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

DATE: THURSDAY, January 26, 1995                   TAG: 9501260109
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: B-8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

IN BUSINESS

Hills Stores Co. of Canton, Mass., commenced a cash tender offer Tuesday for up to 3 million shares of its outstanding common stock at $25 per share.

The purchase offer expires at midnight Feb. 21.

The offer is part of Hills' plan to enhance stockholder value that was announced Sept. 21. "The offer is intended to provide Hills stockholders who wish to convert a portion of their equity investment into cash with an opportunity to do so at a premium over recent market prices without the usual transaction costs associated with a market sale," said Hills President Michael Bozic.

The stock was trading at $21.25 Wednesday, down 25 cents.

If more than 3 million shares are tendered pursuant to the offer, Hills first will purchase shares from shareholders who owned them prior to Jan. 23 and who continue to own, until the expiration of the offer, fewer than 100 shares.

Hills is a regional discount retailer operating 154 stores in 11 Midwestern and mid-Atlantic states. It has several stores in Western Virginia.

Smith Barney Inc. is managing the purchase offer.

- Associated Press

Tultex plans debt offering

Tultex Corp. of Martinsville has filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a proposed offering of $115 million of the company's senior notes due in 2005.

Senior notes represent debt of the company that has a claim on its assets and earnings prior to stock.

The notes will be unsecured general obligations, guaranteed by all of the company's subsidiaries, the company said.

The securities cannot be sold until the registration statement becomes effective. The offering is being managed by J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. and NationsBank Capital Markets Inc.

- Associated Press

Briefly ...

Fox & Mills, a new law firm, has opened offices at 30 W. Franklin Road, Roanoke. Charles Fox III, who will concentrate on business law, estate planning, nonprofit organizations and business litigation, has practiced in Roanoke for more than 30 years. Charles Mills III, who will specialize in business, construction, mining and commercial litigation, was vice president and general counsel of NORAM Group in London and president of North American Bank in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Martin Brothers Contractors Inc. has been awarded contracts for alterations and renovations of the Roanoke city schools' Technovation Plaza and construction of Fiber And Sensor Technologies facilities in Blacksburg. Also, it is renovating a building for the Bank of Buchanan's new operations center in Buchanan.

World Travel American Express, a Roanoke travel agency with offices in Blacksburg and Pulaski, has affiliated with Apollo Travel Services, which offers computerized access to airline, auto, hotel and other reservations. Apollo is partly owned by USAir Group.