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Monday Ashland's Lot 9, Victory Cafe carry nostalgia theme ASHLAND - Where can you find a 1960s German army raincoat next to a '50s Australian Eisenhower-style army jacket, a step away from a '40s French policeman's leather motorcycle coat? A movie set? A military museum, maybe? Actually, in downtown Ashland, you find it all in a little basement shop called Lot 9. And if you feel like extending your blast into the past, the shop opens up into the Victory Cafe, where the Andrews Sisters warble on the sound system and the soda jerk can make an authentic Green River (a favorite of soda fountain devotees in the 1940s and '50s.) You can even glance through several 1940s copies of Look magazine scattered on the counter. "We do everything as close to era as possible," said Darby Stricker, 35, who rifles through her grandmother's recipe books to come up with fresh-made soups. Stricker and her mother, Babbette Flood, 55, had always wanted to go into business. Four years ago, after many years in fast-food management, Stricker finally accumulated the nest egg they needed to start their venture. So she called her mom, a fashion designer who was designing boudoir linens in California, and said the time was right. "We are best friends, and it's always been our dream to be in business together," Stricker said. "It's a dream we've been working toward all along." Flood's background in fashion and love of old military designs led them into the surplus marketplace. And Lot 9, a global surplus store, was born. "We started in a 400-square-foot room (on A Street) with four racks of clothing and took off from there," Stricker said. They expanded once at the A Street site, then moved to 107 E. Main St. two years ago. This winter, when Gourmet Coffee Cellar moved from the Pioneer Street coffee shop, Stricker and Flood found some 100-year-old soda stools and started their cafe in February. "In the 1940s all the dime stores had soda fountains attached to them," Stricker said. They serve a simple menu of sandwiches and salads and foot-long hot dogs aimed at hungry students or families with kids or anyone with a hankering for authentic soda fountain fare. They roast their own meats and also make their own milkshakes in spindle mixers from hard vanilla ice cream. "If someone comes in and asks for a 50-50, we know what they are talking about," Stricker said. Stricker spends most of her time in the Victory Cafe, while her mother devotes herself to Lot 9. "It's been a gradual climbing up by fingernails," Flood said of the expanding business. Flood uses her contacts from the fashion world to get leads on the array of military surplus carried in the store. There's early '90s British naval officers' linen suitcases for $35, green German raincoats from the '60s for $18, French linen underwear from World War II for $6. Also, pre-World War I British canteens covered in mohair ($28) and an Israeli paratrooper bag for $22. Flood said the items - such as work shirts with names like Fred and Bob still sewn on - are both new and used. Cargo pants purchased from the same company that wholesales clothing to the U.S. Army retail in the shop for $32. The older clothing is usually from various armies that had a surplus, which was stored somewhere or put in vacuum-packed barrels. "It's a time capsule, essentially," Stricker said. Monday's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page Sunday Conger-Morris Central Point Chapel changes name, focus CENTRAL POINT ­ Conger-Morris Central Point Chapel will be known as Central Valley Cremation and Funeral Care starting Sunday. The business will reduce rates by up to 60 percent and emphasize cremation services, said Robert Grover, manager of the Central Point chapel. He said nearly 60 percent of Jackson County residents choose cremation over a traditional funeral and consumers have become more price-conscious when seeking services. The Central Point location of Conger-Morris Funeral Home was established in 1976. The change in strategy at Central Point has no effect on the Conger-Morris location in downtown Medford. Sunday's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page Saturday Conger-Morris Central Point Chapel changes name, focus CENTRAL POINT ­ Conger-Morris Central Point Chapel will be known as Central Valley Cremation and Funeral Care starting Sunday. The business will reduce rates by up to 60 percent and emphasize cremation services, said Robert Grover, manager of the Central Point chapel. He said nearly 60 percent of Jackson County residents choose cremation over a traditional funeral and consumers have become more price-conscious when seeking services. The Central Point location of Conger-Morris Funeral Home was established in 1976. The change in strategy at Central Point has no effect on the Conger-Morris location in downtown Medford. Saturday's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page Friday OLCC may reprimand former Grub Street owner By JIM DAVIS The former owner of a downtown Medford restaurant may have trouble obtaining a liquor license for a new restaurant because of allegations that her husband sold cocaine on the premises. Toni Henselman, former owner of the Grub Street Grill, plans to open a new restaurant just down the street. Her husband's case "is going to affect her and there will be an investigation," said Johnny Harris, an Oregon Liquor Control Commission inspector. Henselman and her husband, Steven, owned and operated the Grub Street Grill at 35 N. Central Ave. Toni Henselman became sole owner in April 1996. In May 1996, Steven Henselman was arrested after police said he sold cocaine to undercover agents, including once at the restaurant. He is scheduled to stand trial July 1 in Jackson County Circuit Court on a charge of possession of cocaine. Toni Henselman sold the restaurant earlier this year to Evan McArthur, of Los Angeles, who changed the eatery's name to Evan's Grub Street Grill. Toni Henselman plans to open a restaurant called Amore d'Italia at 214 E. Main St. The restaurant will seat 47 and is expected to open in July. But Harris said the OLCC staff is recommending that the commission issue a "letter of reprimand" to the Henselmans. The OLCC staff alleges that Steven Henselman "permitted unlawful activity on the premises by possessing and distributing" cocaine inside the restaurant. The OLCC also alleges that the owners allowed employees to sell alcohol who did not have valid state-issued service permits. Harris said the reprimand letter will not carry a fine or any other punishment because the Henselmans no longer have a liquor license. "We no longer have administrative power over them," he said. "But the letter is a matter of record if they came back and tried to get a new license." He said that Toni Henselman has picked up a liquor license application. Her case will not be reviewed until she returns it. "It's just in limbo right now," he said. Toni Henselman said on Wednesday that she intends to apply for a liquor license. "This is something that's personal," she said. "That restaurant will have a liquor license." Toni Henselman hasn't yet purchased a city business license for the new restaurant, a city official said. (Crime/justice reporter Jim Davis can be reached at 776-4485.) Friday's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page Thursday State grants $15,000 for rural businesses The state has granted $15,000 for a study of the telecommunications needs of rural businesses in Jackson and Josephine counties. The Oregon Economic Development Department allocated the grant to Medford-based Oregon Multi-Media Institute (OMMI) to assess the needs of home-based businesses and software developers. "We will identify what is actually being used and long-range telecommunications needs," said Ramona Colletta-Stewart, OMMI executive director. The project will be finished in about five months, she added. The results will be used by private service providers, schools, colleges and public entities to encourage investment in communications systems. The funds are from a U.S. Forest Service Old Growth Diversification fund grant to the OEDD to help rural, timber-dependent communities. The money is intended to avert decline or stabilize and diversify economies. Thursday's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page SOU recruiting is way up By PAUL MACOMBER ASHLAND ­ Southern Oregon University graduates are benefiting from the Pacific Northwest's prosperity. "We had a 45 percent increase in businesses participating in our annual career networking night," said Linda Barnes, SOU director of career services. "There's been a 60 percent increase in the number of companies wanting to recruit on campus." But she said the biggest interest has been from retailers ­ Bi-Mart, Kmart, Mervyn's ­ and service businesses such as travel, tourism and financial services. More jobs are also opening in education. "Mostly what students hear in the national press is demand for technical graduates: engineers and computer science graduates," Barnes said. "They're not beating down doors for liberal arts students." That doesn't mean liberal arts students can't get jobs, she said. SOU is attracting recruiters because it produces quality graduates, she said, adding that it's too soon to tell if grads will benefit from the former college's new status as a university. Although the Pacific Northwest is prospering, Oregon's jobless rate, at 5.8 percent, remains higher than Washington's. And the rate for Jackson County last month was still higher, at 8 percent. "I'd caution people not to distort the news," Barnes said. "Or to assume they're going to walk out into a great job in their field in the Rogue Valley and live happily every after. If that doesn't happen, they shouldn't get down on themselves." Thursday's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page Job picture puts college grads in big demand The Associated Press SEATTLE ­ It's a good year to graduate from college. With national unemployment dropping below 5 percent in April for the first time since the 1970s and large companies returning to campuses across the country to recruit fresh talent, school officials say graduates are facing bright futures. "This is one of the strongest years that we've had, definitely, in the last four years," said Al Jamison, director of career services at Washington State University. In Washington, preliminary figures for April's unemployment rate showed a drop to 5 percent from 5.6 percent in March, according to the state Employment Security Department. King County's unemployment rate fell to 3.5 percent in April. "It's a strong economy, and business is booming. In the Northwest, we've also been lucky that Microsoft, Boeing and some of our predominant employers have had a very successful year," Jamison said. According to Jamison, the number of interviews held at WSU's Pullman campus this year grew 29 percent, from 3,116 last year to 4,014. More than 300 companies participated, and nearly 700 students were interviewed. Peter Katzler was one of them. Five months before he received his bachelor's degree, he was given a $3,000 signing bonus for accepting a job at a Portland-area electronics firm. The 27-year-old mechanical engineer had been interviewed by 11 companies before he landed the $41,000-a-year job with Tektronix in Beaverton. Other schools have also seen the hiring trend take shape. Western Washington University in Bellingham had 73 employers interviewing on campus through May 6 this year, compared with 58 employers by the end of June last year. Seattle University had to turn away employers from its fall job fair after accommodating 75 companies. At Seattle Central Community College, 1,000 job notices have been posted at any given time while more than 300 companies and small businesses ­ especially technology companies ­ targeted the University of Washington. "It seems like a lot of the small and medium-sized companies are getting savvy about this being an ideal, well-educated pool to take advantage of," said Jean Hernandez, director of the UW's Center for Career Services. Even international students are getting drawn into the booming job market. More than 1,000 students showed up for the UW's international job fair, most of them looking for opportunities to work in an American company when they go home. The fair, hosted by Seattle University, Seattle Pacific University and the UW, drew 30 companies, including software companies and consulting firms, said Garrett Stokes, associate director of the career development center at Seattle University. Aggressive recruiting also signifies a shorter time in school for some. Jonathan Martin, an accounting major, had planned to graduate in June 1998 on the five-year plan. Instead, he submitted his resumes last fall to test the waters. Martin got five on-campus interviews, and two follow-ups. The six-hour interview at Arthur Andersen, a major accounting firm with an office downtown, went so well the company offered him an entry-level accounting job on the spot. The position generally pays a base salary of $31,050. Martin also will get paid for overtime, is entitled to four weeks vacation to start and can sign up for a tuition reimbursement plan that will cover the bulk of his graduate coursework. Engineering, computer science and business are high-demand majors. The average starting salary for a computer information sciences grad rose 7.8 percent to $36,666 this year compared with last year's average. The biggest money earners, chemical engineering graduates, were offered starting salaries averaging $42,450, according to an April 1997 survey published by the National Association of Colleges and Employers. Liberal arts majors, typically, do not earn as much. History majors were looking at salaries of $22,238, 9.7 percent lower than those paid last year. Thursday's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page Wednesday People spur Answer Page's growth By PAUL MACOMBER The cowboy print on Bill Anderberg's office wall at Answer Page says, "If you don't make dust, you eat dust." As a Medford business owner competing with such giants as AT&T, he takes it to heart. Anderberg started the business in 1988 with 40 customers. That's grown to 5,000 paging clients and 1,000 answering service customers. The company employs 34 people and topped $1 million in revenue last year. Anderberg anticipates a 25 percent increase this year. "It's people ­ our employees and customers ­ that are the key elements to our company's growth," Anderberg says. With a move from downtown Medford to a new building at 3709 Citation Way, next to Costco, the company is the first in the Rogue Valley to integrate an answering service with paging, voice mail and cellular technology. The company is a U.S. Cellular agent. "We've tied it all together in one modular system," he says. "With one responsible party, if you have a problem or question, you only have one call to make. We've just continued to build, and we've kept the quality of service number one." Answer Page is owned by Anderberg and Tom Cook. Anderberg also has an interest in his partner's business, Cook Paging, with offices in Seattle and Portland and in California in San Rafael, Salinas, Fresno and San Francisco. A staff of two to 12 operates the answering service and the company is already planning for expansion. "We use a paperless, user-friendly, consumer-friendly system that can send to a pager, voice mail or fax ­ that accounts for about 60 percent of our business," Anderberg says. The rest is still verbally relayed to clients. "We've worked with a voice consultant to help our people with inflection and pacing," he says. "They also trained us in how to calm a person in an emergency. We have some scripting to obtain information as quickly as possible." Anderberg, 46, was born in South Dakota and moved throughout the West as his father gained promotions in the feed store business. "I probably attended 10 or 12 schools," he says. "But it was OK. It seemed every place we moved was better than the last." With some help from his father, he went into the answering service business after earning a degree in political science from Long Beach State in California. "I was going to become an attorney, but I saw a lot of friends get out of law school and get jobs at Macy's or pumping gas," he says. He says the business helps him learn a little about a lot of businesses and how to solve their communications problems. The boom in Silicon Valley helped build Anderberg's business. He sold and moved out of the San Francisco Bay area to escape the rush, he says. "We looked at Davis and Sacramento and Yreka," Anderberg says. "We came over the hill and looked at this beautiful valley and we knew it was for us. We bought a home within three days of arriving." They raised cattle, cut hay and rode horses until he felt the urge to return to business. He and his wife enjoy riding enough to participate in 50- and 100-mile endurance races. They have two daughters: Lauren, 17, and Dene, 9. Anderberg enjoys the outdoors, fishing, hunting and snow sports. "I took up snowboarding two years ago," he says. "I guess I just got tired of skiing." Wednesday's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page Medite lays off workers as veneer plant runs low on logs By PAUL MACOMBER ROGUE RIVER ­ Medite Corp. has sent layoff notices to some 50 workers at its Rogue River veneer mill. "We're about out of logs," said Medite Controller Bret DeForest. "We'll be done no later than July 8." The mill is for sale, but there's no assurance it will be sold or that it will continue to operate under different ownership, he added. "We're talking to a couple of people interested in buying it, but we're assuming it will shut down," DeForest said. "I'd like to see it bought by somebody who will keep operating it so the workers will still have jobs." Most of the mill was destroyed by a fire in 1992. It was rebuilt and back in full production by early 1994. The site includes 55 acres along Interstate 5. "It takes the right person to buy it," DeForest said. "If you don't have the wood to run through it, it's not worth a darn," he said. "It's real tough right now in this valley; there's not a lot of excess wood out there." Medite, formerly Medford Corp., was Jackson County's largest employer 20 years ago, with several mills employing more than 1,700 people. The company has been closing mills and reducing the workforce since 1989 as public timber supplies have dwindled. Medite's parent company ­ Valhi, based in Dallas, Texas ­ decided to exit forest products altogether last year. The Rogue River mill is the last of its wood processing facilities. Wednesday's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page Horizon to add Seattle nonstop Horizon Air will begin offering nonstop flights between Medford and Seattle Aug. 3. The Seattle-based airline will use 37-passenger Dash 8 turboprops, which will cover the route in 1 hours, about half the time it presently takes with a stop in Portland. "Traffic between Medford and Seattle has increased steadily over the years," said Pat Zachwieja, Horizon vice president of marketing and planning. Horizon will continue to offer 10 flights a day between Medford and Portland. Two flights a day to Seattle are scheduled initially; rates were not announced. The best round-trip fare now available is $225, plus tax. Wednesday's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page Tuesday District mulls advertising idea Signs would appear at varsity games By SUSAN JAY ASHLAND ­ School board members will not consider displaying signs for national advertisers at high school varsity games unless their terms are met. The board Monday heard from Jim Nagel, athletic director for the school district, about a company called TNT and its advertising proposal. TNT Inc. would pay the school district $18,000 a year to display 20 signs, 3.5 feet by 5 feet, advertising national corporate sponsors during varsity high school games. TNT Inc. approached athletic directors from Oregon school districts earlier this year at a conference. Nagel said the company wants 20 schools and already has 18, is still recruiting national advertisers and wants a five-year closed agreement, meaning the school district couldn't contract with another company for displaying national advertising signs. Nagel said he heard from parents who did and didn't support the idea. He said it was an opportunity for outside businesses to support Ashland schools, and that it would be awkward asking local businesses for donations if the district didn't explore and take advantage of such an opportunity. He also said he knows how hard it is for the Booster Club and others to raise $20,000 a year. Local businesses could also advertise on TNT's signs, but would pay the same rate. Board members Terry Littleton and Alan DeBoer agreed with Nagel, that local businesses are hit pretty hard and regularly for school support, and money now is tight. Board Chairman Dan Thorndike, however, expressed some real doubts about TNT after reading a copy of its contract and finding the company wasn't listed with the Secretary of State's office. "When I read this thing, I mean little warning bells went off in my head," he said. "If these folks were going around door to door, I wouldn't buy anything from them." The contract TNT sent was rudimentary and vague, he said. One parent said local businesses may give up some local influence by handing over financial support to outsiders, and expressed disapproval of yet another place for kids to be exposed to advertising. The board gave Nagel a list of terms to review with TNT, including the right to pre-approve all sponsorships, signs and advertisers, a guaranteed dollar amount paid as TNT accrued advertising fees, a two-year pilot period and clear provisions regarding local advertisers. Today's Business Index, Mail Tribune Home Page