Looking for an Acquisition for a CPC

As you may know, I am the chairman of the Eminence Capital Group. We are a group of "eminent" people who have come together to create a series of capital pool companies or CPCs under the CPC program of the Toronto Venture Exchange.

A CPC is essentially a shell public company. It has between $300,000 and $2 million in cash, a minimum of 200 investors and at least 3 public company eligible directors. The CPC has 2 years from its inception to acquire an operating business that otherwise meets the listing requirements of the TSXV.

The Eminence Capital Group is working on its second CPC. We are just about to complete our IPO and we are reviewing potential acquisitions. Our criteria for an acquisition is as follows:

1. Experienced, quality management in place
2. At least $5 million in annual sales with the prospect of reaching $10 million in sales within 12 to 18 months
3. Profitable or at or nearing breakeven within 6 to 12 months
4. $15 million market cap within 12 months
5. Rapid growth potential
6. Current public market appeal, including interest from institutional investors
7. Company has public peers

Obviously there are always exceptions to each of the criteria. For example, we would look at resource opportunities that don't necessarily have revenues.

Please let me know if you are aware of any companies that are interested in going public and meet our criteria.

Cubapreneurship

I just got back from an incredible 5 days in Havana. I went with my brother-in-law for a "boys" weekend to celebrate my upcoming 50th birthday.

I had never been to Cuba before and didn't know what to expect. I had previously wondered about whether it was appropriate to go, thereby supporting a repressive regime. My love of Cuban cigars (and a rationalization of helping the Cuban people with my meagre tourist pesos) enabled me to get on a plane.

I was struck first by the fact that Havana is stuck in a time warp. Little has changed from January 1, 1959, the date of the revolution. The cars and the buildings seemed to have been stopped in time. There was a certain charm about it, however, it indicated the lack of money available to the people to buy basic things and to the government to improve infrastructure.

There is tremendous potential for Havana to become a world class city. All of the components are there - wide boulevards, a mix of beautiful architecture (especially in Old Havana), history and a young and vibrant population. They just need a little freedom and some much needed capital for investment.

I understand that things are starting to change. Since Fidel's illness, his brother Raoul has taken over the reins of leadership. Once considered the heavy, Raoul is now much loved by the people for the few small freedoms that have been instituted in the past month or so. Cubans can now go into hotels and restaurants that were previously the sole domain of foreigners. They can also legally buy computers and DVDs.

Just as the country has 2 currencies - one for the locals and one for foreigners, Cuba also has 2 economies. The vast majority of the Cuban people live on $20 per month and have little available to them other than some basic necessities. On the other hand, there is a vibrant capitalist economy working, mostly serving foreigners and Cuban entrepreneurs who serve foreigners. You can find privately owned and operated restaurants as good as any in the world. There are entrepreneurs selling cigars out of their homes and on the street. There are cab drivers and of course sex workers.

With more freedom, I predict that money will flow into Cuba. For example, if foreigners are allowed to own real estate, other than as a vacation home, capital will flood into the country and the wonderfully beautiful Spanish colonial buildings that are currently in such a state of disrepair will be restored to their former glory.

If the recent changes by Raoul are a sign of things to come, even if democracy is slower to come, capitalism can come to this beautiful island and unleash the pent up Cuban entrepreneurship. Look what's happening in China.

To Blog or Not To Blog, That is the Question

I have been mulling over for some time whether I should be blogging. In my upcoming column in Profit Magazine, I share with my readers my personal journey into the blogosphere as well as some tips that I have picked up along the way about blogging.


This is my inaugural blog. At this point I am not sure where this is going to go. My initial thoughts are to share with anyone who cares to read my blog my tips for entrepreneurs that I have learned (mostly the hard way) as a serial entrepreneur for the last almost 20 years. I also plan on spouting off with my views on business, the economy and politics. Finally, I will keep you up to speed as to what I am up to with my latest ventures (within the confines of the law in the case of any publicly traded situations).


Blogging has become ubiquitous. Everyone is doing it in the US. Canadians, at least Canadian journalists and political junkies, have jumped on the bandwagon. Corporate blogging and blogging by CEOs has not really caught on in the Great White North. While I am not currently the CEO of a company, other than my own advisory business, I have quite a bit of experience as a CEO and I currently work with a handful of CEOs of fast growth companies as I help them in their quest to take their companies to the next level. Its time for me to take the plunge and to become a blogger, perhaps as a way to inspire other entrepreneurs to do so.


Right now only one of my CEO clients or former clients are blogging. Razor Suleman's company I Love Rewards Inc. has a corporate blog. Razor, as CEO, is one of a number of authorized bloggers. The purpose of their blog is to:

• provide greater public awareness of their brand
• get external feedback about the things they do
• give their employees the ability to tell their story

They chose an initial roster of 7 authorized authors (including Razor), representing their vision committees. They implemented a policy document after studying examples from other well known companies such as Google. And then they got going - http://www.iloverewards.com/blog/.

Frankly, I was initially a little nervous about I Love Rewards blogging. What would people say? What would the comments be? Would a disgruntled employee air dirty laundry? Ten months later the I Love Rewards blog has been a great success.

Because of its success and my own exposure to blogging, I am moving into the blogosphere myself. Wish me luck.

Please read my upcoming column in Profit Magazine on blogging. I hope my column and my blogging will inspire you to start your own CEO or corporate blog. In any event, I invite you to comment on my blogs or columns right here in my blog.