Suzuki president to visit Spokane

Koichi Suzuki, the president of Suzuki Motor Corp.’s American automotive operations, will be in Spokane Wednesday to celebrate the opening of Wendle Motors’ remodeled Suzuki showroom.

The project is part of Suzuki Motors’ “Suzuki Square” retail-image program, Wendle Motors said. According to the American International Auto Dealers Association, that $230 million program “is the dealer-development cornerstone of American Suzuki’s aggressive plan to triple its U.S. sales by 2007.”

The building’s design echoes an open-air marketplace, Wendle Motors said in a press release.

Chud Wendle, president of Wendle Motors, said Vandervert Construction Inc., of Spokane, headed the $400,000 renovation project.

Restaurant closes a year after opening

A downtown Spokane restaurant has closed about a year after opening.

JoeCo Brazils Restaurant and Liquid Lounge, which opened in January 2004 at 830 W. Sprague, closed last month, said Margaret Travo, who owns the building with her husband, Joseph. She said the space has not been leased to a new tenant yet.

The restaurant on the corner of Sprague and Lincoln was opened by two Spokane men, Adrian Brazil and Joel Stehr, according to news reports. The restaurant was open seven days a week, focusing on lunch and dinner and offering a late-night bar.

The restaurant had a staff of about 10 people.

Coke, Pepsi to introduce Splenda drinks

Atlanta The Coca-Cola Co., the world’s biggest soft drink maker, said Monday it will begin selling Diet Coke sweetened with sugar substitute Splenda in the spring. Rival PepsiCo Inc., meanwhile, said it plans to reformulate its single-calorie drink Pepsi One with the sweetener as well.

Shares of a major manufacturer of Splenda’s key ingredient rose on the news.

Diet Coke with Splenda will have a distinct label with the name of the sweetener on it as well as a yellow streak. Coca-Cola will continue to sell traditional Diet Coke, which is flavored with aspartame, separately.

Diet Coke with Splenda is expected to be launched in the second quarter, the Atlanta-based company said in a statement.

The launch follows Coke’s rollout of other flavors of Diet Coke, including lime, lemon, cherry and vanilla.

Goodrich reports profits up 61 percent

Charlotte, N.C. Goodrich Corp., the aerospace and defense parts supplier, said Monday its profit rose nearly 61 percent for the fourth quarter as sales grew by a robust 11 percent.

The Charlotte-based company said earnings were $37 million, or 30 cents a share, for the October-December period, up from $23 million, or 19 cents a share, a year earlier.

Sales rose to $1.26 billion from $1.13 billion a year ago, with big gains coming from shipments to Europe’s Airbus consortium and to Boeing Co.