Business News short takes
Posted on Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Small Business Hall inductees named A Springdale business will become one of the state’s first inductees to the Arkansas Small Business Hall of Fame.
EZ Spanish Media was created in 1998 by owner Eddie Vega to help communicate news to the area’s Spanish-speaking residents.
Other inductees include Hot Springs Tire and Auto Service Inc.; Twin City Trailer Sales and Service Inc. of Conway; and Aristotle Inc. of Little Rock.
Inductees were nominated based on criteria such as the business’ “staying power” and economic impact.
The Arkansas Small Business Hall of Fame, located at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith, intends to showcase entrepreneurial contributions to the state’s economy. The hall of fame will host an inductee ceremony Oct. 18. Asda seeks to freshen food offerings Asda Group Plc, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. ’s U. K. supermarket chain, has “a long way to go” to improve its fresh fruit, vegetables and meat, said Chief Operating Officer David Cheesewright.
“A lot of customers don’t have a very good perception of our fresh food,” Cheesewright said in an interview after a speech to a U. K. grocery industry conference in London on Tuesday Sept. 10. “It’s a lot about perception, but you don’t just get bad perception. You deserve what you get.” Increasing the retailer’s fresh food offerings is part of Chief Executive Officer Andy Bond’s plan to win back customers after the retailer last year missed its profit and sales forecasts. Asda and competitors such as Tesco Plc, J Sainsbury and Marks & Spencer Group Plc have added food ranges to suit the changing tastes of U. K. consumers, who are seeking food with less salt and fat.
Asda has increased its organic-food offerings and used more local suppliers to reduce the time it takes to get fresh produce to stores, Cheesewright said. Successive CEOs have pledged to improve the fresh food, including Archie Norman and Alan Leighton in the 1990 s and Bond’s predecessor Tony DeNunzio, he said.
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