1986, Hal Smith, former president of Irvine, California-based Builders Emporium, succeeded Mike Rouleau as president and CEO of Ernst. In 1987 and 1988, Ernst remodeled and upgraded all of its stores and, in late 1990, tested a new concept store in West Seattle. The new concept featured garden-like nurseries, an espresso cart, wider aisles, expanded merchandise, brighter signs and other modern amenities. Ernst opened two more of the new concept stores in Lynnwood, Washington and Spokane, Washington in 1991. Early 1990s lawsuits In April 1992, Ernst filed a lawsuit against retailer Wal-Mart claiming the discount chain stole Ernst's registered advertising slogan ("Always the right price. Always."). Ernst asked the court to force Wal-Mart to stop using their slogan and pay unspecified damages to the retailer. Three months later, Ernst sued another retailer, Seattle-based home improvement chain Eagle Hardware & Garden, for unfair competition and violation of the state's Consumer Protection Act. The company claimed Eagle's comparisons of prices for various products were false and deceptive. Eagle, in turn, accused Ernst of also misleading consumers with its advertising and defamation for suing Eagle just before the newly formed company went public. At the same time of the Eagle suit, Ernst went after Pay 'n Save, accusing it of illegal competition for selling nursery products in 15 Washington shopping centers the two retailers operated in. Ernst had contracts with the owners of the 15 shopping centers to be the primary or exclusive seller of nursery products in them. PayLess Drug Stores, who had then-recently acquired Pay 'n Save, hit the chain with a counterclaim, which accused Ernst of selling camera film and film-processing services at eight shopping centers where PayLess had the sole right to sell those services. Shortly after the suits against the three retailers, the state of Washington sued Ernst on charges that it failed to objectively portray prices at competitors Pay 'n Pak and Home Club in a 1990 advertising campaign. In a settlement made in October 1992, Ernst admitted no wrongdoing but agreed to pay $19,500 in court costs, consumer education and to enforce the Consumer Protection Act. In November 1992, Ernst filed a lawsuit against United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1001 following several months of union complaints against the retail chain. Union complaints about off-the-clock work and unlawful pay practices prompted the chain to file the lawsuit alleging defamation and consumer protection violations by the union