St. Cloud Times from Saint Cloud, Minnesota • Page 3

INFO TO KNOW Contact Business Editor Dawn Peake at 255-8767, or dmpeakestcloucttimes.cora PAGE 3A WWW.SCTIMES.COMBUSINESS I MONDAY, MAY 14, 2007 nlfoin sptas Emit waDoo Automakers try to stay on top of depreciation, customers' preference use them in your rental car, even listen to music or watch movies on some of them," Krafcik said. Toyota plans to announce later this year that it will offer less expensive, "entry-level navigation on some models," said Paul Williamsen, product education specialist who oversees training of dealership employees and recently was named manager of what Toyota's Lexus College. "We're sensitive to the issue" of navigation depreciation "and hope to reduce the gap between what a buyer pays new and what it's worth used," William- sen said. He said the entry setup will lack voice command but will retain touch-screen controls. "That's an expensive component but highly valued by consumers," he said.

Posh brand Land Rover made navigation optional on its LR2 small sport utility vehicle to avoid pulling down the resale value of all LR2s. "I had to assign special VINs (vehicle identification numbers) to the ones with navigation," product planner Greg Gilliland said. LR2 without navigation will be worth 55 percent of its original value after three years, while one with navigation will be worth 52 percent, Gilliland said Automotive Lease Guide has projected. Two reasons that navigation isn't worth much in a used vehicle: Used-car buyers are looking for bargains, not technology, said James Clark, senior manager of consulting for ALG. Technology changes.

"The development cycle on these (portable) units is a year or less," said Ted Gartner, Garmin spokesman. cell phone," said John Krafcik, vice president for product development at Hyundai Motor America. Hyundai will begin offering built-in navigation on top models later this year, but for most models it emphasizes Garmin International's $750 Nuvi portable units sold by Hyundai dealers. "You can unplug them, take them along when you travel, Gannett News Service Built-in navigation systems increase the depreciation of a car or truck, a startling fact that has some car companies rethinking their approach to the $2,000 factory-installed systems. "Navigation could be like cell phones built into cars in the 70s and '80s; those big, blocky phones that nobody has now.

Everybody has a small, personal Briefly Compiled by Times staff and news services Insurance settlement may change practice Blue Cross of California under scrutiny for retroactively canceling health insurance policies leaving patients with unpaid medical bills has agreed to a class-action settlement that would sharply alter its practice and could set a precedent for other insurers. At issue is an infrequently used but longstanding industry practice: canceling coverage after patients make costly claims, if insurers find mistakes or omissions on application forms completed by policyholders. The practice, called "rescission," affects people who buy their own insurance, not those covered under group plans, such as job-based coverage. The proposed settlement must be approved by the courts. In it, Blue Cross agreed not to retroactively cancel coverage unless policyholders "intentionally misrepresented" information on their applications.

Kmc? 111 xh''vPiM ill it 'WtyJ MAT i 'W5v Bank's Westwood branch is growing Summer expansion will add 1,000 square feet By Amy Trang atrangstcloudtimes.com The Westwood branch of Liberty Savings Bank is expanding its building. The St. Cloud-based bank is adding about 1,000 square feet this summer to its branch at 5803 Ridgewood Road. The expansion was spurred by the large growth in the Westwood area, bank President Mark Bragel-mansaid. The project is expected to be completed by September.

There will be no interruption in customer service during construction, he said. The expansion will give the business about 2,400 square feet to operate. The additional space will be used for safe deposit box storage and customer service. The Westwood branch was established in 1997 and serves about 5,000 households in the St Cloud area. It has nine employees.

Liberty Insurance Agency, a division of Liberty Financial Services of St Cloud moved into the Liberty Savings building in February. The insurance agency's new location is at 111 Seventh Ave. S. and is only two doors down from its previous location at 121 Seventh Ave.S. The agency has seven employees and provides several insurance ser- -vices including personalized auto and homeowner's insurance.

Liberty Financial Services of St. Cloud Inc. is the holding company that owns Liberty Insurance Agency and Liberty Savings Bank. Liberty Savings Bank was established in 1939 with its flagship location in downtown St Cloud and branches in Monticello and Waite Park. It has about 50 full-time employees.

To submit information, call 255-8743, fax to 255-8775 or e-mail atrang stcloudtimes.com. TimesphotobyJasonWachter.jwachterstcloudtimes.com Kevin Hawk, floral design manager (left), and Vanessa Staples, manager of Stems Vines in Midtown Square Mall, arrange a display in the store Tuesday. LOCAL FLORAL SHOP HAS NEW OWNER NEW, MOVING OR EXPANDING STEMS VINES ii ii.iiiJJ4J444Jtj ft isT.a.0U8,jFTTjN II IjLJLJLJ, X. J. Division Street I Midtown if I HjSquare ff Second arwtSoutk' Times graphic by Lisa Mueller, lmuellerstcloudtimes.com By Amy Trang atrangstcloudtimes.com A former executive of Granite City Ready-Mix Inc.

has purchased a St Cloud floral shop. Clint Bogard took over Stems Vines of St. Cloud LLC April 12 from a Twin Cities floral chain. The shop is in the Midtown Square Mall, 3333 Division St "I was ready to do something new and exciting," Bogard said. Besides selling fresh flowers, Bogard plans to expand the merchandise line to include gifts such as quilts, scented candles and soaps.

Bogard named Vanessa Staples as store manager. She has worked several years in restaurant management. He also added Kevin Hawk as floral design manager, who has 28 years of floral design background. RL. Floral of St.

Paul bought the longtime floral shop in 2000 and named it Stems Vines. The name, used by the group's other stores, originally came from the flagship store in a three-story Vic- Business calendar Waite Park Chamber of Commerce, 11:45 a.m. Wednesday, Waite Park City Hall. Call 251-2940. Business After Hours, p.m.

Thursday, Mid-Country Bank, 1113 St. Germain St. Cloud. Call 251-2940, ext. 126.

Chamber Connection, 7 a.m. Friday, Windfeldt Room, CentraCare Health Plaza, St. Cloud. Hosted by Centra-Care Surgical Center. Call 251-2940.

The Innovation Equation Workshop, 7:30 a.m.-noon Friday, College of St. Scholastica, St. Cloud. Author Paul Brown is the presenter. Cost: $199.

Call 320-529-6663. Import Management System Seminar, 7:30 a.m-4 p.m. May 22, Doubletree Park Place Hotel, 1500 Park Place St. Louis Park. Hosted by the Midwest Global Trade Association.

Cost: $120, members; $170, nonmembers; $60, students. $10 discount on registrations by Tuesday. Call 651-917-6257. Sauk Rapids Chamber of Commerce, 11:45 a.m. May 24, Komo Machine, 11 Industrial Sauk Rapids.

Call 320-251-2940, ext. 126. Minnesota Governor's Global Trade Conference, St. Paul. May 25.

Call 651-297-4222. Chamber Connection, 7 am May 25, Faber Field, St. Cloud. Hosted by St. Cloud River Bats.

Call 251-2940. Chamber Connection, 7 a.m. June 1, Whitney Senior Center, 1527 Northway Drive, St. Cloud. Hosted by Big Brothers Big Sisters.

Call 251-2940, ext. 126. The Changing Face of the India Market, June 5, St. Paul. Call 651-297-4222.

Lunchtime Learning: Guerrilla Marketing, noon June 6, St. Cloud Area Chamber of Commerce. Kevin Enlinger of THINK! Creative Advertising will discuss strategies. Call 251-2940, ext. 126.

Financial Management Workshop for Nonprofits, 9 a.m.-noon June 6, Resource Training Solutions, 4150 Second St. S. "Calculating True Program Costs" will focus on allocating direct and indirect expenses to better understand costs of your programs. Information at www.nonprof its assistancefund.orgworkshops. Chamber Connection, 7 a.m.

June 8, Falcon National Bank, SL Cloud. Call 251-2940, ext. 126. Economic reports The following economic reports will be issued: MONDAY: Treasury bill auction, lp.m. TUESDAY: Labor Department reports on Consumer Price Index for April, 7:30 a.m.

WEDNESDAY: Commerce Department reports on housing starts for April, 7:30 a.m.; Federal Reserve reports on industrial production for April, 8:15 a.m. THURSDAY: Labor Department reports on weekly jobless claims, 7:30 a.m.; Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reports on mortgage rates. torian house on Grand Avenue in St Paul. The company moved the shop to Midtown Mall in 2001. Bogard plans to add two to three more employees to the business.

He hopes to add other floral locations in northern Minnesota in the next few years. The store can be reached at 251-0242. To submit information, call 255-8743, fax to 255-8775 or e-mail atrang stcloudtimes.com. Hawk works on an arrangement at the shop, which Clint Bogard now owns. Malco Products is honored American Eagle ad campaign features actors in mini films IN BUSINESS Times staff report ANNANDALE Malco Products in Annandale received the Governor's Safety Award for workplace safety and health from the Minnesota Safety Council This is the third consecutive year Malco has received the award, and it's one of 217 employers recognized this year in a field of 503 entrants.

Malco is a supplier of specialty hand tools and job-site accessories to the heating, ventilating, air-conditioning trade, and installers of residential exteriors. The company employs 175 at its Annandale manufacturing and distribution head-, quarters. Malco is one of 12 employers designated as a Minnesota Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program worksite where safety and health programs go beyond basic compli- ance with OSHA standards. Jacki Templin and Ryan Thompson of Wells Fargo, St. Cloud, were honored for outstanding customer service at the Wells Fargo National Sales and Service Conference.

Templin is senior business relationship manager, and Thompson is business relationship manager. Janice Jackels of Campus Dining Services at St. Cloud State University was recognized for winning customer services awards in unit, regional and district competition. In Business items and photos can be mailed to St Cloud Times, P.O. Box 768, St.

Cloud, MN 56302 or e-mailed to newsroomstcloud times.com. Photos must include names and addresses. Ventimiglia believes if the series is fun, everything else will fall into place. There's so much overthink-ing, test groups and consumer groups. Or you can just go do it," he said.

"We want to make something funny that people will identify with." Savitt says "Mall World" has a funny, boy-meets-girl storyline and a tone similar to the 1994 feature film "Clerks." It involves twentysome-things who work in a mall, including Harper (played by Dianna Agron, 21, who's appeared on "Shark" and "CSI: New as an American Eagle sales clerk and the object of attention from Dean (Sam Huntington, 25, a guest star on CWs "Veronica that lets consumers buy the apparel worn on the show. American Eagle sees such "advertainment" as the future of marketing for its 12- to 25-year-old consumers, who are both techno-sawy and finicky about what ads they'll watch. A second series is in the works for the holiday season, and two or three projects with new themes, casts and crews are planned for 2008. "Our strategy is to be a platform for lifestyle content," said Kathy Savitt, AE's chief marketing officer. "It's a reflection of the pop culture and life of our customer.

These kids are saying they want to pick the way they watch their content rather than fit into a prepackaged demographic profile." Gannett News Service NEW YORK Prime-time commercials will get a trendy makeover from American Eagle Outfitters just in time for back to school. The specialty apparel brand has hired a film-production company led by Milo Ventimi-glia, a star of NBC's "Heroes," to create a 12-episode series of three-minute films that will replace the first commercial break on MTV's "The Real World: Sydney" starting in August It will be titled "It's a Mall World" and star young film and TV actors, who will be wearing AE clothes. Five-minute versions of each episode will run the next day at AE.com with a feature.