Franchises

Avis Inc. has been instructed by its parent company to terminate five outlets owned by a franchisee who is accused in a class-action lawsuit of race discrimination. In a statement released Tuesday by HFS Inc., executives said they had asked Avis to take legal action to end its relationship with John Dalton's New Hanover Rent-a-Car, which operates rental centers in North and South Carolina.

In the decade since Staples and then Office Depot opened their first stores, the superstore concept has claimed a much larger share of office-product manufacturer shipments. Dollar volume shipped by U.S.

Forget the burger battles and taco tussles. The latest food fight in Southern California is between wok-wielding foes vying to dominate the market for fast, fresh and affordable Asian fare. Pei Wei Asian Diner, Pick Up Stix and others are expanding despite the hurdles: an abundance of mom-and-pop competitors, a shortage of prime restaurant sites and the complexities behind churning out shrimp with lobster sauce, vegetarian stir-fry and three-flavored dumplings.

Foodmaker Inc. said Tuesday it has reached settlements with franchisees representing about 90% of Jack in the Box restaurants over a lawsuit filed by the chain's national franchise association last month. In July, a number of franchisees sued Foodmaker over a bacterial food illness in the Pacific Northwest in January. Some 500 people were reported stricken by the illness, and three children died--two as the result of eating tainted meat.

An arbitrator has found Southland Corp., parent of the 7-Eleven retail chain, guilty of intentional racial discrimination against a black couple who owned two of the company's convenience stores in the Los Angeles area. The arbitrator, however, ruled in the Dallas-based company's favor in a separate racial discrimination case. Jack A.

WHO says there are too many sequels? Certainly not the movie studios. In addition to new installments in the "Spider-Man," "Shrek" and "Pirates of the Caribbean" series, at least four other movie franchises will offer up third episodes this summer. The highest-profile entries are George Clooney in "Ocean's 13" (June 8), Matt Damon in "The Bourne Ultimatum" (Aug. 3) and "Rush Hour 3" (Aug. 10), the first starring role for Chris Tucker since the last "Rush Hour" movie came out six years ago.

Gap Inc. will shut down its nine-store Hemisphere chain by the end of January, bringing to a close a money-losing experiment in upscale attire, company officials said Friday. "We said this is an experiment and we would only expand it if it met the returns we require of any of our businesses," said Warren R. Hashagen, vice president and treasurer of the San Bruno, Calif.-based clothing chain. "It was not profitable."

There's no stopping the start-up of theme restaurants in Southern California. Enticed by the large number of tourists who visit the region each year and the success of other theme restaurants, investors and established companies alike continue to try their luck with eateries that mix food and entertainment. One of the latest outfits to enter the business is Cartoonsville, a child-oriented restaurant that recently opened in Brentwood.

Southern California is emerging as a battleground among the nation's three-largest quick-printing franchise chains, as Postal Instant Press, Kwik Kopy and Sir Speedy seek to recruit aggressive, well-financed store owners in the country's second-largest market for printing. PIP remains the leader with 225 stores in the area, but Sir Speedy, with about 85 stores, and Kwik Kopy, with 43, are expanding rapidly. All three began franchising their names in the late 1960s and are quite profitable.

Tawa Supermarkets, whose flagship 99 Ranch Markets is a favorite of Asian consumers throughout Southern California, got its start because a Taiwanese immigrant named Roger Chen missed the flavors of home. Chen, who moved to Orange County with his family in 1983, found himself driving to Chinatown each weekend to buy Tong I cookies, his favorite brand of soy sauce and the green vegetable tong ho (a must for Chinese hot pot).