April 28, 2017 at 7:16 p.m.
Speculation swirling around Marsh
Business
Speculation swirling around Marsh
Speculation continues about the future of Marsh Supermarkets in the wake of the company’s latest round of store closings, which included the Portland facility.
“From where I sit it is clearly the beginning of the end,” Mark Heckman, a consultant and former Marsh executive, told Supermarket News.
Heckman said Marsh made “rather drastic cuts” to its headquarters staff, “particularly among longstanding IT department people.”
That was a signal, he told Supermarket News, that support services to the company’s stores would be be “drastically diminished.”
“As far as I can tell now, there has likely been a pecking order of stores to close in a sequence that will optimize Sun Capital’s ability to continue to derive some income from Marsh,” said Heckman.
Marsh, founded in New Pittsburg in 1931 and a fixture in east central Indiana for generations, ran into financial trouble several years ago and was acquired by the private equity firm Sun Capital Partners in 2006.
Heckman said he thinks Marsh may have 15 to 20 locations that may be of interest to Pittsburgh-based Giant Eagle and to Cincinnati-based Kroger.
Hours changing
Family Practice of Jay County will have new office hours beginning Monday.
New hours will be 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The office is staffed by Dr. Mark Haggenjos and nurse practitioners Alice Bruggeman, Brenda DeArmond, Angela Neeley, Heather Masters and Danielle Lee.
Suit filed
A South Dakota man has filed suit against Coca-Cola Co., claiming he found a mouse in a can of soda produced in Portland, The Associated Press reported Friday.
The man’s lawsuit claims he missed 60 hours of work and accumulated $1,000 in medical bills after becoming ill.
Brian Johnson, Coca-Cola’s attorney in the Mitchell, South Dakota, said he hopes to get testimony from the quality assurance manager and line supervisor of the Coca-Cola Refreshments plant in Portland.
“Coca-Cola is faced with a claim that’s really an attack on its brand,” Johnson told The Daily Republic of Mitchell. “Coca-Cola takes these cases extremely seriously and tries them all.”
Site launched
A long-planned regional career website has been launched by Jay, Randolph and Wayne counties.
Hoosieropportunity.com is an effort to link regional employers with available candidates interested in this part of Indiana.
Get healthier
Tyson Foods Inc., parent company of Tyson Mexican Original in Portland, hopes to reduce injuries and illness among its employees by 15 percent annually, Bloomberg reported this week.
Much of the focus in on Tyson’s poultry operations, which have been a target of criticism by worker advocates.
OxFam America, which has been among those critics, praised the move this week.
“Tyson’s commitment to accountability and transparency will be key to significantly improving conditions for poultry workers,” OxFam’s director of domestic programs, Minor Sinclair, said in a press release.
This latest move is part of Tyson’s focus on sustainability in its food production facilities.
Other goals of the sustainability program include zero turnover in personnel, expansion of safety communications in all of the company’s poultry plants, and expansion of Upward Academy, a life skills program for Tyson employees.
Tyson employs 114,000, more than 95,000 of those in the U.S.
Appeal likely
Ardagh Group, parent company of glass container manufacturing plants in Dunkirk and Winchester, said it is going to pursue all options, including appeal, after losing a $50.3 million patent infringement lawsuit in Delaware this week.
The suit claimed that Verallia North America — the former parent of the Dunkirk plant — infringed on a patent held by Green Mountain for technology involved in turning mixed color glass cullet into recycled glass of a single color.
Spokesmen for Ardagh noted the company was covered by an indemnity from Verallia North America that was part of its acquisition of the U.S. glass bottle business.
Sales improve
Allegheny Technologies Inc., parent company of Portland Forge, reported this week that first quarter 2017 sales grew by 14 percent compared to the same period last year.
Net income was $17 million, compared to a significant loss for the first quarter of 2016.
The company said the results represent “important progress in achieving our goal to return ATI to sustainable long-term profitable growth.”
Sales to the aerospace and defense market increased six percent and represented 75 percent of segment sales.
Into Ethiopia
Yum Brands, parent company of Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, has signed a deal with Belayab Foods and Franchise PLC of Ethiopia to open 10 Pizza Hut restaurants in that country.
The company already has 188 Pizza Hut branches in Africa.
“Let’s be prudent because in Africa there may be some levels of instability and also when you are opening some routes that take time,” Ewan Davenport, General Manager of Pizza Hut Africa, said in a prepared statement.
“But the sky is the limit. At the moment, we are looking at (opening) at least 50 stores a year.”
Sponsoring
Citizens State Bank, which has a branch in Dunkirk, has signed on as the new corporate sponsor of the Hall of Fame Golf Classic in New Castle.
The event is a significant fund-raiser for the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame, bringing in more than $569,000 over 26 years. The event is set for July 24 at Pebble Brook Golf Club in Noblesville and will feature new Indiana University basketball coach Archie Miller.
Uber burger?
Crain’s Chicago Business reported this week that McDonald’s will be launching delivery through UberEats in several cities by the end of June.
The fast-food giant has been testing the Uber delivery system in about 200 Florida restaurants since December.
"We're encouraged about the start we've had," chief executive officer Steve Easterbrook told Crain’s. "We are not in test mode, we are expanding.”
Strong quarter
Ardagh Group reported a 38 percent increase in earnings for the first quarter of 2017.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation rose to 299 million Euros, up from 217 million Euros for the same period a year before.
The Luxembourg-based glass and metal container manufacturer raised more than $350 million in an initial public offering of its stock earlier this year and used the proceeds to lower its debt burden.
Coke cuts
Coca-Cola will cut 1,200 jobs starting later this year in response to a decline in sales, The Associated Press reported this week.
The job cuts are expected to come from the soft drink giant’s corporate staff around the world. That would represent about a 22 percent reduction of its corporate staff, The AP reported, or about one percent in its total global workforce of 100,300.
The cuts are part of a comprehensive review and won't be concentrated in any one place, The AP said.
Posts a loss
Gannett Co., which owns The Star Press of Muncie and more than 100 other news properties including USA Today, this week reported a first quarter net loss of $2.1 million, compared to income of $39.6 million a year ago. Total operating expenses rose nearly 27 percent as the company absorbed restructuring, acquisition, severance and other costs.
“From where I sit it is clearly the beginning of the end,” Mark Heckman, a consultant and former Marsh executive, told Supermarket News.
Heckman said Marsh made “rather drastic cuts” to its headquarters staff, “particularly among longstanding IT department people.”
That was a signal, he told Supermarket News, that support services to the company’s stores would be be “drastically diminished.”
“As far as I can tell now, there has likely been a pecking order of stores to close in a sequence that will optimize Sun Capital’s ability to continue to derive some income from Marsh,” said Heckman.
Marsh, founded in New Pittsburg in 1931 and a fixture in east central Indiana for generations, ran into financial trouble several years ago and was acquired by the private equity firm Sun Capital Partners in 2006.
Heckman said he thinks Marsh may have 15 to 20 locations that may be of interest to Pittsburgh-based Giant Eagle and to Cincinnati-based Kroger.
Hours changing
Family Practice of Jay County will have new office hours beginning Monday.
New hours will be 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The office is staffed by Dr. Mark Haggenjos and nurse practitioners Alice Bruggeman, Brenda DeArmond, Angela Neeley, Heather Masters and Danielle Lee.
Suit filed
A South Dakota man has filed suit against Coca-Cola Co., claiming he found a mouse in a can of soda produced in Portland, The Associated Press reported Friday.
The man’s lawsuit claims he missed 60 hours of work and accumulated $1,000 in medical bills after becoming ill.
Brian Johnson, Coca-Cola’s attorney in the Mitchell, South Dakota, said he hopes to get testimony from the quality assurance manager and line supervisor of the Coca-Cola Refreshments plant in Portland.
“Coca-Cola is faced with a claim that’s really an attack on its brand,” Johnson told The Daily Republic of Mitchell. “Coca-Cola takes these cases extremely seriously and tries them all.”
Site launched
A long-planned regional career website has been launched by Jay, Randolph and Wayne counties.
Hoosieropportunity.com is an effort to link regional employers with available candidates interested in this part of Indiana.
Get healthier
Tyson Foods Inc., parent company of Tyson Mexican Original in Portland, hopes to reduce injuries and illness among its employees by 15 percent annually, Bloomberg reported this week.
Much of the focus in on Tyson’s poultry operations, which have been a target of criticism by worker advocates.
OxFam America, which has been among those critics, praised the move this week.
“Tyson’s commitment to accountability and transparency will be key to significantly improving conditions for poultry workers,” OxFam’s director of domestic programs, Minor Sinclair, said in a press release.
This latest move is part of Tyson’s focus on sustainability in its food production facilities.
Other goals of the sustainability program include zero turnover in personnel, expansion of safety communications in all of the company’s poultry plants, and expansion of Upward Academy, a life skills program for Tyson employees.
Tyson employs 114,000, more than 95,000 of those in the U.S.
Appeal likely
Ardagh Group, parent company of glass container manufacturing plants in Dunkirk and Winchester, said it is going to pursue all options, including appeal, after losing a $50.3 million patent infringement lawsuit in Delaware this week.
The suit claimed that Verallia North America — the former parent of the Dunkirk plant — infringed on a patent held by Green Mountain for technology involved in turning mixed color glass cullet into recycled glass of a single color.
Spokesmen for Ardagh noted the company was covered by an indemnity from Verallia North America that was part of its acquisition of the U.S. glass bottle business.
Sales improve
Allegheny Technologies Inc., parent company of Portland Forge, reported this week that first quarter 2017 sales grew by 14 percent compared to the same period last year.
Net income was $17 million, compared to a significant loss for the first quarter of 2016.
The company said the results represent “important progress in achieving our goal to return ATI to sustainable long-term profitable growth.”
Sales to the aerospace and defense market increased six percent and represented 75 percent of segment sales.
Into Ethiopia
Yum Brands, parent company of Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, has signed a deal with Belayab Foods and Franchise PLC of Ethiopia to open 10 Pizza Hut restaurants in that country.
The company already has 188 Pizza Hut branches in Africa.
“Let’s be prudent because in Africa there may be some levels of instability and also when you are opening some routes that take time,” Ewan Davenport, General Manager of Pizza Hut Africa, said in a prepared statement.
“But the sky is the limit. At the moment, we are looking at (opening) at least 50 stores a year.”
Sponsoring
Citizens State Bank, which has a branch in Dunkirk, has signed on as the new corporate sponsor of the Hall of Fame Golf Classic in New Castle.
The event is a significant fund-raiser for the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame, bringing in more than $569,000 over 26 years. The event is set for July 24 at Pebble Brook Golf Club in Noblesville and will feature new Indiana University basketball coach Archie Miller.
Uber burger?
Crain’s Chicago Business reported this week that McDonald’s will be launching delivery through UberEats in several cities by the end of June.
The fast-food giant has been testing the Uber delivery system in about 200 Florida restaurants since December.
"We're encouraged about the start we've had," chief executive officer Steve Easterbrook told Crain’s. "We are not in test mode, we are expanding.”
Strong quarter
Ardagh Group reported a 38 percent increase in earnings for the first quarter of 2017.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation rose to 299 million Euros, up from 217 million Euros for the same period a year before.
The Luxembourg-based glass and metal container manufacturer raised more than $350 million in an initial public offering of its stock earlier this year and used the proceeds to lower its debt burden.
Coke cuts
Coca-Cola will cut 1,200 jobs starting later this year in response to a decline in sales, The Associated Press reported this week.
The job cuts are expected to come from the soft drink giant’s corporate staff around the world. That would represent about a 22 percent reduction of its corporate staff, The AP reported, or about one percent in its total global workforce of 100,300.
The cuts are part of a comprehensive review and won't be concentrated in any one place, The AP said.
Posts a loss
Gannett Co., which owns The Star Press of Muncie and more than 100 other news properties including USA Today, this week reported a first quarter net loss of $2.1 million, compared to income of $39.6 million a year ago. Total operating expenses rose nearly 27 percent as the company absorbed restructuring, acquisition, severance and other costs.
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