Caldor presents five-year business plan to creditors
NORWALK, Conn.--Dec. 6, 1996 --The Caldor Corporation (NYSE:CLD) has announced
a new comprehensive five-year Business Plan that provides for significant changes in its
merchandising, marketing and operating strategies in order to restore the Company to
long-term profitability and revitalize its position as one of the nation's leading regional
discounters.
The cornerstone of Caldor's Plan is a refocusing of its strategies as a full-line, upscale
discount retailer, serving urban/suburban discount markets in the Northeast and
Mid-Atlantic regions. The Plan is based on the Company's in-depth analysis of its
competition and core customers and takes advantage of Caldor's historic strengths, while
revamping certain areas of the business to correct past weaknesses.
Highlights of the fully integrated Plan include:
-- Raising customer satisfaction levels. Making both in-stocks and service key priorities,
the Company will, along with revising its promotional activities, integrate its entire
purchasing, distribution and store processes to ensure adequate supplies of ad
merchandise, create more shopable stores and free associates to service customers. To
further enhance the shopping experience, new customer-focused standards will govern
check- outs, returns and in- store presentations.
-- Lowering everyday prices and focusing its promotional activity. While continuing to
offer aggressive sale prices, Caldor will lower everyday prices on a variety of frequently
purchased items and simplify its promotional efforts to better target its core customer and
key merchandise categories. These steps will better balance Caldor's ad and
regular-priced businesses, provide customers with better everyday values and avoid the
previous promotional intensity that had led to overly-assorted merchandise offerings, out-
of-stocks and a range of operational and logistical difficulties.
-- Narrowing and refocusing merchandise assortments. Caldor will continue to offer a
broad range of products, but will prioritize those family apparel and fashion home
categories that differentiate Caldor from the competition, appeal to its upscale core
customer and help drive improved gross margin. The Company has examined each of its
departments and will reallocate space and content to present a more focused value and
quality message to its core customers.
-- Revamping the Company's advertising programs. Consistent with its revised
promotional strategy and more focused merchandise assortments, the Company has already
begun to redesign its circulars to better focus on the needs of its upscale discount
department store customer and offer a clearer message of value and key merchandise to
differentiate Caldor from the competition.
-- Implementing operating efficiencies and cost reductions. Through a variety of
distribution, logistics and other operating initiatives, the Company has begun reducing
selling, general and administrative costs -- a continuing process that has been and will be
a major priority.
The analysis and Plan development were led by Don Clarke, Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer, Warren Feldberg, President and Chief Operating Officer since last
May, and Jack Reen, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer since last
January.
Caldor said the five-year Business Plan lays out a clear strategic direction that builds on
its greatest competitive advantages -- a strong history serving the upscale discount
customer with great values through prime locations in key markets. The Plan sets forth
specific steps to re-engineer its merchandising, marketing and operations and to track
performance.
While implementation of certain aspects of the Plan have just begun and are showing
initial positive results, they are not expected to impact the Company s near-term
performance. Caldor believes that, over time, its implementation will restore the Company
to long-term profitability. The Plan has been presented to the Company's Creditor, Bank
and Equity committees. Following an appropriate review process, the Business Plan will
serve as the basis for negotiations on Caldor's Plan of Reorganization and emergence from
Chapter 11. At this point, it is uncertain what, if anything, a Plan of Reorganization may
provide for equity security holders. The Company will be filing its third quarter 10-Q
Report on December 17th.
The Caldor Corporation is the fourth largest discount department store chain in the U.S.,
with annual sales of approximately $2.7 billion and approximately 23,000 Associates. It
currently operates 161 stores in ten East Coast states. With a strong consumer franchise in
high density urban/suburban markets, Caldor offers a diverse merchandise selection,
including both softline and hardline merchandise.
CONTACT: Information Contacts: Wendi Kopsick/Jim Fingeroth Kekst and Company
(212) 593-2655
Concord Energy Announces Year-End Results and Restructured Operations
JOURDANTON, Texas, Dec. 6, 1996 - Concord Energy Incorporated (Nasdaq: CODE)
reported year-end results for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1996. The company also
announced significant changes in operational strategies.
The company reported year-end gross revenues of $10,828,209 with a net loss of
$6,807,293. The net loss included a one-time $3 million write down of re-valued
inventory. Management also attributes additional one time losses of approximately $3.2
million to extraordinary project expenses, a non-recurring management contra set and costs
related to financing acquisitions.
The company reported changes in operations that will result in overhead cost reductions in
excess of $1 million annually. Concord Energy CE0, Deral Knight commented, "Our new
strategies are now allowing our oil and gas division to operate at an acceptable profit
margin, and our service and manufacturing divisions are experiencing record levels of
sales, which allows us to be very optimistic regarding our fiscal 1997 results." Mr. Knight
also added, "With all the changes and restructuring completed, these results should show
the company turning the corner towards profitability." The company plans to report results
for quarter ending September 30, 1996 by late next week.
The company also announced that Mr. Knight has replaced Jerry Swon as company
chairman following Mr. Swon's recent resignation.
Mr. Knight added, "The demand for natural gas processing equipment and our ability to
provide quality products to our customers has resulted in a substantial backlog of business,
and the company expects to continue to increase its contract revenues through 1997,
making it our overall goal to achieve record levels of sales and earnings in this fiscal
year."
Concord is a fully integrated oil and gas service company that also has interests in oil and
gas properties. Concord's Kemco subsidiary designs, reengineers and markets oil and gas
processing equipment. Concord's IPS subsidiary markets a proprietary information
software system that automates and expedites the dissemination of critical oil and gas
production data.
SOURCE Concord Energy Incorporated /CONTACT: Deral Knight, Chairman,
210-769-3955, or Todd Hesse, 201-740-8866, both of Concord Energy;
Grant Geophysical Makes Announcement
HOUSTON, TX - Dec. 6, 1996 - Grant Geophysical, Inc. (the "Company") (Nasdaq:
GRNT) announced today that it filed a Voluntary Petition under Chapter 11 of the U.S.
Bankruptcy Code on Friday, Dec. 6, 1996 in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the
District of Delaware. On the same date, the Company moved for and anticipates the Court
entering an Interim Financing Order under which the Company's principal secured lender,
Foothill Capital Corp., has agreed to provide additional funding for Grant's U.S. and
certain international operations.
This new funding will enable Grant to continue to provide its clients with the quality
geophysical services they are accustomed to receiving from Grant. Local financing will be
sought to support Grant's other international activities, along with cash flow from those
operations. Following the filing, Grant expects to continue to operate its domestic business
in the normal course and seek a purchaser for the Company as soon as reasonably
practicable. International operations for which financing cannot be obtained may be sold
separately or terminated.
The Company's management has also taken various steps to reduce costs and improve the
efficiency of its operations. In addition to other measures, approximately 40 employees
located at the Company's Houston, Texas headquarters were terminated effective Dec. 2,
1996. The Company also announced the resignation of Thomas B. Portwood, Jr. as
president and chief executive officer and as director of the Company. J. Kelly Elliott,
currently chairman, was named by the Board of Directors to the additional post of acting
president and CEO.
Grant Geophysical, Inc. is an international geophysical services company headquartered in
Houston, Texas, with seismic land and transition zone crews working worldwide.
SOURCE Grant Geophysical, Inc. /CONTACT: William B. Cleveland, chief financial
officer, or W. Jay Jones, General Counsel, of Grant Geophysical, Inc., 281-398-9503/