Cloaked in Red Tape
Century 21, whose motto is “It’s as good as done,” has found that getting things done can be daunting when the impenetrable Soviet bureaucracy gets involved.
The Irvine real estate chain dumped its trademark bright-gold blazers earlier this year for less conspicuous camel-shaded ones. The 80,000 or so gold jackets were to be collected from its real estate agents and shipped to the needy in Soviet Armenia.
Why Armenia? A Century 21 spokesman said one reason is that the firm wanted to avoid distributing the highly recognizable coats in areas where Century 21 agents work to avoid confusion and any potential soiling of the firm’s image.
The bigger reason is Century 21’s chief lobbyist, Robin Dole. The spokesman said her father, Sen. Majority Leader Bob Dole (R-Kan.), feels great affection for the area because an Armenian doctor helped him recover from his World War II injuries.
In any event, Century 21 officials say no jackets have been shipped, thanks to myriad conditions set by the Soviets. One hang-up: the Soviets want all the blazers dry-cleaned first.
An Image Problem Vanishes
Two hotel/casinos in Las Vegas--the Aladdin and the Desert Inn--are to be auctioned off soon to anyone willing to gamble on that industry.
Santa Monica real estate auctioneer Kennedy-Wilson Inc. has been given the task of selling the Aladdin on June 11 for a $53.5-million minimum bid. No doubt the hotel is more marketable, thanks to some recent abracadabra.
The Aladdin made its famed “Bagdad Showroom,” site of at least 1,001 nights of entertainment on the Strip, disappear.
A hotel spokeswoman said officials became uncomfortable with the name’s similarity to Saddam Hussein’s Baghdad after complaints from employees and patrons. The 650-seat room is now the “Alakazaam Showroom.”
. . . More on Image
Few companies have had to be as concerned about image as San Francisco clothing maker Esprit de Corp. after the messy divorce and business disputes of its founders, Susie and Doug Tompkins, were played out publicly.
Now, the San Francisco company’s electronic voice mail has dubbed the firm’s public relations group its “public image” department. A spokeswoman said it isn’t the official name but said the group is part of Esprit’s overall “Image” department, which includes advertising and marketing.
Briefly . . .
Robert Weingarten, who bailed out of First Capital Holdings in Century City two months before its two main insurance units were seized by regulators, reportedly plans to spend his time riding horses, taking violin lessons and auditing constitutional law classes at UCLA . . . “It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a federal study!”: The Agriculture Department and the Federal Aviation Administration are launching a $1.9-million study to cut down on collisions between birds and airplanes.
