Just listened to the conference call and I was rather confused as to all of the ranting and raving on here.
It was clear to me with Steve in the previous call and with this conference call that management are completely distancing themselves from SP guidance and projections. In regards to the first question I believe their attributes and more importantly their connections are what will lift this company up and the share price with it. Case in point:
Our royalty rates with P&G. Management made a clear point that we have sold ourselves short and they are working with lawyers (not previously available to us) who are experts in a 'david v goliath' situation to shift the tide in our favour.
Secondly with body guard. It was mentioned that the cost of production prior was far too high. Imagine if we commercialised it and realised later down the track that our royalty rates had suffered due to the high production costs. There would be a blood bath here on hotcopper but luckily the board has identified the issue and reached out to manufacturing contacts in order to get production down to a suitable cost model which they are currently doing. I'm more than happy to wait a little longer if it means higher royalties for us and also makes us much more attractive to prospective partners.
The new strategy which has been adopted by all board members is the 'closer to the consumer' strategy. They have all acknowledged the fact that which ever route we take in the future we need to be in control of the products being commercialised and not just passengers. We didn't negotiate a strong royalty rate with P&G the board has made this very clear and have acted on it. Management are clearly switched on and have identified some major 'issues' with the way in which business was conducted and contracts were negotiated in the past. They are drawing on their collective vast experience and contacts to rectify those 'issues', paving the way for a truly transformative company.
Something that I was personally interested in was the connections that the new board members have with investment banks, hedge funds and financial institutions. If we are able to get investment banks on board in the future it will put us in an extremely strong position indeed, it will take some years to achieve this however but the fact that all new board members have contacts in this regard is very re-assuring.
I await for clear evidence of the excitement that the board are currently experiencing but I don't personally share the angst that has plagued hotcopper. I'm not excited by this conference call as at the moment it is predominantly words, I patiently await the actions; some of which have already begun. Thank goodness for the new board members couldn't imagine where the company would have been in the next 5 years if they weren't steering.
(20min delay)