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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 20, 2002)
March 20, 2002 Page A6 B usiness Catching up with ‘Clu’ Building consumer trust is key to success in the automobile industry B illy D. M oore F or T he P ortland O bserver Clarence “Clu” Larkins is back in the car business. A fter seven years at W eston Pontiac G M C, Larkins has relo cated and is the new Fleet Lease Sales Manager for Town & Coun try Ford in inner-northeast Port land. Surely you rem em ber Clu? H e ’s from right here “in the hood." Mr. And Mrs. Larkins raised their children here and still ow n a hom e in northeast Portland. Larkins has extensive experi ence in the custom er service field. He started out in the airline industry, w orking for m ajor car riers like Delta. In 1993, he joined the team at W eston Pontiac G M C and quickly rose up the sales ladder to becom e one o f the co m p an y ’s top producers. He lives by the m otto that if you treat people the w ay you want to be treated, they will come back and do business w ith you again. I t’s this a ttitu d e that Larkins has taken to Tow n & C ountry’s family o f dealerships. He has the experience to know that the custom er com es first. His form er boss, Jay W eston said, “Custom ers and fellow em ployees alike enjoyed and re spected C la re n c e ’s ab ility to sell, not ju st the car, but the dealership.” by Some people think the sales are the most important part o f a car deal, but that is so far from the truth. The ability to provide a cli ent with the after care maintenance and product knowledge is what keeps people coming back, and Larkins will tell you that the money is in repeat business. Developing trust and the right attitude are the keys to continued success in the automobile industry. Larkins left Weston Pontiac GMC in 1999 to realize a longtime goal o f finishing his college edu cation. He earned a Bachelor o f Science degree from Portland State University in June o f 2000. A long the way he met and m arried his lovely wife, Marie. W ho, by the way, is one o f the top hair stylists in the N orth w est. Together, they co-ow n a m u lti-p u rp o s e sa lo n c a lle d M e R a e ’s on N o rth e a st 4 2 nd across the street from W hitaker M iddle School. Plans for the future encompass developing the property into a diverse business complex and at some point, building a penthouse to live in. In the meantime, they are very active in their community and church, the Irvington Cov enant Community Church. L a rk in s, w ho sits on the Irvington Covenant Community D e v e lo p m e n t C o r p o r a tio n board, and his wife are truly proud o f the church’s vision to Diana’s Fashion Boutique Closing Diana McKnight, owner o f Diana’s Fashion Boutique at 2808 N.E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. is closing her store after almost 8 years in busi ness. M cK night says that the downturn in the economy is largely responsible. “A lthough m any people enjoy the quality and style o f our merchandise, not finding a buyer will force me to close my doors,” McKnight said. D iana’s Fashion Boutique sold unique fashions from around the world. The store will close its doors on Saturday, March 23. Mer chandise is being marked down by as much as 50 percent. M cKnight said her future plans would include work as a fashion consultant and expert. Clarence “Clu ’ Larkins, the new fle e t le a se s a le s m anager at Town & Country Ford, d irects c u sto m e rs to th e n o rth e a st Portland auto dealership. photo by M ark W ashington /T he P ortland O bserver help low-income minorities have safe and livable housing. The Larkins also plan to open a low -incom e financial institu tion dealing w ith estate plan ning and investm ent strategies for the less fortunate. They also hope to help the seasoned in vestor as well. Back at Town & Country, the new position o f Fleet and Lease M anager is the springboard for better things to come. As they like to say on line in the car business: UP! Community Leader Takes Federal Post v Conrad Lee Conrad Lee, an Asian-Ameri can businessman, engineer and community leader, is the new re gional administrator at the U.S. Small Business Administration. Boni in China, Lee came to the United States to earn an engineer ing degree from the University o f Michigan in 1962. From 1962-78, except for two years as a stock broker, Lee worked for Boeing Co. in various capacities, including engineer, marketing sales manager and energy analyst. He received an MBA in finance and interna tional business from the Univer- sity o f W ashington in 1980. “It is a rare honor and special pleasure for me to serve President Bush, along with the country I dearly love and my fellow Ameri cans,” Lee said. “I appreciate and value this country’s democracy and economic/political system. I am blessed to have lived the American dream and that I am able to give back in some small way what I have so abundantly re ceived.” The regional office serves Northwest states from its head quarters in Seattle. Student Loan Payment Help Offered (AP) - Area residents at risk o f defaulting on their student loans in the midst o f a tumbling economy can get a respite from payments while they weather the financial storm, state officials say. The number o f default claims filed in the state in the past year are more than quadruple those filed in the pre vious year, according to the Oregon Student Assistance Commission. “It’s only going to get worse as we see the unem ploym ent rate get w orse,” OSAC spokesman Gene Evans said. “It’s a direct correlation between the economy and student loan payments.” OSAC wants borrowers to know that people who lose their jobs can apply for deferments that can run from 24 to 36 months over the life o f the loan, depend ing on when the loans were taken out. Depending on the type o f loan, the federal government may even pick up the interest payments during the defer ment. If not, the borrower can roll the interest into the loan while the defer ment is in effect. For more information, call the com mission at 541 -687-7458or800-261 -4524. Right now , C larence Larkins is UP to the challenge ofhelping to lead Tow n & C ountry Ford and his com m unity in the new millennium. Hißh Tech Boost A (A P P)— High-tech jobs are ex i i — H i a h -te e n in n s a re ex- pected to boost Portland’s falter ing employment in coming years, according to a new 20-year eco nomic forecast. But the report shows the re gion w on’t dig itself out o f the recession as fast as the rest o f the nation because the area’s eco-^ nomic slowdown was more se vere and started earlier. Employment is at its low point and should start its rebound early next year, according to the analy sis by the regional government Metro. The numbers show the Port land area will add 557,000 jobs and more than 894,000 new resi dents between 2000 and 2025. Metro will use the report to determine how much land the area needs for housing and jobs dur ing the next 20 years. Itwilldecide late this year on where and how much to expand development in the region. Portland’s exaggerated slump during the past year doesn ’ t erase the a re a ’s trajectory o f fast growth, economists say. 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