Outcast Trader
Home

SUBSCRIBE TO NEWSLETTER

Email Address :
First Name :
Last Name :
want to receive mailings from Outcast Trade
>

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

ZVTK Tightens Its Bottom Line

ZVTK reached a recent high of $.12 Tuesday morning before settling back in for a close of $.09 on 138,139 shares traded. In addition, today's closing price marked a 350% increase from ZVTK's recent low of $.02 (on 9/10). Volume has also been trending upwards in recent days. 5-day volume is up 212% (618,761 vs. 198,154).

From a charting perspective, although ZVTK closed down nearly 25% today, the stock has continued to reach higher highs over the past 3 trading sessions. ZVTK has tested and broken the .09,.10, and .11 levels and teetered around .12 today before giving back 3 pennies. In my opinion, a move into the .125 to .13 range tomorrow will be a very bullish sign of what's to come over the subsequent 3 trading days.

Quote of the day: "If past history was all there was to the game, the richest people would be librarians." - Warren Buffet


Vegas ERA Show. Like Shooting Fish in a Barrel?

I had the chance to speak to ZVTK CEO Adam Engel this afternoon from the ERA convention in Las Vegas, where the company has publicly stated its intent to generate 500,000 unit orders and conduct a grueling schedule of sales meetings. Without divulging any non-public info, folks, things appear to be progressing nicely. From what he tells me, ZVTK is making good on their promise to conduct as many meetings as possible, many of them with massive international potential.

Adam has been keeping me in the loop in regards to what has been transpiring at the show and quite frankly, I've been impressed. All in all, I'd expect to hear something out of him soon in regards to how well things went in Vegas for ZVTK.

Although Vegas is surely "sin city" and a place to have a great time, the ERA convention is also one of the best places for a company like ZVTK to meet, greet, and present its product to the more than 3,000 electronic retailing executives from around the world in attendance.

For those of you grumbling over the CEO's trip to Vegas, this jaunt is likely much more economically efficient than him making frequent multiple cross-continental sales trips. If he comes back with the aforementioned purchase orders in hand, I'd liken the trip to "shooting fish in a barrel".

Today's News: Click 2 Buy Coming Soon!

According to today's press release, ZVTK has procured a merchant account which will allow the company to accept and process credit card transactions through its corporate website, www.zevo-tek.com. As I've stated in recent editions, adding click-to-buy functionality to the site is absolutely essential in order for ZVTK to grow efficiently going forward.

In all honesty, this should have been done long ago and most likely would have if cash flow wasn't an issue. It's an absolute no-brainer. Think about it, sales at big name retailers such as CVS and Walgreens are great. So are relationships with online retailers like the Amazon.coms of the world as well as International distributors. However, you have to pay to play in these types of relationships.

Simply put, partners such as those mentioned above don't sell product for companies like ZVTK out of the kindness of their own hearts. They demand a piece of the pie (sale), which takes away from ZVTK's margin. Surely, these relationships work wonders for the company's revenues and ability to gain global brand recognition, but direct-to-consumer sales are what feeds the bottom line.

According to the release today, management is completely aware of this and is taking the steps necessary to begin selling its landmark product via zevo-tek.com, the merchant account being step #1. Next comes the establishment of a fulfillment center and inbound call center operations and then, as logic would dictate, the hiring of a marketing firm to get the ZVTK infomercial on the air.

Where's the Infomercial?

The company announced back in July that the advertising spot was just about ready for production and I believe that it is now. Although sales have been surprisingly decent thus far, I can't help but think the numbers at Walgreens and the test at CVS could have been better if the IONIC BULB had a little "push" from a television advertising spot that sent consumers into the stores in search of the product. Placement with these retailers is impressive for such a new product and company, but when was the last time you went to either establishment in search of a light bulb. Point taken?

Moreover, now that management is taking the steps necessary to take orders through its site and also working hard at the ERA show to foster new sales opportunities, I'm guessing that the spot will be hitting the air sometime in the relatively near future. I wouldn't think that e-tailers from Europe, Asia, or wherever else would be too keen on purchasing a product with no push behind it. That's just my opinion.

With the stock price moving in an upward direction and management making the right moves solidifying future sales and improving the bottom line, ZVTK is showing a great deal of promise for a stellar Fall season.

We'll be keeping close watch on the movement of the stock over the next few days and whether or not the stock can manage to break through $0.12. A clean break through the 12 cent range should open the door to 15 cents and potentially $0.25. We'll also be watching to see if the 500K unit sales objective is achieved. That's all for now on ZVTK. Check the OutcastTrader Blog for updated coverage on the company.

Labels:

8 Comments:

Blogger tjokon said...
Why haven't we seen a press release centering on the trip to Eurpoe and the test product at CVS
2:59 PM  
Blogger "Staff" said...
I have prompted Mr. Engel for an update on a number of topics including those outlined in your question. I have also stressed the importance of relaying these updates to investors in the form of company issued press releases. Once I hear back from him I'll be happy to relay whatever publicly available information I can.
11:11 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...
Does Adam have any respect for the investors of ZVTK? It appears that he could care less. His lack of communication and updates speak volumes
4:53 PM  
Blogger "Staff" said...
I honestly do not believe that Adam has no respect for his investors. We indeed provide the fuel for his corporate enterprise to run on and he certainly realizes that.

Being an entity that does to some extent have his ear in regards to how he should communicate with the public, I've had numerous conversations with him pertaining to how he deals with investors. Obviously, he does need to step it up a level in his communications.

In my own personal opinion, and it's just that, he does not respond to non-constructive criticism all too well, like many of ourselves.

That being said, there have been a number of situations in which the public has deserved, but not received operational updates, and, at times unfortunately the only way to try to wedge something out of the company is to get a bit aggressive in our demands.

I do know that he is putting for his best foot forward here and making a solid effort to get his landmark product off the ground and does really care about how things progress.

My genuine hope is that as a starting ground, we can begin using this blog as a way to address important questions that Adam needs to address and even provide criticism in a constructive matter.

Without overstepping any boundaries or making any insinuations, maybe we need to approach things a bit differently and handle the situation with "kid gloves". If we can play nicely here and ask relevant questions in a polite tone, maybe we will have better luck obtaining some increased visibility into operations. Obviously, Adam can't and won't disclose non-public data, which I see many investors, not specific to zvtk, fish for everyday. But, there has to be a better way to make everyone happier here and increase the flow of information.

I'm happy to help. So, for starters, let's start compiling a list of questions for the CEO. I'll get with him ASAP and at the very least reply with answers to some and reasons why we can not provide answers to others. If He'll play along, I think that speaks volumes to his caring about and respecting his investors. If he doesn't, which I don't anticipate, than maybe its time for us all to go find another field to play in. Thoughts?
6:44 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...
Please start by telling Adam that he is the best CEO I have ever seen and that I am sorry for hurting his self esteem. Some very basic questions:
1) were there any sales from Europe. If so how much
2) Were ther any sales from Vegas. If so how much.
3) Why are we always late with earnings and when can we expect them to be released?
4) When will we see a PR for the test product at CVS
5) Can we have an update on the progress of sales at Walgreens. The product no longer exists at my Walgreens. Is it being pulled from Walgreens?
4:43 AM  
Blogger "Staff" said...
I am anxiously awaiting a response to your questions from Adam and may have overstated with my "kid gloves" comment.

I should have chosen my wording a bit more carefully and was trying to suggest that investors should treat him with respect, even if they may not be happy with the timeliness of his actions in some instances. Providing constructive criticism is key here in my opinion.

Furthermore, although I am certainly a point of communication for the company, you can always feel free to call Mr. Engel yourself if you are not satisfied with his performance.
7:22 PM  
Blogger "Staff" said...
Also, for some reason, you're most recent question did not show up through my blog software program. I discovered it a bit late as it was tied to a post from 9/25 and I found it only after taking a look back through previous posts this weekend. My apologies.
7:26 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...
So..
Where is the 10k?
What happened in Monaco?
What happened in Vegas?
What is the story with CVS?
Where are we with Walgreens?
Why isn't the infomercial airing?
Why can't I order a lightbulb on the website?
Why can't we ever get an answer?
12:36 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home