College Road East, Princeton 08540. Tom Evslin, CEO. 609-419-1500;

fax, 609-419-1511. Home page: http://www.itxc.com.

— Barbara Fox

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Encore No More

A potential turnaround for Encore Books & Music seemed

possible eight months ago, when Lauriat’s, the 126-year-old regional

chain that owns the company, brought in turnaround officer Matthew

Harrison to get the company out of Chapter 11. On Friday, June 11,

however, company officials announced to its landlord at the Princeton

Shopping Center that it is going out of business. "We’re selling

off the inventory in the store now," says John McNamara, chief

operating officer for Lauriat’s. Harrison, who had hoped to reduce

the firm’s hefty debt, resigned last week.

Encore Books is the second area bookstore to fold in a week. Rivergate

Books, the 10-year-old bookstore in Lambertville, announced it will

close on June 30. Janet Holbrook, the owner, attributed a drop in

sales to competition from online stores like Amazon.com.

The proliferation of book and CD stores online may not entirely explain

the closing of Encore, however. Oren Teicher, chief operating officer

of the American Booksellers Association, was quoted as saying that

Internet sales only account for two percent of book sales. He thinks

the problem is industry wide — books sales, he says, remain flat.

Within Princeton, however, book sales are still strong, as focus group

studies conducted under Harrison proved. "We realized that our

heavy niche was the heavy book buyers, people age 50 and over with

above average income, above average education, a variety of interests,

and time. A very small penetration of that market gives you a profitable

business," said Harrison last November.

Encore’s greatest challenge was meeting the needs of that market.

A shortage of inventory left many feeling that management was out

of touch with the clientele, and that enhanced the appeal of Route

1 superstores like Barnes and Noble.

Ironically, "individualized service" was part of Harrison’s

vision for making the company a viable small book store, and getting

it out of debt by the first quarter of this year. He also closed one-third

of Encore’s 110 locations, including stores in Plainsboro and Trenton,

and instituted store-wide discounts.

Although Encore is auctioning off its merchandise to liquidators,

McNamara hesitated to give a final word on when the company would

be closing its doors for good, saying that it was still possible that

the store could be sold. Chris Hanington, general manager of the Princeton

Shopping Center, says that would be ideal. "It was a great use

of the space," she says. "Books and music are very important

in Princeton. It’s a big loss."

Once Encore’s property is turned over, however, the Princeton Shopping

Center can make good use of it. Hanington has already begun to market

it as one with the adjoining property, vacant since 1997 when Super

Fresh left town. "It’ll be a great location, much better location

than Super Fresh was, because now it will be an end-cap," she

says of the 38,000 square foot space. "That’s more attractive

to retailers."

— Melinda Sherwood

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New in Town

08540. 609-452-1701; fax, 609-452-1704. Home page: http://www.epam.com.

Founded in Belarus, Russia, seven years ago, this computer consulting

firm was originally named Effective Programming America. It had an

office in Marlton but moved in May to Emmons Drive, where it occupies

temporary space (1,700 feet) and will move to 3,600 feet. Ten workers

consult in sales force automation on PCs for various industries. The

programs are webcentric and adaptable for either Internet and intranet

use.

The spokesperson for the company declined to be identified or provide

further information, but the website lists such clients as Bally USA,

Colgate-Palmolive (in the United States and Paris), and the Belarus

office of the World Bank, for which it did a household expenditure

survey. Among its programs is a report viewer, which can interface

with SAP requirements.

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Start-Ups

Box 7794, West Trenton 08628. 609-883-2146; fax, 609-883-5627.

After two years of getting ready Tom Patterson is finally — maybe

— due to open his $10 million full-service fixed base operation

at Trenton-Mercer Airport. His competitor is Ronson Aviation, the

38-year-old company that until now, was the sole fuel and service

provider at the airport.

With 15 workers, Patterson aims to eventually offer turboprop aircraft

maintenance, charters, avionics repair, and aircraft sales. Patterson

also wants to offer maintenance for jets and commercial passenger

planes and 24-hour customs services.

A graduate of Delaware Valley College in Doylestown, Class of 1974,

Patterson sold his Trenton-based business, Casino Events Marketing,

and sunk that profit into Executive Jetport. It has taken Patterson

more than two years to develop the former Naval Air Warfare Center

and get past Federal Aviation Administration requirements.

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Crosstown Moves

420, Princeton 08542. Scott M. Ciccone, president. 609-275-1890; fax,

609-275-1892.

The investment advisory firm has moved from Suite 445 at Princeton

Meadows Office Center to the Palmer Square neighborhood. The former

president, Tina S. March, has been succeeded by Scott M. Ciccone.

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Deaths

died as a result of injuries suffered from a fall at a construction

site on Bedens Brook Road.

longtime principal with the Hillier Group on Alexander Road.

Financial Services. A memorial service will be Saturday, June 19,

at 4 p.m. at the Kimble Funeral Home in Princeton.

deputy attorney general and had been the defendant in a sexual harassment

suit.

Corrections or additions?

— the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.