Auto part retailer expands

Walker Auto Stores has been launching a quiet expansion.

In the past nine months, the Raleigh company has purchased 14 local NAPA Auto Parts Stores.

After adding them to its own network of stores and then consolidating redundant locations, Walker now has 18 stores and two machine shops throughout the state, all under the Walker Auto Stores NAPA name.

The company used to be affiliated with Parts Plus, another of the nation's top auto-parts suppliers. Moving to NAPA, which is the largest, brings benefits, said Dan Walker, whose father became a partner in the business in 1960.

"We've been competing against [NAPA] for 49 years," he said. "But this allowed us another way to grow in a tough economy."

NAPA gives the Walker stores access to original equipment for imported vehicles, something the stores did not have with Parts Plus. And NAPA is a more recognizable name.

All the recent acquisitions were negotiated individually, and Walker declined to say how much the change cost. The company's payroll has gone from 120 to 170 employees.

In Chapel Hill, the Four Corners restaurant will reopen this weekend under new ownership.

The restaurant is named after Coach Dean Smith's Four Corners offense and dates to the 1970s, said Chris Brewer, who purchased the Franklin Street restaurant with business partner Steve Woodham.

The two were classmates at UNC and also co-own the Goodfellows Bar down the street.

Four Corners has had a string of owners, including one who changed the name to Woody's for a few years.

Brewer said the restaurant is back with the right name, a new menu and a new chef.

Brewer and Woodham hope their experience buying and reviving Goodfellows four years ago will come in handy.

"We seem to be picking up things people don't want," he said. "But Goodfellows turned out well, and I think we can do the same there with Four Corners.

Other items: In Garner, gift boutique Honeybeez & Co. opened in the Garner TV & Appliance building at 875 U.S. 70 West. It is open Tuesday through Saturday. ... Otto's Exteriors, a roofing, siding and windows company, will open a showroom next weekend at 1125-101 Corporation Parkway in Raleigh. ... In Raleigh, the independent auto service shop Washburn Motorsports is open at 2620 Rowland Road. ... In Raleigh's Brennan Station at Creedmoor and Strickland roads, Tropical Smoothie Café will open in January, as will Aqua Salon & Spa. ... Swift's Fine Jewelry completed its move from Raleigh to 210-D Hinton Oaks Blvd. in Knightdale's Midtown Commons. ... In Raleigh, Tijuana Flats opened in Quail Corners at Millbrook and Falls of Neuse roads. ... And in North Raleigh, T he Shack by the Track opens Saturday in the Vintage Village, 9300 Durant Road.

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