1616-45 Various Miami Beach BusiNEss
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FRIDAY, JULY 9,2004 I EDITOR: BRAD LEHMAN blehman@herald.com 305-376-3598 or 954-764-7026 ext.3
THE MARKETS TOURISM
STOCKS,MU1 UAL FUNDS,5-7C
4
lirDOW 30 INDUSTRIALS Y
10,171.56-DOWN 68.73
S&P 500 STOCK INDEX
1,109.11-DOWN 9.22 "'
NASDAQ COMPOSITE 4"
1,935.32-DOWN 30.76 ,, '
U.S.10-YEAR NOTE
4.47-UNCHANGED
1 1
BUSINESS BRIEFS _ s
,.r
•AUTO SALES
AutoNation earnings down . •
6
AutoNation(AN)will fall short of • ',
its earnings target for the second _ . ;
quarter,the first time the company - •
failed to meet expectations in more •
than three years.
The Fort Lauderdale-based auto
retailer blamed,in part,sharp drop- it. .014 * 'y,
offs in the sale of Ford and General
Motors vehicles.AutoNation expects
earnings from continuing operations L
of 34 cents to 35 cents a share for the
quarter ended June 30.That's down 'from a previous estimate of 38 cents
to 40 cents. -
311111L's
AutoNation also revisedits fore-
cast for the year,projecting earnings I ... �
of$1.35 to$L40 a share,down from i® II i
$1.43 to$1.48. .. !I. I l
AutoNation,the country's largest
automotive retailer,released the
updated numbers after Thursday's
market close.The shares closed at CHUCK FADELY/HERALD FILE
$16.26,down 32 cents. SOLD GLORY:The Marlin, at 12th and Collins, lost money each year
since 2000 despite bookings and a popular nightclub.
•FAST FOOD
Sales up for Burger King
Decliningusales weren't
the reason
LIGHTS OUT
behind Burger King Chief Executive
Brad Blum's resignation last week.
The Miami-Dade fast-food chain 0.N AN
ERA
on Thursday reported June same-
store sales gains of 12.2 percent sys-
tem-wide,compared to the same
period last year.June marked the fifth
consecutive month of positive same-
store sales,something the chain had RECORD MOGUL CHRIS B L AC K W E L L SELLS
not seen for more than four years. THE MARLIN, HIS BELOVED HOTEL/HOME.
U.S.franchisees reported same-
store sales gains of 11.8 percent for
June,while company restaurants BY DOUGLAS HANKS III
• were up even more at 16.5 percent. dihnnksia)herald.com
Company President John Chidsey
attributed the gains to launch of new Island Records founder Chris Blackwell has sold The Marlin,
products,improved advertising and formally ending his run as one of South Beach's highest-profile hotel
the success of kids'promotions for
Shrek 2 and Spider-Man 2. owners.
The Palm Resorts Group,a venture that includes New York
•COURTS nightclub operator Tim Spuches,said Thursday that it had bought the
Viatica) firm petition filed 12-room boutique hotel at 1200 Collins Ave.in Miami Beach.Spuches
The former principals of Mutual said the group paid$7.5 million,but it was unclear if that reflected the
Benefits Corp.have taken the first full value of the deal.
step in seeking to appeal a federal
court ruling that the insurance prod- A Blackwell representative
ucts sold by the Fort Lauderdale via- declined to discuss the details.tical-settlement company are invest- Blackwell's star power — the
.• ments that fall under the authority of producer is credited with having
securities regulators. signed Bob Marley and U2 —
The petition,filed Thursday with meshed well with South Beach's 1,.the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in rise from a decaying retirement vil-
I
Atlanta,asks for permission to file an lage to a fashionable destination in I
appeal of last month's ruling by U.S. the 1980s.One of the first investors
District Court Judge Federico A. to buy aging Art Deco buildings,he
Moreno. eventually came to own 10 of them. STAR POWER: Island Records
If the appeal is heard and Mutual Six were hotels, including The founder Chris Blackwell once
Benefits prevails,it could open the Tides, a 45-room property on owned 10 Art Deco buildings.
door for the return of the company's Ocean Drive where the best suite
principals.The company was closed rents for$3,000 a night.Blackwell
and placed in receivership by the made the New York gossip col- ing studio and'his private, 1,500-
Securities and Exchange Commission umns last year with the announce- square-foot apartment.
in May.The state also suspended the ment that he was liquidating most "It's an emotional connection,"
company's license.Lawyers for the of his South Beach roster. he told The Herald in May 2003.
company and those identified as its At the time,he said he couldn't On Thursday,his publicist,Jody
principals have denied allegations part with The Marlin,his first hotel
that it defrauded investors. and the one that housed a record- *TURN TO MARLIN,4C
•TELEVISION
TeleFutura daytime No. 2
T _ ---_
•
TOURISM I FROM THE FRONT PAGE
With sale of The Marlin,
a South Beach era ends
•MARLIN,FROM 1C `The timing was right. With the change
Diamond,said of The Marlin, on South Beach,for him the edge is gone.
"That was really his baby." jt'
Cathy Snipper, a Black-
S not seedy anymore, not as much
well aide, said Blackwell character. Starhucks came in.'
wanted to focus more on his .
resorts in the Bahamas and
Jamaica, including Golden- edge is gone. It's not seedy The Marlin's hip-hop image
eye, the exclusive Jamaican anymore,not as much char- and closer to that of a rock
hideaway where Ian Fleming acter. Starbucks came in." club,with frequent live acts.
wrote his James Bond novels. Blackwell owns a floor in He said he wants receipts
Spuches said The Marlin an Ocean Drive building,and from the restaurant and bar
had lost money each year his Island Outpost resort to account for as much as 70
since 2000 despite steady group will continue to keep
Maven nts of reve rnue.rThe
bookings and a popular club. an office there,Snippersaid.
The problem, he said, was Spuches, 36, joined with for about$200 a night in win-
the lack of a full-fledged res- two 34-year-olds,his brother ter,
henoted.Tides earned the
taurant and the retention of Chris, a New York lawyer,
too many employees. and Evan Pravda, whom most portfolio,ttetion The Marlin
"The place was carrying a Spuches described as a high-
huge payroll,"Spuches said. end fashion retailer and for- proved a celebrity magnet,
"Really,a lot of it was senti- mer New York hotel execu- with Aerosmith, Beyonce,
mental things. Chris really tive,to buy The Marlin.The Robert Palmer and U2 hav-
took care of people.He had deal closed in March. ing recorded in its studio,
this Jamaican chef he'd had Spuches said they plan a according to Palm Resorts.
for years who was getting a $1.5 million "long-overdue. A shave te gr chaseof the
huge salary for doing-abso- face-lift"of the 1939 building, tors
lutely nothing." mostly
to reposition the bar recording studio, but
Snipper also suggested and bring in an upscale res- Spuches declined to identify
that Blackwell had fallen a taurant.The renovations are them,except to say they rep-
bit out of love with contem- scheduled to end in October, resented a start-up label yet
porary South Beach. but the hotel and bar will to establish itself.Elite Mod-
"The timing was right," continue to operate. eling, which owns space in
she said. "With the change He added that there are The Marlin,plans to remain
on South Beach, for him the plans to move away from there,too.