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Show The Salt Lake Tribune BUSINESS Friday, August 10, 2001 ConsumersFlocking to Discounters | Sa United Cuts Fares QueChicago Routes “SGgibAGO — United “Air. lines’ tut fares sharply Thursar-on some flights between International Airport and other major U.S.cities, respending to increased competitien from lower-cost flights at Crosstown Midway «wthe nation’s No. 2 airline also, eliminated the Saturdaynight stay restriction for numerous flights, making a bid to tween O’Hare andcities on both ¢gagts were cut by more than half as United moved to match fares offered by America Trans Air,;the nation’s 10th-largest airline, haan recently expended its Midway. United's Plcctions take ef- fect only with travel starting Sept. 5, and seven-day advance pl is req 5 United has lost nearly $1 billion in the past year, hit worse r carriers by thefalloff in high-endbusiness travel. Saturn Tops Buying Satisfaction Survey . “Make everything easy” to be the mantra among eae~customers who, for the sixth time in the past seven yétits, named Saturn dealers and their no-haggleselling tops for buying satisfaction. turn retained its No. 1 rankingin thelatest J.D. Power However, departmentstores, apparel merchants left with disappointing sales BY ANNE D°INNOCENZIO folios, continued discounters in July, but the shift toward lower-priced stores left other top merchants with disappointing sales results.” As retailers reported sales figures Thursday, it was clear that value oriented stores were the primary beneficiaries of a sales surge in recent weeks that some analysts attributed to the first wave of tax rebate spending and aggressive pricing. Kmart Corp. and J.C Pen. Penney Co.Inc., both ofwhich reported sales that beat Wall Street expectations, are showing signs ofa solid turnaround. ‘However, department stores, particularly Saks Inc. and Neiman Marcus, and apparel chains including Gap Inc. and The Limited Inc. suffered again, languishing amid piles of discounted.summer apparel. Retailers catering to teens also had mixed results, leaving analysts uncertain about the back-to-school season. Teen retailer Abercrombie & Fitch, which reported a 14 percentdrop in sales from stores open atleast a year, saw its stock plummet 17 percent, or $6.14, to $30 on the New York Stock Exchange,after it issued a cautious outlook for the remainder of the year. A recent American Express Retail Judges Uphold Fine Against Salon @ Continued from D-8 See biguous,” the appealsjudges looked to legislative intent antk'Associates Sale Satisfac- to reach their ruling. “Impo- tien:Index, based on surveys of be avoided by an employer’'s purchase ofretroactive insurance coverage for a portion of its period of noncompliance,” theopinionsaid. Larrie Carmichael, who represented the salon in the appeal, said he was disap- 46,000 new-car customers. . Saturn took back top honors last year after falling to sixth place in 1999. Its nearest competition — in the next five spots haggle pricing is the key factor ae Saturn to the top. Brands making significant improvement over last year in- clude Jaguar. Chevrolet and Bord. Jaguar, which has almost deubled its sales volume but hasn't significantly increased itsdealership count, went from No. 9ito No. 5. “Unquestionably, the retail environment remains very ‘THE ASSOCIATED PRESS sition of the penalty cannot needs no interpretation. My client was not subject to a pasty ofthe uaelar\w.” ie wording plain difficult.” “Given the timing of the tax rebates and the sales pickup, one assumes that there is a direct relationship,” said Niemira. ee ene WalMartStoresTne has offered to come of$431,000, or 8 cents per diluted share, for the same quarter a year ago. Net ‘sales MIKE JEFFRIES Abercrombie & Fitch CFO totaled $11.1 million, up 1 per- Index report andthe International Mass initial tion timating that back-to-school spending will fall slightly from a year ago. “Unquestionably, the retail environ- officer ofAbercrombie & Fitch. Another economic report Thursday fed worries abouta softening labor market that could continue to hurt consumer spending. After a three-week decline, new claims for state unemployment insurance rose last week, suggesting employers are letting more workers go. “The employmentpicture is pegged to economy. Consequently, there will still be caution,” said Michael Niemira, vice president of Bank of TokyoMitsubishiLtd.“The overall tone is that the climate is difficult and challenging.” But, he added, “there are signs ofhope,” and pointed to the sales improvement.in thelatter part ofJuly. Raises May Be Hurt In the Near Future @ Continued from D-8 Many companies already pushed their merit raises from January to April, without actually cutting the amounts of those raises, said Janet Fuersich, a compensation Iomega Job Cuts Are Going Deeper The discounter said it hada 6 percent sales increase at stores open at least a year. These sales, known as same-store sales, are considered thebest indicator of aretailer’s health. Before the end-of-month surge, sales were generally poorfor most merchants. Analysts are concerned that when short-term incentives, such as the tax rebates and tax-free’ weeks that some states are implementing, are over, sales will fall back. The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi Ltd. Index, which measures the performance of80 retailers, was up 3.4 percentfor the month of July, meeting Niemira’s expectations. However; without WalMart’s sales, the index would have risen only 2.2 percent, Niemira said. July, with its big clearance sales, is one ofthe least important months in the retail calendar. But while August is Q Love Communications of Salt Lake City has been chosen to provide marketing, promotions and public relations for Park’s Sportsman of Orem, a retailer of’ sporting goods, hunting and. fishing ment, skis and snowboards. a The first Utah location of where business is heading. consultant with Towers Perrin. So far, however, many paychecks do not reflect the corporate frugalitytouched off by the downturn. Government figures show that thetotal wage and salary pool increased across the country this past year. The increases were largest in the Rocky Mountain states, lead by Colorado, where paychecks averaged 13.3 percent gains in thefirst quarter of2001 compared with the same time a year ago. The smallest gains came in the Great Lakes states, where increases averaged about4 percent. Continued from oe implementa one-for-five reverse stock split that would reduce the number of shares outstanding to 55 million from 273 million. He declined to say whether Iomega’s strong cash position or any of the anticipated savings from restructuring will be used to Tomega_ stockholders will meet in Roy on Sept. 28 to vote on the company’s proposal to gave Iomega authority to repurchase $150 million of the ofdirectors. tied ei confirmed cent from $10.9 million.a year ee ees eee institutional buy back the company’s thatit shares. timer, Ray Quinney Nebeker, and Van Cott, Bagley, Cornwall & McCarthy. Q Community First National Bank has opened two new financial groups, Busi- company’s stock. So far, only $7 million of stock has been bought back, even pa the price per share has dec! almost 70 percent. Some shareholders wonder whether Iomega is using the reverse split to take the companyprivate. pheebe@sltrib.com In September, the board tive law judge and the commission's appealsho Wetabti toe Headaches? Stiff Neck? ForSales Contact- Ken Chambers For Service Contact- Jim Astle We canhelp in 2 3 days! L, Dr. Les Brooks is pioneering dentistry today. With state-of-the-art equipment and a . Specialized staff he is able to treat many of the symptoms that plague us today. These symptoms include migraines, headaches, tension in the neck and shoulders, .numbness in the arms and hands and not sleeping well. i youora friend have any of these symptoms, . please give us a call for a free consultation. Our treatmentis guaranteed. 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