Clearly Canadian Beverage Corp. (OTCBB: CCBEF) Material Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB: MTTG) DNAPrint Genomics, Inc. (OTCBB: DNAG) USA Video Interactive Corp. (OTCBB:USVO) Rocket City Enterprises, Inc. (Other OTC: RCTY.PK) SORL Auto Parts, Inc. (NASDAQ: SORL)
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Communique
With iValueRich.com's Business Card Exchange, less is more Once again, ValueRich is prepared to change the way you do business. When you have finished reading this letter, if you follow my advice, you will have a new tool that will give you a strong competitive edge for business and financing. Here's the bottom-line: Your business day consists of running your company, dealing with investors and raising capital. Or if you're on Wall Street, you are chasing deals, researching and funding companies or simply trying to get new clients. You need new contacts. So what if I told you that I know of a place where there are tens of thousands of company executives, investment bankers, money/ fund managers, stock brokers, institutional investors, accredited investors, and professionals all ready, willing and able to meet and do business with you? What would you say? How valuable would that be to you? Right now, we have a community of 35,000+ investment professionals and executives on www.iValueRich.com who are ready to connect, network and get deals done. Once on th e site, you can easily find who or what you are looking for- whether it be funding, deals, clients, knowledge, or ideas- without having to waste time dealing with geeky and unnecessarily convoluted social networking stuff. Quite frankly, I have always felt a little weird about making contact with a total stranger over the Internet. The virtues and benefits of socia l networking are undeniable and game changing, but ail-in-all it's a bit unnatural to start conversa tion s with someone you've never met for business purposes. So, with this in mind, the ValueRich brain trust worked long and hard and came up with the iValueRich.com Business Card Exchange, a one-click feature for timestrapped professionals that makes online business networking efficient and fast. And also makes perfect sense. Making connections and managing them is now as easy as handing someone your business card. The Business Card Exc hange is completely open to the Web. Anyone can "drop a card" to any public company representative or financial professional on iValueRich.co m. A first time user is automatically registered as an iValueRich .com member. In order to stay connected with someone who drops you their card, all you have to do is return the favor -exchange your card. You will be immediately connected through our on line contact manager. From that point on, you can use your iValueRich.com contact manager to easily message one or more of your contacts, as well as access and review their information and company profiles with just one click. The concept might seem basic on the surface, but all other social networking sites require that you make netrequests with pending approval, send a wink, send a smile, flirt. Even Facebook, the so-called intellectual 's MySpace, which was founded by two Harvard guys (as I am continuously reminded by our own Harvard guy, Tony V). tells you to send a POKE. Send a POKE? Are you kidding? I want to raise capital. I'm looking for investors. I'm going to send a POKE to a venture capitalist or an investment banker? Here is my advice: if you are trying to get funded , find deals, go public, raise capital, find and get investors, don't se nd a poke. Go to www.iValueRich .com and exchange business cards with our new bu siness card exchange function . You will be on your way to meeting the right people the right way.
Joseph Visconti President and CEO, ValueRich , Inc.
www.iValueRich.com/josephvisconti 2 VALUERICH MAGAZI N E
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Communique
Releasing the Stranglehold on Small-caps Once again we are in a downturn phase of the cyclical markets, which will ultimately put pressure on our economy. Predictably, market force s are looking to the Fed to lower rates, at the risk of inflation, in order to ameliorate the actions of a few. We all remember the banking debacle and the dot-com bust of years past. Now it 's the subprime mortgage fiasco. But through it all , our economy - and particularly consumer confidence - has proven resilient . During the most recent postmillennium downturn, economists predicted a recession th at never materialized. Why not? Well, it seems we have this incredible base of small entrepreneurial companies in the United States that actually invent stuff, make things and hire Americans. Who in Manhattan and Washington, D.C., knew? Can we count on small companies to sustain us through future downturns? It's a subject for debate. For one thing, venture capita l funds are increasingly being looked at askance due to poor performance. The competition for VC funding is heating up among private companies. And public companies under $1 billion in market cap are stil l not even a blip on the Wall Street radar- a legacy from the last downturn, when brokerage firms consolidated and new regulations eliminated Wall Street's more "hands on" techniques of the past. Fortunately, boutique investment banks and brokerage firms are growing in sophisticat ion and getting better connected. The one ray of light in the micro-ca p sector right now is the increased popularity of Private Investment in Public Entities (PIPE) deals. In this issue, ValueRich interviews Richard Louise and Joe Wolfe, investment banking partners who have been involved in PIPE financings since before they became popular. Their in sights into the dynamic investor-issuer relationship and "premise based" strategy that drives micro-cap funding are well worth reading . Most PIPE deals are tied to companies that are newly public, with relationships that often re ach back to the company's pre-IPO stage. Small -caps are the worst performing group of IPOs in today 's market. Only about half of companies with a market cap under $500 million achieve their funding expectations. Current market conditions don't help matters. It 's not a pretty picture for smaller private companies that wish to go public so as to access equities funding . Though they were once considered highly suspicious vehicles, reverse mergers and SPACs (blind pools) have reemerged with some reengin eering as popular and efficient methods for taking smaller companies public. Are there other potential avenues that would increase the viabi lity of smaller IPOs? Our cover story this issue is about Michael Fugler of US EURO Securities. With both a legal and investment banking background, Fugler has analyzed the legal liabilities and financial shortcomings of the currently out of favor best efforts IPO. As a result, he has developed a new version that incorporates, among other things, a firm commitment. He believes this new process is sa fe and effective, and that it could make a comeback as a vehicle of choice for sma ll companie s. Once again, we have packed this issue with a host of in-depth business and financial articles, company profile features and , yes, some entert ai ning lifestyle stories. We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed putting it together for you.
David A. Willson Editor, ValueRich magazine
4 VALUERICH MAGAZINE
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VALUERICH THINK SMALL-CAP
Fa\\2007
Joseph C. Visconti President & CEO joseph@ivaluerich.com David A. Willson Editor-in-chief dwillson@ivaluerich.com Liza Grant Smith Manag ing Editor liza@iva luerich.com J.C. Spradley Art Director jcs@i valuerich.com
The staff of ValueRich mangazine wants to meet you online at iValueRich.com ... join us!
'--------------------------------------------------------/
Contributing Editors Rita Samols Kayla Will son Contributors Aaron Dalton John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr. Kristina Hen neberg Domin ic Jones Michael McTagu e Bill Reichert Denelle Swai m Stanley Wund erlich
The public companies listed below appear in the editorial pages of this issue. 1st Global Financia l Corp. (Pink Sheet s: FGBF)
MEDecision, Inc. (NASDAQ: MEDE)
American Oriental Bioengineering (NYSE: AOB)
New Motion, Inc. (OTCBB: NWMO)
Apex Bioventures Acquisition Corp. (AMEX: PEX.U)
Novin tTechnologies, Inc. (OTCBB: NVNT)
Brunton Vineyards (Pink Sheets: BVYH)
Prog inet Corp. (OTCBB: PRGF)
Castle Brands, Inc. (AMEX: ROX)
Reed's In c. (OTCBB: REED)
Clearly Canadian Beverage Corp. (OTCBB: CCBEF)
Rocket City Enterprises, Inc. (Pin k Sheets: RCTY)
Advertising & Convention Sales
DNAPrint Genomics, Inc. (OTCBB: DNAG)
SORL Auto Parts, Inc. (NASDAQ: SORL)
Gregg Lowenstein Vice-President of Sales greggl@ivaluerich.com
Escala Group, Inc. (Pink Sheets: ESCL)
Stratasys, Inc. (NASDAQ: SSYS)
Famous Dave's of America, Inc. (NASDAQ: DAVE)
Toronto Pictures, Inc. (Pink Sheets: TPICF)
Freedom Acquisition Corp. (AMEX: FRH)
U.S. Dry Cleaning Corp. (OTCBB: UDRY)
Dave Roeder Director of Business Development droeder@ivaluerich.com
GPS Industries, Inc. (OTCBB: GPSN)
USA Video Interactive Corp. (OTCBB: USVO)
GSI Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: GS IT)
Va lueR ich, Inc. (AMEX: IVA)
HQ Sustainable Maritime Industries, Inc. (AMEX:
VasoActive Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTCBB: VAPH)
HQS)
VMware, Inc. (NYS E: VMW)
1-trax, Inc. (AMEX: DMX)
Willamette Valley Vineyards, Inc. (NASDAQ: WVVI)
Limelight Netwo rks, Inc. (N ASDAQ: LLNW)
WPT Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: WPTE)
Pabla Ayala Events Director pabla@ivaluerich.com
lululemon athl etica (NASDAQ: LULU)
Lance McCoy Account Executive lance@iva luerich.com Beni Tsurumi Accou nt Executive beni@ivaluerich.com Reed Smith ChiefTechnology Officer reed@ivaluerich .com
Material Technolog ies, Inc. (OTCBB: MTIG)
ValueRich, Inc. publishes this magazine as a service to our customers. Our ed itorial goal is to provide a forum to promote communication of information and business objectives. Our articles, columns, advertisements and other features should not be constru ed as investment or lega l advice, nor does their appeara nce imply an endorsement by Va lueRich of any specific investment. secu rity, tra nsaction or strategy. Th e articles we publish contain the v iews solely of their respective authors and our publication. There is not a claim, promise or guarantee about the accuracy, completeness or adeq uacy of the information and neither Valu eRich or its authors are responsib le or liable for any trading o r investment decisions made based on such information. Our affili ates, officers, directors and employees may have purchased or may buy shares discussed in ValueRich from time to time. We may also receive compensation from parties who utilize our publication services and engage in future trans actio ns as a result of our servi ces or publication.
Copyright 2007 by ValueRich, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the permission of the publisher is prohibited. The publisher and editors are not responsible for unsolicited material. Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, photographs and drawings. Every effort has been made to assure that all information presented in this issue is accurate, and neither ValueRich magazine or any of its staff or authors is responsible for omissions or informat ion that has been misrepresented to the magazine.
ValueRich magazine, Issue 12 Fall 2007, is published quarterly byValueRich, Inc., 1804 N. Dixie Highway, Suite A, West Palm Beach, FL 33407. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to ValueRich, 1804 N. Dixie Highway, Suite A, West Palm Beach, FL 33407. Phone: S61-832-8878, Fax: 561-841-1524, www.ivaluerich.com
6
VALUERICH MAGAZINE
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l.Contents
Fall 2007
VALU RICH
THINK SMALL路 CAP
Cove r: Ph ot os by Bousqu ets
16
20
i .Want.l Luxe up your iPhone, discover the ultimate device for channel surfing and become the tech king of the tailgate with this issue's collection of coveted goods.
26
n.Business 10 Steps to a Better IR Web Site Your company's IR Web site shouldn't be a dumping ground for information . By Dom inic Jo nes
24
n.Motion
30
Critical Factors for Obtaining Venture Funding
Essential things you must say when you finally get to tell your company's story.
32
By Michael McTague, Ph.D.
72
8
A Q&A with Tom Anderson of Novint Technologies (OTCBB: NVNT) about their award-winning device and revolutionary software.
Cover Story The IPO Mixologist Michael Fugler and US EURO Securities finetune a "best efforts with a firm commitment twist," a savory blended offering perfect for micro-caps .
FanPower
By Liza Grant Smith
A group of fans are trying to buy their favorite Major League Baseball team.
w.Street The Reverse Merger Investor Relations Conundrum
By Kay la Willson
109
n.Ovations The Falcon has Landed
By Kay la Willson
By Bi ll Rei chert
Secrets of an Effective Business Plan
If you crave a beautiful ride with unbridled speed, you may be looking for love in all the wrong places. By Will Andrews
Seven items your company needs to have befo re they show you the money.
64
Attack of the Electric Speed Demons
The ValueRich Marketplace: A directory of small-cap public companies and their financial objectives.
VALUERICH MAGAZINE
36
Learn about important IR techniques and influences that work for fledgling companies. By Stanl ey Wunderlich
Join The iValueRich Community
2.Contents
Fall 2007
VALUE RICH
THIN K SMALL- CAP
Company >< Connect
Hole.in . l
38 42
A new golf technology, the secret to reading greens and a great golf getaway are teed up in this issue's section.
84
n .Vest
88
By Kri stin a Henne be rg
Staying the Course
92
Predisposed to Innovation DNAPrint Genomics, Inc. (OTCBB: DNAG) By Kristin a Henn eberg
96
A View From the Top
Going All-ln
Out of Sight Security USA Video Interactive Corp. (OTCBB: USVO) By Denell e Swaim
An interview with Steve Lipscomb, Founder of the World Poker Tour and CEO/ President of WPT Enterprises (NASDAQ: WPTE)
100
By Liza Gra nt Sm ith
Putting the Pedal to the Metal on the Information Highway Rocket City Enterprises, Inc. (Other OTC: RCTY.PK) By Kristin a Henn eberg
x. Ped itions
58
Bridging the Gap to Safety Material Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB: MTIG) By Kri stin a Henn eberg
With a deal structure that can magnify returns 10 to 15 times, Richard Louise and Joe Wolfe are helping both investors and emerging companies . By David Will so n
52
Just Add Water for Organic Growth Clearly Canadian Beverage Corp. (OTCBB: CCBEF)
Penang, Malaysia: The Cultured Pearl of the Orient
104
Stopping for Success SORL Auto Parts, Inc. (NASDAQ: SORL) By Denell e Swaim
By Aa ron Da lto n
n. Every Issue
2 Communique l 2 PhotoPlay 46 Managing2Laugh I 0 VALUERICH MAGAZINE
48 After Hours 50 blog spot 56 IPO Scoop
68 Wheels Up 7 6 a. Toast 80 Goodwill Hunting J oin The iVolueRich Community
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June 21, 2007 -The club beat at the Oasis Bar on the first level of the W Hotel New York was the perfect backdrop to the business buzzing upstairs at the ValueRich Small-cap Financial Expo. ValueRich hosted another extremely successful event, this time in the midst of Hedge Fund Row on Lexington Avenue. Two exhibiting companies , Clearly Canadian Beverage Corporation (CCBEF) and Vemma (www.myvemma.com), distributed samples of their energy boosting products throughout the event, though there was more than enough energy and excitement generated by all the networking and Expo activities taking place. The entire Mezzanine level of the W bustled with a crowd of more than 350 buy-side and qualified financial professionals. After a continental breakfast buf-
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I VALUERICH
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fet and welcome remarks by Gregg Lowenstein, Vice President of Sales at ValueRich, the Expo floor was officially open. In addition to the 35 company and indu stry display areas, company executives gave 20-minute presentations throughout the day to interested financial professionals and potential investors in breakout rooms. Noted author and securities attorney David Feldman delivered his keynote speech about positive upcoming SEC rule changes to an engaged audience at the Ayuda Funding sponsored luncheon and responded to numerous questions from the floor. Later in the day, Feldman remarked that it was the most copie s of hi s book, Reverse Mergers : Taking a Company Public Without an /PO, ever sold at one of his speaking events. The stylish W New York turned out to
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be an ideal setting in the perfect location to host hundreds of investment professionals as they spent the day interacting with company CEOs, CFOs and th eir executive teams . By the afternoon, the Mezzanine level was overflowing, and attendees found convers ation nooks in the lobby and lounge areas where they could hold impromptu meetings. Another h ighlight of the New York Expo was the series of video podcast interviews conducted by MN1.com . The intervi ews were made available for viewing on both the MN1 .com and ivaluerich.com Web sites. The Expo attracted a wide variety of presenting companies, including DNAPrintTM Genomics Inc. (DNAG). 1st . Global Financial Corp. (FGBF). Security Wi t h Advanced Technology (SWAT), Foldera, Inc. (FDRA), Onstream
www . iVALUERICH .com
Media Corp. (ONSM). BOOMj.com and Hyperdynamics Corp. (HDY-Amex). The jam-packed day culminated in a cocktail party with open bar & hors d 'oeuvres from 5 to 8 p.m . The Doug Ferony band lent an uptown feel to the party with smooth Rat Pack era music. Gift giveaways to attendees of the financial presentations included a Sony PS3, Apple iPod, boxes of premium label Toraiio cigars and a basketball and je rsey autographed by two-time NBA MVP and four-time NBA All -Star Steve Nash. Due to the success of the event, ValueRich is gearing up for another Small-cap Financial Expo in New York at the same location on October 18,2007.
See you again in the Big Apple! Learn more about upcoming expos: www.ivaluerich.com/expo
FALL
2007
I
15
Control Freak Couch commandos, get excited: Bang & Olufsen is almost ready to introduce you to your new best friend. The Company's Beo 5 remote control affords you with unparalleled reign over all of your audio and video devices in one super cool visually appealing package. The Beo 5 knows which devices you own and only presents the relevant menus and controls on its backlit hardened-glass LCD display. With the remote lying comfortably in your hand, you can easily select your desired action using either the display's soft-touch keys, an aluminum ball with tactile keys (for functions common to several devices) or the volume wheel. And for those overwhelmed by your current programming options, station logos appear on the display screen, making channel memorization unnecessary. The Beo 5 can control devices in different areas of your home by using "zones" (e.g ., the kitchen zone, the living room zone) to ensure that you have access to the right products and functions in each room. It 's the ultimate piece of work for the person of leisure. No word yet as to price or availability.
www.bang-olufsen.com
Keeping Its Cool So, you spend all your time chilling wine at the appropriate temperature only to have it lose its perfection as it sits waiting to be served . Ice buckets keep it too cold . Room temperature is too warm . What's a dutiful oenophile to do? One European restaurant owner thinks he has the solution . He's invented the Winesceptre, a simple and innovative way to maintain the optimal temperature of a chilled bottle after it has been opened and while it's being served . Forged from high-grade stainless steel (the same steel used in white wine tanks), the Winesceptre is certified "taste neutral" and can be stored in the freezer while waiting to be used. After pouring a small amount of wine into a glass to create space, the Winesceptre is removed from its tube and inserted into the top of a chilled bottle of wine. 0-rings hold it securely in the bottle while the wine is simultaneously aerated and poured through the top of the Winesceptre. With three different o-rings, the Winesceptre fits a wide range of different size wine or champagne bottles. The device is recommended by top French sommeliers and is now available to the average vi no enthusiast.
www.mistralimports.com $135
16 I VALUERICH MAGAZINE
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A Case of Envy
i Want 1
It's only appropriate that your hip new iPhone sport a case befitting its innate stylishness . To f it the bill , leather accessory manufacturer Orbino has introduced its Strada luxury iPhone case. The hand-stitched premium leather case is tailored to your iPhone, with no protruding seams or leather borders. To ensure screen protection , it comes with a removable Durashield, a heavy-duty transparent insert that looks identical to the finish of the iPhone and still allows you to use the multi-touch screen perfectly. The Strada case is equipped with Orbino's patented removable belt clip. It flips up with a solid-spring mechanism, so you can control your iPhone wh ile it remains on your belt . For a little during-work distraction, you can also use it as a desk stand while you watch your favorite videos. The Strada case comes in a wide range of Italian leathers, but we're partial to the ultaindulgent ostrich ($249) and crocodile ($319). Every case comes with a certificate of authenticity and guarantee for the life of your iPhone. The Strada is a must-have accessory fo r your must-have accessory. www.orbino.com Prices range from $99 to $319 depending on leather selection.
-
....
1j
Reception
Be the hit of the tailgate with DIRECTV'"'s new Sat-Go, the world's first portable satellite TV system . Now you can enjoy satellite programming wherever life may take you . Designed to be compact and highly portable, the unit comes in an easy-to-carry, briefcase-like design that includes a 17-inch LCD monitor with inte grated DIRECTV receiver, flat antenna and replaceable/ rechargeable lithium-ion battery. It al so includes AC/ DC adaptors for home and car. No installation is required; just open the Sat-Go unit and setup is simple. As long as users have a clear view of the southern sky, they can find line of sight to satellites and receive programming within minutes. While Sat-Go is perfect for trips to the beach, camping, and tailgates, it also can be used at home as an additional receiver and television. Plus, no need to miss a minute of sporting action while you 're doing all those monotonous weekend chores such as cleaning out the garage or raking leaves. Sat-Go customers have access to their authorized DIRECTV programming including sports packages such as NFL SUNDAY TICKET'Mand MEGA MARCH MADNESS'". Taking the title of ultimate tailgater and earning the envy of all your friends, however, doesn't come without cost. The DIRECTV Sat-Go boasts a $999 price tag.
www.directv.com/satgo $999
www .iVALUERICH .com
FALL 2007
I
17
Fit to Be Tied Infuse some fun into your daily corporate uniform with Bird Dog Bay's collection of ties in a myriad of whimsical prints and vibrant colors. Founder and principal designer Steve Mayer perfected his craft by working for another high-end neckwear company, but over time thirsted for a more entrepreneurial, creative endeavor. He also felt guilt over leaving his fox red Labrador retriever, Gus, home every day. Gus, a failed "bird dog," had been abandoned and was about to be euthanized when Mayer adopted him from an animal rescue center. As he pulled out of th e driveway each morning to go to work, Mayer would see the disappointed face of his bird dog peering at him through the front bay window. Mayers aptly named his new company " Bird Dog Bay," and Gu s took a position happily overseeing the action at Company headquarters in Chicago. The Bird Dog Bay collection offers a virtual Noah's Ark of animal designs including everything from elephants, foxes and 'gators to frogs, monkeys and even a tribute to Gus himself. For Wall Street warriors, the Stock Yard Exchange print (available in blue, brow n, green , pink, red and yellow) features a bull and a bear playing on a seesaw, a nod to the all -too-familiar fluctuations in the market.
www.birddogbay.com $75
Emblematic Just because they 're called polo s doe sn't mean you have to confine yourself to the tired horse-riding logo. Cousins Topper Luciani and Paul Longo have created eight "icons of distinction" that are featured on their line of Sir Drake Clothing polos. Each of the graphics is defined by a corresponding word or phrase, with choice s including inspired options such as a flying pig (Achieve The Impossible), a motorcycle (Freedom) and a sheep (Individuality). By offering a selection of icons rather than a standard logo, Luciani and Longo believe that their shirts can be used by their wearers as a form of self-expression. The Sir Drake line also includes cuff links and suspenders, both of which are avail able with your choice of icon . You can find Sir Drake Clothing in stores across the U.S. and Canada including New York City, Palm Beach and Atlanta . Stop beating a dead horse and let your polos actually say something about you.
I
I
I
www.sirdrakeclothing.com $72
18
I VALUERICH
MAGAZINE
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WILLAMETTE VALLEY VINEYARDS
By Dominic Jones
Walk in investors) shoes Your IR Web site shouldn 't be a place where you merely dump electronic versions of your disclosure releases, presentations, reports and filings- and forget about them. It's a meeting place, a gathering point for people with a common interest i.e. your company. Give them something worth coming to. Ask yourself: "If the roles were reversed, what would I want?"Think about th e different scenarios under which investors visit your si t e and design accordingly.
Webcast almost everything This is aimed mostly at European companies, but North American companies should al so take heed . Anything less than a one-on-one with a key shareholder or major prospect 20
I VALUERICH
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should be made accessible to all investors, preferably via a live webcast and a follow-up transcript. That means all presentations, group conference calls and tours should be webcast for no other reason than it's now insulting and elitist to exclude a broader audience. Again, this is not a regulatory issue. It 's something you'll do if you want to remain popular with investors of all sizes. Cost and logistics are no longer a valid excuse for not webcasting everything . Look at the new Ustream.tv service, for example . Using a webcam , laptop with Internet access, and a Ustream .tv account, you can live video webcast almost any event with very little effort or cost. You can also record your webcast for on-demand playback on your Web site. The only limitation on what you can webcast is having access to a high speed Internet connection. In those rare situations where you don't have Web access, record the event on a digital video camera, upload the footage to You Tube and then embed it on your site. It's free .
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n.Business
Simplify Write shorter sentences . Use plainer words. Do the math for people, such as providing "o/o change" columns in financial statements. Use simple visual tools like diagrams, charts and tables. Use informative headings for sections of text. No one is asking for dumbed down disclosure. They want smart disclosure. And smart disclosure is when you do some of the brain work before investors get the information.
Put the Web first Don't leave important decisions about the format and desi gn of your disclosure documents to the last minute and du mp stuff in PDFs. These things should be the first things you th ink about. By thinking ahead about how your information will appear on a screen, you will be less likely to make common Web usability mistakes and more likely to end up with information that people will enjoy using. They'll come back. Often .
Stop butting in Too muc h of what passes for investor communications today is scr ubbed , spin-cycled, scripted and over- lawyered by leg ions of helpers. There's little open discussion and conversation around mutual interests. Management behaves like it's under siege and investors behave like clamoring monkeys catching peanuts at a zoo. Blog, chat, throw your CEO under a bus, if you have to, but let management do the talking in their own words and let everyone participate. Most important, listen to the feedback - again , it's free!
Get hip to new tech There are a lot of useful new technologies around today purpos e-b uilt for helping people communicate better. Most of them are ch eap. Adapt, adopt, mash and experiment with new ideas. A lot of the stuff you're paying for right now from Thomson and Shareholder is long past its sell-by date. Throw it out over time as you discover better ways to tell your story.
Get a Web guru I'm sorry to break it to you, but every IR department needs at least one of these folks . In the old days, you'd send stuff to a desi gn firm and then to a typesetter and printer. Today, you control your own printing press, your own radio station and TV www.
iVALUERICH .co m
channel. Jeepers, everybody does. Look at blogs and YouTube, they 've democratized access to media. What? Are you going to be the only kid on the block without these toys? You need someone on your staff who gets this stuff.
Try a bit of Web 3,0 Fo ur wo rds: Extensible Business Reporting Language. XBRL, f or sho rt. It 's cool. It's still early days, so you 'll be part of somet hing new an d vendors will bend over backwards to help you. Join your local regulator's pilot XBRL filing program. The SEC has one. Canada is getting with the program, too.
Think global It's a big wi de wonderful world full of equally wonderful peop le looking for companies to invest in . The Web gives you a way to reach them . But to do that, you have to speak their lang ua ge- w hich actually is mostly plain English . The other commo n la nguage is HTML text- not PDF, not Word, not text jpegs. You see, HTML makes it easy to translate a Web page using Google Translate or Babel Fish or one of the other crappy online translation tools that people still use for some strange reason . Oh , and don't forget there are no seasons (summer, winter, etc.) on the Web. And the month in dates should always be spelled out or abbreviated. And what currency is that in, actually?
Get independent advice This is on ly partly a bit of shameless self-promotion, but we have seen enough to know that you are not going to get good advice from the dominant big vendors and their friends. Look, it's no secret that most IR people don't know a lot about technology and Web communications . If we were in their shoes, we'd get independent advice on any new project from impartial experts who don't also build or sell Web site design, devel opment or hosting services. There is no way that anyone who offers such services can give you unbiased advice. If it means you 're going to get good , unbiased counsel that will benefit your investors, it doesn't matter where you go, just as long as you get the advice you need. R
Dominic Jones is a principal of Clarity! Communications of Canada Inc. and the founder of IR Web Report. He has more than 15 years of experience in journalism, investor education and online investor relations communications. For further information, visit theIR Web Report Web site and blog at: www.irwebreport.com FALL 200 7
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Make early arrangements for the upcoming
UERICH Small-cap Financial Expo Miami, March 18,2008 at the Hotel InterContinental Miami Join us for another unique ValueRich Expo, where public company CEOs and their executive teams are available throughout the event and the networking is non-stop. Traditionally, Miami is our largest annual expo event, attracting strong attendance from the Florida Gold Coast, Wall Street and internationally. Register to attend and reserve your room at the special rate of $260 (single or double occupancy) now: www.ivaluerich.com/expo Discounted room upgrades available on a limited basis for early registrants.
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Critical Factors IO Obtaining . . Venture Funding mâ&#x20AC;˘â&#x20AC;˘ kh...
Sometimes there is nothing more powerful than the passion and vision of an entrepreneur. But sometimes passion and vision are ju st not enough . It helps to understand the criteria that venture capital firms use to decide which companies to fund . Some venture capital firms and corporate investors have very narrow criteria-specific technologies at specific stages in specific regions of the country. Others have broader criteria and invest across many technology sectors and geographic location s. But all investors look for certain critical components in an early-stage company. Below is a brief summary of these critical criteria. If you meet these criteria, you may be able to continue to the next step in the venture financing process . If you don't, you are likely to receive a polite note passing on your opportunity.
Compelling Idea Every entrepreneur believes his or her idea is compelling. The reality is that very few business plans present ideas that are unique. It is very common for investors to see multiple versions of the same idea over the course of a few months, and then again after a few years. What makes an idea compelling to an investor is that it reflects a deep understanding of a big problem or opportunity, and it offers an elegant solution . This is the starting point for getting venture investors interested, but it is not sufficient. The idea alone does not make you fundable. You have to possess the re st of the ingredients below. 24
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Team You may have a great idea , but if you don't have a strong core team, investors aren't going to be willing to bet on your company. This doesn't mean you need to have a complete, world -class, all -gap s-filled team , but the founders have to have the credibility to launch the company and attract the world-class talent that is needed to fill the gaps. The lone entrepreneur, even with all th e pa ssion in the world, is never enough . If you haven't been able to convince at least one other person to drink the Kooi-Aid, investors certainly won 't .
Join Th e iVal ue Ri ch Co mm u nity
nBusiness
Market Opportunity
Technology
If you are focu sed on a product/market opportunity that is not technology-based, you probably should not be pursuing venture capital-there are different private equity sources for non -technology bu sinesses. Venture capital is focused on businesses that gain a competitive edge and generate rapid growth through technological and other advantages . If you are focused on technology, you should be targeting a sector that is not already crowded, where there is a significant problem that needs to be solved or an opportunity that has not been exploited, and where your solution will create substantial value . Contrary to popular belief, it 's not about how big the market is; it 's about how much value you can
What makes your technology so great? The correct answer is, "There are plenty of customers with plenty of money who want to buy it:' Not, "There are geeks with no money who think it's cool:' Assuming you have a technology advantage right now, how are you going to sustain that advantage over the next several years? Patents alone won 't do it. You better have the talent or the partners to assure investors that you are going to stay ahead of the curve.
create.
Competitive Advantage
Financial Projections
Every int eresting business has real competition. Competition is not just about direct competitors. It includes alternatives, "good enough" solutions, and the status quo. You need to convince investors that you have advantages that address all these issues, and that you can sustain these advantages over several years. A few years ago, entrepreneurs could get away with saying that "competition validates my solution;' but today that 's not good enough.
If the idea of developing credible financial projections makes you wince or wail, you are not an entrepreneur and you shouldn't ask investors for money. Your projections demonstrate that you understand the economics of your business. They should tell your story in numbers-what drives your growth, what drives your profit, and how your company will evolve over the next several years.
BiII Reichert is Managing Director of Garage Technology Ventures, a seedstage and early-stage venture capital fund focused on investing in the information
Validation Is there any evidence that your solution will be purchased by your target customers? Do you have an advisory board of credible industry experts? Do you have a co-development partner within the industry? Do you have beta customers to whom investors can speak? Do you already have paying customers? The more credibility and customer traction you have, the more likely investors are going to be interested. To secure venture funding today, you need a good grade in all seven areas, and an A+ in at least a couple. It's a tough environment out there, so don't waste your time with a story that is not compelling and credible. V R
technology and materials science startups in the Western U.S. For more information, please visit www.garage.com or ema il reichert@garage.com.
www. iVALUERICH .com
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By Will Andrews
Let's face it. Most performance car enthusiasts are looking for a lead-footed thrill over the distance of a block or t wo. A topend speed approaching 200 mph offers little more than bragging rights. Thos e 10- and 12-cylinder exotics certainly do deliver a punch- and we are smitten by them . We crave performance. But could we be looking for love in all the w rong places? There's a new phenomenon in the quest for a thrilling sport rid e: electric supercars. They generally reach 0-60 mph in about 4 seconds, and they all possess unflinching monster torque . Don't ever drag race one of these cars for pink slips w ith your Ferrari or Z06, or you 'll be saying sayonara to your ride. You may already have read about the Tesla Roadster in Va/ueRich magazine's Fall 2006 issue. But you might be surpr ised to learn that some builders of these electrifying performance prototypes, as well as some providers of their exotic technology, are micro-cap public companies. 26
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Alan Cocconi's tzero, the car that started it all.
California dreaming
According to legend, it all began with a demo road ster built by electrical engineer Alan Cocconi, founder of AC Propulsion in the San Dimas suburb of Los Angeles . Cocconi 's experience told him that electric propul sion systems could match performance goals thought to be exclusive only to fueldriven cars, so he set out to prove it by building the tzero. The first tzero prototype , introduced in 1997 with lead batteries, had a respectable 0-60 mph speed of 4.9 seconds, but only eked out an 80- to 100-mile range per charge . Two more tzeros, with improved battery management and monitoring systems, were introduced in 1999 and 2001 . A lightweight lithium-ion battery pack was
added to one of the prototypes in 2003 . The resulting tzero Super Lilon now does 0- 60 in 3.6 seconds and has a 300mile range. Cocconi has no intention of ever producing tzeros for sale. Instead, ACP is building a Scion-based around-town vehicle called the eBox. In fact, when Silicon Valley entrepreneur Martin Eberhard, the guy who actua lly had the inspiration to put lithium-ion laptop batteries into the tzero in the first place, wanted to financially back commercial production of the electric speedster, Cocconi refused. Even when billionaire PayPal founder Elan Musk later offered to pay for a specially built tzero, Cocconi said he wasn't interested. But he did introduce Musk to Eberhard because they were both hot to bu ild an electric supercar. By this Join The iValueRich Community
time, Eberhard had already founded Tesla Motors. Ultimately, Musk became Tesla's largest investor, pumping $27 million of hi s own money into the company to lau nch production of the Tesla Roadster. Cocconi 's influence continues in many of th e innovative electric cars being dev e loped today. The Tesla Roadster, Wr ightspeed X1 and others derived their inspiration from and utilize various components manufactured by ACP, such as the Company 's AC induction engines, inverters, ch argers and battery management systems.
The Tesla Roadster Te sla Motors is the furthest down the road of development of all-electric high-performance production roadsters today. They expect to begin delivering on the $50,000 Premium Buyer reservation s in Ju ly of 2008 . If you 've only plunked d o wn $30,000 as a Patient Buyer, you'l l have to wait unti l sometime in the fourth quarter. The final bill for a
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Tesla Roadster will top out at slightly more than $107,000 fully loaded. The rakish roadster is painstakingly crafted in carbon fiber on a Lotus Elise chassis at the Lotus factory in Hethel , England . On this light and highly tuned platform , the car is fast, 0-60 mph in about 4 second s. But it literally feels faster than the specs might lead you to believe because its AC electric motor can deliver 100 percent torque from a standstill through redline. The Tesla Roadster 's lithium-ion battery pack will recharge from 0 in four hours using a special charger. Using the on board charger and a 110 outlet will take about 10 hours. The range on a full charge is over 200 miles. Regenerative braking technology uses the car 's kinetic energy to charge the batteries on the go and extend range. Tesla dealerships are planned in Northern California, Southern California, Chicago, New York and Flor ida . The car comes with a road side assistance program .
The Company has just secured $45 million in a fresh round of financing to fund the development of the n ext car in the Te sla l ine, an electric four-doo r sedan that it expects to be able to offer for $49 ,000 . Ultimately, Tesla plans to gear up to produce a mass -market model in the $30 ,000 range . In other recent news, the Company has signed a $43 million contract to sell its proprietary battery packs to Norwegian electric car manufacturer Think.
The Wrightspeed X1 One key employee at Te sla Motors began to have a fundamental difference of opinion about the future direction of the Company. He figured that if you 're going to build electric cars, they ought to be designed to go the "right speed " -faster than anything else on the road . New Zealand-born computer engineer and auto racer Ian Wright left Te sla and formed his own company with an eye toward producing the highest-performance electric car possible.
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you get regenerative braking [while it] recharges the battery .. . enough for all normal driving . It 's single-pedal control. You use the brake pedal only for emergency stops or racing, or to hold the car on a hill. The power delivery is linear, progressive and immediate; it makes power control and engine braking much more like steering , so you can con ~ centrate on getting the most -oQ) out of the tires." Q) With the right financial c. ~ ..r:: backing, Wright says, he can Ol build a production version ~ Qj of the X1 that gives the same Ol performance, meets all federal safety standards and has a 100mile range.
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The Wrightspeed X1 is quicker than any production car except the Bugatti Veyron.
Wright doe sn't think there will be enough short-term incentive for customers to buy into the new technology of Tesla's all-electric sedan -even at $30,000. He believes that until a mass market emerges, blazing fast speed is the way to go. Performance enthusiasts will be more likely to pay the premium price for the more dramatic efficiency difference between 170 mpg and the 10 mpg their current speedster gets -especially if it will leave the fastest Ferrari or Porsche in the dust. "Our prototype has beaten a Carrera GT (fastest road car Porsche has ever sold) and a Ferrari 360 on the d rag strip; a Lamborghini Gallardo and a Winston Cup car on a banked NASCAR oval; and a Porsche 911 GT3 RS for one lap of the San Jose GP street circuit," says Wright. " Piston road cars with racecar performance are miserable th ings to drive on the road . You have to take
them out to a track to enjoy them. But the X1 proto gives racecar performance in something that is very pleasant to drive in traffic. You don't have to warm it up. You can just turn out of the driveway and nail it. It does no harm to the car. All the performance is available immediately." Using lithium-ion batteries, a 185KW induction motor and inverter from ACP and a substantially modified super-light Atom chassis from Ariel in Somerset, England, the Wrightspeed X1 prototype vehicle turns in an amazing 0-60 mph time of 3 seconds in only 117 feet. It'll do 0-100 mph in 6.8 seconds. Top speed is electronically limited to 112 mph using a single gear. As far as the handling goes, Wright says, "There is no clutch and no shifting : it's a single fi xe d-gear ratio. When you back off the accelerator,
The Lightning Roadster
As they say in our favorite British television show, "And now, for something completely different:' The Lightning GT (GTS) began its life in 1999 with a 4.6-liter 32-valve 325 bhp V8 Mustang Cobra engine. It was built and originally offered for production by Arthur Wolstenholme under the Ronart and Vanwall company labels. Seven Mustang-powered Lightning prototypes have been built, but the car never actually went into production. Now, Wolstenholme has formed the Lightning Car Company in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England, with partner lain Sanderson, to produce an all-e lectric version . The first electric prototype for the Lightning hasn't been built yet, but the concept definitely deserves a close look because practically everything about this Jaguar-esque sports car will be completely differ-
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I VALUERICH MAGAZINE
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ent from previous all-electric cars. For starters, the Lightspeed will have four engines, one in each wheel, for a com bined equivalent 700 bhp . Lightning expects pe rformance marks comparable to the Tesla Roadster: 0-60 mph in about 4 seconds and a top speed of 130 mph. Up to now, in-wheel motors have been eschewed by electric car designers because of their weight. The drive motors slated to be used in the Lightning , however, will have at least 10 times the power-to-weight ratio of anything seen before . The Lightning's PML Flightlink, Hi-Pa motors and rims weigh only about 4.4 pounds more than a Corvette wheel-and-brake assembly. With the weight problem solved, inwheel moto rs offer a number of advantages over single electric motors, such as highly responsive traction control, infinitely variable all-wheel drive, and multiple redundancy. Beyond that, they free up a lot of space that normally is occupied by the motor, differential, gearbox, etc. This will give Lightning a lot more fle xibility in positioning the heaviest component of the car, the batteries, for optimum balance and handling. In addition, wheel motors generate a lot more recharging power to the batteries while the car is slowing, braking and coasting . Lightning has chosen NanoSafe "' batteries developed by Altaimano Inc. (NASDAQ:ALTI) of Nevada. These batteries use nano-titanate materials instead of g raphite for better thermal stability, longer life ex pectancy and more power for weight. Like the Tesla , the Lightning will get about 250 miles per charge, but charging time will be just 10 minut es instead of hours.
Lightning's iconoclastic heritage and development approach will certainly meet with a level of skepticism. They've a lot to prove over the next year or so. But we'll be rooting for them . The car is a beauty! The ZAP-X Crossover Though the ZAP-X Crossover is not specifically an exotic sports car concept, several similarities to other vehicles in this article are worth noting. For one, like the Tesla Roadster, the Zap-X comes out of joint development between U.S. electric car company ZAP (OTCBB: ZAAP) and Lotus Design of the UK. It will be an all-electric version of the Lotus APX using Lotus Versatile Vehicle Architecture, which was developed specifically for medium -volume projects Image: Lotus
The ZAP-X electric Super SUV will be the electric version of the Lotus APX. designed for niche markets. Also, through an exclusive agreement with PML Flightlink, the Zap-X will incorporate four in-wheel motors with a combined equivalent of 644 hp, similar to the Lightning GT. The Zap -X will also utilize nanoparticle battery technology that should render three to five times greater performance in terms of range and speed, as well as a 10-minute charge time. The
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nanoparticle lithium batteries will be produced under an agreement with Advanced Battery Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB: ABAT), a Chinese company. The ZAP-X 5+2 Crossover Super SUV has performance goals calling for a top speed of 155 mph , 0-60 mph in 4.8 seconds, and a range of 350 miles. ZAP (which was a ValueRich Smallcap Financial Ex po ex hibitor in Palm Beach in March 2005). has devoted years to developing its dealer network and distribution partnerships . In this one respect, it is well ahead ofTesla Motors. A race to the finish Tesla has proven that it can convince movie stars, politicians and Internet billionaires to plunk down a cool $150 grand for an eco-conscious high-performance ride. All-electric sports cars probably won't be much of a thorn in the side of established brands like Ferrari and Porsche. But they should attract their own glamorous following. There seems to be an across-theboard agreement among those producing these advanced vehicles that developments in battery technol ogy could have the biggest impact on the future of the industry. Some insiders believe power output and efficiency could easily increase by 10 times in the very near future. The earliest vehicles in this group were based primarily on single AC induction motor designs. It will be interesting to watch as Lotus Design, with its niche -services approach to global markets, becomes involved with new companies and technology such as PML Flightlink and its in-wheel motors. Will cars with four in-wheel motors emerge victorious over those with sin gle motors? Will Zap with its established dealer networks come up from the rear to challenge Tesla? Regardless of who emerges victorious in this race, one thing is certain: it 's going to be a fast one! VR www.acpropulsion.com www.teslamotors.com www.wrig htspeed.com www.lightningcarcompany.com www.zapworld .com FALL 2007
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TheiPO ~;.~xologist Michael Fugler and US EURO Securities, Inc., fine-tune "a best efforts with a firm commitment twist," a savory blended offering perfect for micro-caps. Some people's career paths are straightforward trajectories from point A to point B. Th ey march with unwavering foc us toward their various goals, all lined up neatly, one in front of the next . Michael Fugler is not one of those people. Hi s professional life has been awash with intersectio n. Traveling down a particular road has led him to new off-ramps, exciting opportunities and directions w here he could capitalize on all the skills and knowledge he'd picked up thus far on hi s journey. And now, at the helm of US EURO Securities, Inc., he has used his suitcase of experience to introduce a new, fine-tuned IPO structure, perfect for the oft-neglected micro-cap world. Fugler, who holds a Juris Doctorate from Loui siana State Universi ty, beg an his career as a prosecutor before mov-
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and securities. Fugler recalls one case in particular that sparked his interest in the area. He negotiated a settlement that involved funding from Europe , which entailed meeting with European investment bankers and analyzing a transaction for trial and negotiation purposes. " When I dissected that transaction from an international perspective on capital raising , I was totally intrigued and fell in love with it," says Fugler. "The mystery was unveiled and I took advan32
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tage of the opportunity to move in the direction of securities law:' By the mid-1 990s, Fugler was working with a New York law firm. One of the clients he met along the way had just started a new broker-dealer firm and wanted to open an office in New York.
taken public through a best efforts IPO. "I think that the capabilities and structures that can be utilized in a best efforts offering are one of the most underused and best-kept secrets today in the micro-cap space;' says Fugler. Going public with a best efforts
"I think that the capabilities and structures that can he utilized in a best efforts offering are one of the most underused and best-kept secrets today in the micro-cap space" The investment firm, which is today !-Bankers Securities, asked Fugler to launch that office and offered him the position of head of corporate finance and investment banking. His acceptance in 1996 marked his initial foray into the world of investment banking. In 2003, an opportunity arose for Fugler to take control of an eight-year-old investment banking firm in Los Angeles . With the approval of his partners at !-Bankers, he negotiated the acquisition of control and filed an application with the NASD, changing the firm 's name to US EURO Securities, Inc. With Fugler as Chairman , US EURO Securities has established itself as a boutique transactional investment banking firm with a wide variety of capabilities including underwritings, private placements, PIPEs, mergers and acquisitions, and consulting for both private and public companies to help them raise capital for growth and expansion. Fugler's varied background provides US EURO with a distinct advantage. " When we sit down and look at a transaction, I look at it from a trial lawyer 's perspective, a criminal lawyer's perspective, a security lawyer's perspective, as well as an investment banker 's perspective;' he says. "I think having that history makes me go through a different thought process than people who might have been in only one industry sector their whole life." Another distinction of the Firm is the growing list of clients it has successfully www. iVALUERICH .com
offering is hardly a new option, yet it is an infrequently chosen one. In contrast with a firm commitment IPO, a best efforts IPO occurs when the investment bank acts only as an agent and does not commit capital to the issuer. The investment bank agrees to do its best to sell the offering to the public, but there is no guarantee that the issuing company will receive any set amount of money. These types of offerings generally involve smaller issuers and a smaller size of issue. They can also involve
industries or activities where the future performance of the issuer is difficult to predict . From an investment banking perspective, the attractiveness of a best efforts offering lies in the fact that the firm is not held liable for the securities it is unable to sell. This same fea ture is typically what deters companies that are going public from using best efforts. If a minimum number of shares are not sold, the investment banker withdraws the offering. Therefore, the issuer has no assurance the offering will be successful. Additionally, best efforts offerings have historically had longer times to completion . These longer time periods can be problematic, as they provide more opportunities for things to change and thus greater chance of failure. As a result of these and other associated issues, best efforts IPOs are not the most popular kids on the Wall Street playground . Fugler is cognizant of this fact, but feels that the investment community has given up on them too quickly. "I understand that historically there has been negative resistance to using best efforts, but I think that 's because
Fugler offers a unique perspective by bringing his background in security law, criminal law, international business and investment banking to the deals he works on. FALL 2007
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the way that best efforts have traditionally been done were complicated and unnecessarily long in duration,"
sively with firm commitment offerings. Fugler has brought its efficiency to the world of best efforts offerings.
"We had to create the structure and do like you often have to do when you 're undertaking a new path in a regulatory
he says. "I don 't think that people dug deep enough to explore other tools and other structures inside of the best
"If you have your documentation and your offering documents worded properly, and you set up your structure properly, you can go into and utilize the DTC system to run a best efforts offer-
environment: run into each door, ask the questions, get the answers and keep coming back until you finally find a way
efforts offering process that could be implemented :'
"I don't think that people dug deep enough to explore other tools and other structures inside of the best efforts offering process that could be implemented." He compares the market's opinion of best efforts offering to another wellknown going public vehicle that has gained significant popularity in recent years. "The same connation was true of reverse mergers," Fugler asserts. "A few years ago, no one wanted to touch a reverse merger. Now everyone from top -tier firms to mid-tier to smaller-tier firms utilizes it. It's a commonly accepted practice:' Reverse mergers are one of the many services offered by US EURO. Fugler believes they possess "a good structure and a good system and can work very well for many companies who want to raise capital and go public. "I think the same is true for the best efforts offering ," he adds. " I just don't think people have really gone into the rules, regulations and structure and tried to find what I would call a more efficient, more modern approach." Fugler has set out to rectify the oversight. The resultant creation is what he has deemed "the best efforts offering with the firm commitment twist." He points to the fact that, in the past, best efforts offerings have dragged on for months, some of them for as long as a year. It is a challenge trying to gather a syndicate and have a structure that allows them to all come together at a uniform, synchronized time like a firm commitment, but it can be done. To help alleviate these issues, Fugler utilizes the DTC (Depository Trust Company) system, which provides centralized clearing and settlement of secu rity transactions electronically. Presently, the DTC system is used almost exclu34 I VALUERICH MAGAZI NE
ing almost identical to the firm commitment underwriting," he says. In the past 8 months US EURO Securities has successfully completed three best efforts IPOs : Reed's, Inc. (OTCBB: REED), U.S. Dry Cleaning Corporation (OTCBB : UDRY), and ValueRich magazine parent company ValueRich, Inc. (AMEX: IVA) . Fugler believes that through these experiences he has fine-tuned the process, systems, rules and regulations and is confidently looking forward to the next best efforts opportunity. "There may have been someone out there who had used what we believe is a new approach to a best efforts offering, but I couldn't find it," says Fugler.
to get through the door and on to the other side." According to Fugler, it was not an easy process. "I found that most attorneys were unfamiliar with and resistant to participating in a best efforts offering designed to look like and operate almost identical to a firm commitment offering because of their lack of familiarity with the overlay of the systems and structure we had created . Many of the large brokerage firms were uneasy at first, but along the way were willing to be educated and look at the tools and structures we were using. Slowly, they have began to see that, for the most part, it wasn't any different than a firm commitment underwriting and are now willing to join our team for future offerings." Despite a challenging beginning, Fugler has begun to sense a shift in perception. "We are finally building a following of brokergage firms who are comfortable that a [best efforts offering with this new structure] can be done in the same time frame as a firm commitment offer-
Fugler has found a way to blend the efficiency of firm commitment offerings into best efforts. Join The iValueRich Community
ing, and be a successful offering taken to completion- that it works. It 's certainly much safer to the managers and sy ndicate from the potential exposure for lo ss of net capital, it can be done just as quickly, and you can time your syndicate closing just as you do in a firm commitment offering. "There are a lot of pluses to utilizing the system," he contends. "You just have to have a team that comes together and understands it, believes in it, is willing to participate in it, and lets you start and finish it quickly in a reasonable time frame and stick with you." Fugler believes that micro-caps may have the best opportunity to capitalize on his fine-tuned offering vehicle. "Micro-ca p companies are having an increasingly hard time raising capital and a difficult time finding firms willing to undertake the firm commitment offering process because they are high risk and the syndicate members have their firm 's net capital at risk. However, using the best efforts vehicle, and developing a system and a structure that makes syndicate firms feel comfortable with helping small and micro-cap companies raise capital and get growth and expansion money, without major risk to the firms net capital, is beginning to result in a change of mind set. With three successful offerings back to back in the past 8 months, more firms are now willing to participate:' To qualify as an attractive candidate for a best efforts offering, Fugler asserts, a micro-cap needs to have both a good story and good management. More specifically, it needs to have what he calls "can-do management " - people who, w hen faced with adversity and the potenti al for failing at what they're currently doing, can figure out a way to start doing so mething else and be successful at it. Fugler cautions management of micro-cap companies looking at and undergoing the IPO process against being unrealistic about their valuation and not recognizing the complexity and difficulty of rai sing capital. Those companies recognizing the hard work and extreme complexities that have to be handled by an investment banking team and other syndicate members ultimately contribute to the smoothness of www . iVALUERICH .com
Fugler's greatest validation comes from the fact that US EU RO gets the majority of its deals from peers in the industry.
its execution . While US EURO's main offices are in Perdido Key, Florida, Fugler has little time to participate in the water sports he enjoys thanks to US EURO's heavily populated deal pipeline that has included public clients such as Nighthawk Systems, Inc. (OTCBB: NIHK), DayStar Technologies , Inc. (NASDAQ:
he has in the southeastern United States. He also gains solace in his surroundings when back at the Firm's headquarters. " It's such a relief to be able to sit there on the telephone when I'm having complex and stressful moments and look over my shoulder at the beautiful ocean and take my mind off it, if only for a moment:'
" ... using the best efforts vehicle, and developing a system and a structure that makes syndicate firms feel comfortable with helping small and micro-cap companies raise capital and get growth and expansion money, without major risk to the firms net capital, is beginning to result in a change of mindset. " DSTI); upcoming private companies, Non Invasive Medical Technologies and ModiD, and everything from PIPEs and IPOs to private placements, consulting and M&A. "I am constantly on the road involved in the transactional process, the due diligence process and the overall capital-raising process," he says. "I am in California just as much as I am in Florida, and New York just as much as I am in Europe." Fugler admits that he hasn't taken a vacation in five years. He is able to mix a bit of business and pleasure, however, by flying his own plane to any meeting s
While he has experienced many successes with US EURO Securities, Michael Fugler is most gratified by the source of the Firm's new clients. " I'm just amazed and proud that the deals that have been coming through the door have come from people inside the industry," he says . " My peers are bringing their clients and prospective clients to me and giving me the opportunity to put the deal together, structure it, and take it to conclusion." For Fugler, that 's the best validation that the path he has traveled down and the new one he has created are both worthwhile. V R FALL 2007
I 3S
w.Street
THE REVERSE MERGER INVESTOR RELATIONS CONUNDRUM By Stanley Wunderlich I had dinner recently with Tim Keating, President/ Founder of Keating Investments, LLC. We spent most of the night comparing notes on both our China and domestic experiences regarding small companies dealing with the reverse merger process . Afterward , I reread the interview with Tim in the Winter 2007 issue of Va/ueRich. He presented an updated and exciting perspective on the process of reengineering reverse mergers. But at one point in the interview, Tim refers to traditional inve sto r relations programs as "spam ming techniques ... which are completely ineffective." It's true that the subject of investor relations- as it relates to reverse mergers - has not always had a positive connotation. If you go to Google and search for " Investor Relations," the following appears among the results : Stock Promotion Services, Stock Promoters. com and Penny Stock Promoters. These are not comforting descriptions greeting anyone looking for investor relations help for the first time.
and events in place when working with HQ Sustainable Maritime Industries, Inc. (AMEX: HQS), a China-based leader in toxin-free integrated aquaculture and aquatic product processing, that helped senior management execute its shortand intermediate-term business plans. An extremely important part of any investor relations program is one-onone meetings or group meetings with interested broker/ dealers focusing on the undervalued nature of the compa ny. A peer group analysis beforehand helps to find a community of investors who would be interested in the company. Small -cap fund managers also often accept invitations to one-on-one meetings.
Management commitment The successful introduction of a company to the investment community isn't accomplished by the investor relations firm alone. You need considerable sup-
perhaps also showcasing your product would be more effective. HQS management served til apia, a seafood product related to their business, at luncheon meetings.
Aggressive but thoughtful PR Raising capital is essential to growth, but the delivery of the public mes sage in the form of well-crafted press releases to "opt-in small-cap investors" is paramount. An ongoing dissemina tion of news helps a company explain its story and gain acceptance among potential investors. HQS made regular use of wire services with news about its activities that reached thousands of "opt-in" eyeballs. Although the micro-cap market ha s its doubters, there are just as many believers at small broker/ dealers. Our firm contacted more than 40 broker/ dealers, arranging successful meetings for HQS. An audience for small-cap companies exists, and it is the responsibility of the investor relations team to create both stellar meetings and educate the brokers on the merits of an investment. II We suggest you check out HQS on Yahoo and see for yourself the progress of the Company, its ability to attract capital and its recent successful move to the AMEX.
Raising capital is essential to growth) but the delivery of the public message in the form of well -crafted press releases to optin small-cap investors)) is paramount.
Building relationships There are important investor rela tions techniques and influence s that do work for small fledgling companie s; and when integrated w ithin the small broker-dealer community, they can help build "e nterprise value." A case in point: at Consulting for Strategic Growth 1, we put numerous activities 36
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port from your client to create both buying and volume. Senior management mu st appreciate its responsibility to go on the road and meet qualified investors. HQS management understood these requirements and, as an initial decision, opened their headquarters in lower Manhattan so they could be within walking distance of Wall Street. This allowed the Company to make presentation s at numerous meetings throughout a two-year period. Consequently, equity financing with private investor groups, including Barron Capital Advisors, LLC and Tail Wind Fund Ltd ., highlighted their growth. The se introductions plus others with Roth Capital Partners and Laden burg Thalmann & Co. were both meaningful and productive. In addition to meetings, man ag ement must spend the necessary dollars to brand the company. It 's OK to pass out pens and other gimmicks with the company logo on them , but
Background Process Equipment, Inc., a public company, announced on May 24, 2004 that it was changing its name to HQ Sustainable Maritime Industries, Inc., and its state of incorporatio n to Delaware by means of a reverse merger. The Company began trading over the counter under the sy mbol "HQSM .OB " on May 25, 2004. In June 2007, the Company graduated to the AMEX, trading under the symbol HQS. Through numerous methods of capital formation, the overall enterprise va lue of HQS increased from less than $5 million in 2004to over $100 million in 2007.
Stanley Wunderlich is Chairman & CEO of Consulting for Strategic Growth 1, a New York firm specializing in reverse mergers, investor and media relations and corporate develop ment. www.cfsg l .com
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6, 700 EMPLOYEES 670 AIRCRAFT AND GROWING 15 AIRCRAFT TYPES 2 GLOBAL OPERATING CENTERS 3 70 ,000 FLIGHTS ANNUALLY 220 ,000 ,000 MILES FLOWN ANNUALLY 150 COUNTRIES VISITED 2,400 AIRPORTS VISITED 40 ,000 UNIQUE CITY PAIRS 4 HOUR MINIMUM NOTICE 24 HOURS A DAY 7 DAYS A WEEK 365 DAYS A YEAR
golfer, the difference is in an enhanced playing experience. Our cart-mounted display panels are uniquely superior to all others in terms of resolution quality, visibility in direct sunlight, and in the ability to deliver full-motion video. Our lnforemerHD displays provide golfers with an aerial flyover perspective of each hole along with a playing tip from the local Pro. Combined with our patented GPS distance measurement, this gives golfers the on-course assistance necessary to play their very best. I could give you a laundry list full of other unique and important distinctions of our system, but that would take several pages so I'll direct people to our Web site for more details: www.inforemer.com VR: What are three things that golfers will love about Steve Barrett, Chief Marketing Officer of GPS Industries, lnforemer? Inc. (OTCBB: GPSN), talks w ith Va/ueRich about lnforem er-HDm, SB: The accuracy of the distance information, the ease of use, and the cool graphics. Especially the flythe Company 's comprehensive golf management solution . overs! Golfers tell us that our full -motion flyWith fea tures including everything from GPS player/ cart trackovers make them fe el like they're in a ing , precise distance measurePGA Tour event. It's very cool. ments and re al time media V R: Is it specifically tarcontent to cart -to-clubgeted to leisurely weekend/ house food and beve rage ordering and tournament resort golfers, or will more serious golfers also find it management , lnforem er brings technological innouseful? vation to the world of fairSB : Actually, both . Resort golfers love it because they are ways and greens , teeing up players for ma x imum typically paying something of enjoyment and golf course a premium green fee and want managers for maximum the ultimate on-course experi/ profits. ence. That's precisely what the ../ lu Rich : What's lnforemer-HD delivers. On the / unique about your other hand, seriou s golfers love lnforemer-HD manageth e precision of the GPS data. ment system versus other Our system provides yardage computerized products measurement to the exa ct pin on the market? location, not merely the front, Steve Barrett: There are back, or middle of the green . nume ro us unique advanThat 's a precise number that t ages of our lnforemer only expert golfers can take sys tem , both from the full advantage of. golfers ' perspective and V R: What are the benfrom the course ope rators' efits for courses utilizing perspective. The first and lnforemer? most compelling is the WiFi SB : Because of the infrastructure that we intelnforemer's unique WiFi backgrate into each lnforemerbone, course operators effectiveenab led golf facility. The ly own their own wireless comImage courtesy of GPS Ind ustries, Inc. WiFi network turns the ent ire munications network. That means course, or even a surrounding community, into they control the source of new and recurring reva wireless " hot spot". Thi s mean s wireless Internet access is enue streams that will pay dividends far into the future. For available anywhere on the property, but because it's WiFi, the example, with the lnforemer system in place, wireless Internet network is sufficiently robust to support a whole array of other fees don't go to some third-party provider; instead, those fees amenities: wireless security cameras, VOIP phones, locator tags, flow straight to the course owner's bottom line. Same thing mobile sa le s terminals with real-time credit card authorizawith cellular costs : the course owner controls the WiFi network, tion and more. For the operator, this means greater return on so VOIP phones replace antiquated walkie-talkies or pricey cell investment and new, recurring streams of revenue. For the phones and tho se savings also flood the bottom line. 38
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Hole in 1
cret to Reading Greens
TheS
V R: What's Greg Norman's relationship with lnforemer? SB : To u se his words, Greg is an "enthusiastic investor in GPS Industries" and has been for several years. He currently sits on our Board of Advisors, and the President of Great White Shark Enterprises, Bart Collins, serves both on our Board of Directors and as Executive Vice President of GPSN. I believe Greg's early recognition of the potential for our WiFi-enhanced GPS technology perfectly illustrates the kind of visionary foresight that has made his extraordinary business success possible. While he recognizes the lucrative business opportunity our company represents, he always remind s u s that part of our obligation is to he lp grow the game of golf around the world. V R www.gpsindustries.net www . iVALUERICH .com
by Jerramy Hainline Director, Hilton Golf Academy
Legendary golfer Greg Norman demonstrates the lnforemer. FALL 200 7
I 39
Stay and Play ~ This
issue's pick: Coeur d'Alene Golf & Spa Resort
Location: Nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains on the shores of Lake Coeur d'Alene in North Idaho.
Course Snapshot
Design: · · ·
Landscape:
6,767 yards
Scott Miller (www.scottmillergolf.com) The course was designed around four distinct geographic features: an expansive lakeshore, a forested ridge, gently rolling woodlands and Fernan Creek, a revitalized trout stream .
Fairways play from tee to green on a lush carpet of bent grass, beds of brilliant red geraniums, acres of junipers and the mountain water challenges of Lake Coeur d'Alene and Fernan Creek.
Par 71
Distinctive Features:
Awards:
• Home of the world 's only floating green (a 15,000square-foot putting surface), on the par-3 14th hole. • Golfers are ferried from the resort to the course via mahogany water taxi, and take another short boat ride to reach the floating green. • Golfers are greeted at the golf course dock by their forecaddie for the day and are then accompanied to the pro shop, where their clubs have been cleaned and loaded on state-of-the-art custom golf carts. • Complimentary pre-round sports massage on the warm-up range, overlooking the lake. • Golfers' lunch order is taken by their caddy and fa xed in to the Floating Green Restaurant at the 9-hole turn and delivered in a hand-woven picnic basket. • Golfers receive a complimentary custom bag tag engraved with their name upon completion of the round .
• Received a 5-Star Rating from Golf Digest. • Selected as one of America's top resort courses by Golf
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Digest.
• Selected as a Gold Medal Resort by Golf Magazine. • Named one of the World's Top 20 Resorts by Golf Odyssey. • Only course in the Northwest to be Audubon Sanctuary Approved, 2000.
Upping the Destination's Cool Factor: • A $20 million resort expansion and renovation during the summer of 2006. • His & hers $100,000 TAG showers featured in the new spa . • Personal butler service in the Hagadone Suite, an ultraexclusive and luxurious private bungalow. • One of the world's top wine cellars at Beverly's resta urant, which features more than 800 label s.
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In
today's volatile and unsettled market environment, fear has once again gained an upper hand. But when talking with micro-cap finance professionals Richard Louise and Joe Wolfe, of Westminster Securities, you
get the sense that they are following a roadmap designed to mostly insulate their investors from market cycles and reap significant rewards over the long haul. We asked them about the special challenges and opportunities faced by issuers, investors and Wall Street in the micro- and small-cap arena. ValueRich: What attracted each of you initially to join Westminster and what makes the Company unique? Richard Louise: Westminster was developing a full-service capital market platform to address the orphaning of the micro-cap market by Wall Street. 42
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At the time, post bubble and post rule FD, regional broker/ dealers were being absorbed by the big banks and a huge void was growing in the market for small companies to access capital markets. I saw an enormous opportunity for my clients as well as myself. It really was an
easy decision to leave my management position of twelve years with another broker/ dealer to join Westminster. What made Westminster unique at the time was that we had products and services to offer small companies. We had access to Wall Street research, sales people, Join The iValueRich Community
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institutions and money that didn't really exist like it does today, or like it will another five years from now. Joe Wolfe: My whole career has been dedicated to entrepreneurial finance in both the public and private market. Experience has taught me that there are companies whose premise is novel and powerful enough that, if and when they are successful on executing their business plan, their investors are going to make a lot of money. Strategically, I had decided I wanted to move back into the public market place. I was introduced to Westminster's Atlanta office, which is where I met Richard. Richard and I immediately recognized that we shared the same passion and focus of entrepreneurial finance. Combined with the understanding of the people at Westminster, their focus- the combination of the trading skill sets, research, advisory and all the things we could bring to the table- I knew it was a great fit. VR: Has the industry around microcap financing become more sophis-
VR: It's almost like a poker player calculating the pot odds, but it doesn't do anything for you on the down side. Joe: You hit on a very important point. To manage the risk, you have to devote enough capital to the strategy to diversify and have a mindset of risk tol erance. The strategy is, if I as an investor participate in ten PIPEs over time, and the normal distribution takes effect, I can expect a range of results from highly successful to total bust. But my wins are magnified by the deal structure to 5, 10 or 15 times and
... my wins are magnified by the deal structure to 5, 10 or 15 times and my losses are obviously 1-for-1. So when you work it out, it's extremely profitable. my losses are obviously 1-for-1. So when
ticated since the two of you started working together? Joe: Yes , I believe it has. And the structures of financing an offering have broadened as well. For example, the PIPE investment vehicle is far more commonp lace now. But back then, you could mention a PIPE to a very wealthy client and they wouldn't know what you
you work it out, it's extremely profitable. Many people within Westminster personally invest their own capital alongside their clients because of that reality. That has been very exciting for us, because it's been very successful. VR: The market is very volatile right now, on Fed fears. How do market trends factor into your investment
meant. Because of PIPE deal structures with the warrants and inducements that small companies grant to investors to gain capital , it magnifies your success. The math is simple to understand. If you invest in a stock at $3 a share and later it sells for $15 a share, that 's five times your money. But in a PIPE with the same increase that return may be magnified 2 to 3 times. For example, one of the companies we fi nanced at under a dollar per share is today just off its all time high , trading at si x dollars a share. A $100,000 investment in that offering has grown to over $1 .2 million in just over 3 years. A large part of that is due to the structure and the warrants associated with the offering. When you 're right, you 're really righ t .
strategies? Joe: We don't think that the market posture matters. If it's a bull or bear market driven by panic or greed, we ride through those market cycles by what we call "premise-based investing:' If a company has something important in the works and they execute well, we know that in two to three years it's going to be night-and-day different in terms of the way the company looks and the way the stock will be valued. VR: What's the lowest starting point that an investor using this strategy should come in at? Joe: Richard and I have clients on a global basis that are extraordinarily wealthy people, and although that's certainly ideal, it is not by any stretch a limitation on who can profit by being
www . iVALUERICH .co m
involved with us as a client. We don't have a firm number, but I'd say a half a million dollars would be in the ballpark of what someone should be able to devote to the strategy. That would be the minimum dollar amount to allow sufficient diversification . However, we are not asset managers or wealth preservation strategists . Our clients look to us and employ our"premise strategy" for the sole purpose of significantly magnifying their"high risk " capital.
VR: You mentioned that for the last four or five years at least, it's been very difficult for a micro-cap company to get the full range of services it needs to really excel in the public marketplace. Could you hit some of the high spots of what you offer an early stage company at Westminster? Richard: We offer a full suite of services to small companies (from financial advisory to capital raising), but mostly we really bring a different perspective to the companies we engage with our Wall Street experience. We know investors and what they are looking for returnwise, and the risk they're willing to assume. The CEOs of public companies know their business. We advise them on what Wall Street looks for, what they admire, and the nuances to that. Some of the principles are very simple and easy and others are difficult. But CEOs and CFOs sometimes can 't grasp even the easy things because they are just not from our world. Joe: One of our areas of expertise is the structure of deals- debt, equity, warrants- what kind of structures best suit the company's growth curve, balance sheet and need for capital. That type of knowledge is not necessarily unique. There are some very smart MBAs running around Wall Street who can do that, but most of the time they are not available to smaller companies. It's difficult for these companies to get access to sophisticated information about deal structure, regulatory issues, what their board should look like, how to deal with retail and institutional investors, how they should position their company and how they do things on a timely basis. VR: Based on what you said earlier, I guess the game has changed quite a FALL 2007
I 43
bit on Wall Street as well. Richard: A lot has changed . Brokerage firms used to know the companies, play golf with the CEO, roll up their sleeves
and work with the company. The rules were different then and they were willing to commit capital, to buy stock when a seller came in or sell stock when buyers came in. Joe: Put it in inventory and hold it. Richard: The Buy side is also different. Today it 's data driven, partially because of lack of information (research) on micro-cap companies. Institutional investors have analysts, interns and portfolio managers running screens - computer-generated model s. So , if your data is wrong, you're not going to make the screen . The needs of small public companies really haven't changed that much. What has changed is accessibility to their information. Joe: There are so many companies, so many things for investors to look at, that many times small companies might be doing a good job, but it is almo st like nobody cares . Another way we can help a company is by knowing which investors in the community care about the category the company is in- either the industry, or the size of the company, or whatever. In today 's world there are a lot of specialists in the investment business, and you 've got to know who cares about your niche. And that means internationally, by the way. The corporate world is incredibly more international now. Business markets are international, not only for products but [also] for investors. VR: I noticed on Westminster's Web site that there is a lot of emphasis on international banking services. Joe: Westminster has developed a significant international expertise in micro-cap companies- particularly in China. Over 8 years ago, Westminster recognized the potential in China and
Today it's data driven ... institutional investors have analysts, interns and portfolio managers running screenscomputer-generated models. So, if your data is wrong, you're not going to make the screen.
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opened our offices there . We have developed a significant presence there, but we are also in India and a variety of international markets where our top people and management are willing to pay the price of traveling to go from one country to another. Our CEO, John O'Shea and Dick Price our President maintain an incredibly demanding schedule on the ground in these markets . Westminster has some of the hardest-working people you'll find . But it takes that level of interest and commitment to play in this game. Basically, you could say China, with its remarkable political and economical transformation, is the financial story of the last decade - and probably the next decade. But you also have to accept
the political risk. Sometimes Chinese stocks move in unison, so you have volatility as a sector. Normally you think of a sector as cyclical or consumer staples or whatever. But when you invest in a Chinese com pany, you are automatically in the "China Sector," regardless of whether it's Industrial, Chemical or Pharma, etc. VR: We've been hearing one story after another about China's incredible investment potential ... Joe: I noticed in your article about Vision Capita l [ValueRich magazine, Summer 2006]. they mentioned American Oriental Bioengineering [NYSE:AOB] as one of their successful investments. We raised $6 million for AOB at a dollar a share in '04 when it was trading on the bulletin board with very little liquidity. A year and a half to two years later we raised, along with another investment bank, $60 million at $4.80 a share. By that time it was on the AMEX. Richard: It went to the New York Stock Exchange in December of ' 06. And just recently, five brand - name investment banks raised AOB another $80 million at $8.50. Joe: Today, the Company 's average trading volume is around a million and a half to two million shares a day at $9 .00- north of $13 ,SOO ,OOO. Its volume was maybe $100,000 a day when we first banked the deal two years ago. Richard: The Company is our poster child . That is exactly what we do and shows what can happen when all the stars align. I say poster child because you have no idea how difficult it often is from the bankers' side of the Chinese wall to deal with guiding a company 's management through a transition from a private company to a publicly reporting company. We work very hard to assist management in developing their public face and acquainting them with the importance of timely reporting. Inevitably, many issuers learn the Join The iValueRich Community
hard way. From my point of view as a Wa l l Street professional, AOB's management was very receptive to our guidance and very responsive to our recommendations with regard to their interaction with the investment community. Because they took advice, not just from us but [also] from "the street," AOB became a better stock. They wanted to truly be a public company. Again , for example, under our "premise based" strategy, a $1 00,000 investment in the 2004 offering for AOB today would be worth in excess of $2,500,000. Bear in mind that the warrants associated with that offering would have needed to be exercised - and that p erformances like
to preserve their principal and a part of their gain, while holding the five -year warrant for $3 .00 a share for its additional upside opportunity. When the stock price declined in 2005 we saw a great opportunity to own the stock again in the open market. Now the stock is at $3 .50 and has traded as high as $4.25 . The Company has research coverage. They 're opening clinics with major corporations on a regular basis, once again providing a great fundamental premise.
this are not typical. VR: Can you name a couple of other international regions that have great growth potential? Joe: Certainly you look at India . Until recently, the political and business cli mate looked very attractive in Russia . You look throughout Asia -Thailand and Korea . We have international bankers that have joined u s because of our interests in Korea and India in
If you're willing to take a patient timeframe perspective, given the warrant structure of the deal, you can find a time to sell when it's ... overpriced ... but also often you can find a time to buy because everybody's selling.
emerging markets . You look at Canada, a lot of mining and natural resource plays. In certain South American countries where the political climate is stable we see opportunities. Brazil comes to mind . Westmin ster, in addition to its international experience and success to date, has a coupl e core areas of industry focu s, and that 's natural resources and energy -either conventional energy or green or alternative energy. On a trend basis, we are very excited about those opportunities around the world. VR: How does the inefficiency of the market around small-caps and illiquidity affect investors in smaller companies? Joe: The market oftentimes prices the small-cap world inaccurately. For example, we raised money for a com www . iVALUER ICH .com
pany named 1-trax, Inc. [AMEX:DMX). Shortly after we did the deal at $2 .50 a share, almost like a minnow swallowing a whale, they acquired CHD Meridian in Nashville, Tennessee, which was doing over $100 million in revenue providing and staffing on-site medical clinics for Fortune 1OO- type firms . The stock reacted very favorably to that . Within six months, the stock was trading within $5.50 to $5 .75 a share. You certainly wouldn't want to get out of a company with a bright future too soon, but because of the PIPE structure with a warrant you can create flexibility in your planning . With the appreciation in the stock price our investor had realized by early 2004, we recommended that they reduce their position
This is an additional aspect of our investing strategy. It's almost a double dip. Because cif the "who cares" syndrome, a lot of these companies get lost on the radar. If you're willing to take a patient time -frame perspective , given the warrant structure of the deal, you can find a time to sell when it's maybe slightly overpriced and trading at a lot of volume, but also often you can find a time to buy because everybody 's selling. VR: How do you think the expected Rule 144 changes will alter the environment for investors and smaller companies with these types of transactions?
Richard: Part of the risk in doing these types of transactions is that you are restricted from selling for up to a year unless there's a registration statement. In the case where the company doe sn't have an effective registration statement, or is not current in their filing, it could be two years. There is a cost to the issuer for that. If now, the investor becomes liquid in six months, it could in theory become less expensive to the issuer. Will that really happen? I don't know. But for the long run, with our "premise strategy," I don 't think it makes a whole lot of difference wheth er w e' re liquid in six month s or not - as long as management is executing on their plan . V R www.westminstersecurities.com FALL 2007
I 45
JIM CRAMMIT: THE MAD MONEY MANAGER. HE'S VOWED THAT HE'S GOING TO MAKE YOU LOTS OF MONEY ••• AND VERSA!
BEN RUBERNECKY: CHAIRMAN OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE. HE GOES BY THE BOOK, BY THE NUMBERS AND BY THE BEAT OF HIS OWN DRUM.
MIKE MCGREEDY: HIS HEDGE FUND MAKES MONEY THE OLD-FASHIONED, TWO-FISTED WAY ... GRABBING IT FIRST, FASTEST AND THE MOST.
T~IS IS ONE TIME BEING AN OVERLOOKED MICRO-cAP DOESN'T L.OOK LIKE SUC~ A BAD DEAL. ~U~?/
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A two-minute beginner's guide to looking like an expert
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LENGTH
COLOR The darker a cigar, the stronger the smoke. The seven main color categories (from lightest to darkest) are:
The longer a cigar, the cooler the smoke.
RING GAUGE The ring gauge of a cigar is a measurement of its diameter, expressed in 1/ 64 inch. The fatter a cigar, the more blends of tobacco it may contain. A cigar with a larger ring gauge will also have a fuller and more complex flavor and produce more smoke compared to the smaller-ring-gauge cigars.
Double Claro: Greenish wrapper. Also known as Claro Cla ro, A.M.S. (American Market Selection), Candela or Jade. Leaves were picked before maturity and dried quickly (retaining the chlorophyll content of wrapper leaves). Earthy, slightly sweet or A white ash is better than a gray one. Better soil results in sometimes bitter taste. whiter ash and more taste. Gray ash indicates that the soil Claro: Light yellowish tan. Often grown under lacked certain key nutrients, leaving the cigar with insubshade tents, with leaves picked before maturity stantial body or little complexity and resulting in a lesser and quickly air-dried. The color of the classic mild smoke. Ash from a good cigar will be firm enough to stay cigar. Very mild, neutral flavor. on your cigar for a length of time. Colorado Claro: Light tawny brown. Also known as Natural. Most often sun grown. Smooth and full-bod ied. A cigar is designed to burn evenly. When a cigar burns Colorado: Reddish brown to brown. Also unevenly, the wrapper's taste is not being fully realized. known as E.M.S (English Market Selection) This could result in the wrapper completely extinguishdue to its original popularity in Europe. ing and causing the tobacco to burn hot in the center of Usually shade grown. Aromatic. Stronger the cigar, called "tunneling;' which distorts the flavor. and spicier than lighter colored wrappers. Colorado Maduro: Medium Brown. If a cigar is rolled too tightly, you may have trouble Mellow, creamy or rich flavor. with the draw. With less smoke passing through, the Maduro: Coffee Brown. Sometimes known as S.M.S. (Spanish Market result tends to be less flavor. If it draws too easily, then Selection). Meaning "ripe" in it may be under filled or rolled too loosely. In this case, the tobacco burns hotter than it should, letting too Spanish, Maduro leaves are either "cooked" in a pressure much smoke pass through the cigar too quickly. This leads to a harsh, potentially bitter taste. chamber or fermented for a longer period oftime in hotter-than-normal conditions. Wrappers should have an oily, smooth sheen, Strong, slightly sweet taste with little veins running through and a consistenand mild aroma. cy in color. Oil in a wrapper leaf indicates that Oscuro: Dark brown, the cigar has been well humidified and that the black. Also nearly smoke should be relatively cool. The absence of known as Double cracks or ripples in the surface of the wrapper Maduro. Produced by leaf is another indication that the cigar wasn't leaving the wrapper exposed to cycles of over-humidification and leaf on the plant the excessive dryness. Smaller veins typically longest, by using only mean a smoother smoke. the leaves from the very top of the tobacco plant, which have There should also be a consistency had the most sun, in texture and feel and an absence and by fermentof any lumps or bumps. A good ing, or "sweating" cigar will feel firm, but not them the longest. hard. V R Strong wrappers with little aroma.
ASH
BURN RATE
DRAW
THE WRAPPER
THE TOUCH TEST
www iVALUERICH .com
FALL
2007
I 49
Born to be an Investment Banker Posted:August1 , 2007
You wake up all hyped this fine morning, as a revelation passes in front of your eyes. You don't need to have Rupert by th e cojones in order to make your w ay up the firm's structure. We live in efficient markets, as you discovered on your coffee break, and there seems to be little you can (legally) do to go around that fine point. But hey, as with all rules, there are even finer w ays of twisting them to get them to work to you r advantage. Remembering the priceless advice on posturing you were given, you decide that it's time to take the game up by a notch or two. This is something that a Mont Blanc pen and a good suit alone cannot solve. This calls for creativity, out of the box thinking, and the use of your entire investment banking skill set. Thi s will be where your financial modeling skill s will come into play. All those hours spent sitting in front of your computer screen, negotiating with your Excel spreadsheet in order to make a lemon look like a peach. All thos e hours are finally about to pay off, as you run through your geniu s plan . Much like the fact that selling a company has very little to do with the crap shape it may be in today, but the promise of a wonder once the lucky buyer has acquired it (and gets stuck with it), your progressing up the investment banking ladder has nothing to do with you being a good banker. It actually has more to do with the perception th at you are a good banker. And good bankers are in strong demand, so you must demon strate that you, being the great banker that you are, are fighting offers for employment left, right and centre. Now this has nothing whatsoever to do with the fact that you have none of these wonderful offers, nor are
50
I VALUERICH MAGAZINE
you close to getting one . However, just like a guy in a good suit is automatically an investment banker, a guy in a good suit coming late to the office on a regular basis, must be interviewing left, right and centre. By the same token, if said banker is interviewing left, right and centre, there must be people calling him for interviews and thus he must be in demand. And if said banker is so highly sought after by the competition , well , the firm must do everything in their power to retain him and make him happy. The fact that the firm has not really found th e said individual to be of such exceptional superstar fabric is of little relevance, as what is more frightening to any investment bank than making the wrong call, is iftheir competition makes the right call at th eir expense. So, cutting a long story short, pretending to interview, and subtly dropping hints in the right place, at the right time, will get you junior support, an early promotion and the ability to cherry pick the deals you work on . All that, courtesy of the firm 's fear of erroneously having thought that you aren't really that good. To make it even better, the fact that you won't really be interviewing, but still will be showing up late to work as if you had been interviewing, will mean that you will have reduced the amount of hours spent in the office! Bonus. You smile quietly, amazed at the sheer genius of your plan . You also think yourself rather silly for having entertained the thought that you may not exactly be top tier banker material, for anyone devious enough to concoct a deception of this magnitude was born to be an investment banker.
Jain The iValueRlch Community
In 2003 , Lipscomb founded the World Poker Tour (WPT) and i ntro duced millions of people to a new, vi sually addictive side of poker. His use of onscreen graphics, hole cams and other innovations hooked television 52 I VALUERICH MAGAZ IN E
viewers, created a poker phenomenon and spurned a countless number of imitators eager to get in on the action . In this ValueRich interview, Lipscomb, the CEO and President of WPT Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: WPTE) , which creates
and produces the WPT, discusses how he navigated an initially inhospitable television market and won the hearts of viewers . He also reveals a deceptive starting hand that you may want to consider folding. Join The iValueRich Community
Value Rich : Years ago, you were a lawyer with an attorney-referral service. Now many credit you with revolutionizing the world of poker. What personal qualities or motivations have been the fuel for your incredible journey? Steve Lipscomb: It's very important to know what you don't want to do, and I did not want to be practicing law on an hourly basis for the rest of my life.
edit the first World Poker Tour episode. That [involved] one guy, David Egan , who was the editor, and me in a room trying everything we cou ld to make it interesting. Six to eight weeks in, it st ill didn't work at all and was stil l difficult to watc h. It was around that time that we figured out the formula for graphics that interact constantly with the hands, what everybody is [now] copying . But before we found the way to have the
we started growing to 1.3 or 1.4 in ratings, which is a phenomenal impact. We put the Travel Channel on the map and there were articles being written in Variety. We were a big story. Then, all of the other guys, the ESPNs and FO X Sports of the world , turned and said, "Wow, look what these guys have done ." ESPN had tried to make a deal with us but didn 't want to commit to making a regular show because they 're ESPN . Then they went and made a deal with the World Series of Poker. They hadn't had a deal with the World Series of Poker for at least three years, hadn't filmed it, and they went back and made that deal, saw our format , handed our tape s to their producers and basically did what we did ... knocked off our show, put it on air and put it on ESPN, which is a bigger broadca ster. It did very well for them as we ll. Their numbers went from what th ey'd been doing before, wh ic h was very smal l, to significant numbers and they cont inu e to be very successful putting our format on their air and making it work for them. VR: It seems as if your competitors are constantly capitalizing on all of your innovations (hole cams, on screen graphics, etc.). Is that frustrating? SL: They say imitation is the great-
You can't blame the guys at ESPN or FOX Sports for not thinking it could be interesting. To tell you the truth , I think the most likely answer to what really made the difference is that I have spe nt my life very open when possibilitie s present themselves and opportunity knocks. When I ma d e my first film , w hich was about Southern Baptist fundamentalists repressi ng women, if you told me I was going to be the poker guy, I would have laughed. When I made a one-hour documenta ry that performed well on the Di scovery Network about poker, I thought, "Well, there 's an opportunity." And when bas ical ly everybody, including all the people who are broadcasting it now, said "no" because nobody believed it co uld be made interesting on televisio n, I took that "no" as a busi nes s opportunity instead of a discouragement. [Ult imately], what the World Poker Tour did, without question, created the current globa l phenomenon. VR: What was wrong with televised poker pre-WPT and how did you set about reinventing it? SL: It had been on for some 20 years and had garnered real ly no audience at all - that was part of the difficulty in selling it. You can't blame the guys at ESPN or FO X Sports for not thinking it could be interes ting. How we reinvented it was through e lbow grease and by rolling up our sleeves . First of al l, we had capital behind us . Lyle Berman and Lakes Entertainm ent put up millions of dollars for us t o launch it as a tour, and that was a big deal because then people began to believe. In terms of reinvention , it took us eight months to www. iVALUE RICH .com
graphics play like a video game along with the game (so you 're seeing when somebody's hand comes in; when they fold, it goes away; if they raise, it te ll s you they raise; it gives you percentages), it was scary. I raised an awfu l lot of money to try and do something I wasn't sure I could do. VR: You initially met with a great deal of resistance from television outlets. How did you change their mindset about poker? SL: When we began airing in 2003, we were one of the two big cable industry stories of the year. Here we were on a small channel, the Travel Channel, and their usual numbers were 0.3 or 0.4 and
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I 53
Joanne Liu, Phil Laak ("Unabomber"), and poker legend Doyle Brunson compete at the Bell agio Five Diamond World Poker Classic in Season 4 of the WPT. est form of flattery - then we have been very well flattered . It 's frustrating because sometimes there's not an understanding of or an appreciation for what it is they 're copying . [Our] innovation, that changed the market, is one that I think people come along
later and say, "Of course, anybody would have done that:' For twenty years they'd been trying to do it and hadn't found a way to make it work. So is it frustrating? The answer is if I let it frustrate me, then it would drive me nuts. VR: What were the keys to winning
over investors? SL: The thought of taking the company public really was Lyle Berman's, and it was a terrific one. We always thought of the game of poker as being very democratic- in that anybody can play. It's the first sport ever that you can watch on TV and then the next week you can be playing it. We wanted to give people a chance to come and be a part of the World Poker Tour, own a piece of it. We believe, long term, we're going to be one of the leagues, like the NBA, the NFL, FIFA internationally, so it was a chance for people to have a part of this thing they enjoyed participating in so much. VR: What are the biggest challenges you've faced as a public company? SL: The biggest challenges we have faced to date specifically have to do with the Justice Department and illegal online gaming. The reality is that we're just better at what we do than anyone, but we live in a universe in which the Justice Department has told us that
I
SIDEBAR: Lipscomb answers questions on tricky starting hands, bluffing and today's best players.
Five-Card Draw 1) Which players out there right now are the most exciting to watch?
3) What's a key piece of advice you would give a novice poker player?
SL:There are two different things: exciting to watch and best player.
SL: Have fun. I think that's the thing. Now that it's become a job for
I think Carlo s Mortensen has really shown himself to be the best player
a lot of people, they very quickly start to take it too seriously. The great
in the world . He's the only person who has won the Championship
thing about poker is that it's just fun to play. Don't get so serious about
of the World Poker Tour, as well as the big event at the World Series.
it that you can't enjoy the game and the social aspect of it.
He's just a phenomenal player. As for the most fun player to watch , I
4) What's your secret to effective bluffing?
would say you almost have a three-way tie between Daniel Negreanu,
SL: I think the key to effective bluffing is not really caring. If in your
Antonio Esfandiari, and Phil Laak.
2) What's a starting hand that many people think is better than it really is? SL: Pocket queen s is hand s- down the scariest thing in the world
because you get it and the likelihood of making a lot of money on it is pretty small and the chance that you're going to lose a lot of money on it is pretty high. But I would say that all big hands are where people
mind you're thinking, "I'm making a big bluff," you 're probably not a very good bluffer. If what you're doing is basically playing out a drama and thinking, "All right, so I'm making a bluff and if it doesn't pay off, well, that's the game," you're in a much better position. Get out of your head and don't care.
5) Has your ability to read tells paid off in the corporate world?
get into trouble . I wrote a chapter in Doyle Brunson 's book on the
SL: In business and life in general, I tend to be a personality profiler.
Super System, which is kind of like the bible of poker. My first advice
It's almost annoying to me because sometimes I'd rather not be able
for tournament poker specifically was that most people sitting on the
to read people. But it's something that I've just always been able to
side, we call it the rail, are telling stories about how they went out with
do very well and serves me when I play poker. Interestingly enough,
their aces or their kings. The problem is that aces in a full ring game
I think some of the celebrities who have become big WPT fans and
lose 40 percent of the time . You get aces and think "Oh, I'm set" and
play the game a lot have the same sort of thing because that's what
you 'll overplay them. You're much better being in a position where you
they do in their profession . You 're an actor: you 're being people and
have a sneaky hand that's very big, because then you 're going to win a
reading people.
lot of money on the guys who have kings, aces or queens.
54 I VALUERICH MAGAZINE
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online gaming in the U.S. is not legal, so we haven't participated in it. But very large companies have made hundreds of millions of dollars in that market riding on our coattails, and they use that in an effort, in essence, to destroy the television market. It would make so much money in the online [market] that they would go and spend money to buy their way onto television . And believe me, that becomes very addictive for the television broadcasters. So, the biggest challenge we've had is living in an environment where the Justice Department doesn't enforce it but keeps us out of the market. Over time, that gets resolved because either something gets done or legislation happens that makes it legal or stops it entirely. VR: What do you say to people who assert that the popularity of poker is
a fad? SL: I think that 's what we do when something becomes interesting in media ; we immediately start saying, "When is it going to go away?" The pet rock came from nowhere and went to nowhere. The World Poker Tour branded space already had anywh ere www. iVALUERICH .com
from 40 million to 70 million people playing in the U.S., but more than 100 million people playing globally. What happened in the U.S. was an explosion since we started . There was this really big market that we're continuing to find a way to expand into and now it's happening in the international market. There's a poker boom happening in the UK. There's a poker boom happening in France. There's a poker boom happening all over Scandinavia; cold months up there [leave] a lot of time to sit down and play cards. Whereas the World Poker Tour always had one event in France, we've now ex panded and have an event in Canada, an event in Barcelona, Spain, and are really beginning to grow a global poker market. If you look at any real numbers of what is happening, the craze is now becoming global and, I would say, more exciting than it's been since we started. V R: What's next for WPT? SL: International and online gaming are the two big new initiatives for us and then continuing to make sure that we foster, grow, and care about the sport of poker. I think if you look at all
examples in the history of sports, there's never been one that has exploded like this one has . The World Poker Tour ini tiated that explosion and continues to drive it. I think it 's important for us to continue to be good stewards of that responsibility. V R FALL 2007
I 55
IPO Scoop \PO Overview:
Subprime and
Sub-par By John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr.
The term "subprime loans" leapt from the back alley of lower Manhattan to the front pages of the world's newspapers. In the process, it grabbed the financial markets by the throat and dragged them down Wall Street - and this year's IPO market felt the pain . During the first eight months of 2007, bankers priced 176 IPOs and raised $38 billion , according to SEC filings. That was well above the same period in 2006 in which 133 IPOs raised $25 billion. But there was not much barroom bragging in the financial district's famous watering holes. By August 15, 2007, 94 of the 176 IPOs had closed above their initial offering prices. Seventy-seven were losers and five were unchanged. The average gain was 2.72 percent. That was marginally better than the NASDAQ Composite Index, which was up 1.8 percent. From July 19 through mid-August, the popular stock market indexes took substantial hits, losing about 9.5 percent each . The S&P 600 Small Cap Index got whacked with an 11 percent decline. On August 15 it closed at a low of 396.25 , down from 445.75, its closing high on July 7. The shock was felt in the IPO market and by mid-August a trend was developing. The places to be were in large-cap issues and in submarkets of the smallcap issues, such as the SPACs (Specified Purpose Acquisition Companies) or " blank check companies." THE LARGE CAPS Bankers priced 59 IPOs of companies with a market capitalization over $500 million and raised $25.4 billion. They got a passing grade on their report card. Thirty-seven closed above their offering 56 VALUERICH MAGAZIN E
prices; 21 closed below and one was unchanged. The overall average gain of 13.6 percent was impressive. The Hero: VMware (NYSE : VMW), a Palo Alto, California-based provider of computer virtualization solutions, priced its IPO at $29 per share on the evening of August 13. On its first day of trading , August 14, the stock rose as much as 91 percent. The next day, it closed at $57 .71- up 99 percent from its offering price. In other words, VMware's stock price had almost doubled in just two days of trading . Its market capitalization stood at $3 .9 billion. The Goat: Limelight Networks (NASDAQ: LLNW), a Tempe, Arizonabased provider of high-performance content delivery network services for media companies, priced its IPO at $15 per share on June 7. On August 15, it closed at $7.43; down 50.5 percent from its offering price. Its market capitalization was $624 million .
THE SMALL CAPS Bankers priced 117 IPOs of companies with a market capitalization under $500 million and raised $12 .6 billion . Their report card wasn't something to be particularly proud of. Fifty-seven closed above their offering prices; 56 below, and four were unchanged. They had an average loss of 5.88 percent. The Hero: lululemon athletica (NASDAQ : LULU), a Vancouver, British Columbia-based designer and retailer of women's clothing designed for yoga, dance and exercise, priced its IPO at $18 per share on July 26. On August 15, it closed at $33.45, up 85 .8 percent from its offering price. Its market capitalization was $268 million. The Goat: GSI Technology (NASDAQ: GSIT), a Santa Clara, California-based provider of " Very Fast" static random access memory products used in highperformance networking and telecom-
munications equipment, priced its IPO at $5.50 per share on March 29. On August 15, it closed at $2.60, down 52.7 percent from its offering price. Its market capitalization was $70.4 million .
THE SPACS Bankers priced 38 IPOs of companies with a market capitalization of $360 million or less and raised $4.49 billion. They received an A+ on their report card, given current market conditions. Thirtytwo closed above their offering prices; five below, and one was unchanged . SPACS are investment pools formed to make acquisitions within a specified period of time. These IPOs are not designed to produce a jackrabbit opening-day pop and most trade around their offering prices. On August 1S, they had an average gain of 3.80 percent. The Hero: There wasn't one. None of the 38 SPACs turned in a runaway aftermarket performance. The Goat: Apex Bioventures Acquisition Corp. (AMEX: PEX .U), a Hillsborough, California-based company looking to acquire a business or businesses in the healthcare industry, priced its IPO at $8 per unit on June 7. On August 15 it closed at $7.86, down 14 cents from its offering price. Its market capitalization was $59 million . Nevertheless, investors can catch lightning in a bottle when they put some money into the " blank check" companies. The last SPAC priced in 2006 is an example. Freedom Acquisition Holdings (AMEX : FRH), a New York City-based "blank check " company with no specific takeover target, priced its IPO at $10 per unit on December 22, 2006. On June 25, GLG, a British alternative asset manager, agreed to be bought by Freedom . On August 15, Freedom's units sold as high as $12 .55, up 25 .5 percent from its offering price. Investing in a SPAC can be like betting on the turtle in Aesop's fable of"The Tortoise and The Hare:' It might turn out to be a slow, but steady winner. V R John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr. has been an investment banker, an analyst and a journalist. He recently launched IPOScoop.com, covering the /PO market for Wall Street. Mr. Fitzgibbon was previously a co-host of The /PO Show, on national radio. He was recognized w ith "Best of Wall Street" for /PO coverage by CBS MarketWatch in 1998. Join The iValueRich Community
If you are looking to attract stock investors or individuals who have high net worth portfolios, no one knows how to find them better than us.
irect Mail â&#x20AC;˘ Email
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Penang, Malaysia
The Cultured Pearl of the Orient By Aaron Dalton Markets may melt down. Clients may blow their tops. Long days at work may stretch into bleary nights. But when the cares of the world pile up into a tottering heap and threaten to fall and bury me, I close my eyes and find a blissful memory - relaxing in a peaceful spa bungalow, sheltered by the gardens of Shangri-La's Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa as a charming young Malay lady with a dimpled smile bathes my feet in flower-perfumed water. This memory- followed by the recollection of the pounding and stretching that my masseuse subsequently provided- sustains and calms me, lets me shake off those worldly cares and slip into a deep and restful sleep. We all need memories like these, and thankfully getting some of your own is as easy as hopping on a plane and jetting off to Penang, an island and adjacent strip of coastline constituting the smallest state in the Southeast Asian nation of Malaysia. There, on the island of Penang - orPulau Pinang, as it is known in the Malay language -visitors find much more than just the sybaritic pleasures of Rasa Sayang Resort. Whether you want to stroll through historical forts, explore sacred temples, lose yourself in natural beauty, indulge your taste buds or let loose in a club, Penang has all of your desires covered . Let there be Light The island of Penang lies in the Straits of Malacca and is connected to the northwestern coast of Malaysia by the 8.4-mile-long Penang Bridge, one of 58 I VALUERICH MAGAZINE
The entrance to the Wat Chaiyamangalaram Thai Buddhist Temple Join The iValueRich Community
importance and direct visitors to an interesting museum about the fort that has been arranged inside the old cells of the fort's prison (now mercifully retrofitted with air conditioning).
Modern Penang
Penang is a melange of old and new.
history. Light set the tone for Penang, stimulating the rapid growth of his commercial outpost by encouraging immigration. Merchants from India and China joined Malays and Sumatrans to build a multiethnic society that persists to this day. Gradually, over the course of a century, Penang moved from the commercial control of the British East India Company to direct Briti sh colonial rule . When Malaysia (then called the Federation of Malaya) won its independence in 1957, Penang became part of the new nation. Today, inside Fort Cornwallis' walls, guests meet female guides in period British colonial dress with incongruous headscarves who explain the fort 's
the longest bridges in Asia . The bridge is, of course, a recent addition to the landscape; it opened in 1985. Step back in time 200 years to the late 18th century, and you would find that Penang was essentially uninhabited. Perhaps that 's why the Sultan of Kedah was willing to allow an Englishman named Sir Francis Light to settle on Pen ang in the late 18th century and build a trading post for the British East India Company. In 1786, Light supervised the con struction of Fort Cornwallis, a wooden stockade th at served both defensive and adminis t rative purposes. The fort was rebuilt in brick two decades later and today stands on the waterfront of Penang's capital city, George Town , as a stalwart rem inder of the city 's colonial
Beyond the restored walls of Fort Cornwallis, the city of George Town hums with growth . Malaysia's economy is booming- a phenomenon reflected in the gleaming 1,000-store malls of the country's capital, Kuala Lumpur, and in the high-rise condominiums rising around George Town . Plans are afoot to build a monorail through the city over the next five years, though in the meantime visitors are chauffeured by ta xis or three-wheeled foot-powered trishaws. Visitors who have e x perienced other Asian cities know that the pace of change can be rapid in the region . Every year brings more conveniences and greater lu xury- but also greater similarity to the metropolises of America and Europe. A Penang skyscraper may be a mark of great achievement and pride for the local population, but to the New Yorker who has just left a forest of skyscrapers, it is the low-slung old quarter of the city that holds more charm . Travelers to Penang in search of the romance and comfort of days gone by may wish to consider a stay at Eastern & Oriental Hotel. Open for more than 120 years, the E&O has hosted lumi-
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The historic Eastern & Oriental Hotel FALL 2007
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naries including Noel Coward, Douglas Fairbanks, Hermann He sse, Rudyard Kipling and Somerset Maugham. Whether throwing back a pint in Farquhar's Bar or lingering over afternoon tea , you 'll feel the charm of history at the E&O. Laze away your days at the immaculate pool or take an evening stroll in the garden before retiring to your suite with its Persian carpets and 24-hour butler service. Should you feel the need for a bit more stimulation, the E&O is just a short walk from George Town's nightlife district on Upper Penang Road . The most popular bars, clubs , restaurants and coffee shops are clustered near here, including The Mansion restaurant and the SegaFredo cafe. Of course, one of the pleasures of traveling is bringing home souvenirs for family, friends and yourself. In this regard, Malaysia in general and Penang in particular have much to offer. From the vendors who line the roads at the Batu Ferringhi night market offering Tshirts and trinkets for a pittance to the high-end stores at Gurney Plaza (http:/I 60 I VALUERICH MAGAZINE
all of George Town , located inside the Traders Hotel. CHA claims to be the first restaurant in Malaysia to serve Huaiyang cuisine, a Chinese style of cooking that strongly emphasizes presentation , particularly in the carving and slicing of meats. The word cha means 'tea' in the Malaysian language , so naturally CHA features a dozen kinds of tea- eight of them exclusive to the restaurant.
Multicultural harmony Batu Ferringhi night market
www.plazagurney.com.my). travelers won't come home empty-handed. Indeed, while exchange rates are making even the rich feel pauperized in the UK and Europe, Malaysia still boasts a currency exchange rate (approximately one dollar to 3.5 Malaysian ringgits as of August 2007) that works in our favor. Adventurous travelers willing to eat where the locals do can pick up lunch or dinner for just a few dollars. Alternatively, spring for a meal at CHA, one of the best Chinese restaurants in
Malaysia is a multicultural country; one of its attractions to visitors is the ability to experience a wide range of Asian cultures and religions within one compact area . Muslim Malays constitute the majority (approximately 60 percent of the population) in Malaysia at large, but Penang is Malaysia 's only Chinese-majority state . Accordingly, many churches and Buddhist temples dot the island. One of the most spectacular religious sites on the island of Penang is the towering pagoda of the Buddhist Kek Lok Si Temple (Temple of Supreme Bliss) in the Join The iValueRich Community
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the Shangri-La brand, sample Chinese cuisine in the CHA restaurant or enjoy the nightly international buffet in The Islander dining room. Rooms here start at around $110 per night including breakfast. Specials sometimes lower this rate to just around $60 per night. Step back in time with a stay at the Eastern & Oriental Hotel (http: // www.e -o-hotel.com) . The hotel's 1885 Restaurant is considered to have some of the best fine dining in town, served in an authentic colonial atmosphere. You may be ab le to land a room here for around $200 a night. There are no direct flights to Penang from major U.S. cities. The fastest and most direct route is via Thai Airways through Bangkok. Alternatively, you could spend some time in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur- a mecca for luxury shoppers and history lovers- before taking a luxury bus or direct flight to Penang on Malaysia Airlines . If you'd like to time your trip for one of Penang's many festivals, come during the Raja Mud a Regatta (http ://www. rmsir.com, November 16-24), one of Malaysia's premier sailing events. Alternatively, take part in the fun during the Chingay Parade (December 23- 25), a colorful and multi cultural spin on the festivities surrounding Chinese New Year celebrations. Learn more about Penang and Malaysia before you visit at www.tourismmalaysiausa.com . The Shangri-La's Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa
town of Air ltam. To reach the temp le, visitors make their way uphill running a gauntlet ofT-shirt and trinket vendors. The climb is rewarded by the sight of multiple prayer halls, shrines, a turt le pond and the 98-foot-tall bronze statue of the Bodhi sattva of Compassion , Kuan Yin. During the Chinese New Year, the entire complex glows ethereally with the light from tens of thousands of red www. iVA LU ER IC H .co m
and gold lanterns. Kek Lok Si is not the only temple worth visiting in Penang . In George Town, the Wat Chaiya Mangkalaram temple contains a 108-foot-long reclin ing Buddha, reported ly one of the lon gest in the world. Right across the street, the Dhammikarama Burmese Temple has its own marvelous murals depicting the life of Buddha , plus charming gar-
dens and a sort of wishing well wh ere pots inscribed with desired fortunes (Happiness, Health, Luck, etc.) rotate merry-go-round style, enticing visitors to try their luck pitching coins into th eir fortune of choice. All misses fall into a koi -filled pond and become donation s to the temple complex. If you 're feeling hot after tra ip sing around George Town visiting temples FALL 2007
I 61
in Penang 's tropical climate, take a ride up the steep funicular railway to Penang Hill, 2,703 feet above sea level. Watch the foliage change from jungle to evergreen and keep an eye out for wi ld monkeys as the car creeps up the railway built by the British back in 1923. On top of the hill, refreshment stands, temples, a playground and hiking trails provide plenty of diversions. Whether you prefer the urban jung le or the real one, Penang has something for everyone. The Tropical Spice Garden ( http:/ / www.malaysiasite.n 1/ spices.htm) lets visitors stroll through a fragrant paradise of flowers and plants representing more than 500 varieties of tropical f lora . Meanwhile, back in George Town, you can explore the Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion (http:/ /www. cheongfatttzemansion .com, also known in less tongue-twisting fashion as the Blue Mansion) . This magnificent structure was once the home of the seventh wife of a financier known as "The Rockefeller of the East." Praised by UNESCO as an excellent exa mple of heritage conserva tion, the Blue Mansion hosts tours at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. daily- or you can even stay overnight in one of the mansion's refurbished guest rooms. Life's a beach
Of course, some visitors will prefer to relish the warmth of Penang with a trip to the beach. The most celebrated strip of sand on Penang is Batu Ferringhi (Foreigner's Rock) . Here you 'll find excellent resort hotels such as the new ly ren -
Take a ride up the steep funicular railway to Penang Hill, 2,703 feet above sea level.
ovated Shangri-La's Rasa Sayang, with its spectacular CHI spa, where guests can experience luxurious massages inside private villas set amid fragrant gardens. Try the 75-minute Rasa Asmaradana treatment that uses ingredients such as nutmeg, sandalwood oil and lemongrass, traditionally employed by Malay healers. Many of the guest rooms at Rasa Sayang also feature private gardens or balconies with soaking tubs. Note that Penang does not offer the deserted-tropical-island experience. Instead, expect a bustling island with lots of restaurants, shops and activity. If you prefer to feel as if you have discovered the la st uninhabited beach on the planet, you may want to look elsewhere.
If you like some variety and excitement on your vacation, however, you will rel ish the Penang experience. The best reason of all to visit Malaysia may be to meet its people. Warm, courteous and friendly, they make visitors feel welcome and at home. Personally, I experienced only kindness. In fact, one young Malay lady working an airport check-in counter smiled and complimented me on my brand-new American passport. For the past year, Malaysia has been celebrating 50 years of independence. Visiting now, you 'll find a proud and increasingly prosperous country on the verge of achieving the fame and fortune it deserves. V R
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A sunset in Penang Join The iValueRich Community
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Secrets of an Effective Business Plan
How important is a clear business plan? Any organization trying to raise funds or a potential investor would say- invaluable.
By Michael McTague, Ph.D. Countless conversations about future plans, future profits and other great financial expectations take place. Numerous PowerPoint presentations show the ubiquitous hockey stick effect of a proposed investment. However, no conversation or slide presentation truly loosens the purse strings of a major funding source. The company's business plan remains the vehicle that allows funding organizations to commit capital. Despite its centrality, clients who seek funding often act surprised at a request for a definition of the project and its benefits . A common reaction is that the details will appear later in an offering statement yet to be written . A 64
I VALUERICH
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second reaction is that due diligence is the vital step that presents a treasure chest key to the company seeking the funds. A complete offering statement and legal due diligence take place after the funds are committed. Conversations and slide shows are effective inside the organization as the project takes shape. The Board approves the project based on these projections. Due diligence firms up the commitment immediately prior to the final offering statement and closing . But, the critical element remains the business plan. A business plan defines the project to would-be investors. Yet, many organizations enter the capital markets without an effective business plan.
This article defines three critical elements of a business plan and three necessary outcomes. Following these guidelines, companies will be able to approach capital markets with confidence. Business plan essentials The three paramount elements of a business plan are: • The corporation's strategic direction • Current financials • Projected financials Strategy comes first. Simply stated, this defines where the organization is going. Financing projects possess fluidity, infusing growth and profits. So, the funds provider needs to know the future Join The iValueRich Community
direction of the organization. Begin by sketching the key dimensions of where the company is now. Then outline where you want it to be in the future, say three or five years down the road . (My preference is five years because it provides a realistic time frame for significant, positive change.) In reviewing this strategic horizon, the company should differ in noticeable and positive ways in five years from the current snapshot. For example, consider this strategic forecast: Company Today Market share 10% EBITDA 10% Total Sales: $65,000,000 Employees: 120 Number of Products: 5 Company in Five Years Market share 15% EBITDA 11 % Total Sales: $90,000,000 Employees: 160 Number of Products: 7 This example shows the attractiveness of the future : sales are up; market share g rows and the product line expands . Of course, profits have also increased, but this simple breakdown does not id entify profits . One of the insights into an effective strategic statement is that profits grow out of the company 's strategy. All companies want to make money. But profit derives from real business achievements, such as better market penetration or higher product quality. These purposes and use of fund s form the reason for the capital rai se. Profits will be defined later in the financial section of the business plan. Another valuable feature of this list is its compactness . Keep your future company sketch and product/ market scope tight and closely related to the proposed capital raise. As much as you would like the capital provider to know that your company operates in t w enty nations in Europe, for example, and that six senior managers hold P.E. degrees, they will be more intere sted in the total sale s and www. iVALUERICH co m
the number of products offered. The list above shows very positive- and not unrealistic- sales growth, along with the addition of two products. In an actual business plan, the data would be more specific than this prospectus, providing the detail on market and product scope that will make potential investors nod their heads and smile. The reader of the plan sees immediately that funds invested will raise revenue, expand product lines and increase market share. The value of the strategic section of the business plan is to show the capital market that your company knows exactly where it is headed. One or two paragraphs can link the current view of the company with the
The final vital element is future financials. These pro forma projections answer the question : What will the revenue and expenses look like down the road (five year s later in this example)? With increased market share and product offerings, revenue and profit can show a steady incline over the entire horizon of the plan . These three elements are mo st critical, knitting together the ingredients of success. Its current situation demonstrates its financial strength . The projected financials reveal how an infusion of funds will generate profit. Business plans need not be terribly long. Think of a range of 10- 16 pages with 1-3 appendices at most. If you find
Business plans need not be terribly long. Think of a range of 10-16 pages with 1-3 appendices at most. future outline. The two new products to be introduced, for example, respond to strong market demand. The narrative briefly describes the market need. With successful products on the market, the company already possesses the knowhow to add these products. An actual example is the expansion of the "regular " beer manufacturers into the "light" beer segment some years ago. Three companies- Miller, Budweiser and Coors - control the top eight beer brands and this includes the older regular and the newer light variations. What this example shows is that a company 's strategic direction makes a great deal of sense when future products and markets grow out of the current success of the company. Defining the Numbers The next two critical elements of a successful business plan are financial. First, the funding source needs to see the company 's current position . Strong revenue and EBITDA assure the capital provider that the company stands on solid ground . This provides a comfort level about the future. Successful companies are likely to take measured risks -those that yield financial benefit.
the plan getting far beyond this heuristic, pare out the extraneous. Sorry, but the elaborate biographies and even management 's discussion about the industry may have to fall under the delete key. Business Plan Outcomes A well -crafted business plan resounds with capital sources. The three elements build a compelling case for infusing the company with additional funds . To really prove effective, consider the outcomes of the plan. This approach simply reverses the perspective on the three key elements, detailing what the company hopes to achieve in the minds of the cash providers. Three outcomes dominate: â&#x20AC;˘ The company has a clear direction â&#x20AC;˘ The track record is respectable â&#x20AC;˘ An infusion of funds will generate profit All of these outcomes are necessary for the capital market to offer a term sheet. If the three elements fall into place, the three outcomes verify succe ss. Suppose one outcome was missing. For example, the company has a clear direcFALL 20 07
I 6S
tion and an infu sio n of cash will generate profit (1 and 3 above). Without a clear track recor d (2 above). potential inve stors w ill shy away, regarding this as a good idea from smart manag ers, but no more than a risky venture in a company that has yet to generate rea l profits. The track record proves most pai nful for sta rt-ups and others with limited revenue. One piece of advice is to have audited financials available for the most current year and quarter. If revenue and profit rise in a new company, be able to prove the positive trend . Start-ups also need to project conservative result s. This approach works far better than a tendency found in many business plan s to pad the document with lengthy managem ent biographies and hyperbole about the market. In finalizing the busine ss plan , remove cliches and pointless exaggeration . Here are a few ringers : "Our prod uct sets a new paradigm in the industry." "We hire only the best and the brightest :' "Our pro duct is renowned for the high est quality:' The goal is to convince the reader, not to irritate or raise questions about credibility. More typical is a business plan that handl es 2 and 3 well, defining the current and future finances , but leaves a strategic void. Many executives feel that raising capital relates strictly to num bers. Show the current financ es, project revenue and expenses and capital sources will be convinced. Occasionally thi s formula works, but numbers only gain value in the context of where they derive from . Projections should be
The final imperfect array find s a company with elements 1 and 2- a strategy and a respectable track record- but no future projections. Thi s assumes investors will plunk down fund s because they hold great confidence in this company. After all, one might think, they are turning a profit now, so give them
The pro forma section should tie the company's direction to future profit and should satisfy the number-crunching DNA now common to financial firms. read with an understanding of the size and attractiveness of the market and a sense of how well the new products and markets complement the old ones. In short, investors want to see where management thinks it can go -the company strategy. To use a milita ry exa mple, consider Patton on his way to Berlin. Investors want the borro wer to show them the road map of the Red Ball Express. 66
I VALUERICH
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more funds to use wisely. But, investors want to see how well their funds will perform . Tight definition of uses of the funds and results is needed. Most organizations inve st only if th e proposed project meets financial standards. These now routinely include net present value (NPV) and internal rate of return (IRR). Simply projecting annual revenue and expenses will do the trick, as well. (Of course, thi s will force the analysts to
back out the profits.) Since investors review competing investments, the best advice is to cre ate a compelling business plan . The corporate direction should be clear. That direction should also move the com pany into greater profits after the fund s are inve sted . Past financial success provides assurance of sound management and by extension , a solid investment. The pro forma section should tie the company 's direction to future profit and should sa tisfy the number- crunching DNA now common to financial firms. When all thre e of the key elements of a business plan work in harmony, all three outcomes are achieved. At that point, you can rest assured that you are putting your project forward in the best manner. This is as close to a guarantee of success as you will find . V R M i cha el Mc Tagu e is Vice President of Corporate Finance at Able Global Partners. He also teaches business at lana College, Molloy College and Mo nroe College in New York. Join The iValueRich Community
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TERMINAL VORACITY A full-blown city tour may be impossible, but you can sti ll use your layovers to emba rk upon an enl ightening (and hopefully satisfyin g) cu linary j ourney of a parti cu lar region by sa m plin g local fare offered wi thin the conco urse wa lls .
. . . . . ... . . ..... . ... . . .... . . . . ... . . . . ... ... . . . . ·+.. . . . . . . ................ ... . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . San Francisco (SFO): Ebisu One of the Seven Deitie s of Good Fortune in Japanese mytholog y and fo lklore, Ebi su is th e patron of fisherm an and, today, all busine sses. Steve Fujii's decision to name hi s Sa n Franci sco restaurant Ebi su was either wise or prophetic. Since its fo und ing in 1982, Ebisu has won numerous awards fo r its food and built a loya l fo ll owing of those addicted to its Japanese cuisine, particularly its sushi made w ith the fres hest ingredients. For those jonesin' for wasab i, but with out the time or inclination to battl e th e traffic t o Ebi su's 9th Avenue lo cati on, check ou t th e restaurant 's airport outpost at International Term in al Gin th e food court . www.ebisusushi .com .. . ·· · · +
· · · · " ' ' ' " " " ' ' ' ' " ' " ' " ' ' ' ' " ' ''
Charlotte (CLT): Yadkin Valley Wine Bar Jetti ng to Napa is not always an easy task for Ea st Coasters w ith hectic sc hedul es, but tho se wa nting to do a gla ss- by-glass tour of loca l w ineri es can stop by th e Yadki n Valley Wine Bar in the Charlotte Dougla s Airport bet wee n Concourses D and E. The Wi ne Bar offers w ines from a va ri ety of w ineries located in th e Yadkin Valley region of North Carolina, wh ich visitors ca n enjoy either by th e glass, w ith a four-w ine t asting or by shi pping bottle s home.
Chicago (CHI): Eli's Cheesecake Born from th e popular Chicago restaurant Eli 's The Place for Steak, Eli 's Cheesecake has a hi stor y of satiating even the most demand in g dessert lovers. With va ri eti es in cluding everything from Eli 's cappuccino hazelnut cheesecake and Eli 's whi t e choco lat e raspberry cheesecake to the one t hat started it all , Eli 's rich and creamy pl ai n cheesecake baked on their signature all -butter shortbread coo kie cru st. Eli 's Cheesecake -to-Go at O'Hare Airport is located in United Term ina l B. Vi sit ors can choose from a se lecti on of the mo st popular cheesecakes and desse rts to ei ther take along or se nd as a gift.
·+"""'"'"" Dallas (DFW): Cousin's BBQ Stock up on wet naps and prepare to get elb ow deep in some au thentic Texas 'cue. Cousin 's BBQ has been a Tarrant County, Texas, in stitution since 1983, when Boots and Beverly Payne opened th eir firs t location in Fort Worth . Now the Payne s are filling their family tree with a new crop of"distant cousi ns" (w hat they call their clientele)- tra ve lers who have discovered or loya ll y frequent th e Dall as- Fort Worth ai rport Co usin 's BBQ lo ca tion s in Term in als Band D. Pair a bri sket sa nd w ich with one of t hei r down -home side dishes like sweet ranch beans, fried okra or mu stard potato sa lad.
68
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Atlanta (ATL): Red Brick Tavern An offshoot of Atlanta Brewing Company, Georgia's oldest operational brewery, Red Brick Tavern offers ABC's three main brews (Red Brick Blonde, Red Brick Pe achtree Pale Ale and Red Brick Ale ) and during certain tim es of th e yea r, one of its seasonal beers (Red Brick Winter Brew or Red Brick Summer Brew). Located in the T Te rm in al of Atlanta's Hartsfie ld Intern ation al Airport, the Tavern is designed to look like an actual brewery, complete w ith kegs and bottle conveyor. Enjoy a few drafts during your airport downtime .
..."... ...."... ". ". . ". ". "... ". "".·+·... . """"". .""".". ". "". ". . . ""..."....". . ".".."". . ... .".... ... . . . . . ". .... ~ P~!!!~,~~~~~~~,e~~e~9J~~"S~ ~"~J"::;"9,S,~" ~,S~, ;"~' '""''"' <hebe" hot dog s from around the world to the City of Brotherly Love. Dog love rs can reve l in th e wea lth of option s, including 100 percent beef, veggie or turkey dogs dressed in a var iety of regional toppings including mainstream options like the Wisconsin Dog (with American and cheddar cheeses) and th e NY Style Classic (with spicy brown mustard and sauerkra ut or reli sh) or more inve nti ve choices li ke th e Texas Tommy (a hot dog wrapped in bacon, deep-fried and topped w ith cheese) and a Tijuana Dog (with j alapeno peppers, sport pep pers, chopped onions and hot sa uce) . A request from the person who wi ll be sitting next to you on your next flight: in vest in breath mints following you r visit to th e Dog Hou se in Philadelphia International Airport's Terminal B/ C Food Court .
...". . .... . ... """. ". ". . ". . ". "..... . .."" . ".". . . ". . """ ....... ". ."..........". . ". "." . ... . . ". ."... ... . . ". . ". . .... . ... + ... . (~
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WARRIOR
:·· ···· ···· ···· ········· ······ ··· ··· ······· ··· ··········· ··············· ···· ··· ·: :
:
Jim Farinella President Integrated Capital Partners, Inc. www.icpihome.com
are not only reserved on your new flight, but already have a seat assignment. You also got to rela x the night before doing whatever your heart desired instead of sitting in an airport. On the chance the flight did get out late that night, you still got to rela x and do what you wanted for the night. Yo u avoided spe nding frustrating hours at the airport, getting home really late and being tired and exhausted the next day. So, you still w in.
Best book or magazine to bring if you want to discourage the
··· ···· ····· ····· ·· ·······
person sitting next to you from chitchatting: Maxim magazine.
Primary business travel destination:
If a young idiot sits ne xt to you and he reads it and wants to talk
Zurich, Switzerland
about it, th en I have no problem telling him to "shut up:' But even
Window, center or aisle:
though it is not a smut mag, it would embarrass most people to
Aisle (This is a must for me or I do not fly.)
make a comment about what is in it.
One thing always in your carry-on:
Best layover meal you've had in an airport: Has to be the oysters
Jump rope (That way I can exercise anywhere and burn some
on the half shell, Porterhouse steak and creme br(Jiee at Gallagher's
energy off if needed .)
in Terminal C3 at the Newark Airport.
One indispensable piece of travel advice: If th e weather is really
Best on-the-go stress reliever: My jump rope mentioned above,
bad or, for so me other reaso n, flights are del ayed and it looks like
but a Chivas on the rocks ha s wo n out several tim es as we ll!!!
it is going to last for a while, imm ed iately, right then and there at that moment, book a flight o ut the next day midmorning. Yo u do
If you could fly anywhere: Di sney World, Orlando. I can 't help it - I'm a child at heart.
not wa nt the first flights in the morning becau se the current delays
Best flying-related song -"Jet Airliner" by Steve Miller Band,
may carry over to the ne xt day. Why do all this? Because it saves
"Two Tickets to Paradise" by Eddie Money, "Come Fly with Me"
you many, and I mean many, frustrating hours in the airport. Plu s,
by Frank Sinatra or "Learning to Fly" by Tom Petty: I had the
w hen they try to place others on flights th e ne xt day and those
be st experience in a helicopter once w hile "Ground Control to
people keep getting put on sta ndby over and over again, and
Major Tom " [by David Bowie] played. I have to go with that over
maybe eve n en d up spending severa l days try ing to get out, you
all the others. V R
www. iVALUER ICH .com
FALL 2007
I 69
Meet the experts on Corporate Governance and Risk Management services. If you need to address the requirements of Corporate Governance, Risk Management or Sarbanes-Oxley compliance, no one is more qualified to help than the Baker Tilly International network. We have representatives throughout the world. The firms listed here have extensive experience in all aspects of corporate governance and risk management services including specific expertise in Sarbanes-Oxley compliance. Am per, Politziner & Mattia New York, New York Edward Valaitis valaitis@amper.com 732-287-1000
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... a group of fans are trying to buy their favorite baseball team By Kayla Willson Take me out to the bal/game, Take me out with the crowd. Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack, I don't care if I never get back. Let me root, root, root for the home team, If they don't win it's a shame. For it's one, two, three strikes you 're out at the old ballgame. -
Jack Norworth,
written in 1908 while riding a New York City subway train
When I was a kid, singing "the ballgame song" was a favorite ritual I shared with my dad. For years, we would sing it together over and over again, along with the hand motions that he taught me . I remember those special times, sitting together on the floor watching the games on TV and yelling at the screen, as if the players could hear us. Even as a girl who wasn 't a tomboy or overly interested in sports, watching baseball and rooting for our home team, the Baltimore Orioles, was a family tradition that taught me more than I realized at the time. I suppose it was that great rush of collective excite ment, that sense of belonging to a team, and the determination and team spirit that were contagious. They showed me the power and thrill of teamwork, what can happen when people take passion into their souls and run with it. Today, Major League Baseball is a mega business with mega bucks . Scandals have leaked in to taint the game, ticket prices have skyrocketed, and the world nowadays is filled with so much technological stimuli that we could easily find ourselves drifting away from the true essence of what the game signifies to Americans. But genuine fans have always been diehard, dedicated 72
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who bought the Tribune Company (the current Cubs owner), announced earlier this year that he was putting the team up for sale - something that hasn 't
and oftentimes unstoppable. And now, one fan group has an inspiring vision and the determination to get priorities straightened out and give ownership of the game back to the fans- literally.
happened in 30 years. Majeski , a lifelong baseball fan , had the vision to recapture the game and bring it back to the fans . "The passion of Cubs fans is unprecedented and we're going to tap into that love," Majeski explains . "This team has not had a lot of success. They haven 't won a World
This past August, a group of passionate Chicago Cubs fans announced that they were positioned to facilitate a fanowned buyout of the team to restore the voice of the fans in professional baseball. 4 Fans Sake, an organization led by Eric Majeski, who owns the film and production company Majeski Media, will be looking to outbid several other applicants when the baseball team goes up for sale after the 2007 season . Chicago real estate tycoon Samuel Zell,
Series in 98 years . And yet the stadium is sold out every single day. It 's been called a marketing miracle." But the true driving force behind Majeski's decision to buy the team has more to do with the integrity of the game and his feelings about what has occurred in recent years in professional sports. He talks about the NBA refereeing scandal, the MLB's steroid trag edies, and the NFL's public relations problems. Join The iValueRich Community
" When America 's pastimes are having integrity issues, there is a greater problem on the macro landscape," says
Web site currently has a non-binding pledge counter. By the end of August, 4 Fans Sake had surpassed the $2 mil-
Majeski. "I had this vision in regards to baseball, that everyone is focusing on the steroids . But the steroids issue is a symptom of a greater problem . And that problem is that 15 to 20 years ago, the game of baseball [became] disconnected from the fans ." When the Cubs came up for sale , Majeski decided it was the fans who could bring back the game. 4 Fans Sake is now incorporated and trademarked, has two lega l teams, and is in the midst of a fast and furious campaign to raise money. While speculation has the team valued at $500 million to $700 million, Majeski believes the price tag is going to be a billion dollars. "I li ken it to that one Cabbage Patch kid that everyone wants . This is a lifetime opportunity,"
lion mark. Although shareholders will have ownership and voting power, the value of the shares will not apprec iate, nor wi ll dividends be paid. Majeski feels that the fans will receive a much more important benefit: the assurance that the Cubs will never leave Wrigley Field. "It sounds blasphemous - that some businessman may uproot the Cubs and take them to the suburbs- but that is a possibility and every Cubbie fan 's nightmare." Wrigley Field , located in a residential neighborhood, has been the beloved home of the Cubs since 1916. There is only a finite period of time to forge the 4 Fans Sake grassroots campaign, however. They plan to use a vira l marketing approach, getting the word out through radio, TV, newspaper interviews, at town hall meetings and at Wrigley Field itself. It is rumored that there are eight to twelve other parties interested in purchasing the team . According to Majeski, Major League Baseball will announce the names of those parties sometime after Labor Day. "At that point, we would get financials , have our finance teams peruse them , and go on to the next step - collecting the money," says Majeski. The Company wi ll work with an investment bank that wi ll hold the money in escrow. By December 31, 2007, the new owner of the team will be chosen . If 4 Fans Sake is successful , fans wil l have a true voice in the way their team is managed. Majeski explains that the fans wou ld ele ct a Board of Directors of 45 individuals, who would elect an Executive Board of seven individuals, who in turn wou ld elect the Chairman of Operations, the only paid member. The Chairman would hire all the baseball and organizat ion al people . "The team wou ld run like it's always been run, except we would have the checks and balances of 45 people," he adds, "and the voices of thousands of fans ." Should the deal fall short, some thing that the group doesn't like to talk about, everyone gets their money back, minus some minor processing fees . But Majeski still believes that 4 Fan s Sake would have served an invaluable pur-
Majeski explains. Majeski is no newbie to finance, business operations, or raising money. Prior to starting his media production company, he served as Executive Vice President for Penson Worldwide (PNSN). "For five years I built a $30 million trading firm. I've taken firms out of bankruptcy. It 's just not whe re I'm currently at." The initia l financing for 4 Fans Sake has come out of Majeski 's pocket and from his company, Majeski Media . The ownership w ill be based largely on the proven model of the Green Bay Packers NFL footba l l team, which has been fan-owned for 80 years and today has appro x imate ly 112,000 shareho ld ers . Stock will be offered to fans at $100 per share, but no one will be al lowed to purchase more than 1,000 shares, preventing any one individual from having too much voting power. The Company's
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pose. "We're creating a vo ice; we want the owners to be accountable to the fans, the paying customers. Ticket, beer and food prices have way outpaced the price of inflation. I've already seen some changes in attitudes around Chicago." Furthermore, 4 Fans Sake plans to give back to the community in more ways than baseball. The Company wi ll be donating 100 percent of all net profits, from T-s hirt sales, sponsorships, and escrow interest, to a number of Chicago charities, and has already co-sponsored an event with the Susan G. Koman Breast Cancer Foundation . " We want to set an example of how to be a community advocate," adds Majeski. Majeski sums up by say in g, "After all, who better than the fans to be the true stewards of the game. Thi s is our way of giving back to the game. At the end of the day, this whole movement is ba sed on our love of the game." R www.4Fanssake.com FALL 2007
I 73
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Good Libations Irish eyes were likely smiling this July when Castle Brands, Inc. (AMEX: ROX) ann ounced the release of Knappog ue Castle Whi skeyÂŽ 199 5 (SRP $34), the latest in its series of vintagedated sin g le malts from Ireland. After bei ng tripl e distilled in copper pot st ill s in 1995 and aged in bourbon casks, a limited number of casks were hand se lected in early 2007 to fit Knappogue Castle's flavor profile and th en chill filtered . Bottled in Ireland, Knappogue Castle reflects a di stinctive light, golden color, due to its lack of artifi cia l coloring . As for the taste, Barry Walsh, rec ipient of Whisky Magazine's Lifetim e Achi eveme nt Award in 2005, has ca lled Knappogue 1995 "a very refreshing and mellow malt w ith exce ll ent complexity oftaste." Knappogue Cast le boasts an established legacy that began with Mark Edwin Andrews ' Knappogue Cast le 1951, a w hi skey named after hi s cast le in Ireland t hat has now become t he o ldest and rarest Iri sh w hiskey in the world (SRP $ 1 ,600) . Today, hi s so n Mark Andrews continues th e tradition by se lect in g the finest Iri sh si n g le malt and ag in g it to perfection . Sin ce they are bottled on a vintage basis, these single malts cannot be reprod uced and are therefore considered limited edition . The Company has so ld n ear ly all of its vintages up through 1994, so don't wa it until a specia l occas ion rol ls arou nd to stock up. Tho se who mi sse d out o n earlier vintages are not completely out of luck, however. The Company has re served a few cases of each vintage and will release a lim ited number of Ca stle Collection cases each year. Th e first Castle Co ll ection si x-bott le case includes one 750 ml of eac h vintage from 199 0 t hr ough 1995 , all auto graphed by Mark Andrews (SRP $500). 76
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"Will you be drinking red, white or green this evening?" Willamette Valley Vineyards, Inc. (NASDAQ: WVVI) has elected to add green to its portfolio of wines through its environme ntally friendly efforts . The Oregon-based winery is the first in the world to earn Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification for using cork stoppers that come from responsibly managed FSC-certified forestlands. According to the Rainforest Alliance, which awarded the Company with its FSC certification, the use of cork is www. iVALUERICH .com
essential to protecting the environment as wineries increasingly use plastic stoppers and aluminum screw top s. In addition to cork being renewable and biodegradable, its harvesting does not require a single tree to be cu t down. The bark of cork oak trees renew s itself and can be stripped off every decade to extract cork w ithout damaging the trees. The wi ne industry plays an important part in maintaining the economic value of cork, and cork oak forests, which constitute one of the last natural forest ecosystems in Western Europe, are home to endangered spec ies and provide a vital so urce of income for tens of thousands of people.
Starting with its 2006 vintage Pinot Noir, bottled in July 2007 and available to U.S. consumer s this fall, th e winery wi ll begin using FSC-cert ified cork stoppers in all of its bottl es . For Jim Bernau, Founder and President of Willamette Valley Vineyards, this is a critical step in realizing hi s green dreams for the Company. "We think about every aspect of how we can walk as softly as possibl e in pursuing our goal of making worldclass Pi not Noir," he says. "The questio n is: Wh at is the best choice for the longterm health of the pl anet? Th e clear answer is natural cork that comes from a responsibly managed forest." R FALL 2007
I 77
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Sometimes in our lives, we feel that a chance meeting of someone was somehow scripted, or meant to be, for an untold purpose. When Gil Gillis, CEO
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"A lot of people want to help folks out, but they don't know how. They don't know where to turn to do it and see the results." Gillis adds, "but Patrick determination and invincible spirit have provides that- he is a result standing to do with 1" Global, a company that in front of them." deals in credit card processing? 1" Global Outreach , a program "When I met Patrick, it really touched my heart to see the things that he was recently launched by 1" Global Financial Corporation, is an innovative business involved with -trying to help folks model that provides merchants who nearly died in a car crash Rummerfield, who nearly died in a car crash in 1974, with the credit processing servicin 1974, was a medical miracle was a medical miracle as the world's only recorded fully es they need and in doing so, also gives them a way to give back to as the world 's only recorded recovered spinal cord injury quadriplegic. their community. Merchants who fully recovered spinal cord injuutilize 1" Global for their credit card and ry quadriplegic. He had spent 17 years who had spinal cord injuries," recalls other electronic transactions receive a in painful therapy regaining the use of Gillis. " Because Patrick knows a lot of rebate that goes directly into a local his arms and legs and by 1992 had finpeople throughout the corporate world charitable organization of their choosand has a lot of connections, we decidished the legendary Iron man Triathlon ing, on a monthly basis. ed that if we were to go to these people in Hawaii. Rummerfield was setting According to Brooke Adams, who and help them with their processing or records on racetracks and completing heads up the 1" Global project, "As far extreme adventure challenges rai sing cash checking problems, we could put rebates back into Patrick's charity. And as we know, we are one of the first to money for spinal cord injury victims . that 's how it really came about. try something like this in credit card So, what does this inspiring story of processing. The plan is to have quite a few additional non profits benefit from this program in different areas- from people with disabilities, to youth and children , to helping the environment. Hopefully, we 'll be able to hit a lot of different focus areas." Adams says 1" Global rates are competitive and that merchants are not paying more for their services. "In fact, we're hoping that in most cases, we'll match or even lower their rates. In addition to that, they'll be giving back to the local community, so it 's a win-win for the merchant. They can save money and Patrick Rummerfield and Gil Gillis in 2005. give back," she adds.
of 1" Global Financial Corporation (FGBF.PK: Other OTC, ZUM:Frankfurt). met Patrick Rummerfield during stock car races at Irwindale (Calif.) Speedway in 2004, the connection resulted in a team more powerful than any racecar. Gillis' son was driving mini-sprint cars despite the handicap of suffering from Cerebral Palsy. Rummerfield ,
80
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Additionally, 1" Global aims to provide financial services to communities that are often ignored by banks and other traditional financial institutions, the underserved minority-owned businesses. " We have a heavy focus in the Latino community;' says Gillis. "We have Latino agents out in the communities working with them, and we will be setting up rebates back into the Latino community on a local basis as we get more involved." Gillis further explains: " I want to focus back in their local communities. I wa nt the me rchants on the local street corner. I want them to see that their funds are go ing back into the ball field across the street . I like that much better. When I donate back into the charities in my area, I see the results and it is very rewarding and keeps you more invo lved :' 1" Global 's Outreach program has already proven to be a great success with Pacific Merchant Services, a company representing several San Diegobased sports fishing merchants. A portion of all the credit card tran sact ion fees collected by the merchants are donated to Friends of Rollo-U.A., a nonprofit organization that gives disabled and at-risk youth the opportunity to experience the thrill of outdoor fishing. According to a June 2007 press release, Pacific Merchant Services clients are expected to process between $10-12 million annually, with a portion of the profits going directly to the community agency. Rummer f ield says Gillis is truly one of the pioneers in the country when it comes to creating ways of giving back. " Because of my involvement with Gil, I helped found a not-for- profit organization ca l led, Adventures on Wheels . It 's kind of lik e Make -A -Wish, only it's for kids with paralysis. One of the most important things to show and demonstrate to these children is that they still can have adventures," says Rummerfield . Gillis is an active participant on the board of Adventures on Wheels; Rummerfield is a national spokesperson for 1" Global Outreach. Together they share a passion for helping people and are inspiring others to do the same. www.lstglobalfinancialcorp.com www. iVALUERICH .co m
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P~t;ick Rummerfield crossing the Gobi salt flats. Excerpt from Patrick Rummerfield's Race Journal on the International Center for Spinal Cord Injury Web site
May 28- Let me start by describing the aromatic essence oozing upward from the deep bowels of the salt flats after a soaking rain. It smells like a cross between 5 thousand years of yak, camel, and horse dung blended with
postmagazine
a lot of human sweat. The smell is enough to turn the strongest of stomachs. Try to imagine walking 8 miles in 6 to 20 inches of hellish sucking mud with random spots that resemble a quicksand filled bottomless pit! The tempera ture was fluctuating between 85-95 " F depending on the velocity of the wind that constantly blew around 40 MPH with gusts up to 60 plus MPH. Now toss into the fact that I cannot walk
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on uneven ground because I have no feeling from the knees down . Visualize the difficulty of planting each foot one step at a time. Step forward with the left foot, let it sink about 12 inches, and then bring the right foot parallel with the left. Let the right sink down, then start the process all over again . One mile = 5280 ft. Eight miles X 5280 ft = 42,240 ft each step consisting of pulling up both legs one at a time with all the leg strength that I can muster up as well as my arms pulling on my poles. Roughly this comes out to be 80 thousand plus times (40 thousand per si de). I had to pull my legs up and free them from the vacuum grip of the Gobi 's sa lt flats that I know must have claimed a life or two over the past 5 thousand years. After two miles, the mud had crusted on my shoes and added about 3 lbs. per shoe. The physical toil and mental toughness one must possess in order to complete this first stage is reminiscent of the type of mentality all spinal cord injured patients must possess to keep focused on their rehabilitation. I see this spirit in the individuals who participate in our Advanced Restorative Therapy program at the International Center for Spinal Cord Injury at Kennedy Krieger Institute. The expression on my face must mirror the images on the faces of all of my SCI friends going through the monumental, continuous effort necessary to attain movement. These are my brothers and sisters with spinal cord injuries whose progress I've followed through rehabilitation and hope to inspire with my daily efforts. Visit Patrick's Web site at www.rummerfield.com or read his blogs at www.spinalcordrecovery.org and www.racingtheplanet.com FALL
2007
I 81
When you're looking at what an energy drink has Calories 72 !Dial CarbohWrale 6%' 18g inside, size matters! With 18g Soaars Vitamin A (as carotene) 100' 1 1. 50001U Verve!, the facts panel on Vitamin C(as ascorbic acid) 50D'll 300f!1ll Vitamin D(ascoolocalciferQ!J 100JIU 250'll the back of each can is like E(as l!!!'9!heryl acetale) 601U 200'll (as lhiamire !Jl:l!rochloride) 100'11. 1.51!!J nothing you've ever seen on 100'11. Ribollavin (as ribollavin 1./f!.lll Nic£in (as nia:inimide) 100'11. 2Di!!J an energy drink before. This Vitamin \l§ (as l'l!ido><ioo 250'll 5f!.lll Folate (as 200'll BOD!!!JI delicious fizzy drink is Vitamin B1Z (as cvanocobalamin) 250'll 15!!!JI Biolin (as d-Biolin} 100'11. 300!!!JI 100'11. packed with vitamins, plant 10'!'9 Selenium (as selenium amloo acid r:helale) 140rnqj 200'll Taurire source minerals, phytonu~;:'"'-::="'""S:""ex~~ac~""Ex1Iacl""'""'ri~,dirl<J""ao"'"mg""'-"-olca=n""'i"',._)_,200~mu'-----,--trients from exotic stuff like D-Ribose 5011!\l .l nost .•"C'·'a~'---=,-------~50~f!.liiL___ the hugely popular mangosCholireChloride 1011!\l Pr""ieldryWildctalledMangosteen. Oll!Mic 2s.2g teen fruit, organic aloe and Glycooo1rient Rich Aloe Vera and Oroanic Green 1 RecoostihltedMango~een Juice(GarciniarnangoslanaLXJruil). organic green tea along ~~~~~=~(:,:;a=ed). Maogosteen with an energy blend that PrOil'ietafy Plaot-Sorm:ed Miner.tl 81end 956 mg • th " k k" k =~cl{~~~~~~~~:~g1ves you e qu1c 1c Pllosp/lorus.Silica. MooQooesl>. BOIOo. SirorlitJm.Tt~itJn.Tllf"4ISieo. you're looking for in a C<w>. liOC. Ttn. Zilcooitm Molyixleflom l'analium. Chfomium. fl:;..rr:c=.:l\'!~~ ~~~c;,~i.::::· ~· formula that won't let that Samarillll. Dysprosium. 8bium, BismJlh. Cesillll. l>nl!1iiUn. Plaseodymiun, Eur~um. L~etiool. Tl!fbium, Ytterbium, h b . d .d 1m s1 e you . =·=\:.:n!n~~~7tJ..~Plali<1liTI. energy eras Supplement
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arly Canadian Beverage Corp. (OTCBB: CCB ateri I Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB: MTTG) DNAP,int Genomics, Inc. (OTCBB: DNAG) USA Video Interactive Corp. (OTCBB: USVO) Roc et City nter Inc. (Other OTC: RCTY.PK) SO l Auto arts, 路 SORL)
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Retail product manufacturers don't have an easy job w hen it comes to selling their merchandise. Prime real estate in the retail world is hard to come by, given the frustrating fact that key placement on highly trafficked aisles and eye-catching shelf space is often what induces shoppers to pick a particular product. Beyond that, they face the larger and more critical challenge of creating longevity and establishing brand equity in consumers' minds. Failing in either of these areas has led to the demise of more companies than one cares to count. Due to the potential for impress ive returns in many lucrative segme nts, however, the retail product market remains heavily populated with both new and established competitors vying for success. Vancouver, B.C.-based Clearly Canadian Beverage Corporation (OTCBB: CCBEF) understands the hi g hs and lows of consumer retailing . Established in 1988, the Company was an early pioneer in the "alternative beverage" segment when it introduced one of the first all-natural fruit-flavored sparkling waters. From its stando ut packaging, a clear, teardrop-shaped bottl e, to the bottle's contents, crisp and refreshing flavored water with no artificial ingredients or preservatives, Clearly 84
I VALUERICH M AGAZINE
Canadian captured consumers ' attention. By 1992, total sa les had reached $200 million, and the Company soon became NASDAQ- and TSX-listed. The Company was also exclusively selected
"What's really pushing the growth in conventional stores is [that we're] offering more all-natural, organic products:'
By Kristina Henneberg
to private label Reebok Fitnes s Water, one of the first vitamin-enhanced waters to hit the market. Nearly a decade later, competition intensified when beverage makers and other brands began to notice consumer gravitation toward bottled water. In the mid 1990s, in an effort to keep its products fresh , Clearly Canadian introduced Orbitz, a noncarbonated fruit-flavored water with floating gel beads. Then, in the late 1990s, they opted to redesign the Company's signature bottle with an opaque wrapping . Neither deci sion generated the desired results. The Company 's new image was unrecognizable to loyal consumers and Orbtiz was not received well. Sales plummeted, leading to net losses and an OTC Bulletin Board listing. Clearly Canadian decided to get back to business, naturally. Under new management since late 2005, the Company has raised over $13 million in cash, unloaded its debt and diversified its product line through two acquisitions of organic-product companies. In 2007, Management formed three division s: naturally en hanced waters ; organic, healthy snacks; and organic baby food. "As a beverage company, we have gone in another direction," says Brent Lokash, President of Clearly Canadian. "We are Join The iValueRich Community
not trying to solely gain market share in the hugely competitive $21 billion alternat iv e beverage market. What 's really pushing the growth in conventional stores is [that we're] offering more all-natura l, organic products . Our cor porate turnaround is about becoming a 'good for you' company." To help drive his vision, Lokash has recruited industry executives from Pepsico-QTG (Q uaker, Tropicana Gatorade) and Snapple. "Only a littl e while ago, 'good for you ' products were relegated to a single ten-foot f reezer in a grocery chain . Now organic products take up at least two to four or more ais les," says Lokash . What wa s once considered 'alternative' is, ironically, going mainstream . Publi x, one of largest supermarkets in the U.S., plans to open its first "Green Wise" store later this year, with a focus exclus ively on se lling healthier, natural foods that are eart h-fri end ly. Wai-Mart, Safeway and others are li ke ly to follow suit.
preservatives. In th e initial months following their release, Clearly Canadian's enhanced waters, along with the new one-liter sized bottles, have generated $700,000 in sales. To strength-
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en m arketing efforts, Clearly Canadian's natu rally enhanced beverages are represented by celebrity spokesmen . The Company has inked exclusive product endorsement deals with Steve Nash, the basketball legend and two time NBA MVP, and British Columbian born Justin Morneau of the Minnesota Twin s, the reigning American League MVP. Contests and other promotions involving these sporting legend s reinforce the concept of making great-tasting, functional h ea lthy beverages a part of one's daily routine. Capitalizing on the se role models is also helping reenergize the Clearly Canadian brand as the Company seeks out new distribution channels worldwide.
CANADIAN.
Since its inception, more than 2 billion bottles of Clearly Canadian beverages have been sold.
Clearly, back to its roots
Snack attack
A corner stone of the Company 's business model is leveraging nearly 20
In February 2007 , Clearly Canadian acquired DMR Food Corporation, eastern Canada's leading organic and natura l snack food company. DMR, which is now operating under the name Clearly Canadian Brands, se lls a wide rang e of organic and natural dried fruit and nut snacks marketed under the brand
years of brand equity and aware ness. Since its inception, more than 2 billion bottles of Clearly Canadian beverages have been so ld. "If you mention Clearly Canadian to someone, they are likely to smi le and say, 'I remember that brand.' It is always a positive response," says Lokash. Clearly Canadian Management decided to capitalize on its original natural sparkling wa t er formulas by reintroducing a simil ar line with the same clear bottle, now sporting embossed maple le aves, and by laun ching a pro prietary one-liter plastic bottle to meet demand from retail chains for larger-size take-home products. Th e Company also took its newfound confid ence into anoth er exploding market - fortified flat-water beverages. In February 2007 , Clearly Canadian Naturally Enhanced Waters hit shelves with three healthful added benefits: dailyEnergy, dailyVitamin and dailyHydrat ion, a certified-organic essence water. All waters are either low or zero calorie and are naturally fruit flavored wit h no www. iVALUERICH com
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CLEARLY A Family of Healthy Choices
names SunRidge Farms, Naturalife, Sweet Selections, Simply by Nature, and Glengrove Organics. A profitable company with annual growth of 25 percent, DMR is immediately accretive to Clearly Canadian. Lo kash says that DMR sales alone could double the Company's top line revenue in 2007 over 2006. " We see great upside in Sweet Selections' business over the next several years as retailers place major emphasis on organic and natural products. With its strong presence in Canada's largest grocery chains, Sweet Selections is an ideal complement to Clearly Canadian's brand recognition and established presence in the beverage sector," says Lokash . "Ju st as PepsiCo, Inc., has successfully done over the years with the acquisition of Frito-Lay, we are pairing our beverages with snack food s, but with a con centration on the organic, healthy category. The idea is for a consumer to wal k into any North American convenience store and be able to purchase one of our waters with one of our snacks.''
My organic baby
Brent Lokash and Andrew Strang of Clearly Canadian Beverage Corp.
The Company also acquired My Organic Baby, Inc., the first comprehensive nation al lin e of organic baby food in Canada, in May 2007. Th e fast-growing lin e has over 30 product offerings FALL 2007
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listed in leading baby food retail outlets across the country, with plans to expand into the United States in the future. According to the Company , consumer spending on baby prod ucts has experienced double-digit growth over the past five years . With its national retail pre sence in Canada , My Organic Baby benefits from strong brand awareness . The acquisition provides an immediate revenue stream and strategic positioning for future product distribution and sales growth . Lokash says, "Large-scale baby food manufacturers are likely to try and get in on the organic food sector, but My Organic Baby provides us with first-mover advantage." Lokash estimates the acquisition of My Organic Baby will add nearly $5 million to 2007 revenues.
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that is transitioning rapidly toward mass retailers;' says Lokash . Over 10,000 stores carry Clearly Canadian products in North America. The Company utilizes some of the largest, independent beverage distribu tors in the United States, including the major markets of New York, Boston and Chicago, and regionally in the Midwest, Pacific Northwest, and many other states . In Canada, convenience stores like ?-Eleven as well as grocers
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countrywide are making room for its two beverage lines and organic snack and baby foods . Tree of Life Canada , Inc., the leading distributor of natural and organic food products, is distributing the Company's Glengrove Organics dried fruit and nut products in Canada, specifically targeting mass retailers. Established selling relationships bring cross-selling and expan sion opportunities across its division s.
"Our goal is to position Clearly Canadian as a 'good for you ' company and to build a name that health-conscious consumers will know and trust for years to come," says Lokash . And if you miss any of the progress the Company is making toward those goals, you can soon play catch-up thanks to high definition television. High-defin ition cable network INHD is financing and currently filming a reality television series based on Clearly Canadian and its quest for an unparalleled corporate turnaround. Rather than being another Donald Trump-like reality show, the Clearly Canadian program will give viewers full access to the actual corporate drama, deal-making and pressure that exist in the high-stakes corporate world. The program is slated for release to millions of viewers over INHD 's own MOJO Network in the first quarter of 2008 . "The reality show will
As Clearly Canadian was rapidly establishing a slew of national retail listings, news hit that Coca-Cola had acquired Vitaminwater maker Glaceau for $4.1 billion . Lokash believes that if Coca-Cola moves Vitamin Water onto its trucks, it may offer the Company an incredible opportunity to fill the void left with Glaceau's major distributors,
provide a personal connection between th e con sumer and our brand like never before . The advertising buzz alone will enable us to break new ground," says Lokash. Clearly, Management believes the Company is on a path destined to generate real profits and returns for its shareholders. VR
"Our goal is to position Clearly Canadian as a 'good for you' company and to build a name that health-conscious consumers will know and trust for years to come"
Independently distributed Clearly Canadian recently opted out of its master distributorship with Dr Pepper/ Seven Up Bottling Group, owned by Cad bury, and plans to focus on independent distribu tors. "Our distribution strategy is to partner with independents that are ahead of the pack in terms of organic-product retail space. It may be a smaller niche market, but [it is] one
Value Rich will obtain Clearly Canadian Beverage Corporation'sprior written approval on all material disseminated by Value Rich in any manner to any person, company, firm or other party for purposes of Clearly Canadian Beverage Corporation verifying the accuracy of facts related to it, provided, however, that it is undersrood and agreed between the parties to this agreement that Clearly Canadian Beverage Corpo ration wifl not approve or adopt any opinions made by ValueRich in relation ro Clearly Canadian Beverage Corporation and that such opinions are solely those of ValueRich .
86
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The news that the Minneapolis Interstate 35W bridge had collapsed into the Mississippi River on Augu st 1, sent shock waves around the nation . During a typical bumper-to-bumper evening commute, the mas sive eightlane highway imploded , taking 13 lives and injuring more than 90 others . While the final cause is still under inve st ig at ion , metal fatigue may be to blame . Erratic weather patterns, extreme cold and heavy traffic are par for the course in many bustling U.S. citie s, and our nation 's aging infras tru cture is increasingly cracking under the combined pressure. Tiny, barely visible cracks, called fatig ue cracks, can form and grow in size, number and location along any stee l structure. Undetected and therefore unrepaired over many decades, fatigue cracks are now one of the leading causes of our failing bridges, highways and byways. Engineering firm Material Technologies , or MATECH (OTCBB: MTTG), has dedicated the past 22 years toward finding a better way to measure microscopic growing fractures in meta l structures and monitor metal fatigue in real time . MATECH has developed the 88
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multi-patented Electrochemical Fatigue Sensor (EFS) system. EFS can determine a crack as small as 0.01 inches in cyclically load-resisting structures, such as bridges, highway sign structures, rail tie bars and oil rigs, with te sts performed during the normal stresses of daily traffic. This enabling technology can drastically improve the results of steel bridge inspections, help allocate funding for restoration more effectively, and increase transportation safety. Breakthrough technology "The Minneapolis bridge collapse was a nightmare. It amplified the need for accurate, advanced and costeffective technology to detect bridge fatigue problems before they escalate.
government, including checking metal safety in aircrafts for the U.S. Air Force. EFS has been independently validated by Rockwell Scientific Company in the lab, and in over 20 field tests. MATECH has also received $10 million in private investments to help commercialize its breakthrough EFS technology for U.S. markets. Re ce ntly, two well-known European funds, Julius Baer and Anima, have invested substantial funds, exercised numerous warrants, and have indicated strong interest in doing more funding in the near future. The value proposition to governments and private bridge owners is compelling. "EFS is the only technology that can determine if a crack is growing," says Bernstein . "Thi s trans la tes to mil-
"EFS is the only technology that can determine if a crack is growing" That 's where we come in ," says Robert Bernstein , Founder, President and CEO of MATECH . Since it s inception in 198S, MATECH ha s completed contracts worth $8.3 million for the federal
lions of dolla rs saved by repairing the right cracks, and / or fi xing small cracks early in their growth cycle, before they turn into expensive , or even deadly, disasters." Another MATECH techno!Join The iValueRich Community
ogy, the " Fatigue Fuse" sensor, fills in the gaps between federally mandated inspections by monitoring accumulated fatigue in real time. "Our solutions are about saving time, money and lives," asserts Bernstein.
Pinpointing the problem Over the past 10 years, one U.S. bridge has either collapsed or closed every week, according to the Federal Highway Administration (FDWA). Inspections every other year, conducted by the 51 U.S. Departments of Transportation (DOT) inspectors and their contractors, are required by law on
non-biased tool that can more accurately rate a bridge's safety level and determine what action needs to be taken in order to make it safe.
the inspecto r." The level of detail is unparalleled when it comes to EFS . "The readout an inspector receives from EFS is similar to a medical electrocardiogram of the heart, very quantitative data," adds Bernstein . Through comprehensive reporting , EFS tell s DOT inspectors with pinpoint accuracy which cracks pose an immediate threat. It is also used to cancel out false positives detected during visual inspections, prioritize and monitor the progression of at-ri sk areas, determine which repairs can b e po stponed or avoided altogether, and verify com pleted repairs and restorations. Ultrasound, X- rays and dyes are among a handful of other methods used in the field, but at best these methods can only detect cr acks ten times larger than those EFS finds . EFS's ability to provide an " EKG on a bridge," on the minutest of growing cracks, acts as a www. iVALUERICH .co m
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Our failing infrastructure The 1967 deadly collapse of the Silver Bridge in West Virginia took 49 lives and put into motion the first U.S. bridge legislation and laws for biennial inspections. Rating bridges for safety on a scale from one to nine, nine being the best, is not a panacea . The Minneapolis I-35W bridge had consistently passed inspection for years, receiving a level 4, which experts say is common . About
"The visual testing process is really the inspector guessing what cracks should be fixed" all 600,000 bridges listed in the National Bridge Inventory. " Fifty- si x percent of bridge ratings based on inspections done visually are wrong," says Bernstein. These visual inspections are highly fallible. Ninety percent of all fatigue cracks on bridges are missed by the naked eye, and four out of five times repairs are performed on the wrong areas . "The visual te sting process is really the inspector guessing what cracks should be fi xed ," says MATECH COO Marybeth Miceli. "EFS takes the subjectivity out of
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77,000 other bridges operate with structural deficiencies similar to those of the I-35W bridge, according to FHWA data . "Worldwide, we all share the same problem," says MATECH's Chief Engineer Brent Phares, P.E., Ph.D. Over the past decade, Pakistan , Thailand , Australia, India, China and Scotland have experi enced catastrophic bridge failures. "This is not a case of bad engineering. Bridge collapses are the result of the universal crisis of an aging infrastructure," says Phares. Bridges in the United States, on average, are 50 years old and those in Europe are older still. Phares says these original structures were not designed with much redundancy (the capability to continue to carry loads after incurring
MTTG:OTCBB COMPANY
Material Technologies, Inc. 11661 San Vicente Boulevard Suite 707 Los Angeles, CA 90049 www.matechcorp.com CONNECT
Robert Bernstein . P: 310-208-5589
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damage or the failure of one or more of its members) or to support the weigh t of current vehicular traffic. Today's ma ssive truckloads and the large number of passenger vehicles are "bearing down at a density three times greater than fifty years ago," says Phares . Australia , Germany, the United Kingdom and China are particularly at risk due to their recent economic boom s. "All these countrie s have shown interest in deploying EFS in the near future," says Phares. So far this year, central China ha s reported two bridge collapses. And the Chinese Ministry of Communication s reports that 6,300 bridges have ser ious damage to their structural compo -
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tracts with the Association of American Railroads, and has finished work on three bridges as part of an open-order contract with Pennsylvania's DOT. The Company has also completed testing on metal bridges in the states of California , Colorado, New York , New Jersey, Massachusetts, Ohio and Utah , with the potential for follow-on orders. Since the tragedy in Minneapolis, MATECH has received a steady stream of inquires from U.S. state transportation agencies to discuss EFS's ability to detect minute growing cracks in bridges and rail infrastructures. "We anticipate strong order flow to continue and to report a very significant year of revenue growth in
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ou; bridge;-and raih.Va-ys -;;:;a-y contain ticking time bombs in the form of growing fatigue cracks, but companies such as MATECH are finding solutions to prevent their lethal consequences.
nents. "The upcoming Beijing Olympics has put additional pressure on Chinese officials to ensure the safety of millions of future visitors," says Phares. "MATECH has ongoing discussions with Chinese officials regarding EFS."
The cost of saving lives In 2000, when the Hoan Bridge in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, collapsed, taxpayers shelled out $19 million to restore and reopen the bridge. This is just one example of the economic costs of the conventional "wait and see" visu-
asset management, but use of EFS can eliminate unnecessary bridge closures and postings through early detection. The preventive measures enabled by EFS technology can save a single state, conservatively estimated, $110 million in potential losses," adds Miceli .
Drawing worldwide interest
al inspection process. According to a report by a special transportation committee deployed by an unnamed state, for every dollar spent on making the correct repairs now, five dollars will be saved over the next four years . "Using this state's 5:1 ratio, MATECH estimates EFS can result in cost savings of $60 million through better asset management alone," says Miceli. " We have proven EFS can save mil-
MATECH is targeting EFS for use on the nation's 190,000 steel bridges. In 2006, the Federal Highway Administration classified 39,496 steel highway bridges as structurally deficient, and another 34,951 were labeled functionally obsolete. "The total potential revenues from EFS inspections on structurally deficient and obsolete bridges in the U.S. is over $550 million," says Bernstein. The U.S. Congress recently passed a bill that beefs up the standards for infrastructure inspections. The $286 billion Federal Transportation Act, signed into law last year, bodes well for
lions of dollars in infrastructure costs," says Bernstein. According to Company Management, for about the same price the state would pay for a consultant, around $8 ,000 per day, EFS can be deployed with industry-first objectivity and value-added benefits. "Since smaller repairs can be performed during daily operations, lane closures that cause pollution and congestion are minimized," says Miceli. " Not only will EFS cause direct savings through better
EFS 's market adoption. The Act allocates state funding toward nondestructive inspection meth ods, such as EFS, to detect cracks in bridges as small as 0.01 inches in length and even under the surface. "We believe only MATECH's technology meets these standards," says Bernstein. To date, MATECH has completed con-
90 I VALUERICH MAGAZINE
Cracking the solution The pains of economic growth are sharply felt by a deteriorating infrastructure. Our bridges and railways may con tain ticking time bombs in the form of growing fatigue cracks, but companies such as MATECH are finding solutions to prevent their lethal consequences. The U.S. government is also raising the bar on the DOT to provide for more stringent checks and balances. The availability of cost-effective, reliable technology like EFS is expertly timed to help DOTs and global officials crack down on a failing infrastructure. MATECH plans to strengthen the world 's infrastructure one bridge at a time. V R
Robert Bernstein, Founder, President and CEO of M~l'ECH Join The iValueRich Community
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A man who identified himself as African-American for over 20 years walked into his doctor's office, took a simple DNA test and found out he was only 8 percent black and over 45 percent Native American. It's what some scientists call the "watershed test," unlocking your one-of-a-kind DNA to unearth your ancestral roots . Beyond simple curiosity, DNA research pioneer DNAPrintâ&#x201E;˘ Genomics, Inc. (OTCBB: DNAG) has determined that our genetic makeup predisposes us to certain chronic illnesses (like cancer, heart attacks, diabetes and depression) and impacts our ability to fight them off. The Company is leverag ing its patented, gene discovery technologies into a host of applications in five primary industries: consumer products, pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, forensic and genotyping services. Ancestry Matters In 2003 DNAPrint introduced ANCESTRYbyDNNM, the first test capable of tracing genetic ancestry from the 22 non-s ex chromosomes. Previous tests on the market only used information from 92 I VALUERICH MAGAZINE
either the male sex chromosome (Y) or the mitochondrial DNA. These tests follow paternal and maternal inheritance respectively and ignore contributions from many other individuals in a family tree. DNA Print has collected data from around the world and developed a proprietary mathematical model called ADMIXMAP that can decode all 23 human chromosomes. "DNA is like having your genetic history on tape extending back 10,000 to 20,000 years
ers, DNAPrint intends to make comprehensive genotype screening solutions accessible to people all over the world via the Internet. "Our system will permit a more holistic approach to using genomic information for the improvement of people's lives;' asserts Gabriel. Personalized Medicine Not everyone responds to medications in the same way. The pharmaceutical industry follows the 40/ 60 rule- 40
//Our system will permit a more holistic approach to using genomic information for the improvement of people's lives" and we are looking at all the chapters," says Richard Gabriel, CEO of DNAPrint. ANCESTRYbyDNA was followed by EURO-DNA'M, a further segmentation of European backgrounds. Each test looks back farther in time than most genealogical records, providing a type of personal anthropology. By marketing ancestry products directly to consum-
percent of the population will respond to one type of medication; 60 percent to another. Chronic use of an inappropriate drug can result in fatalitie s, costing Big Pharma and doctors millions of dollars in malpractice and wrongful death lawsuits. "Recently a cancer patient was awarded $20 million because his doctor did not run a diagnostic genetic test for Join The iValueRich Community
cancer when the patient's history w as well-known," says Gabriel. "Rather than roll the dice, doctors can tailor drug therapies based on an individual's genetic composition, improving success rates and minimizi ng adverse side effects." DNAPrint is at the forefront of pharma-
may be that their target markets will shrink considerably," suggests Gabriel. " However, personalizing medicine can decrease potential liabilities, lengthen the product life cycle, and strengthen brand loyalty, the Holy Grail for pharmaceutical companies, which more
DNA Print's first diagnostic test is the only known test that can determine if a patient is at risk for vascular complications associated with diabetes. cogenomics, t he testing of individuals to predict their genetic predisposition to drug responses. Its diagnostics divi sion can determine who will respond with a 95 percent efficacy rate to a particular drug. The resulting 5 percent of patients, who are predisposed to complications, can then make an informed decision whether the proposed benefits of a drug outweighs its risks . "Merck & Co., Inc., poured billions of dollars into the development of VIOXX®, then vol untarily recalled it when [the drug] was found to increase the risk for heart attack and stroke in some patients . DNAPrint wants to identify those individuals ahead oftime and exclude them from treatme nt," says Gabriel. The U.S. FDA and insurance compa nies are rallying for the advancement of theranostics, the combination of drug and genetic testing, to keep people out of the hospital and help reduce growing U.S. hea lthcare costs. Resistance from Big Pharma is the last hurdle. "The immediate respon se from Big Pharma
Richard Gabriel, CEO of DNAPrint www .iVALUERICH .com
than offsets any narrowing of the market." DNAPrint is performing genotyping work for four leading pharmaceu tical companies and will benefit from the downstream profits generated by new drugs brought to market based on DNAPrint's technologies.
Early Intervention DNAPrint 's first diagnostic test, Protectin™ -CD -59, is the only known test that can determine if a patient is at risk for vascu Ia r com pi ications associated with diabetes . The test gives frequent feedback on glucose control, which enables better management of diabetes, a global epidemic. According to the International Diabetes Federation, the number of people with diabetes has skyrocketed from 30 million to 230 million over the last two decades. In the U.S. alone, 20 million people have dia betes and 50 million are pre -diabetic. According to the National Heart, Lung and Kidney Institute of Health , treatment of diabetic complications consumes 10-15 percent of our nation 's overall healthcare budget. "Our goal is to permit doctors to prescribe meaningful treatment in patients, along with lifestyle changes like di et and exercise, to slow th e track of diabetes in pre-diabetic patients;' says Gabriel. Although DNAPrint can't determine the rate of the disease, Protectin is useful in screening out candidates for leg/ vein grafts and determining the viability of a dialysis patient to accept a kidney transplant. DNAPrint's goal is to have Protectin and its other diagnostics become part of a patient's standardized panel oftests, like blood pressure. Other diagnostic te sts under development include OVANOME™ for ovarian cancer,
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dna print genomrcs DNAG:OTCBB COMPANY
DNAPrint Genomics, Inc. 1621 West University Parkway Sarasota, FL 34243 P: 941-366-3400
www.dnaprint.com CONNECT
Richard Gabriel CEO and President P: 941-366-3400
STATINOME for the safety of statins (a heavily marketed drug used to lower cholesterol levels), and PONV for postoperative nausea and vomiting .
Pharmaceutical Benefits DNAPrint has an extensive pipeline of proprietary compounds that targets anemia , depression, ADDH (attention deficient di sorder with hyperactivity), drug addition, and ophthalmic and nasal allergies. The Company 's first pharmaceutical, PT-401, boosts red blood cells in anemic patients suffering from renal failure. Beth Israel Deaconess Medical School , an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, recently concluded studies on PT-401 and found it to be more effective than Erythropoietin, a well - known drug used for the treatment of ane mia . "PT-401 could successfully take the lead in the $12 billion market for Erythropoietin," says Gabriel. Since PT401 is more potent than Erythropoi etin, it requires less frequent injection s, is longer acting and is less expensive. The Company indicated it plans to file PT-401 with the National Drug Administration (NDA) in 2010 and hopes to begin generating revenue s from the product in 2011 .
The CSI of Wall Street In addition to breakthrough s in medicine, the Company has applied its DNA computer modeling and g ene FALL 2007
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" Protectin is on a short leash in terms
DNAPrint is at the forefront of pharmacogenomics. Its diagnostics division can determine who will respond with a 95 percent efficacy rate to a particular drug.
discovery to the forensics market. "To date, we have worked on nearly 200 criminal investigation s," boa sts Gabriel. "We are primarily called upon to help with cases involving serial rapi sts, victim identification, murders and cold cases of variou s forms . Several of these individuals have been caught and prosecuted or are in the judicial system awaiting trial." The Company's DNA Witness test is the world 's first genomics- derived test to red irect investigations with dramatic results. DNAWitnes s provided the final break for a multi -agency homicide task force searching for a serial killer in Loui sian a. Previously, searches were based on eyewitness accounts that suggested the suspect was a Caucasian male, possibly driving a white pickup truck . The crime scene samp les submitted to the FBI's CODIS database produced no matches to con victed offenders . After DNAWitness discovered the sus pect's DNA act ually belonged to an African-American with a Native American component, the investigation quickly switched into high gear. Within two months, officers arrested the man whose DNA matched that found at the crime sce ne. The task force used the DNAWitness report to resolve conflicting information and properly focus the investigation . DNAPrint continues to work extensively with federal and local authorities nationwide and internationally with London's Scotland Yard. The Company's participation in high-profile investigations has led to it being featured on 20/ 20, Primetime, Court TV, Good Morning 94 I VALUERICH MAGAZ INE
America, Nightline, Forensic Files and in The New York Times as well as USA Today.
"Our foren sics division, while it does generate ba se line revenues, is invaluable in increa si ng our vi sibility and reputation as a genomics expert," says Gabriel. The Sum of the Parts > the Whole In 2006 DNAPrint grew revenues by 91 percent to $2.4 million compared to 2005 and expects revenue growth to increase throughout 2007. Gabriel indicated that over $3 million in genatyping work has been booked and advanced versions of its DNA ancestry consumer products are expected to add $1.5 million or more in revenues in 2007.
of commercialization," says Gabriel. "We expect point-of-care sales to begin in hospitals an d other facilities in 2008. By 2009, we plan to file our 51 O-K application with the FDA and begin licen sing our technologies to third parties by the following year. PT-401 is slated for relea se in 2010:' Gabriel estimates the total addressable market for its drug and diagnostics divisions as a $31 billion opportunity. "The value of the sum of our parts is greater than the whole," he says. Th e Company's near-term goal is to sp in out its pharmaceutical and diagnostics division s together or separately. "Th e spinout is about rewarding our current shareholders, who will be given a stock dividend in each company pre-IPO. We've already hired a merchant banker and now it is just a matter of ra ising capital to complete our goals:' DNA Print will retain an equity position in the newly public companies. "This strategy releases u s from further development costs and enables our drug te sting divisions to pursue a more aggressive commercialization schedule. And we'll benefit from royalty payments cascading from multiple prescription product lines as they develop." The many lifesaving applications for DNA are astounding and those being pioneered by DNAPrint are bound to make a lasting impression on many generations to come. VR
Robotic equipment is used to assemble samples with the components required for DNA typing. Such robots allow for large numbers of samples and reagents to be processed without human intervention. Join The iValueRich Community
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Hundreds of years after becoming infamous for plundering the seas, a different typ e of pirate is finding ways to wreak havoc in today 's society. In this era of YouTube and video -on-demand, digital video piracy repre sents a multi billion dollar global concern that screams out for a viable long-term solution. With its proprietary SmartMarks TM digital watermarking technology at the helm , USA Video Interactive Corp. (OTCBB: USVO; TSX: US; BSE/ Frankfurt: USF) is waging an attack
rights without infringing on consumer fair use rights. Billion$ at stake The Motion Picture Association of America has reported that the worldwide motion picture industry, including foreign and domestic producers, distributors, theaters, video stores and pay-perview operators, lost $18.2 billion in 2005 as a result of piracy. Yet, despite rapid technological developments in recent years, little has been done to success-
to Apple Computer's announcement in October 2005 that five popular television shows would be available through its iTunes online store. Numerous com panies followed suit and made their video content available to consumers on the Internet. However, piracy remained one of the major concerns preventing content owners from committing more of their content to the digital medium . Digital media presents very specific problems . While analog media loses quality with each copy generation, digital media files can be duplicated an unlimited num -
The movie and television studios are reportedly spending more than $100 million a year in an effort to stop illegal content distribution, with little to show for it
on modern digital pirates by adding anti - piracy solution s t o existing distribution channels and "embedding the proof to catch the crook s:' While anti -piracy initiatives are nothing new, the Company recognizes that combating pirates, who illegally duplicate and distribute various form s of the latest digital television and movie media , requires aggressive enforcement to protect intellectual property 96
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fully curb ongoing piracy and copyright infringements. The advent of digital video content (both on-demand and online) has only compounded the piracy problem . During 2006 there was a tremendous surge in companies deciding to distribute and sell video content over the Internet. Part of that growth was due
ber of times with no deterioration in quality, making them attractive prey for pirating . Plus, the growing popularity ofYouTube and similar digital video sharing Web sites means more distribution outlets for the stolen material. The movie and television studios are reportedly spending more than $100 million a year in an effort to stop illegal content distribution, with little to show Join The iValueRich Community
for it. Th is high cost could be great ly reduced with an effect ive tool.
Hidden secret messages USA Video Interactive's SmartMarks are invisible, irremovable , forensic "d igital watermarks" de signed to protect copy righted digital videos and ondemand movies from piracy. SmartMarks are embedded into each video frame and provide t he so urce of origin that is necessary to enforce intell ectua l propert y right infringement fo r even the high est technology digital media . When p i rated DVD s or o th er digital media protected w ith SmartMarks reach la w enforcement, they are digitally enco ded wi th evi dence that the courts can use to indict and co nvict individuals who ste al th e origina l material. With SmartMa rks, producers and d istributors of film and television content have unprecedented, sec ure access to a
disrupting the content. Th ey work with ex isting production and distribution technology, so no new equipment in the distribution or playback enviro nment is required . SmartMarks ca n also be implem ented on nearly all forms of digital content, everything from tradi tional media platform s to newer, digital and on-demand media .
A key differentiating factor of the Company's so lutions is that they achieve th eir aim of deterring piracy w ithout restricting fair use by paying co nsumers. Legal consumers continue to have the freedom to enjoy content in their own ways, which includ es copying and archiving, and enjoying it o n differe nt platforms at different times. Legal t elevision and video digital content ca n be enjoyed w ithout di sruption, while still protecting intell ect ual copyright and
unusable. Li ke traditional watermarks, SmartMarks are lightwe ig ht stegano -
promoting effective enforceme nt. USA Video Int erac tive 's Patrick Gregston, Business D eve lopm e nt, underscores that point. "SmartMarks let consumers enjoy their videos in the way that they have become acc usto med to -eve n when enjoying new, on-demand methods- while fighting piracy by providing effective foren sic evidence for th e proper authorities when copyrights are ab used," he says. A t rad ition al market approac h ha s b ee n to use techn o logy to pree mpt intell ectu al property rights violations.
graphic devices, meaning they offer a hidd en secret message wi thout visually
Though it seem s like a simple so lution, technologically-enforced copyright
SmartMarks are prove n to su rv iv e a broad spectr um of attacks, includin g attempts at dig ital-to-analog conversion, resampling, resizing, refor mattin g and ot her typical content tran sformat ion s. Effo rts by pi rat es to defeat SmartMarks' encod ing renders the co ntent virtu ally
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protections have historically created controversy and lega l difficulties for con t ent providers. Consumers have thwarted attempts to protect intellectual copyrights, citing privacy conce rn s and fair u se difficul ties . As a re sult, compa nie s including indu stry giants Microsoft and Sony have faced numerous laws uits in the wake of their attempts to in st itute anti-piracy so lution s. One of t he most co mmon and con trov ersia l mean s of wag ing a preemptive strike against piracy is Digital Rights Man ageme nt (DRM ). Using DRM technolog y, companies attempt to control the use of digital media by preventing access, copying or conversion to other form at s. DRM h as a large numb er of vocal oppo nents w ho hold the position that, thro ugh DRM , copyright hold ers are attempt ing to restrict use of copyrighted material in ways that violate
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USA Video Interactive's SmartMarks are invisible, irremovable, forensic ''digital watermarks" designed to protect copyrighted digital videos and on-demand movies from piracy w id e range of distribution markets and methods th at wou ld otherwise represent a si gni f ic ant piracy risk. Virtually irremovable, USA Vid eo Interact iv e's
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#3 -- SmartMarked video content is identical to the original video FALL 2007
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the rights granted to them. Additionally, DRM is not an infallible solution . Pirates have consistently shown they have the ability to hack the various DRM meth ods Hollywood uses. USA Video Interactive's products focus on enforcement rather than prohibition . SmartMarks' embedded digital information on copyright-pro tected media make it possible to capture copyright infringement information when the system is abused, not to stop it altogether or inconvenience legal consumers. Management equates USVO's products to embedding a foren sics team inside content to uncover the proof needed to stop piracy. No silver bullet Management believes watermarking is the best long-term solution for combating piracy, since it does not impede consumers' rights to fair use and it stays invisible within content so that it can be used to trace back to a pi rate. However, as the indus try determines what anti-piracy direction it will take, many companies are looking to implement multiple strategies and not rely solely on DRM. Watermarks provide an attractive additional option and furthermore, SmartMarks are fully compatible with DRM. While competitors seek to capture the overall market by providing a "one-size-fit s-all" or "silver bullet" approach to anti-piracy initiatives for the entertainment industry, USA Video Interactive recognizes that long -term, success against intellectual property rights infringement requires effective approaches that are both agile and cost-effective to work in conjunction with consistent enforcement. Gregston says, " The truth is that there is no one universal solution to growing anti-piracy problems, but we are able to customize our copyright protection solutions to work in conjunction with existing digital and traditional content in a way that makes sense for each enterprise, and that allows anti-piracy enforcement and consumer enjoyment in tandem. "At USA Video Interactive, we not only offer simple, agile solutions to a goliath
problem that continues to plague the entertainment industry, but we do so in a way that meets the demands of each enterprise." Hollywood's escort service USA Video Interactive's technology continues to evolve in response to market opportunities. In 2006, the Company announced the development of Media Escort"", a software application designed to meet Hollywood 's need to protect online movie distribution from piracy. MediaEscort, which resides on a customer's video server, is the mechanism that automatically and seamlessly embeds SmartMarks in each frame of video content. The new product built upon what the Company had learned from its initial watermark technology, MediaSentinelâ&#x201E;˘, which has been successfully tested on content distributed by broadcasters and IPTV in India. With MediaEscort, howev-
digital watermarking, streaming video and video-on-demand systems, as well as digital media delivery solutions that allow live or recorded digitized and compressed video to be transmitted seamlessly via the Internet, intranet, satellite or wireless connectivity. Now, as a smaller firm who has been designing unparalleled technology for an extended time, USA Video Interactive is well positioned to address copyright protection for the latest digital, instant transmission media at the enterprise level. SmartMarks are already available through the Company's service partner Lightning Media. Existing clients include DIC entertainment, a leading children's media company, and FiiMates Entertainment. "Producers, filmmakers and especially distributors need to take an active role in fighting piracy. I believe SmartMarks technology can help in preventing theft," said Jay Malia, Senior Vice President of Distribution and Business Strategy, FilmMates Entertainment in a USVO testimonial. " Now our investors can rest assured that the latest technology will help in protecting their investment as their films are distributed into new markets worldwide:'
"The truth is that there is no one universal solution to growing anti-piracy problems..."
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er, SmartMarks were adapted to work for real -time Internet video downloads. Both Media Escort and MediaSentinel provide customers with a simple, lightweight, forensic embedding product that can easily be integrated into their existing infrastructure. Additionally, unlike competitors, USA Video Interactive's solutions require simple engineering. With minimal processing space needed to embed SmartMarks into each frame, the Company's anti-piracy solutions are both effective and customizable to each client's needs. In November 2006, the Company announced that one of the si x major Hollywood studio divisions had chosen its MediaEscort product to protect their video content distributed over the Internet. In May of this year, USA Video Interactive completed and delivered the first of two installments of Media Escort to the major Hollywood customer, whose identity will be revealed upon the upcoming final product delivery and installation. Customized copyright protection Since 1986, USA Video Interactive has been designing and marketing unique
Leaving its Mark As technology continues to improve the way we view and enjoy media , so grows the need to protect the rights of a giant industry designed to benefit from our in satiable demand for entertainment. USA Video Interactive recognizes that it is a global imperative to protect digital entertainment against intellectual property rights infringement, but this must be done without ruffling consumer feathers or interfering with their ability to enjoy their legally purchased media . As it continues to pursue domestic opportunities and works to replicate its successful model worldwide, the Company is well poised for full commercialization. At the same time, USA Video Interactive may just leave its own distinctive mark on the giant media and entertainment industry over the long term . VR Join The iValueRich Community
Rocket City Enterprises:
Putting the Pedal to the Metal on the Information Highway By Kristina Henneberg
state-of-the-art vehicle listing software; IT Lagoon, its state-of-the-art software developer and licensing arm, and a registered member of the eBay Software Developer 's Program; The lntellimark Group, provider of interactive Webbased lead-generation promotions; and eAutoDrop, Inc., a used car drop-off store concept that is developing retail franchise opportunities for automobile dealers. Through these subsidiaries , RocketCity is readily capitalizing on the $1 trillion automotive retail industry. "The automotive industry has a reputa tion of being behind everyone else. Now the automotive industry is finally catch ing up and ready to move online," says Jeff Roman, CEO of RCTY. Completely streamlined Photos: iStockpllDtc.corn; Alt'!X Slobodlo.in & ian H.Jmi!ton
The Internet has become the world's largest and most heavily trafficked highway, with travelers, using only a few clicks of a mouse, able to reach places never before possible. The intersection of information, com-
ers get there has taken some decidedly different turns. Rocket City Enterprises, Inc. (OTHER-OTC: RCTY.PK), a high-tech software solutions provider, is helping retool the automotive retailing indus-
merce and community has al so cau sed
try for the benefit of consumers and
a revolution in the world of marketing as companies strive to leverage the onlin e universe of consumer s. Today, Internet marketing allows brick-and mortar business models to accelerate at virtually limitless rates. Even age-old industries like automotive retailing are turning to "point-and-click" strategies in order to draw qualified buyers into their showrooms and close deals. While nothing can replace the experience of an actual test drive, the way consum100
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RCTY's core revenue - generating product, CompleteAuto, is a subscrip tion-based global software platform that enables dealers to quickly upload bulk inventory and create dynamic, yet simple-to -use online product displays. This unique software provides richmedia functionality such as streaming video commercials, MP3 capability, live chats and visual test drives. According to Roman, "The software allows for real-
"The automotive industry has a reputation of being behind everyone else. Now the automotive industry is finally catching up and ready to move online" dealerships alike . RCTY operates as a holding company, with current subsidiaries including CompleteAuto, an online solution provider and supplier of
time communication between customers and retailers, a feature I haven't seen anywhere else in the online automotive marketplace:' CompleteAuto is deployed Join The iValueRich Community
on countless online marketplaces and Web sites, including well-known sites such as Autot rader.com and Cars.com . The Internet 's most visited auto Web site, eBay Motors, is also helping CompleteA uto achieve critical mass . According to Nielsen / NetRatings and eBay, eBay M otors attracts approxi mately 13 m illion unique visitors each month , representing a 34 percent share of all online auto minutes. Since 2000, two million passenger vehicles have been sold on eBay Motors in the U.S., with a vehicle sold every minute. Most dealerships utilize a solution provider to list on the site; CompleteAuto is one of the most p referred . "CompleteAuto accounts for a large percentage of all active listin g s on eBay Motors," says Roman. eBay Motors has recently launched its Local Market Program, aimed at over 100 million people in the ready-to-buy eBay community. The product matches consumers to local dealerships within a 100-mile radius and enables dealerships to list their entire inventory for a single fee. Revving up the market The automotive industry spends approximately $8 billion every year on advertising. Just two years ago, only $500 million was spent specifically on online advertising . By 2008, Roman states, the figure will reach $2.8 billion of total adverting dollars spent annually. With more than 60,000 dealerships currently operating in the U.S., according to the National Automobile Dealers Association, CompleteAuto represents an attractive market opportunity. "With a huge migration towards online media, what used to take a dealership 30 minutes in the past is done in a matter of minutes with CompleteAuto," says Roman . Since its release in September 2006, CompleteAuto has soared in popularity among U.S. dealerships seeking an edge in the intensely competitive marketplace. As of June 2007, CompleteAuto listed over 16,500 units on eBay Motors alone, surpas sing its old benchmark of 15,500 units. Roman says, "Over the last five m o nths, we grew from serving 65 dea l ers to over 500 dealers. With our strong deal flow, we expect www. iVALUERICH .com
CompleteAuto will surpass 35 ,000 listings at all times on eBay Motors, which we estimate would occupy 50 percent of all vehicle sales on the nation's most visited auto site:' Large corporations are lining up to get their dealerships online with CompleteAuto. RCTY has contracts with Hertz Corporation's (NYSE: HZT) largest licensee, Overland West; dealerships within Sonic Automotive (NYSE: SA); Gillman Automotive Group; Bill Heard Chevrolet, the world 's largest Chevrolet dealership; and the oldest dealership in the U.S., Hare Automotive. RCTY also counts one of the world 's largest motorcycle dealerships, Rick Case Powerhouse Honda, among its customers. With the aim of dramatically growing its customer base, RCTY is pursuing industry alliances. The Company recently inked private-label and licensing agreements with six distributors, AutoUplinkUSA , DiamondLot, Dealer Fusion , AutoLotManager, Auto Dealer Solutions and 21st Century Auto Alliance, which will collectively expand CompleteAuto's reach to an additional 5,500 retailers across the U.S. Gaining a lead Dealer Web sites are the No. 1 source of consumer traffic in the automobile industry, with 90 percent of vehicle sales originating on the Internet, according to
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similarly to lntellisweeps' but is geared toward online marketplaces operating as Web 2.0 communities. "We have turned online listings into lead-generation machines;' says Roman . Rather than a generic Web lead , salespeople receive a tailored message based on a buyer's preferences. Since its launch in June 2007, subscribers have seen a dramatic rise in their Web site traffic and have turned online prospects
Dealer Web sites are the No. 1 source of consumer traffic in the automobile industry, with 90 percent of vehicle sales originating on the Internet J.D. Power and Associates. One of RCTY's subsidiaries, The lntellimark Group (TIG) , provides another layer of customization, marketing savvy and lead generation for online automotive retailers. For an initial setup and recurring monthly fee, dealers have access to the lntellisweeps Software Product, which strategically places an eye-catching icon on an automotive retailer's existing Web site. The icon is linked to a promotional sweepstakes that uses interactive, intuitive surveys to capture important information about consumers visiting the site. Dealers using eBay Motors use TIG's Autobunga product line, which operates
into retail sales. Roman says one of his customers who installed the software increased the number of Web leads from 150 to 478; 28 of these were converted to purchases in a single month . He says that TIG has transformed RCTY's entire revenue structure : "We expect to generate close to $15 million in additional annual revenues as a result of the TIG acquisition." Finding the best deal A mere decade ago, searching for a car to buy meant days of scouring tiny black-and-white newspaper ads, kicking the tires at used-car lots and dodging FALL 2007
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Members of the RocketCity family of companies include:
t-:Ji1p~ti?Ruto CompleteAuto. CompleteAuto, an online solution provider, offers proprietary software, personnel and design solutions to hundreds of automotive dealerships around the country.
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The lntellimark Group, LLC. The lntellimark Group produces web-based marketi ng solutions which are easily integrated with existing technologies to improve the results of an automotive retailer's web assets.
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eAutoDrop, Inc. Marketed as a stand alone franchise offering, eAutoDrop gives dealers around the country the ability to offer full scale online auction services on behalf of the retail consumer, providing an entirely new retail service and revenue stream to the marketplace.
IT Lagoon creative online solutions IT Lagoon. IT Lagoon is a software development company and a strategic partner for RocketCity, CompleteAuto and eAutoDrop that currently licenses software applications to automotive service providers as well as creating software applications for a variety of clients here and abroad .
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overly excited salespeople. Thanks to Internet marketing, a detailed vehicle history is only a click away. RCTY has an agreement with CARFAX, the world's most trusted source of automotive vehicle history reports, which is offered in all RCTY products. Today's consumers are empowered with a host of on-demand information and choices available from the comfort of their homes. RCTY is capitalizing on this market revolution with its advanced offerings. "Software tools and niche marketing to the retail consumer is what sets the company apart;' says Roman . To help consumers leverage the power of the Web to their advantage, RCTY is developing a used car franchise store, called eAutoDrop. Consumers simply bring their vehicles to an eAutoDrop location and a dealer franchise will list and sell their vehicles for them on eBay Motors, turning their cars into cash . The historical messages from dealers - No money down! Special sales event! Zero percent interest for one year! Lowest financing available!- are ones that many of us tune out. eAutoDrop seeks to change what dealerships are pitching and add value to the process. "eAutoDrop enables dealerships to offer a new message with a compelling benefit: 'Bring us your car and we'll sell it for you,"' says Roman . In turn, dealerships can increase productivity levels, energize idle employees and create an entirely new revenue stream. " We are changing how the world buys cars," says Roman . RCTY is currently obtaining letters of intent with dealerships nationwide and plans to officially launch the program this fall. In an effort to help consumers sell their vehicles, RCTY is also developing an online community at www.eAutoOutlet.com, where consumers can list and sell vehicles on multiple sites, engage in live chats and build relationships. RCTY's relationship with AskPatty.com is designed to take the intimidation factor of buying a car out of the equation with its strictly female-oriented approach and advi sory panel including NASCAR Professional Driver Deborah Renshaw. Other niche products in development modeled after eAutoOutlet include
eTruck, eBoat, eMotorcycle, eATV and eEV Green, dedicated to selling envi ronmentally sound hybrid and electric automobiles. Full speed ahead
The global automotive retail market is growing rapidly, especially in Europe, where the online auction market is three times the size of that in the U.S., according to RCTY. Plenty of room for improvement exists, however. Over the past seven years , nearly 350 million pre-owned vehicles have been sold in the U.S. alone, with eBay accounting for fewer than 1 percent of all vehicles sold. RCTY has established a European office in Switzerland, in order to capitalize on the underserved, yet substantially large, overseas market. While there are many solution providers in the United States, none exist in Europe, providing RCTY with first-mover advantage. RCTY expects to launch CompleteAuto in Europe in the fall of 2007 and plans to expand into Japan, China and India in early 2008. Roman's optimism isn 't without foundation. Since he became President and CEO of RCTY one year ago, both CompleteAuto and RocketCity have grown their dealership base and revenues by over 500 percent. The Company will also be featured in an upcoming "Business & Beyond " segment to be aired on FOX News. With this type of jumpstart, RCTY appears to be powered up for the long haui.VR
Jeff Roman, CEO of Rocket City Enterprises Join The iValueRich Community
PSSTTT ... There is a fast growing micro-cap company my broker just told me about. The symbol is CCBEF, pass It on.
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SORL Auto Parts, Inc. I
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By Denelle Swaim With an increasingly stable economy, explosive population growth and recent government initiatives that make foreign direct investment easier and less costly, China has become one of Wall Street's geographic sweet spots. Within this burgeoning market, the country 's high-growth, highly fragmented automotive sector has emerged as an attractive investment opportunity, due in large part to rapid industrialization and preparations for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Operating in China's thriving economy, industry-leading commercial vehicle component company SORL Auto Parts, Inc. (NASDAQ: SORL) drives continued growth in its sector by providing superior air brake valves and related components at low cost in one of the most popular foreign direct investment (FDI) countries today. As China's largest commercial vehicle air brake system manufacturer, SORL Auto Parts ' prod ucts include more than 40 categories of air brake valves . The Company has also established successful long -term relationships with nearly every major Chinese automotive original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and, as a result, is one of the country's most recognized auto parts manufacturers. Year after year, SORL has been awarded Top Supplier designation by its major OEM customers, includ ing 39 of the industry 's finest vehicle manufacturers, such as FAW (First Automobile Works) Changchun; Shaanxi Heavy-duty Automobile Co., Ltd.; Beiqi Foton Motor Co., Ltd.; China National 104 I VALUE RICH MAGAZINE
Year after year, SORL has been awarded Top Supplier designation by its major OEM customers. Heavy Duty Truck Group Corp., Ltd . and Dongfeng Motors Group. In the aftermarket, SORL Auto Parts has an established relationship with 28 authorized distributors, who sell only SORL-branded products through more than 800 sub-distributors. SORL Auto Parts has also successfully taken its proven model worldwide, with a recent international foray that includes principal distribution in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Australia, India and the United States . Last year, export sales accounted for 40 percent of total sales, and due to agile R&D, superior products, strategic marketing and effective pricing and cost controls internationally, export sales increased from $12.6 million in 2004 to $33 .9 million in 2006. During the first half of 2007, the Company generated $19.3 million from
exports, up 29 percent from the same period in 2006 .
A big brake SORL Auto Parts was created in 2004, when the Company's predecessor acquired Hong Kong-based Fairford Holdings Limited. As a (90 percent) majority shareholder in Ruili Group Ruian Auto Parts, Fairford owned the manufacturing and distribution rights to Ruili's automotive brake systems company, established in 1987. What is now SORL Auto Parts is the result of a strategic joint venture between Fairford and Ruili Group. It manufactures, markets and distributes a comprehensive line of commercial air brake valve systems, including spring air brake cham bers, clutch servos and air dryers, as well as main and manual valves. Join The iValueRich Community
Now, with large-scale operations in the southeastern coastal city of Ruian, SORL Auto Parts is strategically located in China's automotive parts manufacturing center, where production is increasingly being ramped up to meet surging demand. What's more, since 2004, operations have been p rogressively profitable. In conjunction with revenue levels that have nearly doubled since 2004, net income has grown steadily from $4 .8 million posted in its first year to $7 .7 million by the end of 2006. Despite its proven top - and bottom-line successes to date, SORL Auto Parts currently trades at a relatively low 10.59 P/ E ratio, versus the industry average of 15.33. In the near future, SORL Auto Parts expects to grow operations organically in both domestic and international markets by leveraging its operational strengths and successful product positioning to build brand awareness world-
when the brake system malfunctions. The Company produced nearly 787,000 units last year, the largest output in China. SORL's newly-designed Spring Brake Chamber was also recently awarded a Chinese Integrated Innovation of Auto Industry award . The Clutch Servo. The clutch servo is the Company 's innovative device that powers a commercial vehicle 's clutch, controlling the performance of brake system clutches via pneumatic-driven hydraulics. Compared with similar products, SORL Auto Parts' proprietary clutch servo offers smaller size, simpler structure, higher durability and improved effectiveness. RL351 Series Air Dryer. Combined with unloader valves and heating components, SORL Auto Parts' unique air dryer requires no separate installation of other components. It is compact and offers multiple functions that improve the reliability of the other brake system
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SORL: NASDAQ COMPANY
SORL Auto Parts, Inc. No 1169 Yumeng Road Ruian Economic Development Zone Ruian City, China P: 86 577 6581 7720 www.sorl.cn CONNECT
Richard (Weihai) Cai Senior Manager, Investor Relations P: 86-135 8752 8333 richardcai@sorl.com.cn
parking brakes.
the Chinese commercial vehicle sector experienced 24 percent growth in the first five months of 2007 wide and adapt in advance of emerging indu stry trends . SORL Auto Parts Chairman and CEO Zhang Xiaoping says: "SORL's long-term goal is to become a leading global brand in auto parts manufacturing and development. To achieve the goal, the management thinks the key elemen t s include maintaining our lower-cost advantage over our global competitors, continuing to distinguish ourselves from domestic competitors by following up with future technological trends, and developing a competitive product mix."
Foot Brake Valves. The Company also manufactures and distributes annually more than 280,000 foot brake valves, which also function as a backup device for parking brakes.
components, thereby enhancing driver safety. Relay Valves. SORL Auto Parts' proprietary electronic control exhaust relay valves greatly shorten the length of the line between the air storage tank and the brake chamber, increasing the speed of the braking system .
According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). the Chinese commercial vehicle sector experienced 24 percent growth in the first five months of 2007. With high
Hand Brake Valves. With more than 287,000 units produced last year, the Company's industry-leading hand brake valves serve as an auxiliary device for
demand for domestic construction to prepare for the 2008 Olympics and international demand for Chinese trucks from other emerging markets, heavy-
China: the fast track
Commercial successes (products) SORL Auto Parts ' industry- leading products include a number of propri etary air brake valve and related components for China's commercial auto motive segment. Spring Brake Chamber. Installed on vehicle chassis , air brake valves automatically provide an emergency braking force and are therefore a critical element of vehicle safety. SORL Auto Parts' Spring Brake Chamber successfully executes the service, parking and emergency brakes for commercial vehicles www .iVALUERICH .co m
SORL Auto Parts produced nearly 787,00 spring brake chambers last year, the largest output in China. FALL 2007
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labor costs in China. Additionally, its estab li shed large-scale production
With large-scale operations in the southeastern coastal city of Ruian, SORL Auto Parts is strategically located in China's automotive parts manufacturing center.
duty truck OEMs posted an impressive 62 percent growth for the same period. From January to June of this year, more than 1.3 million commercial vehicles were produced in China, up 26 percent over the same period last year. Heavytruck construction and sales increased exponentially, up more than 50 percent for the same period. With its successfu l operating his tory and market leadership, SORL Auto
[the] domestic OEM market;' says SORL Auto Parts Senior VP Baojian Tao . "To distinguish ourselves from our competitors, we have provided a more extensive product lin e in air brake valve systems and a better-managed supp ly system to OEM customers. Although in the long run, our peers can copy our program to improve their price-to-quality ratio, our growth will outpace our peers. It is because we will continue to intro -
compared with both foreign and domestic competitors, SORL Auto Parts has one of the most established domestic distribution networks, which covers all of China's key regions Parts has experienced an immediate impact from rising commercial vehicle demand and OEM production improvements . The Company's overall sa les grew by 35 .7 percent in the first half of 2007, whi le sales to OEMs increased by an impress ive 77.1 percent versus the same period last year. To meet continuing and expected high demand, SORL Auto Parts has begun to expedite new product R&D, enhance production effi ciency and shorten its overall logi stic cycle in t he immediate term .
Braking the mold While no other China-ba sed com pany produces air brake valve systems exclusively, severa l compete for market share in its primary arena. As a market lea der in th e highly fragmented domestic OEM segment and faced with rising raw materials costs, SORL Auto Parts must remain ahead of emerging competition by utilizing the Company's core strengths, ensuring effective marketing and brand awareness, and continuing to make product and technological improvements. "One of SORL's main battlefields is in 106
I VALUERICH
MAGAZINE
duce innovative production methods, quicken response to market demand , accelerate new products' rollout and optimize the target market focus and product mix :' Unlike compet itors, SORL Auto Parts has a system supplying advantage in the air brake system industry and OEM market. With an exte nsive, successfu l operating histo ry in the region and market leadership in each of its niche categories, SORL's advantages li e in its long-term focus, product-performance, cost competitiveness and adaptabi lity to market demand. Furthermore, compared w ith both foreign and domestic competitors, SORL Auto Parts has one of the most established domestic distribution networks, which covers all of China 's key regions. To enhance its partnerships with an ever-growing customer base, the Company works closely with most of the country 's major truck manufacturers throughout the entire process, from product development and production management to after-sa les services. SORL Auto Parts benefits both internationally and domestically from low
capacity helps the Company control its production costs despite raw materials price increases in 2006 and the first half of 2007 . While all major domestic air brake valve manufacturers face the task of production capacity growth to satisfy the increasing demands of the Chinese OEM market, SORL Auto Parts is the only public company that manufactures and distributes air brake valves in China. As a result, the Company believes that it will continue to outperform its primary competitors in terms of capac ity buildup, so long as it continues to improve R&D, production and distribution worldwide.
Toward the finish line Not only does SORL Auto Parts operate in one of Wall Street's favorite destinations , but the Company also has a long -estab li shed history of succes s navigating the region . With an impressive operating history that has been proven in the Company's fundamen tal performance every year since 2004, SORL Auto Parts is a market leader th at outpaces competitors both in its highgrowth , high-demand domestic market and internationally. If history continues to repeat itself for SORL Auto Parts, the Company will increasingly benefit from enhanced international expansion efforts, as well as its effective marketing strategy and agile technological and production improvements. Despite the Company's specialty in braking, SORL Auto Parts is poised to continue going full-speed ahead for some time to come. VR
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-AeroGroW!
~ 1 GLOBAL FINANCIALn' 51
1st Global Financial Corporation
FGBF.PK: Other OTC ZUM : Frankfurt
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Raising Capital, Mergers & Acquisition, Market Support, Strateg ic Partnerships & Join Venture, New Contacts
AERO :NASDAQ
AeroGrow International, Inc.
[ COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Attract Market Exposure
COMPANY DESCRIPTION COMPANY DESCRIPTION
1st Global Financial Corporation offers credit card/payment processing and provides working capital advances through its subsidiaries; 1st Federal Financial, Inc., 1st Federal Advanced Funding, Inc. and 1st Federal Leasing, LLC. FGBF's financial services include; credit and debit card acceptance, check guarantee, check verification, check conversion, Automated Clearing House (ACH) check processing, point of sales terminal sa les and leasing, and working capita l for merchants throughout th e United States. FGBF has grown their monthly transactions from approximately $100,000 in October 2006 to over $8,200,000 in July 2007. COMPANY ADDRESS
4760 South Pecos Road Suite 103 Las Vegas, NV 89119 P: 866-418-1432 www.1 stgloba lfinancia lcorp.com
COMPANY CONTACT Gil Gillis P: 866-4 18-1GFC (1432) gil@1stgf.com IRCONTACTS James Farinella P: 908-204-0004 investor@icpihome.com
....
BOOM~~
COMPANY ADDRESS 6075 Longbow Drive Suite 200 Boulder, CO 80301 www.aerogrow.com P: 303-444-7755
IRCONTACT
Budd Zuckerman Genesis Select Corporation 2033 11th Street Boulder, CO 80302 P: 303-415-0200
CI IATSW0RTI I DATA S O L U TI O N S
Private
BOOMj.com, Inc.
AeroGrow International, Inc, developer of the AeroGardenTM' the world's first kitchen garden appliance, specializes in the development and marketing of advanced indoor gardening systems and accessories. The AeroGarden grows fresh herbs, sa lad greens, and tomatoes year-round, right in the kitchen with no dirt or gardening experience required. The AeroGarden is marketed via catalog and retail sales, infomercials, and web marketing
Chatsworth Data Solutions, Inc.
CHWD :OTCBB
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: The Company is raising approximately $5 .0 million in gross proceeds through the sale of 2,500,000 shares of Series B Convertible 1Oo/o Cumulative Preferred Stock priced at $2.00 per share. Th e Company is in the process of compl eting a reverse merqer.
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: The company 's objectives are organic growth through expansion of marketing and sales efforts in vertical markets; expand strategic rel ation ships with re-sellers and end-users; and strategic and synergistic acquisitions.
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
COMPANY DESCRIPTION Chatsworth Data Solutions, Inc. is the parent company of Chatsworth Data Corporation. Founded in 1971 and located in Chatsworth, CA, Chatsworth Data has been trusted worldwide for 35 years as a lead ing provider of innovative, highly accurate and economically priced intelligent data capture technology. Th ese include optical mark readers and image sca nning system s.
BOOMj is a dynamic new website bringing to the new Intern et Web 3.0; a socia l, political, financial, e-commerce and lifestyle network focused on providing diversified media, compelling content and advertising targeting Baby Boomers and Generation Jones. BOOMj's business strat egy is for fast growth and market penetration usi ng superior content, and named merchandise brands for its socia l e-commerce platform. COMPANY ADDRESS
3753 Howard Hughes Pkwy. Suite 200 Las Vegas, NV 89169 www.boomj .com
110 VALUERICH MAGAZINE
COMPANY CONTACT George Pursglove President and CEO P: 714-427-6 100 x313 george@boomj.com
COMPANY ADDRESS
COMPANY CONTACT
207 10 Lassen St Chatworth, CA 91311 www.chatsworthdata.com
Sid Anderson Chairman and Executive Director P: 818-341-9200
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CLEARLY CANADIAN® CCBEF : OTCBB
Clearly Canadian Beverage Corp.
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Effectively expand revenue and eventu ally profitability th rough the increased d istribution of existing prod uct li nes, int rod uction of exciti ng new product li nes and strat eg ic acq uisitions. To build name recog nition in t he natural, org anic and hea lthy market sectors as a "good for you" compa ny. COMPANY DESCRIPTION
Clearly Canadian Beverage Corporation markets premium alternative beverages, including Clearly Canadian'" sparkling flavored waters and Clearly Canadian dailyEnergy, dailyVitamin and dailyHydration Natural Enhanced Waters Clearly Canadian's recent acquisition's of DMR Food Corporation with a wide range of dried fruit and nut snacks offerings, and My Organic Baby with a complete Natural and Organic baby food line marks the Company's debut into natural and organic products. COMPANY ADDRESS
IRCONTACT
2267 1Oth Avenue West Vancouver, B.C. Canada V6K 2J1 www.clea rly.ca
Steve Cook Investors Matrix Group P: 561 -S49-0887 scook@investorsmatrixgroup.com
COMPANY CONTACT
Brent Lokash President blokash@clearly.ca
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CLEVELAND
BioLAss. INc.
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Cleveland Biolabs, Inc
CBLI : NASDAQ
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Attract Market Exposure Cleveland Biol abs is generatin g excit ement w ith a pot ential Departm ent of Defense contract for its lead rad iation protection compound, an ongoing Phase II clinica l tri al for its ora l anti-ca ncer compound; and animal data on its stem cell application . COMPANY DESCRIPTION Cleveland Biolabs, Inc. is a drug discovery and development company leveraging its proprietary discoveries about programmed cell death to treat cancer and protect normal tissues from exposure to radiation and other stresses. The Company has strategic partnerships with the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, ChemBridge Corporation and the Armed Forces Research Radiobiology Institute.
COMPANY ADDRESS
IRCONTACT
11 000 Cedar Avenue, Suite 290 Cleveland, OH 44106-3052 www.cbiola bs.com
Rachel Levine The Global Consulting Group P: 646-284-9439 rlevi ne@hfgcg.com
COMPANY CONTACT
Michael Fonstein, Ph.D President & CEO P: 216-229-2251 michael@cbiolabs.com
h.. dna \print . genom1cs DNAG :OTCBB
DNAPrint Genomics, Inc.
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Raising Capital DNAPrint Genom ics is seeking to rai se $25 million to advance its diabet es t est ing product, Prot ect in'M to th e point it ca n be introduced to t he market. Also, DNAPrint w il l use t he fund s to develop our EPO re placement. DNAPrint expects to begin generating reve nues fro m ProtectinTM servi ces nine months from funding .
ECOtality, Inc.
ETLY : OTCBB
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: ECOt ality strives to develop and commercialize technol og ies to make them available t o manufacturin g companies across the globe. Revenues are derived from licensing fees, joint ventures and royalti es th at wi ll f und th e development of add it ional cutting-edge cl ean t echnologies. COMPANY DESCRIPTION
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
DNAPrint is dedicated to development of pharmacogenomicsbased drugs and diagnostics. DNAPrint has a diversified product portfolio with six drugs and two diagnostics. DNAPrint is applying next generation technologies of Pharmacogenomics and Biological Simulation in its development process and outsources key functions which results in reduced risk, cost and time to market . COMPANY ADDRESS
IRCONTACT
1621 West University Parkway Sarasota, FL 34243 www.dnaprint.com
Richard Gabriel P: 941-366-3400 RGabriel@dnaprint.com
www .iVALUERICH .com
ECOtality, Inc. is a technology innovator that addresses the global energy challenge by developing and commercializing ecofriendly technologies.Through the acquisition of, partnership with and investment in early stage renewable energy technologies, ECOtality is focused on bringing innovative eco-friendly concepts to practical commercialization . The company's aggressive development model is strengthened by strategic partnerships and alliances, as ECOtality strives to accelerate the market applicability and acceptance of clean technologies.
COMPANY ADDRESS
6821 E. Thomas Rd Scottsdale, AZ 85251 P: 480-219-5005 www.ecotality.com
IRCONTACT Thomas Walsh Alliance Advisors for ECOtality P: 212-398-3486 twal sh@allianceadvi sors.net
SPRING / SUMMER 2007 111
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EMRISE CORPORATION
Enerbrite Technologies Group, Inc.
EMRISE Corporation
ERI : NYSE:Arca
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Mergers & Acqusition, Market Support EMRISE intends to capitalize on its new generation multi-media "In-Flight Enterta inment and Commu nications" product offering for electron ic devices. Th e Company plans to achieve number two market posit ion for its new "NetworkTiming and Synchronization" communications products in th e U.S. and Europea n market. EM RISE is seeking acquisition s and a merg er pa rtn er to expand its revenue base fro m $SSM in 2007 to over $1OOM. COMPANY DESCRIPTION
EMRISE Corporation is a multi-national manufacturer of defense, aerospace and industrial electronic devices and communications equipment. EMRISE serves the North American, European and Asian electronic market out of facilities in the United States, England, France and Japan.drug development timelines. COMPANY ADDRESS
IRCONTACT
9485 E. Haven Avenue, Suite 100 Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730 www.emrise.com
Rory Mackin Hill & Knowlton P: 212-885-0455
EnerBrite Technologies Group, Inc.
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Rai se Capital. EnerBrite is seeking funding in the $5-$10 million rang e to enable the company to expand its presence across North America and to develop the next generati on of energy con servation products. COMPANY DESCRIPTION
EnerBrite Technologies Group markets the most innovative energy management tools available today for the multi-unit residential and hospitality markets. The product line includes a range of technologies from motion-based digital thermostats to a fully integrated energy management and communication system. EnerBrite's control systems manage energy consumption and control demand to increase bottom line profitability for property owners while enhancing occupant comfort and safety.
COMPANY ADDRESS 9811 W. Charleston Blvd . Suite 2363 Las Vegas, NV 89117 www.enerbrite.com
COMPANY CONTACT
Gale Belger P: 909-942-3202 1 - - - - - ...... , _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ - - - - - - -
EnXnet, Inc.
EXNT : OTCBB German WKN# AOHMDW
[ COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Develop New Bu siness
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
EnXnet, Inc. is rapidly emerging as a leading edge provider of next generation digital technologies and has developed, or acquired through exclusive license, an impressive portfolio of technologies, each of which address multi-billion dollar markets. EnXnet's products provide unique, practical solutions to: digital security, stored value gift cards, and medical safety devices. EXNT's technologies, and related products, are at the leading edge of their respective applications and provide affordable, useful solutions. For instance, EnXnet's ThinDisca technology has made possible the world's first Multimedia Gift Card while their medical product will revolutionize operating rooms by preventing surgical items from being left in the patients before close an operation.
COMPANY ADDRESS
11333 E Pine Street Tulsa, OK. 74116 P: 918-592-0015 F: 918-592-0016 www.enxnet.com
COMPANY CONTACT
IRCONTACT Ryan Corley, Integrated Capital Partners, Inc President & CEO investor@enxnet.com P: 908-204-0004
112 VALUERICH MAGAZINE
ETGP: Pink Sheet
COMPANY CONTACT
Edward P. Herbert President and CEO P: 702-860-7956 P: 416-587-6345 eherbert@enerbrite.com
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FACT Corporation
FCTOA : OTCBB
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Raising Ca pital FACT Corporat ion is seeking a suitable banking rel ation ship t o execute its initiatives for accel erated growth. Th e Company seeks fund s to im plement a det ailed business plan including substantial marketing and sa les efforts, branded product introductions and product development initiatives. COMPANY DESCRIPTION
FACT Corporation develops, licenses, and markets proprietary nutrition solutions in the form of specialty commercial bake mixes. The Company's primary customers are bakeries that use its mixes to manufacture and distribute popular baked goods (such as muffins, bagels, cookies, and brownies) designed for a rapidly growing consumer marketplace focused on quality, tate, and most importantly, nutrition. Finished products containing the Company's ingredients are marketed via both conventional and alternative distribution channels, including branded and private label retail opportunities, as well as foodservice and specialty markets. COMPANY CONTACT COMPANY ADDRESS Jacqueline Danforth, CEO 1530 9th Avenue SE P: 403-693-8004 Calgary, Alberta T2G OT7 Canada IRCONTACT www.factfoods.com Caroline Winsor ?: 888-211-7181 x8005 Join The iValueRich Community
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foldera··
HOW2VACAT~N.COM FORA: OTCBB
Foldera, Inc.
How2Group International, Inc.
Private
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Atract Market Exposure,
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Raising Capital
Develop New Business Upon launching the Foldera platform, the Company is looking to attract customers, gain market awareness, and drive topline revenue towards profitability. Strategic Alli ances will allow Foldera to launch new verticals and associated product lines.
How2 Group seeks funding to accelerate its growth and expand its market position. - --
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
Fo\dera is a software company that has developed an online organizational platform designed to instantly organize workflow into one convenient and integrated application. Document storage, email, event notification, file sharing, administration and other functions are all incorporated into this one simple web based platform. The basic Foldera platform is free and the Company will earn revenues from paid premium services. COMPANY ADDRESS IR CONTACT 17011 Beach Blvd. Stephen Gjolme Suite 1500 IBIS Consulting Group Huntington Beach, CA 92647 P: 949-852-8474 www.foldera.com info@ibisnest.com
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
How2Vacation.com launched in January, 2005 and has developed a prominent market position in the online Travel sector. In approximately two years, How2 is not only profitable and debt free, but has become one of the most frequently visited websites on the internet, ranking 2,949 in the United States as of March 14, 2007(Aiexa .com). How2Vacation.com provides its advertisers with an alternative to the commission based (and cost per click) travel sites by creating a unique flat fee advertising model within a full service comprehensive travel site COMPANY ADDRESS
3317 NW 1Oth Terrace Suite 405 Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309 www.how2vacation.com
IR CONTACT Bill Provost WJP P: 954-899-6343
COMPANY CONTACT Stephen Lustig President P: 954-537-1107
COMPANY CONTACT
Hugh Dunkerley, VP Corporate Finance P: 714-766-8737 hdunkerley@foldera.com f----·-- ·----------
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HYPERDYNAMICS
intell igentias HOY : AMEX
Hyperdynamics Corporation
~ ] ' - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -·-_ __,
[COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Attract Market Exposure
lntelligentias, Inc.
ITLI :OTCBB
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Raising Capital, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Develop New Business
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
Hyperdynamics holds the largest offshore exploration acreage position in West Africa through its subsidiary, SCS Corporation. The company began initial studies of existing seismic covering its 31,000 square mile contract area offshore Republic of Guinea in 2002. It has since acquired an additional 5,000 km of new 2D seismic, conducted a geochemical drop core survey, performed a remote sensing satel lite study for oil seeps and completed an independent integrated interpretation of the data. COMPANY ADDRESS One Sugar Creek Center
Suite 125 Sugarland, TX 77478 www.hyperdynamics.com
COMPANY CONTACT
Michael Watts P: 713-353-9400 mwatts@hypd.com IRCONTACT Tony Schor Investor Awarenes s, Inc. P: 847-925-2222
114 VALUERICH MAGAZINE
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
lntelligentias, Inc. expects to become a global data-intelligence conglomerate. Using a worldwide network, we intend to market Homeland Security products to Law Enforcement Agencies, Telcos and ISPs in order to prevent terrorism, cyber-crime, and child exploitation. Our portfolio company, Retentia, Inc. sells Data Retention, Tracking and Forensics software to some of the largest organizations in the world. Our portfolio company, lnvestigatia, Inc., which will be launched later in 2007, will be our data investigation company. lnvestigatia intends to focus on fraud, identity theft, identity authentication and verification. Our portfolio company, lnterceptia, Inc., which will be launched later in 2007, will be our Lawful Intercept Company. lnterceptia intends to focus on Legal Interception of telecommunications by law enforcement authorities (LEA's) and intelligence services. COMPANY ADDRESS
COMPANY CONTACT
303 Twin Dolphin Dr. Suite 600 Redwood City, CA 94065 P: 650-632-4526 www.intelligentias.com
Luigi Caramico P: 650-888-2083 Luigi.caramico@intelligentias.com
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aSP
iSECUREtrac
Monitoring Compliance. Modifying Behavior.
iSECUREtrac Corporation
ISEC :OTCBB
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Focus on top line growth and market penetration. Expand produc and service offerings to address new markets and applications. Seek strategic alliances in order to accelerate growth
Private
Livecore Health Technonlogies, LLC
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Strategic merger, partnership, joint venture or acquisition.
COMPANY DESCRIPTION COMPANY DESCRIPTION
iSECUREtrac Corp. provides state-of-the-art electronic monitoring technology and outsourced services which offer federal, state and local agencies effective solutions for community supervision, compliance monitoring and case management. The company 's full-service solutions include electronic monitoring systems and monitoring center support, as well as outsourced pretrial, probation and parole. Electronic monitoring system s from iSECUREtrac provide a supervising officer a rich stream of reliable data concerning an individual's location, movement or status. COMPANY ADDRESS
COMPANY CONTACT
5078 S. 111th Street Omaha, NE 68137 www.isecuretrac.com
Dave Vana CFO P: 866-537-0022
Livecore Health Technologies, LLC is a newly formed venture engaged in the distribution of healthcare (well ness) products and services. The company will engage in the physical distribution of the products themselves, intellectual distribution of information about them and invest in and or acquire well ness companies. The Company's goal is to become a leader in the well ness revolution.
COMPANY ADDRESS
COMPANY CONTACT
101 NE 3rd Ave. Suite 1500 Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33301 www.livecorellc.com
Michael Scott CEO P: 800-376-1744
IR CONTACT INFO
Ron Both Liolios Group, Inc. P: 949-574-3860
Onstreamâ&#x201E;˘ >>>>>>>>>> MEDIA NexGen Biofuels, Inc.
PENDING : NASDAQ
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Raising Capital, Mergers & Acquisitions, Develop New Business, or Attract Market Supply and Exposure NexGen's objective is to form strategic relationships in order to raise capital and increase market share. Our mission is to become a leading producer of alternative fuels and to be set apart by the way we treat our partners, shareholders and employees. COMPANY DESCRIPTION
NexGen Biofuels is in the discovery stage of developing four ethanol plants and one bio-diesel plant in four states. The plants will be built in two phases, w ith the first phase yielding two ethanol plants and the bio-diesel plant and the second phase yielding two more ethanol plants. Each facility will produce 100-million gallons per year of its respective fuel.and chemical processing faciliti es. COMPANY ADDRESS
COMPANY CONTACT
2533 Windguard Circle Suite 102 Tampa, FL 33543 www.nexgenbiofuels.net
Jim McAiinden Chief Operating Officer P: 813-929-4802 jim@nexgenbiofuels.net
116 VALUERICH MAGAZI NE
ONSM : NASDAQ
Onstream Media Corporation
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Attract Market Awareness Onstream Media's objective is to enhance trading performance through open market support and liquidity by building on its existing, diverse shareholder base. COMPANY DESCRIPTION
Onstream Media is a leading online service provider of live, on-demand digital media communications and applications. Onstream's Digital Media Services Platform provides customers with tools for webcasting, web-conferencing, webinars, managing digital assets and hosting and publishing content online including audio and video files. Onstream's services are focused on increasing productivity while reducing capital expenditures and operational costs. 78% of Fortune 100 executives and almost half of Fortune 1000 companies use or have used Onstream Media's services. Customers include: AOL, Discovery Education, Disney, MGM, Deutsche Bank, Rodale Inc, Thomson Financial/ CCBN, and the U.S. Government. COMPANY ADDRESS
IRCONTACT
Onstream Media Corp. 1291 Sw 29th Avenue Pompano Beach, FL 33069 P: 954-917-6655 www.on streammedia.com
Gary Geraci, President Equity Performance Group P: 617-723-2373 gary@equityperfgp.com www.equityperformancegroup.com
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~~ Pipeline Data. Inc. Pipeline Data, Inc.
PBI
PPDA:OTCBB
As a rapidly expanding growth company, Pipeline Data welcomes opportunities that allow it to continue to profitably grow its business both organically and through acquisition and to showcase its past and future accomplishments to qualified investors. COMPANY DESCRIPTION
Pipeline Data provides an integrated suite of merchant payment processing services to over 40,000 "brick and mortar'; Internetbased and w ireless merchants through out the U.S. The company has contractu al relation ships with 50 commercial banks and financi al institution s compri sing 460 bank branch location s, 48 credit unions, 30 !SONAR's and one of the nation's largest cell phone carriers. COMPANY CONTACT
Pipeline Data, Inc. 1515 Hancock Street Suite 301 Quincy, MA 02169 www.pipelinedata .com
MacAlli ster Smith, CEO P: 61 7-405-2610 ceo@pipelinedata .com
r - - - - - - - - - - --
IR CONTACT
Phil Chait P: 617-405-2610 phil@pipelinedata.com - - - - - - - --
- --
PBIO : NASDAQ
Pressure BioSciences, Inc.
COMPANY OBJECTIVE:
COMPANY ADDRESS
Pressure BioSciences Inc.
-
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Raise market and investor awareness of Pressure BioSciences, Inc. and of our patented, enabling Pressure Cycling Technology (PCT) product line. COMPANY DESCRIPTION
PBI is a publicly traded, early-stage company focused on the development of a novel technology called Pressure Cycling Technology (PCT). PCT uses cycles of hydrostatic pressure between ambient and ultra-high levels to control bio-molecular interactions. PBI currently hold s 13 US and 4 foreign patents covering multiple applications of PCT in the life sciences fi eld, including in such areas as genomic and proteomic sample preparation , pathogen inactivation, control of enzymes, immunodiagnostics, and protein purification . PBI owns a 30% passive investm ent in Source Scientific, LLC, an instrumentation company that develops and manufactures PBI 's PCT equipment, as well as a passive investment in Panacos Pharmaceuticals, an antiviral drug discovery and development company. COMPANY ADDRESS
COMPANY CONTACTS
321 Manley Street West Bridgewater, MA 02379 P: 508-580-1818 www.pressurebiosciences.com
RichardT. Schumacher, President & CEO Edward Myles, Sr. VP of Finance & CFO ir@pressurebiosciences.com
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li1 puredepthTM PureDepth, Inc.
PDEP : OTCBB
QMCI : OTCBB
QuoteMedia, Inc.
COMPANY OBJECTIVE:
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Develop New Business,
Develop new business opportunities in the LCD monitor, television, mobile phone, handheld entertainment, and public information display markets. Enhance technology platform with potential mergers and acquisitions of supplemental technologies
Attract Market Exposure Having achieved two years of being cash flow positive and
PureDepth is an innovative technology licensing company transforming the vi sual di splay experience by delivering awardw inning t echnology. Backed by 46 granted patents and over 70 pending patents, thi s breakthrough in visualization is the first display technology that provides real depth. Th e company has licen sing agreements w ith International Game Technology (NYSE: IGT), Sanyo Corporation (NASDAQ: SANYY ), and DRS Technologies (NYSE: DRS).
15 consecutive quarters of revenue growth, the Company will continue to increase its top line revenue growth through capturing market share within the data feed, Mobile/PDA and financial software application markets. COMPANY DESCRIPTION QuoteMedia is a leading provider of financial stock market data, related research information, and financial software solutions to online brokerages, clearing firm s, banks, public corporations, and web portals. The Company's innovation and diversity of technical experti se, agile responsiveness, and proven commitment to superior delivery t echnologies have established Qu ot eMedia as a clear frontrunner in the financial data provider indu stry.
COMPANY ADDRESS
COMPANY CONTACT
COMPANY ADDRESS
IR CONTACTS
255 Shoreline Drive Suite610 Redwood City, CA 94065 www.puredepth.com
Laura Diaz P: 650-632-0800 laura.diaz@puredepth .com
17100 Shea Blvd, Suite 230 Fountain Hill s, AZ 85268 www.quotemedia.com COMPANY CONTACT Dave Shworan, Pres/ CEO QuoteMedia, Ltd. P: 877-311-9911 ext. 101 dave@quotemedia.com
Keith Guelpa, Pres/ CEO QuoteMedia, Inc. P: 480-905-4116 kguelpa @quotemedia.com TTC Group of New York Contact: Vic Allgeier P: 646-290-6400
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
IRCONTACT
DeDe Sheel Ashton Partners P: 415-869-5765 dsheel@ashtonpartners.com 118 VALUERICH
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vic@ttcominc.com Join The iValueRich Community
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SAMSON OIL & GAS N.L
RCTY: Pink Sheet
Rocket City Enterprises, Inc.
Samson Oil & Gas Limited
SSN: ASX
COMPANY OBJECTIVE:
COMPANY OBJECTIVE:
Rocket City Enterprises long- and short- term objectives include, but are not limited to, expanding its client list of car dealerships among th e 60,000 dealerships throughout the U.S.; generate revenue in excess of $5 million within the next fi scal year; attain bottom line profitabil ity in 2008; diversify our product lines to enter various industries and sectors.
Samson intends to grow its oil and gas production through acqui sition s and th e development of its existing proven undeveloped reserve base, along with the development of th e Ba xt er Shale, which is emerging as an important new fractured gas play in the Rockies region. COMPANY DESCRIPTION
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
Rocket City Enterprises, Inc. is the holding company for CompleteAuto, an eBay Motors Preferred Solution Provider; The lntellimark Group, creators of smart survey lead generators, lntelli sweeps and Autobunga, iMarkPro and echoMark; eAutoDrop.com, eAutoOutlet.com and other eCommerce, eBay and online marketing tool s. COMPANY ADDRESS
6200 Lee Vista Blvd. Suite 100 Orlando, FL 32822 www.rcau .com
IRCONTACT Andrew Barwicki P: 407-219-3770 invest@rcau.com
COMPANY CONTACT
Samson Oil and Gas Limited is an oil and gas exploration and development company that operates in the United States and is traded on the Australian Stock Exchange. Samson initiated its curent strategy in late 2004 with a scrip-based takeover of U.S. company Kestrel Energy. The Company acquired additional production in the Rockies in May 2006 and is adding to its oil production portfolio through extension drilling and further acquisitions. COMPANY ADDRESS
1726 Cole Blvd. Suite210 Lakewood, CO 80401 www.samsonoilandgas.com
ian Feller P: 407-219-3648 ifeller@rcau.com
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•• Security With Advanced Technology Security with Advanced Technology, Inc.
SWAT: NASDAQ
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Attract Market Exposure
SWAT is seeking significant market exposure for th e company and its Non-lethal patent pending Avurt Launcher which is scheduled for release 01 -02 2007. Thi s high-tech, non-lethal product will revolutionize th e personal protection industry. COMPANY DESCRIPTION Security With Advanced Technology, Inc. is a leading provider of mission critical high tech security products and services, which include non-let hal personal protection devices, surveillance, intrusion detection systems and mobile digital video surveillance solutions. SWAT's products and services are designed for government agencies, military and law enforcement, as well as transportation, commercial facilities and non-lethal personal protection segments. COMPANY ADDRESS
10855 Dover St., Suite 1000 Westminster, CO 80021 www.swat-systems.com COMPANY CONTACT
Scott Sutton, President P: 800-498-7965 or P: 303-439-0372 scotts@vizergroup.com
www " iVALUERICH "c o m
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COMPANY CONTACT Terry Barr Chief Executve Officer P: 970-389-5047 IRCONTACT Alan Stone Alan Stone & Associates P: 561 -676-6048
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Simtrol, Inc.
SMRL : OTCBB
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Attract Market Exposure
COMPANY DESCRIPTION Simtrol develops scalable software solutions that cost-effectively manage disparate devices in courtrooms, operating rooms, and boardrooms to achieve dramatically improved efficiency. Simtrol's solutions are sold directly and through professional system integrators, value -added resellers (VARs) and other distributors who are supported by the Company's sales and technical support staff. COMPANY ADDRESS
2200 Norcross Parkway Suite 255 Norcross, GA 30071 IRCONTACTS P: 678-533-1200 Thomas Muenzberg, VP Finance www.simtrol.com P: 720-227-0378
IRCONTACT Stephen Samp Chief Financial Officer P: 678-533-1201 steve.samp@simtrol.com
tmuenzberg@swat-systems.com COMPANY CONTACT Greg Pusey, Chairman P: 303-722-4008
Rick Egan Chief Executive Officer P: 678-533-1279 rick.egan@simtrol.com
SPRING/ SUMMER 2007 119
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Sovereign Exploration Assoc Inti, Inc.
SVXA:OTCBB
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Raising Capital, Mergers & Acquisitions, Market Support, Strategic Partnereships & Joint Ventures, New Contacts COMPANY DESCRIPTION
Sovereign is a maritime exploration company that researches, identifies, recovers and conserves precious coin s and valuable artifacts from historic shipwrecks using the highest preservation standards. The Company specializes in low cost recovery operations from sunken treasure ships found in shallow coastal waters. Sovereign has a significant inventory of licensed wreck sites and is seeking funding for multiple recovery operations to produce maximum profitability for its shareholders. COMPANY ADDRESS
COMPANY CONTACT
120 Alpine Road West Palm Beach, FL 3340S www.sea-int.com
Peter Knollenberg Co-Founder and CEO P: 561-547-2616 IRCONTACT
Laurel Moody Corporate Profile, LLC P: 917-640-0461 lmoody@corporateprofile.com
VALU RICH THINK SMALL- CAP
IVA : AMEX
ValueRich, Inc. COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Gain market exposure
COMPANY DESCRIPTION: ValueRich, Inc. publishes ValueRich magazine and hosts several large-scale ValueRich Small-cap Financial Expo events per year. In 2007, the Company launched iValueRich.com, a rapidly growing Web 2.0 community for entrepreneurs, emerging company management and financial professionals where emerging companies can submit their financial needs to a large group of investment bankers and other funding resources.
COMPANY ADDRESS
COMPANY CONTACT
1804 N. Di xie Highway Ste. A West Palm Beach, FL 33407 www.iValueRich.com
Joseph Visconti Chief Executive Officer P: 561-832-8878 info@iValueRich.com
120 VALUERICH MAGAZINE
UDRY : OTCBB
US Dry Cleaning Corporation
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: US Dry Cleaning is looking to gain market exposure for its stock, which trades on the OTCBB under the symbol UDRY. Many Va/ueRich magazine readers know the company, and now have a chance to buy it.
COMPANY DESCRIPTION:
US Dry Cleaning (UDRY.OB) is the first public consolidator of dry cleaning companies. Because the Company is the first, they are able to get great properties without competing on the price. UDRY recently signed a purchase agreement to acquire a $6.5 million business in Fresno, CA. This acquisition will take the Company to a $17 million run rate, almost triple the $6 million in 2006. COMPANY ADDRESS
IRCONTACT
125 E. Tahquitz Canyon, Ste. 203 Palm Springs, CA 92262 www.usdrycleaning.com
Rick Johnston Director of Shareholder Communication, 760-668-1274 rick@usdrycleaning.com
VIKING SYSTEMS
VKSY : OTCBB
Viking Systems, Inc.
COMPANY OBJECTIVE: Strategic partnerships and joint ventures, as well as new business contacts
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
Viking Systems, Inc. is a designer, manufacturer and marketer of three-dimensional (3-D) and two-dimensional (2-D) highperformance laparoscopic vision systems for use in minimally invasive surgical procedures. The Company focuses on bringing integrated solutions to the digital surgical environment by developing a portfolio of targeted medical technologies and services to address the current and emerging needs of the digital operating room .
COMPANY ADDRESS 4350 La Jolla Village Drive Suite 900 San Diego, CA 92122 www.vikingsystems.com
COMPANY CONTACT
Donald E. Tucker President & CEO P: 858-431-4010 IRCONTACT Erika Moran The Investor Relations Group, P: 212-825-321 0 emoran@investorrelationsgroup.com
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From the land where whiskey was invented... Whether it is a blend, a single malt or the oldest and rarest Irish whiskey in the world, each expression of Clontarf Irish Whiskey and Knappogue Castle Whiskey will please even the most sophisticated palate.
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with delicate fruit, grass and floral flavors." Eric Asimov, The New Yor 1mes www.castlebrandsinc.com
Drink responsibly.
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