
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, February 16, 1994                   TAG: 9402160027
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: C-10   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: SANDRA BROWN KELLY
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

HEIRONIMUS RESTRUCTURING COSTS 14 JOBS

S.H. Heironimus Inc., Roanoke-based retailer under new ownership since November, has completed a restructuring that shifted accounting responsibilities to Texas and cut 14 local jobs, including two in upper management.

Credit functions for the seven Heironimus and four Petite Place stores remain in Roanoke. Other financial functions are being handled by The Dunlap Co. of Fort Worth, which bought the retailer from local owners.

Larry Drombetta, president of Heironimus and based in Roanoke, confirmed that changes included deleting the position of manager at the downtown Roanoke store and the addition of assistant managers and customer-service representatives at all other stores.

Barbara Kingery, a longtime employee who had managed the downtown Heironimus for three years, has taken a customer-service job, Drombetta said. The customer-service representatives will manage training of other employees, he said.

Kingery, 60, said in an interview before her store manager's job ended Friday that she was eligible for early retirement.

Employees whose jobs were eliminated also were eligible for jobs elsewhere with Dunlap, which operates stores in 10 states.

Drombetta said the downtown Roanoke store will be managed by the corporate staff, which has offices in the building. Heironimus' corporate staff managed the downtown store until a decade ago.

However, elimination of a manager's position raises the issue of the store's future downtown. In recent years, it has been downgraded from a full-service department store. It now operates mainly on one floor, with the basement used for a small lunch operation and display of sale merchandise.

Drombetta said the lease on the downtown store runs until 1996. He said he and Glenn Lavinder, vice president of operations, are reviewing the lease and expect to recommend to Dunlap that it be extended.

However, the final decision will be made by Dunlap, he said, and will most likely be based on the sales volume of the store.

Heironimus employs 435, down from 475 at Christmas, which included temporary holiday workers.

by CNB