Neiman axes
15 positions

Star-Bulletin staff

Luxury merchant Nei-man Marcus has cut 15 jobs at its Ala Moana Center department store, a reflection of Hawaii's slow economy, company officials say.

"Business has not been up to our original expectations," said Pauline Worsham, public relations manager.

The $43 million store, which opened in September, had about 300 employees before positions were cut last month.

The affected employees were in sales support positions -- gift wrapping and behind the scenes.

They were offered the opportunity to apply for sales positions, Worsham said.

Before opening the store, company officials said they anticipated slow sales initially and improvement in the long term.