3rd Jul 2006 14:00
Hot Tuna (International) plc03 July 2006 Press Release 3 July 2006 Hot Tuna (International) PLC ("Hot Tuna" or "the Company") Acquisition of Australian licensee Key management hires in Australia and United Kingdom Hot Tuna (International) PLC (AIM:HTT), a lifestyle apparel brand with authenticsurf heritage, is pleased to announce the acquisition of the entire issued sharecapital of Hot Tuna Holdings Pty Ltd. The purchase of Hot Tuna Holdings Pty Ltdis part of the Company's overall strategy of acquiring all the licensing rightsin the Hot Tuna brand in its core markets. The Company has entered into an unconditional contract to acquire the entireissued share capital of Hot Tuna Holdings Pty Ltd from MCU Pty Ltd ("MCU").Prior to this sale, MCU assigned to Hot Tuna Holdings Pty Ltd its exclusiveright and licence to use Hot Tuna trade marks and intellectual property inconnection with designing, manufacturing, advertising, promoting, distributingand selling certain licensed products including apparel and accessories inAustralia, New Zealand, New Guinea, Fiji, New Caledonia and Samoa. Suchassignment also included a non-exclusive right and licence with respect to theterritories of Singapore, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand,Malaysia, Tahiti, China, Japan and Korea. In consideration of the purchase of Hot Tuna Holdings Pty Ltd, the Company hasagreed to allot and issue 400,000 ordinary shares (the "Consideration Shares")in the Company to MCU (or the person it nominates). MCU has nominated DelstarInternational Limited to be allotted the Consideration Shares. The Company andMCU have also agreed to a mutual release and compromise of any sum owed pursuantto or arising from a licence agreement between the Company and MCU by way ofsettlement of their dispute concerning such sum owed. Application has been madefor the Consideration Shares to be admitted to AIM. Dealings are expected tocommence on 7 July 2006. Commenting on the acquisition, Ranjit Murugason, Chairman of Hot Tuna, said:"The acquisition of Hot Tuna Holdings Pty Ltd continues our strategy of gainingdirect ownership over the Hot Tuna brand in key global markets. The Company isnow in a position where it owns the brand in all its key markets. The Australianand New Zealand markets, where Hot Tuna has a strong following, representexcellent opportunities to further develop Hot Tuna's brand. I am confident thatour position in these markets will deliver meaningful results for shareholdersin the future." "Hot Tuna is now in a position where we have an extremely strong operationalmanagement team, hired from several of the world's major surf and youth fashionbrands, with a proven track record within our industry." Key management hire in Australia The Company is also pleased to announce that, as part of its strategy and tostrengthen its Australian operation, it has set up a new company, Hot TunaAustralia Pty Ltd ("Hot Tuna Australia"), which is a wholly-owned subsidiary ofthe Company. In connection with this, it has appointed Dean Harrigan as theChief Operating Officer of Hot Tuna Australia. Dean Harrigan founded Liquid Culture in 1988. Liquid Culture is well known amongits peers as one of the most successful surf and street wear distributors inAustralia. Liquid Culture's biggest success was the relaunch of "Bad Boy", whichexpanded so rapidly that it held onto a substantial share of the surf market forover ten years. Other successful international label relaunches by Dean Harriganinclude "Ocean Pacific", a leading international surf brand, into MyerDepartment Stores and "The Realm" into the DDS (discount) department stores. Liquid Culture, headed by Dean Harrigan, is one of the few surf and street weardistributors that have been successful in both specialty and discount departmentstores which requires developing an infrastructure that can handle diversity aswell as supply and delivery demands and maintain margins at lower retail pricepoints. The skills and experience that Dean Harrigan brings to Hot Tuna Australia willallow Hot Tuna to reach its full potential in the Asia Pacific region.Commenting on his appointment, Dean Harrigan said: "I am very excited abouttaking on the role of Chief Operating Officer of Hot Tuna Australia. Hot Tuna isheld in high esteem in the surf community and represents a certain part ofAussie culture. Its rich history is fused with so many elements that youngcontemporary designers are excited to redesign. We have developed a verycommercial line that will be launched into the high end surf market in summer2006. The philosophy is simple: higher margins to retailers, competitive pricingto the major surf brands." Commenting on the appointment, Ranjit Murugason, Chairman of Hot Tuna, said:"The appointment of Dean Harrigan as Chief Operating Officer of Hot TunaAustralia is another significant hire for Hot Tuna. Dean has an impressive trackrecord in our industry. His involvement will ensure that the Company is in thebest position to build a solid base from which to grow in the Australian market,which is where the Hot Tuna brand was originally formed in 1969. I am confidentthat our roots and heritage in this market will enable the Company to takemarket share from our competitors." Key management hire in United Kingdom The Company is also pleased to announce the appointment of Chris Dewbury asChief Operations Officer of Hot Tuna (UK) Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary ofthe Company. Chris will be responsible for re-establishing the Hot Tuna brand inthe UK and will have a key role in implementing the global business and branddevelopment strategy for driving sales. Chris Dewberry is an active and passionate sportsman, full of drive andambition, who has nearly 20 years' experience within the extreme sports andlifestyle industry in Europe. Chris started out as a ski instructor based inEurope for several years, before going on to work for brands including Head,Lange and Dynastar. Subsequently, Chris spent 8 years at Quiksilver where he waspart of the strategic management team based in the UK which drove the businessfrom small beginnings to such a position of strength in the surf lifestylemarket in the UK such that the UK became the number two country in Europe forQuiksilver in terms of profitability, sales, and brand positioning. More recently Chris was the sales director for Musto, where he headed up thesales division for sailing and country sports and built a strong sales teamdeveloping ranges to maximise sales and increase the brand profile. Commenting on his appointment, Chris Dewbury said: "I am looking forward totaking on the role of COO for the UK and re-establishing the Hot Tuna brandwhich is one of the oldest and most credible surf brands." Commenting on the appointment, Ranjit Murugason, Chairman of Hot Tuna, said:"Chris' wealth of experience within the European extreme sports and lifestyleindustry will help accelerate Hot Tuna's development in this important market.Chris was instrumental at Quiksilver and played a key role in developing the UKoperation into Quiksilver's second most important regional division in Europe.With his exceptional contacts with buyers, Chris is well positioned to drivesales in the UK and I am confident that he will make a valuable contribution tothe Company." - Ends - For further information:Hot Tuna (International) PLCRanjit Murugason, Chairman Tel: +44 (0) 20 7372 [email protected] Seymour Pierce LimitedSarah Wharry / Parimal Kumar Tel: +44 (0) 20 7107 [email protected] www.seymourpierce.com Media enquiries:AbchurchHenry Harrison-Topham / Chris Lane Tel: +44 (0) 20 7398 [email protected] www.abchurch-group.com Notes to Editors Hot Tuna International PLC (AIM: HTT) owns the rights to the Hot Tuna brand, aprogenitor of global youth fashion, born in Australia with a heritage ofauthentic surf culture. Hot Tuna is one of the world's most iconic names in surf lifestyle and can traceits roots back to 1969 when it was founded by a surfer and his fashion designerwife. Though the label had not been actively marketed over for the last decade,it retained an organic cult status among core action sports enthusiasts. In June 2005, Hot Tuna International PLC purchased the 'Hot Tuna' brand fromFrontier International (Holdings) Pty Ltd, listed on AIM in September 2005, andhas since started to aggressively market the brand and reinvigorate thebusiness. The Company now owns all intellectual property rights to its name andrelated iconography, and has put in place key management drawn from theexecutive ranks of Quiksilver, O'Neill and Ocean Pacific, among others. Headquartered in the UK, Hot Tuna operates design, marketing and distributionhubs in the USA, Australia and the UK. In its core markets, Hot Tuna sellsproducts, which are directly manufactured in facilities in North America, Europeand in China Hot Tuna offices are maintained in Sydney, Los Angeles and London. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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