Honolulu Star-Bulletin Business /2005/05/11/

[ FAST FACTS HAWAII ]

Let's roll

Auto transport ship debuts in Honolulu Harbor

RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Cars rolled off the MV Jean Anne yesterday. Hawaii's newest trans-Pacific auto shipper was docked at Honolulu Harbor.

BellSouth to run Hawaii telephone directory

Local telephone company Hawaiian Telcom has hired a BellSouth Corp. subsidiary to handle sales and operations for the former Verizon Hawaii telephone directory services.

The Berry Co. was selected because there had been no long-term transition agreement to handle the directory operations after the Carlyle Group bought Verizon Hawaii this month and renamed it Hawaiian Telcom.

The Berry Co., which publishes 750 directories for 103 other telephone companies, has begun hiring local customer service representatives in Hawaii. The company also will hire all 55 directories division employees of Hawaiian Telcom beginning July 5.

Maui General sells pearl business

Maui General Store Inc. has sold its pearl jewelry business, the company's only source of revenue, back to isle resident Patricia Cabellon for the return of 1 million shares of Maui General stock.

Cabellon had sold Hana Pearl LLC to Maui General in 2001 for 10 million shares of the Internet island clothing retailer.

Maui General recently said it had only $36,413 in revenue last year and a net loss of $42,260.

President Richard Miller, the only employee of Maui General, has been seeking financing to start up the company's online operations. In a recent SEC filing, Maui General said it had to stop making monthly payments last year for office space it leases in Hana, Maui, and New York.

Last year, the company was one of several stocks targeted in a pump-and-dump scheme that drove up its share price before it plunged. Maui General stock closed yesterday at 5 cents.

2 buildings planned for Mililani

Homebuilder Castle & Cooke Properties Inc. will construct two commercial buildings in Mililani Mauka for its operations and for space to lease.

The company will build a 6,000-square-foot building to house its construction department and a 10,000-square-foot building for offices and retail spaces.

The buildings are scheduled to be completed in the fourth quarter.

Emmis shares jump on buyback, sale talks

Shares in Emmis Communications Corp. soared yesterday after the media company said it would buy back 40 percent of its stock and was considering selling some or all of its television stations, including Honolulu's KHON and KGMB.

Emmis, an Indianapolis-based company that also owns radio stations and regional magazines, said it would finance the buyback with debt, regardless of what happens with its 16 TV stations. The buyback may be worth as much as $400 million, the company said.

Jeffrey Smulyan, Emmis' CEO, said in a statement the decision to put the TV stations on the block was made partly out of recognition that "in order to reach their full potential, our television stations need to be aligned with a company that is larger and more singularly focused on the challenges of American television."

Emmis' shares jumped $2.99, or 19.4 percent, to close at $18.44 in heavy trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market of 6.1 million shares.

Retailer reports slump in profit on weak sales

ST. LOUIS » May Department Stores Co., which has agreed to be bought by Federated Department Stores Inc. for $11 billion, reported a 46 percent drop in first-quarter earnings yesterday as it struggled with weak sales of its adult apparel and seasonal clearance markdowns. The results missed Wall Street expectations, and May shares slipped.

The St. Louis-based operator of Lord & Taylor, Famous-Barr, the Jones Store, Filene's and other regional department stores said its net income was $41 million for the three months ended April 30.

[Hawaii Inc.]

NEW JOBS

» Ferraro Choi and Associates Architects has hired Shawn Moynahan and Kurt Katada as interior designers. Katada previously worked as an interior design consultant on specialized military projects. He has 14 years of experience in the industry. Moynahan will be responsible for managing the interior architecture group. She most recently worked for an international health care architectural firm.

» The Hyatt Regency Maui Resort & Spa has appointed Matthew Smith as executive chef. He will be responsible for the 73 employees which provide culinary creations to the resort's four restaurants. He has more than 24 years of culinary experience.

PROMOTIONS

» Clear Channel Radio Hawaii has promoted Damian Balinowski to news director for KSSK FM 92.3 and KSSK AM 590. He joined the station in August 2002 as a reporter/news anchor. He previously served as news editor/business reporter for CKWX News 1130, Vancouver's first all-news station.

» The East-West Center has appointed Susan Kreifels seminars media activities coordinator. She will be responsible for overseeing study tours, lectures, conferences and other programs for journalists. She succeeds Dennis Donahue, who retired in January.