing cards and T-shirts was moved.

"My son told me that a lot of our customers walked here, so when it got too cold things suddenly slowed down because they weren't walking as much anymore," Brimah said.

The new location, which opens today, will include expanded hours, a larger selection of cosplay outfits (costumes of anime characters that fans wear) and an African gallery in the rear of the store that will offer arts and home decor from the continent.

Yumazu will be open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Brimah said her son recently created the store's website, www.yumazuonline.com, but it is still under construction.

n John Deere dealership moving to Scott City: William Nobbe and Co., a local John Deere dealer in Cape Girardeau and Jackson, will soon expand its operation in Southeast Missouri by building a new facility off exit 89 in Scott City. The 38,000-square-foot facility will feature a larger showroom and service department.

The company will combine its Cape Girardeau and Jackson locations into this new facility, which will include an expanded meeting room with wireless Internet and professional presentation capabilities. The meeting room will be available for public use.

The owners said they understand the move may be difficult for their customers north of Jackson.

"While the move will only put us nine minutes south of our current location, we do realize that it will be an inconvenience for our northern customers," co-owner Brian Nobbe said. "The last thing we want is to alienate our longtime customers. That is why we will work hard to increase our mobile maintenance along with our pick-up and delivery services in order to minimize the effects of the move."

Brian and Tom Nobbe make up the third generation of the company that was founded in 1907. Since the first location was opened in Waterloo, Ill., the company has expanded to Steele­ville, Ill., and Jerseyville, Ill., in addition to Cape Girardeau and Jackson.

Tom Kelsey, commercial broker with Lorimont Place Ltd., handled the sale.

n Law firm breaks ground: The law firm of Lichtenegger, Weiss & Fetterhoff held a March 9 groundbreaking for its new office building at 2480 E. Main St. in Jackson. The new building will house the Jackson practice on the second floor. The first floor will have rental space for up to four tenants. The firm is scheduled to move to the new building by the end of the year. Office manager Aimee Hampton said the office has outgrown its present building at 1210 Greenway Drive.

n Kmart, Sears Grand safe for now: Sears Holdings recently published a list of stores it plans to close by May 31, and that left some unanswered questions as to the fate of the Kmart and Sears Grand in Cape Girardeau. However, a company spokesperson left a message on my voice mail last week informing me the two stores are safe for now.

Sears Holdings has about 3,900 stores throughout the United States. Its net income for the fourth quarter of 2008 was $190 million compared to $426 million in the fourth quarter of 2007.

n Jackson hair care business to open by end of month: Paula Mills, the former owner of Jackson Family Haircuts plans to open a new hair care business by the end of March. She has opened a one-woman hair care shop called Paula's Family Haircuts. Mills said walk-ins are welcome and she can cater to both men and women's hair-care needs. The shop at 507 E. Jackson Blvd. will be open 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to noon Saturday. To reach Paula's Family Haircuts, call 204-3441.

n Woman hopes to bring sewing revival to Cape Girardeau: Betty Avant has a vision to bring a sewing revival to Cape Girardeau. Since Thorngate Ltd. shut down its sewing operations in November, she said the area has been lack a work force to handle the job. She hopes that will change with the opening of Atap Enterprises, whose first day of business was March 2.

Atap Enterprises offers custom sewing and alterations for now but in April will expand to include a sewing school with room for about 30 students. Avant is accepting applications for the school now at the business, 310 S. Sprigg St. The current hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The business can be reached at 334-2223.

"Sewing is such a vast field," Avant said. "What we need is for people to learn full custom sewing.

"When I was an eighth-grader I learned how to sew some of my own clothes, but that's a lost art now," she said. "This is our opportunity for this community to learn this craft."

n Pharmacy changes ownership: Medicap Pharmacy at 200 W. Washington St. in Jackson has changed ownership and is now MediCenter Pharmacy. One of the owners, Stephen Sommer of Kirkwood, Mo., told me the location and staff will remain the same, with Tina Hart serving as pharmacist/ manager. The store is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday and can be reached at 243-1303.

n Crown Nissan to receive award: Crown Nissan of Cape Girardeau is one of three Nissan dealerships in the state to receive the company's 2008 Nissan Owner First Award of Excellence, based on overall customer satisfaction.

n Stonie's wins Best of Show: Stonie's Sausage Shop of Perryville, Mo., was awarded Best of Show at the Missouri Association of Meat Processors' 70th annual Convention and Trade Show on March 6 through 8 in Columbia.

The competition was judged by nine judges from Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska and Missouri who hold Ph.D. degrees in meat science and four judges who are graduate students in meat science.

n Jackson Chamber schedules two ribbon cuttings: The Jackson Chamber of Commerce has scheduled ribbon cuttings for two businesses this week. The first will be at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Amelia's Fashion Exchange, 110 S. High St. The second ribbon cutting of the week will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Chic-N-Little Boutique, 2370 N. High St., Suite 5.

Southeast Missourian business reporter Brian Blackwell may be reached at 388-3628 or bblackwell@semissourian.com.