The Los Angeles Times du lieu suivant : Los Angeles, California • 76

ORANGE COUNTY BUSINESS Wednesday, May 2. IU CC Part IV A Kawasaki Signs Deal to SellU-Haul 500 Jet Skis Rental Firm to Lease Out Vehicles in Marketing Venture Expected to Ultimately Spur Their Sales GearhartTells Its Holders to Wait on Offer Board Will Meet Later in the Week to Decide Smith Tender Position By KATHLEEN DAY. Times Staff Writer t-M. mJS. MAKK IIOSTKH Anfrln Timn Frank Martin, left, and Joseph Halligan of Laura Scudder stand next to potato chip sorting machine.

New Team at Laura Scudder Look to Ad Campaign to Chip Away at Snack Market will rent ihe vehicles from each of its 1.100 moving centers throughout the United Slates and Canada. Under terms of the agreement announced Tuesday. U-Haul can only rent jet skis and is prohibited from selling them. U-Haul spokesman Diane Bos-chian said the company has undergone major changes in the last eight years. Prior to 1976.

she said, U-Haul leased most of its rental trucks and vans to gas station dealers, who then rented the vehicles to customers for do-it-yourself moving. But in the wake of the 1974 gas crisis, when many gas stations shut down. U-Haul decided to set up its own free-standing moving centers, she said. Since then, the number of centers has grown lo 1.100. Complete Moving Centers' U-Haul augmented that growth by gradually increasing the do-it-yourself services and goods offered.

The centers became "complete moving centers." she said, providing everything from rental tools lo workers who will pack and unload at each end of a move. Expanded services were a hit, she said, so the centers expanded again four years ago by renting recreational trailers. She said that in the last year. U-Haul decided lo go all ihe way and offer a full line of vacation rentals, including tents, camping equipment, motorboats. exercise cycles and now.

on a limited basis, the Kawasaki jet ski. "Over the next several months, that plan will gel going full -blast in all U-Haul centers." Boschian said. The appeal to Kawasaki, she said, is that U-Haul will launch a major promotion campaign that could eventually include Kawasaki jet skis. "We'll be doing the advertising for them." she said. Kawasaki Motors Corp.

U.S.A. announced a marketing agreement Tuesday wi'n U-Haul International Inc. that companies should lead to larger sales for both companies as well as more interest in jet ski recreational vehicles. Under the agreement, the Santa Ana-based U.S. division of Japan's Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd.

will sell 500 of its jet ski water vehicles for an undisclosed amount to U-Haul. U-Haul. a Phoenix company that traditionally has rented out trucks and vans for do-it-yourself movers, will then lease the jet skis to customers on a test basis in four states. The jet ski program is part of U-Haul's plan to expand its rental services outside the moving business. Kawasaki, which makes jet skis in Its Lincoln, plant, said it hopes the U-Haul rentals will give more people a chance lo try the jet ski and induce them to buy one of their own.

Strong New Sales Opportunities' "We are confident that the U-Haul rental program will provide strong new sales opportunities for our dealers. (because) potential purchasers can test-ride the jet ski prior lo buying." said President M. Tazaki. Sales of the jet ski, which is like a snowmobile for water, have increased dramatically since the vehicle was introduced in 1974. Tazaki said.

Kawasaki sells the vehicles to more than 900 independent retailers of Kawasaki products, including the company's well-known line of motorcycles. U-Haul said it expects the 500 test units to be delivered this summer. If the yearlong rental lest in California, New Mexico, Arizona and Florida is successful, the company said, it By JANE W. APPLEGATE. Times Staff Writer Gearhart Industries the Fort Worth high technology oil services company being pursued by Smith International urged its shareholders Tuesday to "make no decision" on whether to sell their shares until Gearhart 's board takes a position later this week on Smith's tender offer.

Gearhart attorney Tom Law said in a phone interview late Monday that the board is scheduled to meet Thursday evening and will respond to the offer by Newport Beach -based Smith no later than May 11. Meanwhile, a lawsuit, filed Monday in Los Angeles Superior Court by Smith and released Tuesday, revealed the names of eight financial institutions that allegedly bought $98.7 million worth of Gearhart debentures last Friday. Smith is trying to block the sale of debentures and warrants to buy almost 3 million shares that accompanied the debentures, alleging that they were sold illegally. Smith's suit, which seeks $60 million from Gearhart and the financial institutions, and rescission of the debt sale, contends, among other things, that Gearhart sold the debt without "board authorization at a lawfully convened board of directors meeting." The companies named in Smith's complaint are: Texas AmericanFort Worth N.A., trustee for the debentures (which were sold through Drexel Burnham Lambert Executive Life Insurance Co. and Executive Life Insurance Co.

of New York; Nashville-based Life Casualty of Tennessee New-Pleasc see GEARHART, Page By BRUCE HOROVITZ. Times Stall Writer A hungry crew of executives at newly independent Laura Scudder's Inc. has charted a new corporate growth course bolstered by the company's first advertising campaign in nearly a decade. The Anaheim-based manufacturer of potato chips, pretzels and a dozen other snack food products is pumping an estimated $3 million into an advertising campaign that will promote a self-laudatory slogan for its snacks that boldly claims. "They're just too good." Behind this campaign are new owners, new faces, and a redirection of the company's strategy all designed to regain the market share Scudder lost during its years as a subsidiary of St.

Louis-based Pet which in turn is owned by IC Industries of Chicago. The changes stem from the Dec. 22 purchase of Scudder by a group of 20 investors, including two former senior executives from Fotomat Corp. The investors purchased the company from Pet for an estimated $28 million and took the company private. Pet had spent nearly a year trying to unload Scudder, whose mission under Pet never was clear.

The company considered several offers, including one from a group of Scudder executives and former executives headed by Jack O'Connor, a retired Scudder sales vice president, before selling to the current owners. When the investor group took the company private in December, one of its first moves was the firing of several Scudder executives. A new senior management team was named to rejuvenate the company and win back the company's former distinction as the West Coast's leading potato chip company. That distinction now belongs to Frilo-Lay the Dallas-based snack food giant. Under Pet.

Scudder grew at a snail's pace, gained a reputation as being profitable but stodgy and watched competitors particularly Frito-Lay munch away at its market share, which has slipped well under 40 Please see SCUDDER, Page Earnings Roundup Extraordinary Gains, Quadrupled Sales Lift Archive Net Brazier Corp. U.S. Judge Orders Liquidation of Leverage Contract Company By JANE W. APPLEGATE, Times Staff Writer By ROBERT HANLEY. Times Staff Writer Citing nearly quadrupled sales and extraordinary gains from tax credits and interest earnings for the period, Archive Corp.

reported sharp increases in revenues and earnings for its second quarter, which ended March 23. The Costa Mesa manufacturer of computer backup storage systems posted earnings of $480,000, or 5 cents per share, on revenues of $9.4 million, compared with a net loss of $96,000, or 5 cents per share, on revenues of $2.4 million during the like period last year. Results from the more recent quarter include a tax credit of $205,000 plus a gain of $270,000 from interest earned on $22.5 million raised in the company's initial public offering of 2.5 million shares, according to Controller Jim Harsch. The loss for last year's period was the result of a reduction of $119,000 for dividends paid on preferred stock. When the company went public, it converted about 6 million preferred shares into common.

After the conversion and sale of new shares, the number of common shares outstanding increased to 10.3 million from 1.6 million, Harsch said. Archive also reported increased profits and sales for the first half of its fiscal year. For the six months ended March 23. the company posted earnings of $491,000, or 5 cents per share, on revenues of $17.2 million, compared to a loss of $124,000. or 17 cents per share, on revenues of $4.4 million during the first half of last year.

The gain in this year's half included a tax credit of $209,000. Most of Archive's first-half earnings were made in the second quarter. Although first-quarter revenues were $7.8 million, Archive had earnings of only $11,000, a reflection of what a company official described at the time as a decision to "sacrifice short-term profits for long-term growth." D. Howard Lewis, Archive's president, said the company's profits have been hurt by a widespread shortage of semiconductors, which a rapidly expanding retail chain selling home-improvement products and building materials, reported record revenues and earnings for the first quarter. The Santa Ana-based company posted net earnings of $327,650, or 6 cents per share, on revenues of $28.9 million, an 88 increase over first-quarter, 1983, earnings of $174,586, or 4 cents per share, on revenues of $24.3 million.

V.J. Camevale, National Lumber's chief financial officer, said the company's increased year-to-year earnings are due primarily to a reduction in the cost of sales for the chain and interest income on funds generated from National Lumber's initial public offering last October. National Lumber, which operates 13 stores in Southern California, plans to open stores this year in Ontario and Covina, Camevale said. In addition, he said, the company recently signed a letter of intent to lease a location in Westminster for a store that is scheduled to open early next year. has forced Archive particularly in the first quarter to pay a premium price for the parts it needs to continue production.

An additional factor affecting profits, Lewis said, is the company's plan to open a manufacturing facility in Singapore. The $100,000 start-up costs for the new operation were funded from company revenues during the second quarter, Harsch said. The Singapore plant, expected to open this month, will employ 400 people, a company official said. Lewis said sales continue to improve for Archive's line of cartridge tape drives, used lo provide a backup for mainframe computers. On Monday the company announced that Torrance-based CA-DO Systems Corp.

renewed a $2-million contract for Archive to provide it with tape drives for its Tiger line of multi-user computers over the next two years. National Lumber National Lumber and Supply A federal judge Tuesday ordered Newport Beach -based Brazier Corp. to be liquidated so a court-appointed receiver can begin repaying investors an estimated $3.67 million. U.S. District Judge Edward Ra-feedie appointed attorney Sheldon Jaffe permanent receiver and issued an injunction prohibiting Brazier from selling any more long-term precious metals credit contracts, commonly called leverage contracts.

Brazier President Michael Red-din, who is accused by state and federal officials of spending more than $500,000 in Brazier funds on a sports car, real estate, furniture and other personal expenses, could not be reached for comment. Brazier attorneys were also unavailable for comment, but an official of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission who attended the hearing said Brazier attorney Jeff Rosen told the court he would appeal the ruling to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. The company's assets have been frozen since March 29. On April 9. Rafeedie appointed Jaffe to serve as temporary receiver.

Tuesday's ruling was in response to a complaint filed jointly by the CFTC and the California attorney general's office alleging that Brazier officials mingled investor and corporate funds, traded investor accounts without authorization and liquidated customer accounts without permission. Brazier's attorneys argued that a federal moratorium prohibiting all but three companies from selling leverage contracts was unconstitutional. Brazier was not one of the three excluded from the 1978 moratorium. "The judge expressly ruled that the CFTC moratorium (on leverage contracts) was legal and was implicitly approved by Congress." said CFTC Los Angeles enforcement Please tee BRAZIER, Page SEMINAR SEMINAR SAVE TIME AND MONEY BY LEASING I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I FIMICIhG SMALL AHD BUSINESSES This Seminar shall give the attendee an overview of the alternatives to financing the growth of your business. YOUR CAR OR EQUIPMENT FROM CAPISTRANO NATIONAL BANK'S ALL NEW LEASING DIVISION.

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