Dominion Enterprises hopes to return to what it does best

NORFOLK

Its 20-story office building is hard to miss downtown. Its line of business? A bit less obvious to most passers-by.

Dominion Enterprises' future remained similarly murky most of this year.

In January, its parent company, Landmark Communications Inc., announced that it was selling most of its properties, including Dominion.

Last week, Landmark did an about-face, saying it was pulling all of its major businesses - excluding The Virginian-Pilot - off the market because of the credit-market squeeze.

A sense of relief permeated Dominion Enterprises' headquarters at 150 Granby St., executives said.

"It's a wonderful feeling for everybody to say: 'For reasons beyond our control, we didn't sell. Now we can get back to continue building this wonderful business we have,' " said Clay Gill, the senior vice president for strategy and business development.

If Dominion Enterprises had been sold, it would have been the third straight year of significant change for the marketing services company.

Dominion is the offshoot of Trader Publishing Co., which specialized in print and online classified advertising and was jointly owned by Landmark and Cox Enterprises for 15 years. In September 2006, the companies ended their partnership and divided the businesses.

Last year, Dominion opened the $58 million building downtown, which allowed it to consolidate its various businesses and employees from across the region.

Although it was not sold this year, the company has taken its lumps, like virtually every other business, from the economic downturn.

Dominion Enterprises, which caters to industries including the automotive, real estate and employment sectors, has shrunk its work force about 10 percent this year - from about 6,000 to 5,400 nationwide and from 1,000 to 900 locally - Gill said Monday.

Of the 600 jobs that were cut, about 360 - or 60 percent - came from attrition and the rest from layoffs, she said. About 20 percent of the reductions, including 48 layoffs, occurred in Norfolk.

Yet some subsidiaries, such as those geared to apartment rentals, have grown. And even in depressed industries, clients have recognized the value of maintaining their marketing efforts in tight times, said Conrad M. Hall, the company's longtime president and chief executive officer.

Annual revenue totaled $946 million in 2007, up 12 percent from the previous year. Hall declined to provide an estimate for this year.

The residential real estate businesses are having "a very difficult year," Hall said, "but, overall, we're very pleased with how we're doing, given the challenges of the economy. As far as the financial health of Dominion Enterprises, it's very strong."

Another thing is easier to predict, Hall said. The company isn't going anywhere.

"There's not a chance in the world that Dominion Enterprises will leave Norfolk," he said. "It doesn't make any sense to move this operation."

Even before the sale in September of The Weather Channel Cos., Dominion Enterprises was Landmark's largest unit, in terms of revenue. It accounts for the "vast majority" of Landmark's revenue, which exceeds $1 billion a year, said Richard F. Barry III, vice chairman of Landmark.

One positive about being for sale for so long, Gill said: It forced company executives to hone their message to potential buyers and better encapsulate the company's mission.

Gill summed it up this way: "We provide marketing services to our commercial customers to help them acquire and manage their customers."

Dominion Enterprises initially specialized in putting out advertising publications, such as For Rent Magazine and The Employment Guide, which list apartment rentals and job openings. Its profit, Hall said, now is divided roughly equally between print and online/technology components.

Increasingly, Dominion Enterprises has focused on "customer-relationship management tools," such as those offered by AutoRevenue. The company, which works with 800 car dealers, handles e-mail communication encouraging consumers who have bought vehicles to bring them in for service.

It could be a simple reminder that it's time for an oil change, with a link to click on for setting up an appointment, said Robert Berndt, president of Dominion's Automotive Group.

"One of the goals is to get rid of every friction point between the customer and doing what you'd like them to do," he said.

Berndt said AutoRevenue has gained more dealer-customers than it has lost this year.

Even in tight times, "our story rings true to car dealers," he said. "They've got to market their services better to existing customers."

Hall said neither the prospect of a sale nor the faltering economy triggered a change in strategy. Dominion Enterprises bought 22 companies, including AutoRevenue, from 2005 to 2007, but none this year. That, too, was according to plan.

"We don't have to make any more acquisitions," he said. "We've got the critical mass."

In its announcement last week, Landmark - now formally known as Landmark Media Enterprises LLC - said it would try again in "several years" to sell some of its businesses.

"That's so far ahead, we won't worry about it," Hall said. "Let's go back to running a great company and looking for growth opportunities."

Cathy Coleman, president and chief executive officer of the Downtown Norfolk Council, called Dominion Enterprises "a tremendous asset to downtown Norfolk. So whatever happens that secures their position here is a plus."

Berndt said his reaction to the news was mixed. The prospect of a new owner had been intriguing, he said, but "it's nice to be owned by somebody who doesn't owe the banks any money."

Last year Hall predicted that revenue would balloon to $1.7 billion by 2011. The economic contraction will delay that, Hall said, but he voiced certainty that the company would continue to grow.

"As long as we're doing what's best for the customer, the financial results will take care of themselves," he said. "We're very optimistic about the long-term future of the company."

Hall, who turned 65 last month, joined Landmark as a financial analyst in 1970. He has led Trader Publishing and Dominion Enterprises for their entire existence - 17 years.

"It's important to do what you really enjoy doing," he said, "because life's pretty short."

Philip Walzer, (757) 222-3864, phil.walzer@pilotonline.com