MERCHANDISING AND STRATEGY CHANGES

A glance at retailers that are restrategizing

Frontier Bank acquires NorthStar, nets two Seattle branches

Frontier Bank, Western Washington's largest commercial bank, bolstered its Seattle presence by completing the January acquisition of NorthStar Financial for $48.2 million. The stock transaction transferred control of NorthStar's Fremont and Ballard offices to Frontier while increasing the number of King County branches to 12.

Frontier Bank, headquartered in Everett, caters to businesses and consumers alike. The company leverages its $3 billion in assets to offer a range of products and services, including investment and insurance products.

Shortly after finalizing the NorthStar acquisition, Frontier Bank opened its 44th office in Pierce County's University Place.

AirTran ads two new trips to Atlanta, sans stops

AirTran's advanced Boeing 737s will serve passengers on the Seattle-to-Atlanta flights.

AirTran Airways, the burgeoning discount carrier, begins nonstop service to Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on May 25.

The four hour flights depart for Hartsfield-Jackson, the country's busiest airport, twice a day. From AirTran's Atlanta hub, passengers can fly to any of the airline's other 44 destinations. The carrier's fleet is comprised exclusively of Boeing 717s and modern Boeing 737s, which AirTran will employ on the Atlanta to Seattle trips.

AirTran is the nation's seventh-largest airline. Delta Air Lines will serve as the carrier's only nonstop competition to Atlanta.

Horizon Air starts only scheduled service to Sonoma's wine country

Some of the country's finest wineries will be within easy driving range of Horizon Air's newest nonstop flights to Sonoma County, Calif., when the regional carrier begins daily trips to the airport. Those flights, along with added service between Los Angeles International Airport and the Sonoma County Airport, commence March, 2007. Sonoma County has been without scheduled air service since United Express halted flights in 2001.

"Horizon's new service will strengthen business ties between Southern California, the Pacific Northwest and Sonoma County, while expanding tourism opportunities among the three regions" said Patrick Zachwieja, Horizon's vice president of marketing and planning.

In addition, Horizon Air offers flights between Seattle and North Bend/Coos Bay, Ore. beginning in June. The daily departures mark the first time Horizon has linked Seattle and the scenic Oregon coast. Flights on the 37-seat turboprops are scheduled to last less than 90 minutes.

Seattle-based Horizon Air is the sister airline to Alaska Airlines. The regional carrier, with service to 46 cities in the Western U.S. and Canada, celebrates its 25th anniversary in September.