By Randy Tucker
The Cincinnati Enquirer

TV personalities host shopping channel

Cincinnati-based E.W. Scripps Co. has begun testing a new concept for TV retailing in which it uses hosts and personalities from its family of popular cable network shows - including Home & Garden Television, Food Network and Do It Yourself Network - to promote products on its home-shopping subsidiary.

The test began this week when "The Queen of Clean" - Linda Cobb of the Do It Yourself Network - hosted several shows on the Shop At Home Network, which sells merchandise on television and over the Internet at www.shopathometv.com.

Cobb has been sharing cleaning tips from her regular Spruce It Up with the Queen of Clean special on the Do It Yourself Network with Shop At Home viewers and recommending products to buy.

"This is a great expansion to the Shop At Home portfolio, not only in terms of the product offering, but in regard to introducing an on-air host who will instantly connect with the Shop At Home customer," said Frank Woods, president of Shop At Home.

Scripps acquired controlling interest in the Shop At Home Network in November, entering the growing television retailing industry with more than $6 billion in annual sales.

Brinkley's replaces Norwood restaurant

Stevens Hospitality of Cincinnati recently opened a new Brinkley's Restaurant in the space formerly occupied by the Dockside VI restaurant in Norwood.

The restaurant, adjacent to The Quality Hotel & Suites, marks the return to the market of local hotel and restaurant operators and managers Steven W. Mullinger and Steven D. Mullinger, who launched the Prime & Wine and Dockside VI restaurants.

"It was always our intention to eventually return to our roots in Cincinnati and create another restaurant that offers consistently good food, comfortable seating and a feeling of tradition," the partners said in a news release.

Mall furniture given to charities

The Mills Corp. recently donated more than $270,000 worth of food court furniture from Forest Fair Mall to community organizations.

It was the third donation to community organizations made by The Mills since it acquired the mall last fall and announced major renovations. The mall will be renamed Cincinnati Mills.

Other donations include $18,500 worth of live indoor plants and flooring tiles to remodel Forest Park's Southland Road Fire Station.

Anderson Bigg's store wins award

The Skytop Bigg's Foods has been named "Anderson Large Business of the Year" by the Anderson Chamber of Commerce.

The store was recognized for outstanding corporate citizenship in the community.

The Large Business of the Year Award honors companies in the Anderson area that are devoted to and support the local community. The Bigg's store was recognized for a number of charitable contributions made to the Anderson community last year, including financial support for neighborhood schools, such as Mercer Elementary and Mount Washington School, through its Partner in Education program.

"We are thrilled to have been awarded this honor," said Chad Sanders, store manager at Skytop Bigg's. "As Greater Cincinnati's Partner in Education, our store's team makes a personal commitment to the schools in which they partner, as well as to the community. We are proud to be a true partner in education and in the Anderson community."

Cincinnati-based Bigg's is a division of SuperValu Inc. and boasts 11 hypermarkets and food stores in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.

E-mail rtucker@enquirer.com.