| Let's Talk Cellular & Wireless, Inc. | |||
| Ticker: | LTCW | 5200 N.W. 77th Court | |
| Exchange: | NASDAQ-National Market | Miami, FL 33166 | |
| Industry: | Retail (SIC Code 5999) | (305) 477-8255 | |
| # of Employees: | 470 | ||
| Type of Shares: | Common Shares | Filing Date: | 8/29/97 | |
| U.S. Shares: | 2,337,000 | Offer Date: | 11/24/97 | |
| Non-U.S. Shares: | 0 | Filing Price: | - | |
| Primary Shares: | 2,337,000 | Offer Price: | $12.00 | |
| Secondary Shares: | 0 | Gross Spread: | $0.84 | |
| Offering Amount: | $50,000,000 | Selling: | $0.50 | |
| Expenses: | - | Reallowance: | $0.10 | |
| Shares Out After: | - |
| Manager | Tier | Phone |
| Merrill Lynch & Co. | Lead Manager | (212) 449-4600 |
| Salomon Brothers Inc. | Co-manager | (212) 783-2947 |
| Issuer's Law Firm: | Lipoff, Rosen & Quentel, P.A. |
| Bank's Law Firm: | Brown & Wood |
| Auditor: | Ernst & Young |
| Registrar/Transfer Agent: | American Stock Transfer & Trust Co |
Dollar amounts in U.S. millions except for per share data | |||||
| 9 Month Ending Financials | |||||
| Full Year Audited Income | Latest Unaudited Income | Prior Unaudited Income | Balance Sheet | ||
| 7/31/96 | 4/30/97 | 4/30/97 | 4/30/97 | ||
| Revenue: | $13.59 | $17.94 | $9.93 | Assets: | $9.40 |
| Net Income: | $0.07 | $0.30 | $0.07 | Curr Assets: | $5.36 |
| EPS: | $0.07 | $0.22 | $0.08 | Liabilities: | $8.38 |
| Prior EPS: | $0.01 | -$0.63 | -$0.12 | Curr Liabilities: | $4.65 |
| Cash Flow/Oper: | $0.25 | $0.70 | $0.53 | Equity: | $1.02 |
| Cash Flow/Fin: | $3.39 | -$0.63 | -$0.12 | Cash: | $0.23 |
| Cash Flow/Inv: | $0.25 | -$0.63 | Working Cap: | $0.71 | |
| Business Description |
| The company is the largest independent specialty retailer of cellular and wireless products, services and accessories in the United States, with 93 stores located in 12 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. The Company's stores, located predominantly in regional shopping malls, seek to offer one-stop shopping for consumers to purchase cellular, personal communication system ("PCS"), paging, internet, satellite, and other wireless products and services and related accessories. The Company is also a leading wholesaler of cellular and wireless products and accessories to more than 1,000 accounts, consisting primarily of distributors, carriers and smaller independent retailers.The Company offers wireless products from well-known, name-brand suppliers such as AT&T;, Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia and Sony. The Company's stores typically sell up to 40 different makes and models of cellular and PCS phones and pagers and over 1,000 SKUs of wireless products and accessories, such as batteries, home and car chargers, vehicle adapter kits and cases. The Company supports its broad product offering with knowledgeable and personalized customer service focused on educating the consumer and identifying the most appropriate products and services for each consumer's individual needs. The Company offers everyday low prices that are competitive with other retailers and supports this policy with price guarantee, upgrade and trade-in programs. |
| Competition |
| The retail market for cellular and wireless products and service is characterized by intense price competition and significant price erosion over the life of a product. The Company competes with numerous well-established retailers, carriers, wholesale distributors and suppliers of cellular and wireless products and equipment, including the Company's carriers and suppliers, many of which possess greater financial, marketing and other resources than the Company. Substantially all of these competitors market the same or similar products directly to the Company's customers and most have the financial resources to withstand substantial price competition and implement extensive advertising and promotional programs. Certain carriers are principal competitors of the Company and also provide the Company with significant revenue (38% of total net revenue in fiscal 1996) from activation and residual payments. Potential conflicts of interest could arise, therefore, between the Company and its principal customers. In recent years, the price of products and subscription rates for services that the Company and its competitors have been able to charge their customers have decreased, primarily as a result of lower costs and greater competition in the industry. The Company believes that significant price-based competition will continue to exist in each of the Company's markets for the foreseeable future. The cellular and wireless retail industry is highly fragmented and characterized by low barriers to entry and frequent introduction of new products. The Company's ability to continue to compete successfully will be largely dependent on its ability to maintain its current carrier and supplier relationships and to anticipate various competitive factors affecting the industry, such as new or improved products, changes in technology and consumer preferences, demographic trends, regional and local economic conditions and discount pricing and promotion strategies by competitors. The Company expects that there will be increasing competition in the acquisition of other cellular and wireless retailers as industry participants become larger. There can be no assurance that the Company will be able to maintain or increase its size relative to its competitors or to maintain its historical profit margins in the face of increased competition. |
| Business Plan |
| The company's operating strategy is to enhance its position as the largest independent specialty retailer of cellular and wireless products and services in the United States by emphasizing the following competitive strengths: (I) Prime Store Locations, (ii) Storng Store-Level Economics, (iii) Attractive Store Design, (iv) Extensive Merchandise Selection, (v) Exceptional Customer Service, (vi) Competitive Everyday Low Pricing, (vii) Sophisticated Financial Controls and (viii) Wholesale Strategy. |
| Use of Proceeds |
| The proceeds from the proposed offering will be used to repay the company's outstanding bank and certain shareholder loans, to finance the company's expansion, including the opening of new stores and possible acquisitions, and for general corporate purposes. |
| Officer Name | Title | Age |
| Nicholas Molina | Chief Executive Officer and Director | 29 |
| Anne Gozlan | Chief Financial Officer | 35 |
| Chris Howard | Director of Construction and Design | 31 |
| Fernando Perez | Director of Information Systems | 37 |
| Sheril Miller | Director of Real Estate | 41 |
| Lazarus Rothstein | General Counsel and Secretary | 39 |
| Brett Beveridge | President and Chairman of the Board of Directors | 32 |
| Ronald Koonsman | President-Telephone Warehouse | 54 |
| Michael Starcher | Vice President and General Manager - National Cellular Incorporated | 30 |
| Nelson Roberts | Vice President and General Manager - Telephone Warehouse, Inc. | 43 |
| Richard Berglund | Vice President-Sales and Marketing | 50 |