BLT - Blis Technologies

[Nigel]

I was re-reading the announcement of 30 August and had a horrible moment where I thought I'd possibly got it wrong about the caliber of one of our new investors. I noticed that instead of "Asia Pacific Partners" (Jenny Shipley - former Prime Minister of NZ; Abdulrahman Al Ghurair - Chairman of Dubai Chamber of Commerce, Dubai Executive Council; Adriana Tong - investment banker with connections in nutraceuticals and beverage industries; Peter Baker - expertise in FMCG, turnaround projects) the announcement mentioned "ASIAN Pacific Partners" (no familiar names, in fact one director who has been involved with about a dozen struck off companies). Thankfully there's another mention in the same announcement of "Asia Pacific Partners" and the SSH notices are for the majority shareholder of "Asia Pacific Partners Ltd" not the slightly less exciting alternative.
I really am excited and optimistic about what these new connections can lead to for Blis.

[simla]

Details of SPP out. Mostly repeat of the texts we've already seen as far as I can tell, but still sounding okay to me. Just my opinion, of course. https://nzx.com/companies/BLT/announcements/242333

In the event of oversubscription, they appear to be able to set a minimum issue and then pro-rata applications above that. 2.8 (b) https://nzx.com/files/attachments/183301.pdf

And there's those phrases again: "expected to deliver profits in the foreseeable future". But also "produce and market milk based formulations mainly for Asian markets", and "nutritional formulations will include beverages". Well, that could be yoghurt? It could be yoghurt slushies? Or it could even be chocolate milk etc? Intiguing to find out eventually.

[Nigel]

I think they will be developing a milk drink similar to Yakult (http://www.yakult.co.uk/about-yakult). Yakult drinks seem to be the most popular way to consume probiotics in Europe (and Asia as I understand it) so a Blis variation would arguably be an easier sell than gum, lozenges etc. Yakult is massive - available in 31 countries and employees 80,000 staff, with a market cap of over $10billion - so getting to even 1% of that size would be a ten-fold return.

[simla]

My calculator is struggling with the profit figures for that. Pity about it taking 50 years to build that market size!

[CJ]

I think they will be developing a milk drink similar to Yakult (http://www.yakult.co.uk/about-yakult).

That would be the obvious move - seems more natural to drink yogurt to ward of a cold than to eat ice cream.


Key dates for the SPP offer include:
Record Date to determine entitlements: 11 October 2013
Closing date for application of shares: 1 November 2013
Last Date for issue of shares: Not later than 8 November 2013

[simla]

By the way, to address the other topic that arises here from time to time, I also think BLT offers a perfectly respectable return. I know there are some who love the excitement of making a 100% return in two weeks, and I totally understand that. But I personally don't see that as a viable plan for a 50 year investment horizon, as it requires never being invested in anything that is not achieving that - including cash in the bank while waiting, which would be a disaster. I know I'm not that smart or that lucky. I'm pretty sure that Warren Buffett says that 15% pa is about as good as it gets long term, and I would be surprised if many actually-rich people said otherwise. Anyone who is getting a lot more than that should certainly let the funds know of the employment availability!

A compounding 15%pa return on the other hand only requires a doubling every 5 years. BLT will either comfortably achieve that or it will go broke. I'm not expecting the latter now. Just my opinion obviously.

[Nigel]

That would be the obvious move - seems more natural to drink yogurt to ward of a cold than to eat ice cream.

And BLT have a great point of difference, being the world's first probiotic for the mouth and oral cavity (incl dental)... instead of traditional probiotics such as those in Yakult which target the gut. The science is great. The regulatory approvals have taken a long time but we're now there. The missing ingredient so to speak has been marketing cut-through in global markets. Real progress is now happening (coinciding with the new investors, who are bringing significant business acumen, global networks and marketing nouse to the table) as we increase sales in Asia. I really think the plane is finally getting ready for take-off

Simla, you've mentioned a long-term horizon with this stock. I think in the long-term we'll be very happy with the outcomes - $10k will become $1m if we get to even 10% the size of Yakult!! And of course for those wanting a speculative play in search of a quick 50-100% return, BLT isn't a bad place to be either!

[Chippie]

I still believe in the BLT story and have plenty of shares to back it up.

Not sure if I will purchase any more at the moment, but think it has more chance of success now than it did 5 years ago.

Based on risk and reqard I would rather put $1K into BLT at 1 cent than $10K into the current Power company IPO's.

Keep the posts coming, I do like to read them all.

[simla]

Great, Chippie. You and I seem to share having been in this for some time, as well as appreciating that the long haul can still pay off mathematically, and being willing to lend a hand for a worthwhile endeavour. Good thing the Blis management are happy to take the same attitude!

[pierre]

Now that PEB (also a spin-off from Otago Uni) is going like a rocket on the NZX I wonder if we could interest David Darling in also taking BLT under his wing.

A bit of his magic dust sprinkled over Blis is just what this company needs to finally get some traction in the market.

Wishful thinking I guess ....(sigh)!