Business roundup: Rockwell, Mocksville residents on Southern States board

SALISBURY — Jerry Pless of Rockwell and Lane Karriker of Mocksville were elected to the local board at the Southern States annual membership meeting of Salisbury, which was held in Salisbury Nov. 12.

More than 40 stockholder/members and their families attended.

Also Sam Corell of Cleveland and first alternate George Smith of Lexington were elected as delegates to a district election meeting to be held in late summer or early fall.

The local meeting also included a report by Southern States District Manager Chris Thomas on major developments at the Cooperative during the past year.

Reviewing local operations and services was Jason Callicutt, manager of Southern States Cooperative, Inc. — Salisbury Service. He reported that total operating volume for the past year was about $4.29 million.

Southern Sates would like to thank its retiring board members for the service they have given to Southern States Cooperative of Salisbury.

George Smith of Lexington and Brian Moore of Mount Ulla had been the local board chairman and vice chairman for the year.

Insurance group honors Brown

Howard W. Brown, Jr. of Howard Brown Agency Inc. was recently recognized for professional leadership and advanced knowledge by the Society of Certified Insurance Counselors (CIC), a leading national insurance professional organization.

Brown was awarded a certificate marking more than 25 years of participation as a designated CIC, which requires annual completion of advanced education and training. He has been granted the status of “Tenured CIC” by the Society.

“Howard’s ongoing allegiance to and support of the CIC Program is a testament to the value he places on ‘real world’ education and customer satisfaction. Your clients, associates and the insurance profession as a whole will benefit from such dedication,” said William T. Hold, president of the Society of CIC.

Exterminator on top 100 list

Bill’s Exterminating/Peeler Environmental was recently included in Pest Management Professional Magazine’s list of top growing pest management firms in the nation.

The Salisbury business was included in the December article “PMP100.”

“Many companies included in the list have grown their companies through acquisitions of other business entities. We’ve grown our company ‘organically’ by developing new service offerings that allow our customers to improve their home and business environments,” CEO Kip Peeler said.

Termite and pest control are the core services that Bill’s Exterminating/Peeler Environmental has offered for 44 years. Being in customers' attics and crawl spaces allows the company to assist clients in moisture and mold reduction through conditioned crawl spaces, as well as energy conservation through attic and crawl space insulation.

Bottom Dollars now openin Pittsburgh area

Bottom Dollar Food entered the Pittsburgh market this past week with grand openings for the first seven stores in the area, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported.

Another round of store openings is planned for early February, which will give the Salisbury-based chain 14 stores in Pittsburgh and in Youngstown, Ohio, area.

Bottom Dollar Food, which launched in 2005 and entered Pennsylvania via the Philadelphia market in late 2010, is part of Delhaize America, the U.S. division of Belgium-based Delhaize Group. Food Lion is owned by the same parent company.

Bottom Dollar Food’s 18,000-square-foot format fits into spaces that wouldn’t work for many traditional grocery stores. The company hires about 30 to 35 workers to run each store.

Computer-assisted ordering helps Food Lion compete

Food Lion is close to completing a rollout of computer-assisted ordering (CAO) to all of its more than 1,500 stores, Scott Craig, director of supply chain for Delhaize America, told Supermarket News.

The implementation of the CAO system from SAF (now part of SAP), began in October 2010 and was almost completed last year, Craig said at the Supply Chain Conference in Orlando, Fla., this past week. The Supply Chain Conference is sponsored by the Food Marketing Institute and the Grocery Manufacturers Association.

About three-fourths of the remaining 140 stores were deployed this month, with the rest to be done shortly, he added. The system triggers replenishment orders from distribution centers based on forecasts and inventory counts, among other factors. Food Lion uses a home-grown perpetual inventory system with the CAO application.

As a result of the CAO rollout, “our in-stocks are way up,” Craig told Supermarket News. “We’ve reduced store inventory, reclaims and shrink in fresh departments.”

Food Lion’s sister Delhaize America chain Hannaford Bros., Scarborough, Maine, also uses the same CAO system.

Holiday Inn ranks high on JD Power listing

IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) said Holiday Inn has ranked highest in guest satisfaction among mid-scale full service hotel chains, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2011 North America Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study.

As one of the brand’s 808 hotels in the Americas the Holiday Inn-Salisbury contributes to the brand’s overall success.

The Holiday Inn-Salisbury is owned and managed by Hotel Group of Salisbury, under a license agreement with a company in the InterContinental Hotels Group.

To earn the top satisfaction ranking, Holiday Inn outperformed all other mid-scale full service hotel chains in the study, scoring highest in overall guest satisfaction, as determined by reservations; check-in/check-out; guest room; food and beverage; hotel services; hotel facilities; and cost and fees. The 2011 North America Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study is based on responses gathered between June 2010 and May 2011 from more than 61,300 guests from the United States and Canada who stayed in a hotel between May 2010 and May 2011.

Historic H.J. Peeler House now open in Kannapolis

KANNAPOLIS — The H.J. Peeler House, built in 1923, is opening for business after a seven-year research phase and restoration.

Property owner Jamison Lee has restored the High-Style Craftsman/Colonial home to its original state. The property is the first in downtown Kannapolis to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The first floor is available for rental as a special event venue and the second floor will be leased as office suites.

To learn more, go to www.hjpeelerhouse.com .

Re-employment Bridge Institute conference June 7-8

The Bridging Business and Workforce Development Conference’s second event will focus on bringing together private business with workforce professionals.

The intent is to provide services to the underemployed and unemployed.

The event is June 7-8 (Thursday afternoon and Friday morning) at Embassy Suites in Concord. Registration fee is $125.

A pre-conference workshop on “Moving Your Workforce System to the next Level” is presented by John P. Metcalf. This interactive workshop will prepare participants to create a workforce delivery system to meet the needs of area businesses. Registration fee is $75 ($50 with conference registration fee of $125).

Go to www.reemploymentbridge.com to register.

One Property Source opens office on Faith Road

SALISBURY — One Property Source announce another expansion of the OPS Team by opening a Salisbury office at 501 Faith Road.

Known as the OPS Rowan Realty Team, the office is operated by veteran broker Debbie Miller who has operated in this market for 14 years as Rowan Realty. The combination of longevity and experience in the Salisbury market and the addition of new technologies and unique marketing concepts of OPS will give buyers and sellers more advantages to close real estate transactions.

OPS Rowan Realty Team will host a ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday, Feb. 23, from noon until 3 p.m.

OPS works with traditional brokerage clients as well as offering marketing packages for “for sale by owners” and also offering distressed property experts, an auctioneer and unique options to sell property.

Edward McAfee serves as president and CEO for One Property Source & Locus Real Estate Advisors Inc., located at 1501 S. Main St. in Kannapolis.

To learn more, call 704-934-2227.

7-Eleven buying 55 Sam’s Mart stores in area

7-Eleven, Inc. announced Friday that it will buy 55 Sam’s Mart stores in the Carolinas and convert them to 7-Eleven stores this year. The Salisbury Sam’s Mart at 830 Jake Alexander Blvd. is not part of the deal.

7-Eleven is returning to the Charlotte area, where it had operated from 1964 until 1988.

Sams Mart LLC will continue to operate 91 stores in the Charlotte and Atlanta metro areas.

Submit information about new businesses, honors and management promotions to bizbriefs@salisburypost.com.

Include a daytime phone number.