9A
STRICTLY BUSINESS/The Charlotte Post
Thursday, January 30, 1997
Metro Express grows
Continued from page 8A
20,000 pieces
per week
within a few
months, which
will mean 15
to 20 addition
al jobs.”
The Ealeigh-
Durham area
is also part of
Metro’s expan
sion with the acquisition of
Carolina Desktop Delivery
Service, which gives the compa
ny established relationships
with several institutions. Duke
University and Medical Center,
Bell
Carolina Power & Light and
Northern Telecom are cus
tomers. Metro Express will con
tinue to provide warehouse-to-
desktop deliveries as well as
delivery services for manufac
turing and wholesaling compa
nies in the area. The company’s
goal is to build its dehvery base
among consumers throughout
the region. Metro Express serves
North and South Carolina,
Virginia and Georgia.
“Our aim in the years ahead is
to provide the high level of ser
vice we’ve been known for with
in the growing supply chain
management arena,” Greene
said. “Supply chain deliveries
resources and
supplies to
manufactur
ing opera
tions, finished
goods to pack
aging and dis
tribution oper
ations, pack
aged products
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to wholesalers and from whole
salers to retail estabhshments.
In short, we’re structured to pro
vide the transportation linkages
between every point along the
supply chain that runs from raw
materials to the consumer.”
Northwest moves ahead
Continued from page 8A
trying to bring cohesiveness to
all the groups in the area. We
are trying to become the broker
so there is no dupUcation...so we
can get the biggest bang for the
buck.”
James Ross chairs the
Northwest Enterprise
Conununity’s board of directors,
which also includes Lawrence
Tolliver of the Charlotte
Chamber, representatives of
uptown banks and neighborhood
activists such as Maxine Martin
and Louise Sellers.
“We are interested in small
business people,” Johnson said.
‘We want to make sure there is
adequate space available for
small business persons. The
space available is often too big
for small businesses. We hope to
come up with a new design.”
Johnson grew up in Concord
and lived in Charlotte for 34
years, teaching school here in
the ‘60s before opening several
businesses.
His experience has taught him
not only what to do, but what
not to do, he said.
“That’s one of the things we
are excited about. There are
things out there in the road peo
ple don’t teach you about,” he
said. “We hope to .share them
with people striving to be suc-
cessfiil.”
The Enterprise Community
center will also help entrepre
neurs secure financing from
other sources and may one day
have its ovm microlending pro
gram in-house, Johnson said.
‘That would allow us to make
small loans to businesses that
may need short-term loans and
may not qualify through tradi
tional lending institutions,” he
said.
“There are a lot of reason why
black guys many not have A-
One credit. That doesn’t mean
they are bad people. They may
not qualify for traditional loans.
Maybe we can help them.”
Texaco works on tattered image
Continued from page 8A
$300 million debt-offering last
summer by the Tennessee
Valley Authority - the first cor
porate offering led by a minori
ty-owned firm.
“Against that backdrop I think
Texaco weighed us,” said David
Ourlicht, a senior vice president
with Blaylock. “Our capital, dis
tribution and execution capabili
ties held up against everybody.”
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Diversity abroad
Continued from page 8A
higher-ups unless asked for
their opinions, she said,
“If you aren’t aware of that,
you’ll miss that diversity of
thought,” said Bull, who’s
learned during 2 1/2 years in
Taipei to sohcit opinions fi'om all
comers of the room.
American companies have
been wrestling with questions of
workplace diversity for years,
from the efficacy of affirmative
action quotas (special programs
in the employment or education
of blacks) to how best to use the
women, ethnic groups and oth
ers now increasingly being
hired.
Most major corporations now
have one, two or more people
devoted to diversity work,
although more remains to be
done, as recent headlines about
Texaco Inc. attest. 'The oil com
pany recently settled an employ
ee discrimination case amid a
furor over allegations of racism.
Even some companies without
public relations fires to douse
say that for now their U.S. diver
sity efforts remain a top priority.
Eastman Kodak Co.’s overseas
divisions have been studying
diversity, and seminars have
been held in Europe on gender
issues and on attracting more
varied customers.
Faith and finances
Continued from page 8A
influence.
• In addition, when we give, we
■in turn receive a blessing equal
to or greater than our gift.
Stewardship over our finances is
a constant theme in the Bible,
and closer examination reveals
principles that you can apply to
your financial life.
Insurance
Insurance deals with restitu
tion, which literally means “to
restore.” In the area of finances,
•this normally refers to replacing
a material possession. In the
books of Exodus, Leviticus and
Deuteronomy there are verses
that deal with things as diverse
as payment for theft to your
responsibility for borrowed
goods.
There also is the subject of
leaving an inheritance for your
children. This is dealt with in
the book of Proverbs. Not only
does the Bible advise that we
leave money to our children, but
it goes further to imply that
some of the inheritance should
be given while the parent is still
ahve in order to teach the chil
dren how to manage it.
Charles Ross is Host of the
nationally syndicated radio pro
gram, “Your Personal Finance,"
and author of Your
CommonSense Guide to
Personal Financial Planning.
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