PowerTalk
The Secret Behind Barefoot Cellars Becoming a National Bestselling Brand with co-founder Michael Houlihan
Welcome to another edition of PowerTalk. I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits, and these are my 1-1 conversations with the movers and shakers in the business world that take you behind the scenes and in the know. Be sure to check out ChrisVersace.com for more on PowerTrends and past editions of PowerTalk.
Joining me on PowerTalk today is Michael C. Houlihan, co-founder of Barefoot Cellars where he was president and CEO for 19 years, During that time, Michael and his partner Bonnie Harvey took Barefoot from a startup and grew it to a business that sold over half a million cases making it a national best seller when they sold the company to E&J Gallo in 2005. What’s even more amazing is Michael and Bonnie did it all without advertising. 
As Michael points out, you can have a great product at a great price, but what so many companies forget is that they are also in the distribution business. We’ve seen the product and distribution success of other companies that bear this out — The Coca-Cola Company (KO), PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP), Anheuser Busch Inbev SA (BUD), Molson Coors Brewing Company (TAP) and Diageo plc (DEO), which is the home of many top brands of spirits, wines and beers.
Not only do Michael I talk about how he and Bonnie built Barefoot Cellars into a national bestseller, but we also discuss the New York Times Bestselling book that he and Bonnie wrote  — “The Barefoot Spirit -- How Hardship, Hustle & Heart Built America’s #1 Wine Brand.” 
My advice to you is the following - pour yourself a drink and listen up to this edition of PowerTalk.

Direct download: 12-16-13_BAREFOOTPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:25pm EDT

Welcome to another edition of PowerTalk. I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits, and these are my 1-1 conversations with the movers and shakers in the business world that take you behind the scenes and in the know. Be sure to check out ChrisVersace.com for more on PowerTrends and past editions of PowerTalk.

Joining me this week on PowerTalk is Michael Gorton, the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Principal Solar Inc. (PSWW). There’s been a lot of speculation by investors in the solar space, some making big money along the way and others losing it in the shares of companies like First Solar (FSLR), SunPower Corp. (SPWR), and of course Solyndra, Inc. It’s the view by those at Principal Solar that many are thinking about the solar industry the wrong way. Rather than replacing traditional forms of energy — nuclear, coal and natural gas — Michael and his team see solar generated electricity becoming a self-sustaining, investment grade asset within two to three years. 

Driving that transformation are the 40+% price declines in solar technologies over the last two years, and as Michael tells me by late 2014 or early 2015 the price will be substantially lower making them very cost competitive as a generation source for electricity. By riding the innovation wave much like that in the semiconductor industry that has paved the way for personal computers, tablets and smartphones, Principal Solar sees the use of solar expanding dramatically in the coming years. 

Perhaps that is why the International Energy Agency (IEA) projects solar will provide up to 25% of global electricity production by 2050. Now you may not believe that forecast, I’m not sure I do, but it’s not slowing down solar investments by Germany, China and Japan. Meanwhile here at home, traditional electricity generation companies are preparing for that coming move down the solar cost curve. It sure sounds like Principal Solar is on to something and sometimes to see the real opportunity you have to have a different view on things and that’s just what Michael shares with us today. 

Direct download: 12-10-13_PRINCIPALSOLARPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:17am EDT

Joining me this week on PowerTalk is Peter Schiff, American businessman, investment broker, financial commentator, author and radio show host as well as the CEO and Chief Global Strategist of Euro Pacific Capital Inc. As I’ve come to appreciate about Peter, he is not shy about his views and that always makes for a great conversation, particularly this one that touches on the economy, the direction of the stock market and what lies ahead for both. 

Despite slower earnings growth and the lackluster U.S, economy, the domestic  stock market continues to grind its way higher following the government shutdown. Your probably asking yourself - What’s fueling this continued rise? 

If you look around in your every day life, you are likely thinking there is a disconnect between the economy and the stock market. After all the money the Federal Reserve has used to stimulate the economy, we continue to have huge numbers of people dropping out of the work force each month, wages have stagnated, unemployment remains at high levels and businesses are hesitant to invest and deploy capital. Is it any wonder that Gallup’s Economic Confidence Index remains well below the six year high level of -3. That’s right, the high over the last six years is a negative number!

Yet, the stock market moves higher.

With little return in alternative assets, like CDs for example, thanks to continued easy money from the Federal Reserve investors have few other places to turn. What’s worrisome is that the average investor is extremely bullish even though at some point either the Fed will have to taper its efforts or as Peter points out, we will have another crisis on our hands. The most recent American Association of Individual Investor’s sentiment readings points to levels of bullishness that are well above the long-term average. 

It’s the lack of tapering or at least the unlikelihood that the Fed will tighten that have Peter concerned with the health of the economy, the dollar  and more. As we delve deeper into the reasons for what Peter sees ahead - another financial crisis, we also discuss where he is having his clients invest their capital today to deliver returns for tomorrow. 

Direct download: 12-02-13_SCHIFFPOWERTALK_.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:38am EDT

Welcome to another edition of PowerTalk. I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits, and these are my 1-1 conversations with the movers and shakers in the business world that take you behind the scenes and in the know. Be sure to check out ChrisVersace.com for more on PowerTrends and past editions of PowerTalk.

This week I had the pleasure of talking with John Allison, President & CEO of the Cato Institute. Unlike many other firms located in Washington, D.C., Cato is neither democratic nor republican in nature, but rather it is a public policy research organization — a think tank – dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets and peace. That alone is great reason to talk with John Allison, but it get’s even better.

Prior to becoming the President & CEO of the Cato Institute, John was Chairman and CEO of BB&T Corporation (BBT),  the 10th largest financial services holding company headquartered in the United States. During his tenure as CEO from 1989 to 2008, BB&T grew from $4.5 billion to $152 billion in assets. John’s also written a fantastic book —  “The Financial Crisis and the Free Market Cure: Why Pure Capitalism is the World Economy's Only Hope.” Not only did it receive a number of rave review, but it sat at the top of the Wall Street Journal’s best seller list. 

Over the course of our conversation, John and I talk the big talk on a variety of topics including why a sense and understanding of liberty is essential, why regulation is bad for the market,  what we can do to promote a healthy free market and end unemployment in America. We’ll even touch on the Federal Reserve, an organization that some say is only helping fuel the problems we are experiencing today. 


Welcome back to another edition of PowerTalk. I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits. Each week I bring you my 1-1 conversations with the movers and shakers in business and those areas that impact business, the economy and more.

This week I am especially proud to talk with today’s guest -- Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.

Now most of you know him as the only twice-serving Secretary of Defense. As you’ll learn in our coming conversation there is far more to Secretary Rumsfeld…for half a century, he’s been at the center of our nation’s history, as a Naval aviator, U.S. Congressman, ambassador, top aide to presidents. He also spent two decades at the top of American business, and was named by Fortune as one of America’s ten “toughest” CEOs and by The New York Times as a “turnaround artist.”

That collected experience means Secretary Rumsfeld has valuable isight into leadership, strategy  and management. We’’ll talk about all of that as well as his new book - “Rumsfeld’s Rules: Leadership Lessons in Business, Politics, War, and Life.”


Unlike many of the people in Washington today, I think you’ll find that Former Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has a keen eye for what Washington should be doing to help the economy and business. As you’ll hear, he also has a few comments and suggestions for President Obama as well. 


Joining me today on PowerTalk to discuss all of this is Jeff Lawson CEO and co-founder of Twilio, a company that makes cloud-based telephony tools -- voice and messaging -- for companies and mobile application developers like Uber, Google (GOOG), Hulu, salesforce.com (CRM), Home Depot (HD), AT&T (T) and others. 

With the global explosion of the Internet, smartphones and tablets, we’ve seen a shift in how we can communicate with one another. Instant messaging, mobile messaging, picture messaging, email, messing through Facebook, Google+, chatting and more recently video calls through Skype, Google and even Apple with its FaceTime app.

While many think of these new modes of communication are for personal use -- keeping in touch with family, friends and so on, there’s another aspect to it -- for business. That’s right the Internet and telecommunications technologies are changing the way we connect with companies, and that has implications how a company communicates with its customers It’s not just Twitter and Facebook - a company can interact with customers via voice, messaging or even picture messaging.

In the age of software defined communication, which is having an impact on the business models of Comcast (CMCSA), AT&T, Verizon (VZ), Cisco (CSCO), Avaya and others, Jeff has been named one of the top VoIP CEOs to work for. To me that says he’s worth listening to and as you listen to this edition of PowerTalk you’ll soon see picking up the phone and talking to someone in new light.

Direct download: 11-05-13_TWILIOPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:41am EDT

Joining me this week on PowerTalk is Ben Chodor co-founder of Happtique, a company that certifies medical, health, and fitness apps through its App Certification program and helps healthcare professionals fill prescriptions with its App Prescribing prescription tool.

That’s right, we’re going behind the scenes and in the know this week on mHealth.

It’s no secret that our lives are becoming more and more connected. Mobile carriers like AT&T, Verizon and others are looking for new revenues streams as smartphone and tablet sales grow. We’re hearing more about The Connected Car and The Connected Home and wearables. In that last category we’ve seen smartwatches and other devices from Samsung, Nike (NKE), Fitbit, Jawbone and others. Smartwatches, Fuelbands, fitness trackers, activity trackers and the like.

With a rich ecosystem of supported devices and applications, mHealth enables you to manage your personal health and wellness from the palm of your hand, anytime, anywhere.

Given the explosive growth of what I call the Connected Society, revenue in the global mobile health market is expected to reach $26 billion in 2017, according to a report released by Research2Guidance. Driving that is the 1.7 billion people that are expected to download health apps by 2017. And there is no shortage to choose from Today - there are about 97,000 mobile health apps in 62 different app stores.

That’s where Happtique comes into play. As you’ll hear Ben talk about, there is a lot going on in the world of health, prescriptions and apps. Before too long, one day your insurance company may reimburse for your home healthcare equipment AND the apps that not only run them, but connect them with you physicians. If you think that’s exciting, just wait until you hear what Ben and I talk about in this edition of PowerTalk.

Direct download: 10-29-13_HAPPTIQUEPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:45pm EDT

Joining me this week on PowerTalk is Brian Jaquet, senior marketing manager  of Slingbox. We discuss not only about the past, present and future of place shifting but also what it means for Sling Media and how the company looks to compete in this next battleground. This is what Ted Loeonsis, the acting CEO of Groupon, partner at Revolution Growth and owner of the Washington Capitals, Wizards and Mystics says about Slingbox:

“Slingbox, which turns my iPad into a television, has become an invaluable app for me. Everything that I have on my home TV's satellite setup I can now watch on my iPad, wherever I am in the world.

Over the last year or so we’ve talked with a number of people at a variety of companies. This week we’re venturing into some new territory as we hone in on what I think is one of the next battleground to be fought in what I call the connected device space. That’s a key part of my Always On, Always Connected PowerTrend.

We’re in the middle of what I call the smartphone bloodbath between Apple, Samsung, Nokia, Blackberry, LG, and a number of others. 

We’re starting to see the same dynamic take shape in the tablet space as well. 

The area that I’m talking about is the Connected Home and the living room in particular. Odds are you have a set top box, maybe a DVR already and perhaps even a gaming console sitting under your TV. 

You’ve probably noticed that given the rise of the DVR and on demand programming, you and people like you that lead busy lives are abandoning what’s been called appointment TV. 

Instead, we’re seeing a sharp rise in what’s called placeshifting.

In fact I bet some if not most of you are placeshifters

That’s a person who consumes content on one device even though its stored on another one.  Slingbox  invented placeshifting back in 2004 and during the ensuing years"Slingbox" has become to placeshifting what Kleenex has been for tissues.

Over the last decade, the ability to store, watch, send, has not just grown, its exploded as first mobile phones then smartphones, tablets and connected TVs have shipped not by the millions, but by the billions. I’d argue the concept placeshifting has expanded and  now include areas like document synchronization, file sharing and other cloud-centric features from companies like Boxee, Dropbox and cloud applications by Apple (AAPL), Google (GOOG) and others as placeshifting ones. 

Brian and I discuss not only about the past, present and future of place shifting but also what it means for Sling Media and how the company looks to compete in this next battleground. Trust me, this isn’t a conversation you’ll want to save and listen to later.

Direct download: 10-22-13_SLINGBOXPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:43am EDT

Joining me on PowerTalk today is Ed Bilek, the head of U.S. shareholder services  for Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA (BBVA). While you may find it hard to believe, BBVA is arguably the next big bank you’ve probably never heard of.

Before we get to why that is, let’s step back a bit and talk talk one of my   -- PowerTrends -- The Rise and Fall of the Middle Class. That PowerTrend -- of my Great 8 PowerTrends -- looks to capitalize on those companies positioned to benefit from rising disposable incomes in the emerging markets as well as gains in more mature markets, like here in the U.S. or the Eurozone.

What would make a company even more interesting and the opportunity to own its shares even sweeter is if the businesses is is benefitting from a regional to national strategy. A great example of this is Starbucks (SBUX), which is going from a regional presence to a more national one in China. Starbucks recently opened its 1000th store in China during the June quarter, and aims to have 1,500 locations throughout China by 2015. I recommended shares of Starbucks to subscribers of my investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits and including dividends received they are up more than 70%. 

Another company that is embarking on a regional to national strategy is BBVA. For those who have not heard of BBVA before, it is the 35th largest bank globally with assets north of $800 billion according to Accuity. Headquartered in Spain, BBVA has a presence in more than 30 countries. It’s not surprising that you may have not heard of BBVA here in the U.S., it was only a few years ago the company made a concerted effort to bulk up its US footing when it bought Compass Bancshares.

Flash forward to today and BBVA Compass is the 22nd largest bank in the U.S. based on deposit market share per data just released by the FDICBased on conversations I have had with management their long-term goal is to grow BBVA into a top 10 U.S. bank. That’s a similar strategy embarked upon by Toronto Dominion Bank (TD) and it’s served its shareholders well. 

After listening to my PowerTalk with Ed Bilek, I suspect BBVA is a bank that you’ll at the very least want to keep your eyes on.



Joining me today on PowerTalk is Leonard Moodispaw - Chairman and CEO of KEYW Holding Corp. (KEYW), a publicly traded company that provides cybersecurity, and geospatial intelligence solutions for U.S. Government,  intelligence and defense customers as well as  commercial enterprises. 

As we move more and more of our lives into the digital frontier, it exposes us to a different set of risks. Whether your a person, a business or a government, the way in which you need to secure yourself is far different than it was 2-3 years ago, let alone 20 years ago. 

What I just described is the downside of my Always On, Always Connected PowerTrend

Cyber attacks, including website and email hacking, malware infection and targeted denial of service, are being increasingly reported by private users and government departments

How big of a threat is it?

Companies such as Google (GOOG), Twitter, Facebook (FB), Evernote, and recently Adobe (ADBE) have all reported being hacked. In fact, Adobe said it suffered a massive security breach which compromised the IDs, passwords, and credit card information of nearly three million customers.

That’s pretty bad, but it gets worse.

As Verizon (VZ) noted in its 2013 Data Breach Investigation Report, it experienced more than 47,000 reported security incidents and 621 confirmed data breaches last year. Over the entire nine-year range of this study, that tally now exceeds 2,500 data breaches and 1.1 billion compromised records .

With that as a backdrop, does it come as a surprise that The Department of Homeland Security awarded a $6 billion contract to 17 companies to protect the government against cybersecurity threats?

That’s good new for KEYW. While it’s list of intelligence community customers may sound like a lot of alphabet soup, it’s important to realize that it includes NSA, NRO, NGA, AGC and other agencies within the Intelligence Community and Department of Defense (DoD). Winning business from those customers and others led KEYW to deliver revenues of $240 million last year -- that’s up substantially from the $39 million in revenue it achieved in 2009. 

During our time together, Leonard and I talk about what’s going on in the cybersecurity market, how KEYW has been able to deliver that great revenue growth, a new KEYW product offering -- HawkEye G, the industry’s first truly active defense solution to detect stealthy advanced threats, and more

While KEYW may not be a mainstream name today, once you listen to today’s PowerTalk I suspect you’ll be wanting to know more about the company.


Direct download: 10-09-13_KEYWPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:49pm EDT

Joining me on PowerTalk today is Chris Burruss, President of the Truckload Carriers Association and we talk about the trucking industry, what its responsible for, and what the key issues are facing the industry. 
When most people talk about the economy, we tend to think of manufacturing, retail, restaurants and other industries that require goods be they finished products or key parts and assemblies. 
We all know we need these, but how often do you think about how products and parts get where they need to be? 
No deliveries means there is nothing to sell and nothing to buy. How does our economy work in that environment?
Even before I started my investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits, as part of near 20 years keeping tabs on the U.S. economy as an equity research analyst on Wall Street, I kept an eye on transport activity -- trucks, rails and intermodal activity. For those not familiar with intermodal, it’s when something is shipped by truck to rail or rail to truck. 
Think about it, if goods are not getting shipped to and fro it means factories are not producing and demand from the consumer or business is weak. That means trucking is a key barometer of the domestic economy. While that was true decades ago, it’s even more true today given the shift toward just in time manufacturing.
Simply put if trucks are not rolling, the economy is not moving. That’s something think about every time you drive down I-95, 40, 70, 80, the 5 or another interstate highway.  If you don’t see many trucks, don’t be shocked if the economy isn’t that strong.
Direct download: 10-01-13_TRUCKLOADPOWERTALK_.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:42am EDT

Joining me on PowerTalk today to discuss the e-reader market, it’s new line of Android tablets that are designed with readers in mind as well as how it works with small book retailers and more is Mike Serbinis, the CEO and founder of Kobo.
If your like me, your an avid reader. Books, newspapers, magazines and all sorts of reports be it from companies like Gallup or the Congressional Budget Office. As the old say goes reading is fundamental.
Much like many other industries, the publishing industry has been rocked by technology -- how we consume information has changed and that means how people read has changed as well. Print continues to cede ground to digital publications that can be read on e-readers, tablets, smartphones and even on your computing desktop. We’ve seen magazines, like Newsweek, shift from print to only digital and newspapers such as The New York Times (NYT) try to figure out a pay-wall solution for its content. We’ve seen once prominent bookstore chains go out of business or in the case of Barnes & Noble (BKS) shrink its footprint. 
Now when most people think of reading digitally, they tend to think of either the Apple (AAPL) iPad or Amazon.com’s (AZMN) Kindle e-reader and Fire tablet. While those are viable solutions there is another out there.
The Wall Street Journal named the Kobo  Aura HD the “best e-Reader” beating out Amazon’s Kindle and the Nook from Barnes & Noble. I have to say I have been trying out the Kobo Aura and it’s great and it’s online bookstore has 4 million books to choose from as well as newspapers, magazines and more. 
Mike shares a number of insights to where all of this is headed and he reviews some of the strategic moves that Kobo is making to be ahead of the curve. 
Direct download: 09-24-13_KOBOPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:49pm EDT

When most people think of hanging out with family and friends it tends to involve one of my favorite subjects -- food. According to The Bureau of Economic Analysis, on average the U.S. consumer spends $6,129 or 9.81% of their paychecks on food each year. That makes the food industry, which includes eating at home and eating out, a big big business.

Joining me to talk about the success as well as the challenges that Domino’s Pizza (DPZ)  faces is Lynn Liddle, Executive Vice President, Communications, Legislative Affairs and Investor Relations at Domino’s. Lynn’s been with the company since 2002 and has seen the good, the bad and the ugly along the way.

Like any business, the food industry has its ups and downs -- new products and better service to tighter consumer spending and cut throat competition to rising input costs and  potential regulations. Despite those and other challenges, people need to eat, which means balancing demand with consumer tastes that sometimes shift based on the diet trend du jour. 

With $1.6-$1.7 billion in annual revenues and more than 9,700 company owned and franchised locations, it’s a player in pizza and more. Lynn and I talk about all of that as well as break down the company’s key cost items and discuss some potential regulation that is winding its way through Washington, D.C. that could take a bite out of small businesses. You’ll even learn what the number one pizza toppings are in Japan and India.  Here’s a hint, they aren’t what you think they might be.

Direct download: 09-16-13_DOMINOSPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:52am EDT

Joining me on PowerTalk to peel the onion on a number of issues that we face in our broadband centric lives is former FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell. He recently left the FCC after 7 years, and while his is not a household name Broadcasting & Cable magazine said he “gained a reputation of a statesmanlike conservative who can find common ground with his opposition without compromising his principles.” He was kind enough to spend some time with me as he heads to Hudson Institute’s Center for Economics of the Internet as a visiting fellow.

If your the average American, I’m sure you enjoy your cell phone, smartphone, high speed internet, cable programming and so on. In fact, you probably semi-addicted to it. What you probably don’t enjoy is stroking that ever increasing check each month when you pay your bill to AT&T, Verizon, Comcast or some other service provider. 

While we tend to think of the device we are using -- smartphone or set top box --  and the network that enables it, there’s far more going on behind the scenes not only at those companies, but in Washington, D.C. 

In this edition of PowerTalk, Robert McDowell and I discuss issues facing broadcasters, such as Aereo; the impact of rising smartphone competition, particularly from Huawei; the future of wireless - for those who think the smartphone and tablets are it you have a rude awakening coming. We also talk about some of the pain points facing the industry, including the spectrum shortage, which is interesting considering the government is sitting on a ton of it. 

Direct download: 09-09-13_FCCPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:investing, economics,technology, interview -- posted at: 12:42pm EDT

Joining me this week on PowerTalk is Lauren Fifield, Senior Health Policy Advisor at Practice Fusion. Practice Fusion is one of the fastest growing electronic health record community in the US. Founded in 2005, the company has 150,000 physicians and practice users using Practice Fusion’s EHR across all 50 states. At Practice Fusion, Lauren manages government relationships and monitors an ever-changing landscape of legislation, regulation, and health industry antics. 

Many citizens and business owners are concerned over the increasing costs associated with the Affordable Care Act -- better known as Obamacare. A study from the the nonpartisan Society of Actuaries estimates that because of higher risk pools, insurance costs will rise 32% on average nationwide within three years. Even Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told reporters that, “Some people purchasing new insurance policies for themselves this fall could see premiums rise because of requirements in the health care law.”

In talking with Lauren, it became clear that there is another shift in Obamacare worth noting. More specifically, the carrot that was a part of the High Tech Act passed in 2009 that incentivizes doctors to move to electronic medial records (EMR) becomes a stick at the end of 2014. And by stick I mean that docs will be see their medicare and medicaid payments penalized until such EMR systems are enacted.

Regulatory requirements and associated deadlines make for great catalysts when it comes to investing. I’ve seen this time and time again be it with new truck engine emissions standards or other new mandates in heavy trucks and other equipment. The deadline tends not to be some line in the sand that gets redrawn several times a la the famous Bugs Bunny-Yosemite Sam cartoon. Instead its a firm line that sparks strong demand ahead of that compliance deadline, and that is good news for a particular set of companies. 

Direct download: 09-02-13_PRACTICEFUSIONPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:34am EDT

Joining me this week on PowerTalk is Alice Joe, Executive Director, Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness at U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Alice and I talk about not only  about The Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act,  but many of the issues it creates and the ensuing uncertainty. For example, did you know that certain aspects of Dodd-Frank could alter the way companies like McDonald’s, The Hershey Company and Starbucks conduct their business? Not only that but when Alice and I spoke, she shared with me that roughly one-third of the 400 new rules to be put forth by Dodd-Frank across more than 10 agencies in DC had yet to be proposed.  

Those two examples describe just some of the uncertainty that Dodd-Frank is creating in the business community. Dodd-Frank aside, there’s plenty of uncertainty to go around  these days -- new data shows the average American household is earning less than when the Great Recession ended four years ago. In a letter to congressional leaders, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew warned they will have to raise the debt limit by mid-October -- sooner than previously expected and that ups the ante between raising the current raise the debt ceiling vs. shut the government imbroglio that is under way in Washington, D.C. Recently U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the Syrian government’s use of chemical weapons against civilians was a "moral obscenity," delivering the clearest indication yet that the Obama administration contemplating military action against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Add to that the tapering question after a weak July durable orders report and there is ample uncertainty to be had. 

 With something as big as Dodd-Frank, you probably think there’s more than just a few points of uncertainty, particularly since more than one-third of the rule have yet to be passed. You’d be right and that’s exactly what Alice and I talk about in this edition of PowerTalk. Luckily, Alice has some suggestions as to how this mess can be fixed and uncertainty can be minimized if not removed. 

Direct download: 08-27-13_CHAMBERCOMMERCEPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:24pm EDT

This week on PowerTalk I’m serving up our late summer reading list. That’s right, the last few weeks of August tend to be filled with cookouts, vacations and lounging by the pool. If your doing those things, or if your like me and your not, you still need a good book or two to get your through the dog days of summer. With that in mind, I’m bringing you two books that are great reads in general, but make for great end of the summer reads. 

The first is Niall Ferguson’s latest book -  “The Great Degeneration.” Odds are you’ve heard of his other books -- "The House of Rothschild", "The Pity of War", "The Cash Nexus" and many others including "The Ascent of Money", which was the basis for a PBS series that won the International Emmy for best documentary. In The Great Degeneration, Niall tackles the decay in four key institutions -- representative government, the free market, the rule of law and civil society -- that he argues have been the key to success in Western Civilization. We talk about whether or not its over for us as a people and I think you’ll be surprised by what he has to say. 

The second is Conrad Black’s “Flight of the Eagle” and its another great read that traces America’s evolution, discussing key events, strategies and problems along the way. Conrad’s perspective is insightful and informative, but that’s something to expect from him considering that by the late 1990s, he had more than 500 publications under his banner as he headed the world’s third largest newspaper group and the largest print-only media operation. Aside from his new book, Conrad shares his outlook on the publishing industry and what he would do if today if he was charged with fixing a major newspaper like The New York Times or The Washington Post. Much like in "Flight of the Eagle", Conrad’s unique perspective on this doesn’t disappoint.  

Direct download: 08-16-13_SUMMEREADINGPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:investing, economics, -- posted at: 12:32pm EDT

Joining me on PowerTalk this week to talk about the economy, the outlook for small business and job creation prospects as well as the availability of credit is Jay DesMarteau, Head of Small Business, SBA, Restaurant, & Government Banking at TD Bank. 


Each week on PowerTalk, we go behind the scenes to put you in the know - this time we’re talking about the lifeblood of job creation here in the U.S - small business. Based on the recent July employment report, which disappointed on several levels,  it seems that small business is only moving at half speed. The weakness in hiring is not all that surprising given some of the data that Jay shared with me -- only 17% of small businesses  planned to hire at least one new employee, down from 32% six months ago. However, more than three-quarters of small business owners intend to keep staffing levels the same, up from 59% in December.


If you or someone you know owns a small business or is looking to start one, then you know that access to credit or business loans is key. Whether your a new business, one that is trying to get off the ground by a veteran or a entrepreneur or its an an existing one business that is looking to expand to another location, add another product line, bid on another project or maybe even expand your hours of operation, access to capital is needed in order to grow that business and put more people to work.


Jay and I talk about TD Bank, one of the 10 largest banks in the country and what’s is doing to help small business, but also the size and scope of Jays’ team of 150 small business relationship managers and more than 1,300 TD Bank store managers. We also touch on the economy and what Jay and his team are seeing from small business owners. Even though deposits are high, small businesses remain on the sidelines when it comes to taking on new credit, expanding and hiring. 


Jay shares some of the challenges facing small business owners including growing their business, the economic environment and cash flow. In addition to all of that and talking specifically about what he and his team is seeing in the restaurant, healthcare and government markets, Jay also introduce us to some very specific efforts from TD Bank and the International Franchise Association to help veterans find jobs and start businesses - the SBA Veterans program. 

Direct download: 08-12-13_TDBANKPOWERTALK_.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:02am EDT

Joining me this week on PowerTalk to talk about the Moto X and Motorola’s re-shoring of jobs is Mark Randall, Motorola Mobility’s Senior Vice President of Supply Chain and Operations. 

We all now recognize the July 2013 Employment Report not only fell short of expectations with only 162,000 jobs added during the month, but sifting through the details it can easily be labeled a low quality report:

  • The unemployment rate fell only because more Americans left the labor force than the total number of jobs created during July
  • Where we saw job growth was primarily at low-paying and part-time jobs
  • Wages remain under pressure.

The news is also a buzz over the latest and greatest new device be it a new smartphone, tablet or streaming device that attaches to the back of your TV.  We as a people are connecting and interacting with each other more than ever thanks to the explosion in smartphones. Almost 230 million smartphones were shipped the June quarter alone and while that sounds like a lot, industry data points to more than 3.2 million mobile subscriptions. That says the shift from mobile phones to smartphones is far from over.

One company that is looking to tackle both of these is Motorola Mobility, which is owned by Google. Not only did the two entities announce the Moto X -- the first jointly developed smartphone between the two companies last week, but the device will be manufactured here in the U.S. 

That’s right....Motorola Mobility is re-shoring jobs to the tune of 2,200 when the Moto X smartphone is at full production. 

During my PowerTalk with Mark, we talk about what it takes to make the Moto X such a high customizable device and why domestic manufacturing can compete with China and other low cost manufacturing alternatives. With a facility in Fort Worth, Texas that spans more than 500,000 square feet, I suspect Motorola is just getting started with the Moto X and that’s good for not only Google, but for American jobs. 

Direct download: 08-05-13_MOTOROLAPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:10pm EDT

This week on PowerTalk, I’m doing a deep dive on a subject that is literally ripped from the headlines -- insider trading. Over the last few years, a number of government agencies including the Securities Exchange Commission, the Justice Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation among others, have targeted hedge funds, expert networks and other sources of insider information.

Over the last three years, the SEC has filed more insider trading actions (168 in total) than in any three-year period in the agency's history. Last week, headlines were rampant over insider trading and what it may mean for the SAC Capital, one of the most successful hedge funds around, and its leader Steve Cohen.

Joining me to take you behind the scenes and in the know on these efforts over the last few years is award winning journalist and author of the new book Circle of Friends, Charles Gasparino. I’m sure your more than familiar with Charlie and his reporting on the Fox Business Network and the Fox News Channel, where he focuses on major developments in the world of finance and politics. What you may not know is Charlie has won a number of awards for his work, including the prestigious Investigative Reporters and Editors Award for his book The Sellout

After reading Circle of Friends, I can easily say that if you liked or loved Barbarians at the Gate, Den of Thieves, or Liar’s Poker then Charlie’s new book is a must read. The only bigger thrill than reading Circle of Friends was talking with him about it.

Direct download: 07-29-13_GASPARINOPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:36am EDT

Water - so simple and something that, if your like me, you tend to take for granted. But a report recently released from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency showed that $384 billion in improvements are needed for the nation’s drinking water infrastructure to continue to provide safe drinking water. But as you’ll soon learn, that $384 billion is only a drop in the bucket when it comes to what’s ahead for water and the water industry.

It’s a big topic and its the focus of PowerTalk this week. I’m your host Chris Versace and once again we’re taking you behind the scenes and in the know -- this time on water and the looming water crisis.  It’s a big issue and huge pain point -- so much so that it’s been a key theme in my investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits. 

Over the last week, we’ve had a huge reminder of how important water is -- I’m talking about the heatwave that hit the Easter United States. But like I said, that was just a reminder as to how bad the drought situation is here in the U.S.

While we tend to think of water as abundant, it’s not -- in fact only a small percentage of the world’s water is reachable and usable -- to me that says it’s really a scarce resource.

Joining me to day to talk about this is Debra Coy, Principal at Svanda & Consulting and an advisor at XPV Capital. While those are Debra’s current titles, she been following or involved with the water industry for more than 25 years as an equity analyst at firms such as Janney Montgomery Scott, The Washington Research Group, HSBC Securities and others. 

Debra’s give a great overview on the water industry and its many facets -- from equipment companies like Xylem (XYL) to water utilities such as American Water Works (AWK) and Aqua America (WTR) to name a few. . We also talk about the looming water crisis, water’s role not only in the home but in industrial and other manufacturing uses (such as semiconductor manufacturing and pharmaceuticals), and how more and more companies around the globe are making critical decisions, such as where a new facility may or may not be located. That’s right, access to water is becoming a key consideration in economic development and that means jobs.

While water may be something you’ve have taken for granted, the looming water crisis is something you can’t afford to ignore any longer.

Direct download: 07-22-13_COYWATERPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:20pm EDT

Investing can be fun and profitable at times, but it can also be a tricky thing. There are hundreds if not thousand of companies to choose from in dozens and dozens of industries. Some are new and thriving like wireless, broadband and social media. That’s great for companies like Qualcomm (QCOM), Entropic (ENTR) and Facebook (FB) and their shareholders. Others like newspapers such as the NY Times (NYT), book publishers and retail book stores like Barnes & Noble (BKS) are feeling the pain as their industry adapts to what I call the Always On, Always Connected society. 
The economy and industry fundamentals are not the only thing to watch and listen to with your investing eyes and ears. One other aspect is the regulatory environment and more specifically new regulations. As we know, business has been saddled with a number of them over the last few years, but none have the ability to impact a businesses’s cost structure like the Affordable Care Act. You know that far better as Obamacare. 
We’ve done a few PowerTalks already that have looked at the implications of Obamacare and other regulations. This week, we’re taking a different take and talking about how you can profit from these regulations. 
Joining me this week on PowerTalk are George Abraham and Sumesh Sood of Veda Healthcare Partners  Veda is a hedge fund that has been in operation for more than two and a half years and invests in healthcare. From biotech and pharmaceuticals to managed care and generic drugs, these guys are looking at all of it with an eye toward delivering profits for their investors. 
Healthcare investing can be a tricky thing, but when we look around and see just the shifting demographics -- living longer, a heavier population, nutritional concerns and more -- it’s apparent that there are a number of pain points to be had. Pain points mean opportunity for the prepared investor.
Let’s listen to what George and Sumesh see as remedies for not only these issues but also for your wallet. 
Direct download: 07-15-13_VEDAHEALTHCAREPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:18am EDT

Joining me this week on PowerTalk is Ron Shaich, the Co-founder, Chairman and CEO of Panera Bread (PNRA). As tends to be the case with these 1-1 conversations, we cover a lot of ground during our time together including the strategies that has led to strong growth in Panera’s revenues and stock price over the last several years. Focusing on the customer experience, transparency, and as Ron says simply “doing it right” are some of the strategies that led to that significant growth at a time when most competitors like Einstein Noah Restaurant Group, Inc. (BAGL), Cosi (COSI) and others were been struggling. Ron and his team also successfully navigated the rise of many alternative eating styles -- Atkins, Paleo, raw and others -- by offering the customers a wide selection of products, including my favorite -- bear claws.

Besides being a leader in the business community, Ron is  an advocate for getting our political leaders to work better together. He’s a part of No Labels, a growing citizens’ movement of Democrats, Republicans and everything in between dedicated to promoting a new politics of problem solving. Their slogan is a great one -- Stop Fighting, Start Fixing.

If your tired of nothing getting done in Washington, frustrated by the lack of progress and the blame game in DC or want to learn more about how Ron and his team delivered over the last few years, get a bear claw and listen up. 

Direct download: 07-08-13_PANERABREADPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:51am EDT

This week we’re going on a ride. Not a magic carpet ride but rather a plane ride with the Founder, President and CEO of BlackJet, Dean Rothchin, to talk about how his company is helping change the aviation industry. 

Here at PowerTalk, each week I bring you my 1-1 conversations with not only CEOs of public and private companies, but also those from the up and coming companies and disruptive apps that are likely game changers. That makes them potential disruptors in the world that I call PowerTrends. We’ve seen this time and again and that’s why I keep a close eye not only on publicly traded companies, but also venture and private equity backed ones as well. 

If your a frequent traveler or even just an occasional one, you already know what a hassle traveling has become. Getting to the airport hours before your flight to face long lines and or flight delays or cancellations are just the start of it. It seems the airlines like American Airlines (AAMRQ), United Continental (UAL), Delta Air Lines (DAL), US Airways (LCC), Spirit Airlines (SAVE) and others are nickel-and-diming you all the way. 

Want to check a bag? Pay more.

Want to get a snack on the flight? Pay more.

Want to watch a movie? Pay more.

There’s even talk of passengers having to pay to bring carry-on luggage on board the aircraft.

Don’t forget, you still have to get there hours ahead of time so you can have some up close and personal time with the TSA. 

Did you know that there are a number of smaller airfields that have private plans flying in and out of them all the time?

Often times, those private planes aren’t full and that means the operator is leaving money and profits on the table.

That’s where BlackJet comes in. 

Through its app and website -- BlackJet.com -- the company matches excess seating on private planes with those folks that are looking for a better way to travel. That’s just the start, as CEO Dean Rothchin explained to me there’s far more flexibility when traveling with BlackJet than with a conventional airline. Some have called it the Uber of the airline industry, 

While some may scoff at this, I can tell that BlackJet is gaining ground and a following. I know this because the company is launched in five cities -- San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, South Florida and Las Vega -- and is expanding to five more -- Chicago, Boston, Dallas, Seattle and Washington, D.C.

After listening to this PowerTalk with Dean, you’ll not only see how BlackJet is turning the aviation industry on its head, you’ll understand there are alternatives out there that can make you feel like your worth a few million dollars even if you don’t have that much.

Direct download: 07-01-13_BLACKJETPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:50am EDT

Thanks for joining me this week on PowerTalk. I’m your host Chris Versace.  As you probably know each week I share my in-depth conversations with the movers and shakers in business with you. Some people ask me why I do this.....the answer is to bring you with me as I go behind the scenes and in the know so you can make more informed business or investing decisions. 

Joining me this week on PowerTalk is Richard Demb, the co-founder and CEO of Abe’s Market - a company that is exploding given the explosive demand for natural foods and products as well as the surge in demand for specialty products that are gluten-free, Paleo-friendly, Kosher or Raw.

Given how busy our lives are these days, there’s a good chance you haven’t heard of Abe’s Market.  I could be wrong, but if your not a person that is looking for organic food and natural products, gluten-free solutions or some other healthy alternatives you may not have heard of Abesmarket.com.

Here’s the thing though, as you you through your local grocery store - a Kroger’s (KR), Safeway (SWY), Harris Teeter (HTSI), Publix Super Markets or some other one - if yours is like mine, your seeing more and more shelf space dedicated to natural, organic and gluten free products. Figures from the U.S. Department of Agriculture find that retail sales of organic foods alone grew to $21.1 billion in 2008, up from $3.6 billion in 1997. According to Datamonitor, U.S. sales of gluten-free food and beverages are expected to reach $5.6 billion by 2015. That compares to other figures that put the market size for gluten free foods at $2.6 billion in 2010.

That’s some big growth and with people becoming increasingly concerned about the quality of the food we eat,  how its grown, raised, fertilized and so on there doesn’t seem to be any slowdown in sight for these types of products. Better yet, they are a proactive consumer -- the kind that a company would love to have. 

That combination has done wonders for companies like Whole Foods (WFM), The Fresh Market (TFM), Natural Grocers (NGVC), United Natural Foods (UNFI) and others.

Rather smartly, Abe’s Market co-founder and CEO Richard Demb realized  what this could mean when that demand for natural, organic and gluten free products was combined with the power of Internet retailing. Soon after Abe’s Market was born -- and today it brings you thousands of products that have the Abe’s stamp of approval across a number of categories including food, beauty, health, home and more. In short, Abe’s is kinda like a combination of Whole Foods meets Amazon.com (AMZN)

But there’s more...

Recently Abe’s Market launched a new service offering that I think your going to want to hear about - it’s led some people to call it  a Groupon (GRPN) Killer. 

All that in more ahead as we go behind the scenes and in the know during my PowerTalk with Richard Demb, co-founder and CEO of Abe's Market.


Ever since Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke hinted that the Fed could begin tapering its stimulating efforts, volatility returned to the stock market. There has been much discussion about when and how the Fed will deal with the sugar stimulus-addicted economy. The concern is if the Fed acts too quickly, much like a child on too much sugar, it will crash. This has led to the return of volatility to the stock market over the last several weeks. 

My view, which I discussed this past weekend when I appeared on The Wall Street Report as well as with subscribers to PowerTrend Profits and ETF PowerTrader, is that the Fed is not likely to taper near term. Data collected over the last few weeks and as recently as earlier this week confirms the U.S. economy has once again entered yet another spring swoon. Just yesterday, the New York Fed's own Empire Manufacturing Survey for June boosted the case for no near-term tapering:

• "The new orders index slipped six points to -6.7, the shipments index fell twelve points to -11.8, and the unfilled orders index fell eight points to -14.5."

• "Labor market conditions worsened, with the index for number of employees dropping to zero and the average workweek index retreating ten points to -11.3. Continuing the trend seen in the past few months, indexes for the six-month outlook declined, suggesting that optimism about future conditions was weakening further."

That’s doesn’t paint a pretty picture, but while its easy to get overly downbeat as I’ve shared with subscribers to PowerTrend Profits there are pockets of strength in the economy. 

In one of this week’s two PowerTalks, Douglas Holtz-Eakin and I talk about those pockets of strength as well as what can be done to help stimulate growth further without adding to the debt burden that we are increasingly putting on further generations.  For those not familiar with Doug, he’s President of the American Action Forum and recent Commissioner on the Congressionally-chartered Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission. Prior to that, Doug was the Chief Economist of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers from 2001-2002. As you’ll hear, he’ll share his view that there is much to go in the auto and housing rebounds, and  the need for a tax overhaul if we really want to jumpstart the U.S. economy.

Weighing in on that last point and others is Diana Furchtgott-Roth, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research as well as a contributing editor of RealClearMarkets.com and a columnist for the Washington Examiner, MarketWatch.com, and Tax Notes. Diana and I touch on the downside of over regulation as well as how the government’s role in backing certain companies and technologies like those found at Solyndra practically almost guaranteed their failure. It’s also why Diana says, the Affordable Care Act is “built to fail.” 

Direct download: 06-17-13_ROTHPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:19am EDT

Ever since Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke hinted that the Fed could begin tapering its stimulating efforts, volatility returned to the stock market. There has been much discussion about when and how the Fed will deal with the sugar stimulus-addicted economy. The concern is if the Fed acts too quickly, much like a child on too much sugar, it will crash. This has led to the return of volatility to the stock market over the last several weeks. 

My view, which I discussed this past weekend when I appeared on The Wall Street Report as well as with subscribers to PowerTrend Profits and ETF PowerTrader, is that the Fed is not likely to taper near term. Data collected over the last few weeks and as recently as earlier this week confirms the U.S. economy has once again entered yet another spring swoon. Just yesterday, the New York Fed's own Empire Manufacturing Survey for June boosted the case for no near-term tapering:

• "The new orders index slipped six points to -6.7, the shipments index fell twelve points to -11.8, and the unfilled orders index fell eight points to -14.5."

  • "Labor market conditions worsened, with the index for number of employees dropping to zero and the average workweek index retreating ten points to -11.3. Continuing the trend seen in the past few months, indexes for the six-month outlook declined, suggesting that optimism about future conditions was weakening further."

That’s doesn’t paint a pretty picture, but while its easy to get overly downbeat as I’ve shared with subscribers to PowerTrend Profits there are pockets of strength in the economy. 

In one of this week’s two PowerTalks, Douglas Holtz-Eakin and I talk about those pockets of strength as well as what can be done to help stimulate growth further without adding to the debt burden that we are increasingly putting on further generations.  For those not familiar with Doug, he’s President of the American Action Forum and recent Commissioner on the Congressionally-chartered Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission. Prior to that, Doug was the Chief Economist of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers from 2001-2002. As you’ll hear, he’ll share his view that there is much to go in the auto and housing rebounds, and  the need for a tax overhaul if we really want to jumpstart the U.S. economy.

Weighing in on that last point and others is Diana Furchtgott-Roth, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research as well as a contributing editor of RealClearMarkets.com and a columnist for the Washington Examiner, MarketWatch.com, and Tax Notes. Diana and I touch on the downside of over regulation as well as how the government’s role in backing certain companies and technologies like those found at Solyndra practically almost guaranteed their failure. It’s also why Diana says, the Affordable Care Act is “built to fail.” 

Direct download: 06-17-13_EAKINPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:14am EDT

Joining me this week on PowerTalk to discuss the growing threat we all face - cyber attacks -- as well as a set of new solutions to combat them is Martin Roesch. Martin is not only a founder of cyber security company Sourcefire (FIRE), but also its chief technology office and a Board Member. 

With cyber attacks growing not only in volume, but with them happening to companies like Google (GOOG), Bank of America (BAC), Northrop Grumman (NOC), Microsoft (MSFT), Yahoo (YHOO), AOL (AOL), LinkedIn (LNKD), Tumblr, the Reuters news service and the BBC to name a few, it’s a cause for alarm. 

Earlier this week I was talking with some folks at the American Chamber of Commerce and they pointed out several of the key concerns that are on the minds of its more than 3 million members. Those businesses that comprise the Chamber’s constituents -- from mom-and-pop shops and to leading industry associations and large corporations -- cyber security is increasingly on their mind. 

How can it not be? 

Symantec’s (SYMC) Internet Security Threat Report, Volume 18 published this past April revealed a 42% surge during 2012 in targeted attacks compared to the prior year. Designed to steal intellectual property, these targeted cyberespionage attacks are increasingly hitting the manufacturing sector as well as small businesses. While it may raise some eyebrows to those not in the know, you may be surprised to learn that 31% of all targeted attacks aimed at businesses with less than 250 employees.

During the course of my PowerTalk with Martin Roesch, we talk about why the bad guys have a leg up on cyber security companies and what Sourcefire is doing to fix that; how security differs from a good defense;  the state of the cyber security industry, including recent consolidation activity and what’s next. Martin also shares details about some of the new products that Sourcefire is rolling out, which sets the stage for a new model of cyber security. 

Direct download: 06-10-13_SOURCEFIREPOWERTALK_.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:14am EDT

Thanks for joining me for another edition of PowerTalk - I’m  your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits. Joining me today to take you behind the scenes and in the know today is Tom Breitling, the co-founder and chairman of Ultimate Gaming. 

As you may have noticed over the last few years, gambling has grown from being only in Las Vegas, Nevada and Atlantic City, N.J to a number of other states -- Maryland, West Virginia, Connecticut and Pennsylvania to name a few. 

At the same time, technology has had a tremendous impact on our lives and has resulted in the increasing shift toward what I call an Always On, Always Connected Society. It’s hit certain industries hard  for example newspapers and The New York Times (NYT); classifieds, coupons and want ads all of which can be viewed with Monster.com, Groupon (GRPN) or on Valpak.com and more; we communicate less through postal mail and increasingly through email as well as other social media sites like Facebook (FB), Google’s (GOOG) Google + and more. 

Although it’s had its issues, gambling has not been immune to this transformation. While Congress banned online gaming in the U.S. in 2006, that changed recently as tax-hungry states like Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware relaxed the rules. Flash forward to this past April, UltimatePoker.com went live, becoming the first legal, real-money poker site in the U.S. Since then Caesars Entertainment Group said it plans to go live this summer with an online poker site in Nevada.

With more than 10 other states looking at online gaming, be it for poker or for “full blown casino gaming” that was approved in New Jersey, we wanted to get the skinny on the return of online gaming. That’s why I was very excited to talk with Tom - and if anyone should know about the intersection of the Internet and gaming, it’s Tom Breitling given his leadership at Travelscape.com and the Golden Nugget. In case you missed it, he sold both companies and made a ton of money.

How big can online gaming get? Morgan Stanley predicts U.S. online gambling will produce over $9 billion in revenue by the year 2020. That $9 billion figure is the same revenue generated by Las Vegas and Atlantic City markets combined.

As you’ll hear from Tom, this new path for online gaming can help spur not only jobs and taxes, but a number of technologies that make online gaming secure. Tom also shares an interesting perspective on the legislative environment and what it means for business, trust me you won’t want to miss it.

Direct download: 06-03-13_ULTIMATEPOKERPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:08am EDT

Joining me on PowerTalk this week is Michael Vivio, President of Cox Target Media. Now you may be scratching your head going, what company is that....but as you’ll soon learn, its the company behind that blue Valpak envelope you get each week in the mail. Each and every week, it’s packed with coupons, discounts and other offers that are designed to help you save money, while driving revenue at those establishments. 

Since was named president of Cox Target Media in December 2010. Within a year, Michael has taken Valpak and Valpak.com to new heights with a newly re-launched website that has seen online traffic increase 400%, and new partnerships that doubled the amount of online coupons to 40,000.

I don’t know about you, but at my house we go not only go through it each week, but I use the app on my iPhone religiously and I get to load great deals into Passbook. As I look at it right now, I can see coupons for Gold’s Gym, local dry cleaners, a bunch of restaurants that we go to and a bunch of other services. 

As you’ll learn in a few minutes not only is that emphasis on local is a key differentiator for Valpak, but the company has hundreds if not thousands of companies that it works with each week. Just because its local doesn’t mean its just small business - quite the contrary, Valpak works with businesses of all size to drive revenues by giving consumers the deals they need. 

There’s a growing amount of data that suggests the global economy is headed once again for a Spring swoon. Worse yet, two engines for the domestic economy -- one being the consumer and the other small business -- are coming under pressure. In particular, more Americans have been falling out of the labor force, are on food stamps and have seen their disposable dollars disappear. That’s at the heart of what I call the Cash Strapped Consumer. That said, identifying and dealing with a pain point makes for a great business.

We talk about all of that as well as what sets Valpak apart from the daily-deal group of companies like Living Social, Groupon (GRPN), Google Offers (GOOG) and more. We also talk about how Valpak is gearing up for the push to mobile commerce, which includes not only payments, but also couponing. 

Whether your looking to save more than a few dollars each week, curious as to how Valpak is positioning itself for the future, or why Groupon is on the ropes, those answers are all found in this week’s PowerTalk. 

Direct download: 05-27-13_VALPAKPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:20am EDT

Folks - 

As you know there’s a lot going on in the press these days -- the IRS targeting conservatives, the AP scandal and Benghazi to name a few. Another is immigration and immigration reform. Joining me this week on PowerTalk to sort through the issues on immigration is former Secretary of Commerce under President George W. Bush from 2005 to 2009, Carlos Gutierrez. Before he was the Secretary of Commerce, Secretary Gutierrez was the Chairman of the Board and CEO of the Kellogg Company (K).


As PowerTalk friend economist Douglas Hotlz-Eakin recently wrote “Immigration reform resulting in net population growth and an increase in employment-based immigration would likely have wide-reaching economic benefits, and would provide a boost to the housing sector.” Companies poised to benefit include not only the homebuilders like Toll Brothers (TOL) and D.R. Horton (DHI), the nation’s largest homebuilder, but also furniture, paint and appliance vendors like Ethan Allen Interiors (ETH), Sherwin Williams (SHW) and Whirlpool (WHR).

It’s not just housing that would benefit from a revamped immigration policy. Consider that Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s (FB) co-founder and chief executive, pulled together an impressive roster of tech executives to advocate for immigration reform.

Why?

To the U.S. technology industry, there's a dramatic shortfall in the number of Americans skilled in computer programming and engineering that is hampering business.

According to data from the Society for Human Resource Management:

  • 65% of organizations hiring full-time employees say they are having difficulties recruiting for specific job openings.
  • Half of organizations said candidates do not have the right skills for the job, while 42% said candidates lacked the needed work experience.

As former Secretary of Commerce Gutierrez tells me, if we want to get the country back on the growth path we need, we need to revisit immigration. He would know, after-all in 2004 he was the person that Fortune Magazine dubbed “The Man That Fixed Kellog.”

Direct download: 05-19-13_SECGUTIERREZPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:57am EDT

This week on PowerTalk not only am I excited to talk to someone who is truly informed and that means a great conversation to take you behind the scenes and in the know, but  we get an answer to a question that many have been wondering if not asking - based on what we’ve seen over the last few years, how would President Obama fare if he were the CEO of a publicly traded company?
Answering that question is none other than Steve Forbes, Chairman and Editor in Chief of Forbes Media. I’m sure many of you have seen Steve on TV, read his widely followed Fact & Comment column in Forbes magazine or on Forbes.com or consumed his book “Freedom Manifesto: Why Free Markets Are Moral and Big Government Isn’t.”
As you might expect Steve a fantastic guest and we cover a lot of ground -- the U.S. economy, what’s going on in Europe, growth vs. austerity, tax reform, Obamacare, and big government. We also touch on how Steve has revamped the business model at Forbes given the challenges faced by the traditional publishing business model. It’s a great conversation, and I think  you’ll really want to hear is Steve’s answer to that question and a number of others.

Direct download: 05-12-13_STEVEFORBESPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:11am EDT

In recent weeks, we’ve heard from a number of cable companies like Comcast (CMCSA), Charter Communications (CHTR), Time Warner Cable (TWC) and others. All in all, it’s been a message that reinforces the increasing degree of what I call the Connected Society - WiFi, the Cloud, high speed Internet and on demand programming. Mix in the shift toward smartphones and tablets, and we find the notion of appointment TV viewing is nearly gone save for sporting events. 

Those cable companies are battling with mobile operators, such as AT&T (T), Verizon (VZ) and others for consumer dollars. As they do this, the operators have made it more expensive for consumers to utilize their services even though new technologies have made it cheaper for those companies to deliver said services. Just this past December, Charter Communications instituted a price increase on its high-speed Internet service. At Comcast, price increases on video service and customers upgrading to HD packages and digital video recorders (DVRs) helped boost the company’s first quarter profit by 17%.

For those wondering why I’m up on all of this, the growing Connected Society is a key  part of my Always On, Always Connected PowerTrend

Joining me on PowerTalk to discuss why this and what it means is Susan P. Crawford author of the new book “Captive Audience: The Telecom Industry and Monopoly Power in the New Gilded Age.” Ms. Crawford is a law professor who served as special assistant to President Obama for science, technology and innovation policy. 

It’s a terrific conversation and not only is Susan an ace on the subject matter but doesn’t pull any punches. Some of the key insights that Susan and I discussed on this edition of PowerTalk include:

  • How after years of deregulation and a wave of mergers, there has been little to competition nor adequate oversight when it comes to high-speed Internet access.
  • Verizon Wireless and AT&T, who together account for about two-thirds of U.S. wireless subscribers, can raise prices with impunity and often appear to act in lockstep. Their average revenues per household or per user continue to climb. By comparison, in Europe, where wireless carriers face much more competition, average revenues per user have fallen by 15% over the last few years.
  • Despite high-speed Internet access offerings from AT&T and Verizon -- Uverse and Fios, respectively -- those two companies have stopped expanding these offerings and are focusing on their wireless services. As Susan points out, this leaves the cable companies and Comcast in particular in the cat bird seat when it comes to high speed Internet access and related services. The industry leader, Comcast continues to invest in network infrastructure to ensure product leadership in video and high-speed internet, as well as the expansion of new services that generate attractive returns like business services and XFINITY Home.
  • From an investor’s perspective, Comcast has several competitive moats about its business especially since the purchase of NBC Universal, While many see Comcast’s competitors being the other cable companies as well as AT&T and Verizon, Susan points out and I agree with her that post Comcast’s acquisition of NBC Universal its real competitors are companies like The Walt Disney Company (DIS), a content company that owns theme parks and ABC; Viacom (VIA), which owns CBS; and News Corp. (NWS).

 

Direct download: 05-08-13_SUSANCRAWFORDPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:10pm EDT

Welcome back to PowerTalk - I’m your host Chris Versace and I’m taking you behind the scenes and in the know with conversations I’m having each week with CEOs and key business. If your new to PowerTalk, we’re going deeper into some of the key issues of the day to help sharpen your view when it comes to investing. 
Last week we got the latest rash of economic data that shows that while the U.S. economy is not falling off a cliff, it’s not exactly lighting the world on fire. In recent weeks, we’ve gotten figures that point to more people falling our of the work force, heard more about cyber attacks and watched the tragedy in Boston while the issue of gun control percolates in Washington. 
We’ve also started to realize what the true cost of Obamacare will be when its fully implement in 2014. Even The New York Times ran a story recently with the headline “Democratic Senators Tell White House of Concerns About Health Care Law Rollout”
It also seems that many across the pond in the Eurozone are realizing that austerity is not the solution. After years of insisting that the primary cure for Europe’s malaise is to slash spending, the champions of austerity, most notably Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, find themselves under intensified pressure to back off unpopular remedies and find some way to restore faltering growth to the world’s largest economic bloc.
Joining me this week to make some sense of all of this is Dr. John Lott, economist and author of the new book “At The Brink.”  In his new tome, John talks about how the Obama stimulus was the most expensive failure in history, why debt will continue to grow under Obama and why you can expect soaring health care costs.
It’s a book that Kevin Hassett, Director of Economic Policy Studies and senior fellow  at the American Enterprise Institute says is “chock full of sober, fact driven analysis that is must reading for anyone who wants a glimpse of our near future.”
Not only is it that but John Lott has a number of charts and graphics that crystalize the central points. After hearing that you may be excited to see the book, but just wait until you hear what he tells me.
Direct download: 04-28-13_JOHNLOTTPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:18pm EDT

Thanks for joining me this week on PowerTalk. I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits. If you’ve been here before, welcome back! As you know my goal with PowerTalk is to let you listen in on some of the conversations I’m having each and every week and to take you behind the scenes and in the know.

If your a new listener to PowerTalk, this is the place where I bring you my 1-1 conversations with CEOs of public and private companies as well as other key people in business, politics and wherever else might be impacting the stock market and our investing decisions. 

A few weeks ago, subscribers to my investment newsletter, PowerTrend Profits, were told about the opportunities to be had in the shares of Nuance Communications (NUAN), a voice and speech recognition technology company. Since then legendary Carl Icahn disclosed a sizable position in Nuance and the company went on to announce several new wins. At the same time, we’ve seen a number of other activities and interests surrounding speech technology in recent months

  • General Motors (GM) is working to integrate Apple’s (AAPL) Siri offering into its infotainment system;
  • Google (GOOG) recently acquired DNN Research to improve its Voice Search solution;
  • Amazon (AMZN) acquired text-to-speech and voice recognition company IVONA Software for an undisclosed sum;
  • iSpeech, a Newark, N.J.-based startup that specializes in lifelike text-to-speech apps and previously rolled out voice technology for the connected home, launched a platform to help publishers quickly and inexpensively convert books and articles into audio;
  • Microsoft’s (MSFT) Research and Development teams have been working on something voice based of their own.

And that’s just the short list. Yep it looks like speech technology is becoming THE interface for connected devices. That’s why I’m really jazzed to talk with Paul Musselman, the CEO of Carnegie Speech this week. When we talked, Paul was at the ASU/GSV Education Summit in Arizona, but he made some time to talk with us about the opportunities to be had with voice and speech technology, what it means for the education market and how Carnegie Speech is changing both how students learn to speak English. 

You may not realize it, but as you’ll hear speech technology has will change not only the way we learn and have an impact on Immigration, it could potentially alter the gaming industry as we know it. 

Direct download: 04-21-13_CARNEGIESPEECHPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:09pm EDT

Fellow investors,

Thanks for joining me this week on PowerTalk. I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits. If you’ve been here before, welcome back! As you know my goal with PowerTalk is to let you listen in on some of the conversations I’m having each and every week and to take you behind the scenes and in the know.

If your a new listener to PowerTalk, this is the place where I bring you my 1-1 conversations with CEOs of public and private companies as well as other key people in business, politics and wherever else might be impacting the stock market and our investing decisions. 

One of my Great 8 PowerTrends is Always On, Always Connected. That refers to the pervasive nature of the Internet and the connected society we live in today. You see this first hand day in and day out as we use our smartphones and tablets to read email, message our family and friends, check the latest on Facebook (FB) or LinkedIn (LNKD), stream a movie from Netflix (NFLX). With mobile carriers looking to grow their mobile data revenues beyond smartphones and tablets, they are starting to target other applications. One example is the recent teaming of AT&T (T) and General Motors (GM) to turn the car into a connected hot spot. Another is bevy of services being shown by AT&T (T) and other carriers as part of their attack on the home. 

All told, these two markets -- The Connected Home and The Connected Car -- are expected to account for more than $120 billion in revenues this year alone. It’s such an opportunity that I devoted my entire May issue of PowerTrend Profits to those two topics. Think about it,  if carriers like AT&T and Verizon are only now starting to aggressively target these opportunities, it says 2013 is just the start of these new connected services. 

Joining me to talk about this and the larger role of machine to machine communications is James Nolan, Executive Vice President of Research & Development at InterDigital (IDCC). For those unfamiliar with InterDigital, the company is a technology development and licensing company that counts many of the who’s who in smartphones as customers for their wireless technologies. Aside from helping steer InterDigital’s technology path and therefore keeping a close eye on what’s going on in the industry and where it’s going, wait until you hear what we talk chat about when it comes to new smartphones, the Connected Car and The Connected Home and key topics like security and mobile operating systems.

After listening to this PowerTalk, I think you’ll find some things are not what you think they might be. 

Direct download: 04-11-13_JIMNOLANPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:01am EDT

Fellow investors,

Thanks for joining me this week on PowerTalk. I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits. If you’ve been here before, welcome back! As you know my goal with PowerTalk is to let you listen in on some of the conversations I’m having each and every week and to take you behind the scenes and in the know.

If your a new listener to PowerTalk, this is the place where I bring you my 1-1 conversations with CEOs of public and private companies as well as other key people in business, politics and wherever else might be impacting the stock market and our investing decisions. 

One of my Great 8 PowerTrends is Always On, Always Connected. That refers to the pervasive nature of the Internet and the connected society we live in. With more time being spent online from mobile devices, the combination the smartphone and tablet along with websites and apps like Facebook (FB), Twitter, LinkedIn (LNKD), Netflix (NFLX), Path, Amazon.com (AMZN), Pinterest and others are changing how we work, stay in touch with friends and family, digest news, watch movies and TV and shop.

But there’s a new way to shop and it’s one that let’s you make money from the closet full of clothes and accessories that you’ve built up over the years and buy the fashion items you have been seeking or wish you had. I’m referring to Poshmark, a company whose mobile app allows you to buy from the closets of Americans at affordable prices. Now you may hear that and be skeptical but with more than 1 million users that are uploading the equivalent of an entire Nordstrom’s store every few days, Poshmark is company that sits at the center of my Always On, Always Connected and the Cash Strapped Consumer component of my Rise and Fall of the Middle Class  PowerTrends. 

With me this week on PowerTalk is the Manish Chandra, the founder and CEO of Poshmark. Over the last two years, Manish and his team have focused on women’s fashion and built a user friendly platform that has some women making thousands of dollars a month. Recently Poshmark received a $12 million investment from venture capital firm Menlo Park Ventures. I suspect Menlo saw that Poshmark is tracking to have $350 million in inventory uploaded this year alone -- that’s head and shoulders above the $100 million it was expecting. 

That all sounds pretty good and after talking with Manish, it’s only going to get better because there are some big things planned for Poshmark in the months ahead. If you like buying designer brands online at Amazon.com (AMZN), Macy’s (M), Saks (SKS) or Nordstrom’s (JWN), wait until you hear what’s next for Poshmark.


Some of the key takeaways from my PowerTalk with Manish are:

  • Consumers continue to embrace technologies and platforms to look for value where they can. This began years ago with eBay (EBAY) and has benefitted Amazon.com (AMZN) tremendously with its 6PM.com and other initiatives. Poshmark is the latest in a line of e-tailors and builds on the growing mobile e-tailer landscape. 
  • Poshmark’s continued success is likely to pose problems for mid-to higher end retailers such as Nordstrom (JWN), Saks (SKS), Macy’s (M) and others should women continue to embrace mobile discount shopping for premium and luxury brands.
  •   As Poshmark expands its footprint the pressure its business model could join in on the pressure that is already being put on companies like Children’s Place (PLCE), Gap Kids (GPS) and others by the likes of Costco (COST) and Target (TGT).
Direct download: 04-05-13_POSHMARKPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:30am EDT

Direct download: 03-29-13_REDTHREADPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:03am EDT

Direct download: 03-29-13_MICHAELBROWNPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:55am EDT

Thanks for joining me this week on PowerTalk. I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits.   If your a new listener to PowerTalk, this is the place where I bring you my 1-1 conversations with CEOs of public and private companies as well as other key people in business, politics and wherever else might be impacting the stock market and our investing decisions. 

If you’ve been here before, welcome back! As you know my goal with PowerTalk is to let you listen in on some of the conversations I’m having each and every week and to take you behind the scenes and in the know.

Over the last few years we’ve seen the explosion in smartphones, tablets and ereaders from the likes of Samsung, Apple (AAPL), Google (GOOG), Amazon.com (AMZN) and others. Those devices along with streaming services, cable news, companies like Facebook (FB) and Twitter as well as apps like Flipboard are changing the way we consume news. That’s had a negative impact on the publishing industry, specifically the newspaper and magazine industries. 

A number of newspapers and magazines have folded while others are have reduced the number of days they publish and shift their business model increasingly online. The crux of the problem is the business model of old -- advertising -- is very different in the online world than it was in the print one. That’s forced companies like The New York Times (NYT), News Corp.’s (NWSA) Wall Street Journal and others to adopt new business models. 

Joining me this week to discuss all of this and talk about some of the latest strategies being put to work to help revitalize the news industry is Andrew Nachison, one of the founders of WeMedia, a global agency, studio and idea incubator for the digital age. Clients include publishers, marketers, startups, investors, media companies and educations institutions the world over. 

During our PowerTalk, we dish not only on the challenges facing these institutions, but also why legendary investor Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) has been scooping them up over the last year. Andrew also dishes on those properties that are doing right and he even shares the emerging business model that could help digital publishers and disrupt Google’s (GOOG) Adsense advertising platform.  

Several key takeaway that I came away with from my conversation with Andrew include:

  • Newspaper and magazine publishers like The New York Times Company (NYT), Gannet Co. (GCI), The Washington Post Company (WPO) and others continue to struggle with the shift in advertising dollars to digital platforms and away from print. While there are some success stories in the print medium, the publishing companies continue to struggle with how they compete with online properties.
  • Publishers are experimenting with new business models, such as the paywall seen at NewS Corp’s Wall Street Journal. Several online properties, such as Business Insider and Buzz Feed, have embraced a native advertising model that includes the “advatorie”, a hybrid advertising and content that meshes well within the online property’s content offering.  This model is evident inside of other platforms, like Patagonia and other media-product providers. 
  • The “advatorie” business model poses a threat to Google’s Adsense text and banner advertising model.
  • Tablets, such as Apple’s (AAPL) iPad and others will pressure the text book industry. Already new libraries are popping up that don’t have any books. Companies to watch on this front include News Corp., Amplify and Scholastic. 
Direct download: 03-21-13_WEMEDIAPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:12am EDT

Fellow investors,

Thanks for joining me this week on PowerTalk. I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits.  

If your a new listener to PowerTalk, this is the place where I bring you my 1-1 conversations with CEOs of public and private companies as well as other key people in business, politics and wherever else might be impacting the stock market and our investing decisions. 

If you’ve been here before, welcome back! As you know my goal with PowerTalk is to let you listen in on some of the conversations I’m having each and every week and to take you behind the scenes and in the know.

It’s no secret that job growth has been a disappoint during the current economy recovery. No matter how you look at it and irrespective of the metric you choose, it’s been consistently and persistently weak recovery compared to others.  With wages under pressure, millions of American out of work and thousands continuing to drop out of the work force each month, it can be a depressing picture. That’s before factoring in the millions of American that have ballooned the food stamp program. Worse yet, some economists are even saying the current recovery is getting a little long in the tooth. 

It may look a little bleak out there, but there’s reason to think there is some hope for job creation in this country. 

This week I had the pleasure of speaking with Beth Solomon, the President and CEO of the National Association of Development Companies (NADCO). Development companies take several forms and work with different financing types including working capital loans, asset based financing and private equity. Examples of companies that do that include Main Street Capital Corp. (MAIN), Apollo Investment (AINV), and PennantPark Investment Corp. (PNNT) among others. The National Association of Development Companies or NADCO as it’s known is the trade association for companies certified by the Small Business Administration to provide financing for small businesses under the SBA 504 program.

Beth hammered home the fact that small businesses are the lifeblood of job creation. Despite the industry providing more than $6 billion in capital during 2012 to nearly 10,000 U.S. small businesses, access to capital remains the greatest challenge to small businesses and job creation. In the franchise industry alone, that resulted in 94,000 jobs not being created last year. 

While many think restaurants like Subway and the like when they hear the work “franchise”, you’d be surprised to learn that assisted living, child care, retailers and hotels are others account for a big portion of the franchise industry. That means companies like Hilton, Marriott International (MARR), RadioShack (RSH), Assisted Living Concepts (ALC), Sunrise Senior Living (SRZ) and others.

While commercial banks like Citigroup (CITI), Bank of America (BAC), JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and others are seeing their credit freeze start to thaw, Beth and I talk about a number of programs and other initiatives that small businesses can tap into right now to get the capital they need and put Americans back to work. 



Direct download: 03-13-13_NADCOPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:25pm EDT

Fellow investor,

Thanks for joining on this edition of PowerTalk, where I, Chris Versace - editor of the PowerTrend Profits investing newsletter, dish with good friend Keith Bliss of Cuttone & Co. from the floor of the NYSE. Each week we’ll be breaking down the latest goings on in the market and talking about what’s moving it. We also share what data and events we’ll be keeping our eyes on next week. 

This past week was an interesting one to say the least. From the start of the sequester and the would be snowquester on the east coast to the latest economic data that points to a firmer domestic economy. Despite a better than expected February Employment Report, there are reasons to be think that this could be an outlier rather than the real thing. Not only did the Challenger Grey Job Cuts report point to a 37% increase in job cuts during February, but sifting through this week’s Fed Beige Book reveals restrained hiring given the implications of the Affordable Care Act. Factor in the expected impact of the sequester on defense companies and related contractors and odds are job creation in March will abate. 

That’s not to say the February Employment Report was all bad. The pick up in construction jobs boosts the case for homebuilders, like Toll Brothers (TOL), Ryland Group (RYL) and Lennar Corp. (LEN) among others as well as homebuilding materials companies like USG (USG) and Sherwin Williams (SHW)

Amidst all of this, the stock market continued to grind its way higher this week with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at a new high and the S&P 500 not far behind. One concerning point in this move higher is that the leaders have not been the ususal suspects. That is, it’s not tech, financials or consumer discretionary that are leading the way, but rather defensive sectors like consumer staples, utilities and the like. 

On our radar next week is the February economic data that will start to reflect the jump in gas prices. More specifically that’s inflation figures a la the consumer and producer price indices as well as retail sales figures. Already a number of companies including Rite Aid Corp. (RAD), Ross Stores (ROST), Zumiez (ZUMZ), The Buckle (BKE), Fred’s (FRED) and Cato Corp. (CATO) have announced negative February same store comparisons. With gas prices up 11% on average for the month and a hefty 14% year to date, odds are there will be more disapponting retail figures to be had. 

Be sure to come back next week, when Keith and I will be break it all down again as we wrap the week and look ahead. 

Direct download: Versace_Bliss_03082013.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:17pm EDT

Thanks for joining me again this week on PowerTalk. If your new to the show, this is the place where I bring you my 1-1 conversations with CEOs of public and private companies as well as other key people in business, politics and wherever else might be impacting the stock market and our investing decisions. 

I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits My goal with PowerTalk is to let you listen in on some of the conversations I’m having each and every week and to take you behind the scenes and in the know.

There’s been a lot of bluster over the recently enacted sequester spending cuts, which are really cuts in the rate of spending growth than true reductions in dollars spent. While there will be sectors of the economy that feel the impact more than others -- defense and government contractors like Lockheed Martin (LMT), Northrop Grumman (NOC) and others -- the underlying economy is in far better shape given the rebound in the housing and manufacturing economies. 

Offsetting those favorable economic factors are the impact of higher gas prices and the January tax increase that is putting less money in the average paycheck. Another factor that I am closely watching is the impact of the Affordable Care Act, which is better known as ObamaCare. We knew it would have an impact on business and this week’s Fed Beige Book, which tracks anecdotal economic information from the Fed’s 12  districts, confirms that. In my experience, rising costs -- be it fuel or healthcare costs or both at the same time -- can restrain business investment and hiring. 

Discussing all of that and more with me this week on PowerTalk is Stephen Moore, an editorial board member and senior economics writer at the Wall Street Journal. I’ve enjoyed his editorials in the Journal for a long time and it was a pleasure to speak with him. Even though we talked over a number of issues from overhauling the tax code, the rampant use of food stamps and tax inspired migration to Texas and other states from California, Stephen expressed his long-term optimism for the United States and its economy. All that and we also touched on his new book Who’s The Fairest Of Them All? 

Stephen and I both agree that the political conflict in Washington has held the U.S. economic engine in check at a time when the Federal Reserve is supply low cost gas to get the economic fire going. Near-term, the average consumer will continue to be The Cash Strapped Consumer that is found in my Rise and Fall of the Middle Class PowerTrend. 


Direct download: 03-06-13_STEPHENMOOREPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:54pm EDT

Fellow investors,

Thanks for joining on this edition of PowerTalk, where I, Chris Versace - editor of the PowerTrend Profits investing newsletter, dish with good friend Keith Bliss of Cuttone & Co. from the floor of the NYSE. Each week we’ll be breaking down the latest goings on in the market and talking about what’s moving it. We also share what data and events we’ll be keeping our eyes on next week. 

This past week was an interesting one to say the least. From the Italian elections and sequester to the essentially flat 4Q 2012 GDP revision, it paints a picture of increasing risk. Yet, the major indices continued to move higher and in some cases closing in on all time highs. As we saw with today’s Personal Income and Spending data, however, we are only beginning to see the impact of the payroll tax exemption expiration and higher gas prices. With gas prices continuing to climb, it’s a pretty good bet that the consumer and retailers like J.C. Penny (JCP) and casual dining restaurants like Red Robing Gourmet (RRGB) and others will feel it on the chin in the coming weeks. 

For the stock market, while most pros expect a pullback in the coming weeks, don’t expect a massive correction as the Fed has overtly stated that they will keep the ‘punch bowl’ filled for as long as it takes to get unemployment down below 6.5% (February employment situation will be reported on March 8th); which has the effect of keeping asset markets frothy.  But beware, at some point weak economic data will begin to trump fed action.  A weaker consumer may just be the first indication that there is danger ahead for the U.S. economy…and the U.S. equity market.

While the sequester is on investor minds this week -- and it should be given that those automatic cuts are set to take effect at 11:59 PM tonight -- there is another shoe to drop. That is the March 27th deadline to raise the country’s debt ceiling. Put it all together and March is shaping up to be a far more volatile month than January or February combined. 

Listen to Keith and I break all this and more down - 

  • A number of companies announced higher dividends this week, like The TJX Companies (TJX), and that follows big dividend increases from the likes of Walmart (WMT) and Coca-Cola (KO) last week. 
  • The 2013 Mobile World Congress was held and a number of new mobile products and services were announced. One of the most interesting ones to me was Qualcomm’s (QCOM) Wi-Fi enabled coffee pot. Talk about a compelling set up for the connected home. 
  • This morning we learned that factory activity in China slowed during February as the official PMI reading slipped to 50.1 from 50.4 in January.
  • Apple (AAPL) held its annual shareholder meeting and to much chagrin the company did not announce any new initiatives to use is $137 billion cash war chest. 
  • Struggling daily deal company Groupon (GRPN) announced the departure of CEO Andrew Mason. Even though the shares rallied after the announcement, Keith and I both agree this was a decision that was long-time coming. 
  • There were some bright spots in the domestic economic data this week. There was strength in housing and below the durable goods headline -- machine tool orders up 13.5% in January. That means good things for homebuilders like Toll Brothers (TOL), Ryland Group (RYL) and others as well as key suppliers, such as USG (USG), Sherwin Willliams (SHW),   and service providers like ADT Corp. (ADT). 

Be sure to come back next week, when Keith and I will be break it all down again as we wrap the week and look ahead. 

Disclosure: Subscribers to PowerTrend Profits were alerted to add shares of USG (USG) and ADT Corp. (ADT) at $29.19 and $46.54, respectively.


Direct download: Versace_Bliss_03012013.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:51am EDT

Fellow Investors,

Thanks for joining me again this week at PowerTalk. If you’re new to the show, this is the place where I have one-on-one conversations with CEOs of public and private companies as well as other key people in business, politics and any sector that could impact our investing decisions. 

I’m your host Chris Versace, editor of the investment newsletter PowerTrend Profits and my goal with PowerTalk is to take you behind the scenes and in the know.

Can we count on the CEO?

 

I always get a bunch of questions from subscribers to PowerTrend Profits or at my public speaking engagements. But the one question that tends to crop up rather frequently is what do I think of this CEO or that CEO? Are they doing a good job running the company? Can we count on them?

My answer is that over my 20+ years of dissecting industries and companies, I’ve found that there are some great CEOs out there, but there are also some that should be gone. Take it from me,-- someone who sat across the table from a number of CEOs -- there are some who get it and then are some who don’t see the writing on the walls. 

Like many, I hold Steve Jobs the former CEO of Apple (AAPL) in high regard as well as A.G. Lafley, former CEO of Proctor & Gamble (PG), Jim Bezos at Amazon.com (AMZN) and Howard Schultz at Starbucks (SBUX) and a number of others.  

Each of these gentlemen have done fantastic jobs at each of their companies and I would argue that in their own right each recognized the power of PowerTrends to transform their companies.  

  • Steve Jobs clearly saw the impact of being Always On, Always Connected when he and his team were developing the iPod, iPhone, iPad and iCloud;
  • Howard Schultz is targeting growth outside the U.S. by capitalizing on The Rise and Fall of the Middle Class;
  • Naren K Gursahaney, the CEO of ADT Corp. (ADT) a Safety & Security company is seeing his business benefit from the rebound in housing, but is also looking to the future by bringing to market a number of connected services that will sweeten ADT’s revenue per customer. 

 Unfortunately for you and me, for each really good CEO out there, there are a number that, well, let’s face it -- need to go. Two examples in my view are Steve Ballmer at Microsoft (MSFT) and Andrew Mason at Groupon (GRPN). It seems that no matter what these CEOs do, the companies don’t seem to get any traction and that's not good for shareholders.

CEO’s and what you Need to Know

 

As you can imagine, evaluating a CEO and his or her team is necessary, if not crucial, for me to have a high degree of confidence in the team’s strategy and its ability to execute.  

If you can’t get behind what the management team is doing, you can’t get behind the stock. It’s a deal breaker plain and simple.

 That’s why I was thrilled to talk with Bob Kelleher, author of Creativeship, and founder of The Employee Engagement Group. Over the years, Bob has worked with Shell, the TJX Companies (TJX), Prudential, Abbot Labs (ABT), Fidelity, the Center for Disease Control, Balfour Betty, Unocal and dozens of others.  

Over the course of our PowerTalk, we discuss a number of key issues when it comes to being a successful leader and Bob shares his quadrant view on company performance, leadership and employee engagement. All told, Bob shares ways to identify those CEOs and others that are true leaders and charting the course ahead. 

As I mentioned earlier, identifying the CEO that can not only talk the talk but walk the walk is key.

Here are some other nuggets from my PowerTalk with Bob Kelleher:

 

  • It’s not just technology companies like Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOG) that are innovators. Proctor & Gamble (PG), Nike (NKE), General Electric (GE) and even well known denim company Levi Strauss are great examples of how a company can bring new products to market in and many cases create new product categories. I agree with Bob whole heartily on this and that’s why each of those companies are contenders for different PowerTrends. 
  • Innovation needs to be sustainable and not simply a one hit wonder like we saw at Motorola, now owned by Google, and Sears (SHLD). While a new product can create some great excitement at a company, if there is not follow up and follow through all that excitement can simply flame out.
  • We need to avoid those companies that are not recognizing the sand shifting under their feet. Bob mentions Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and Dell (DELL) as two examples and as subscribers to PowerTrend Profits, I have voiced my concern over the direction of those two companies that lack a smartphone, tablet and connected device strategy. 

 

Yep, there’s a lot of ground to cover in this week's PowerTalk with Bob Kelleher so let’s get to it.

 

Direct download: 02-28-13_CREATIVESHIPPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:57pm EDT

 Fellow Investor,

We've been busy here at PowerTalk, sharing my conversations with key players at public and private companies as well as other institutions of influence. I started PowerTalk to share with you the kinds of conversations that mutual fund and hedge fund players are having with the same  kinds of people. In other words, I wanted to bring you behind the scenes and in the know on some of the key topics of the day that investors and traders are facing.

It's been so successful that listeners have been asking for more. And that's what we're about to do.

Starting today, I'm adding a second weekly installment to PowerTalk that will share my conversations about the latest happenings over the last several days that are driving the stock market. Be it economic data, politics, or specific company news that is driving the stock market higher or pushing it lower, I'll be talking about it each week with Keith Bliss, Senior Vice President of Cuttone & Company, right from the floor of the New York Stock Exchanges

This week Keith and I dish on the rise in both gas prices and taxes and what it means for the consumer following Walmart's (WMT) weak start in February; the most recent Federal Reserve minutes that hint at a back peddling in QE3; the pick up in M&A activity; and of course what the sequestration could mean for the economy and investors. 

As tends to be the case with PowerTalk, there's a lot of ground to cover so let's get to it.

Chris Versace
Host, PowerTalk
Editor, PowerTrend Profits
Editor, ETF PowerTrader 

Direct download: Versace_Bliss_02212013.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00pm EDT

Fellow Investor,

 

In the PowerTalk series, I speak with a number of prominent figures from the CEO of Smith & Wesson (SWHC) to key players at General Motors (GM) and the Consumer Electronics Association and others. The goal is to bring you behind the scenes and in the know when it comes to some of the key issues on investors minds. 

I’m at it again this week when I talk about currency and the much discussed currency war that we may or may not be in at the moment. Joining me to talk about this and more is Bernard Lietaer, who was named “the world’s top currency trader” in 1992 by BusinessWeek. Bernard has also been central banker, a fund manager, and a university professor. He has recently added author and has a new book out -- “Rethinking Money: How New Currencies Turn Scarcity Into Prosperity.” 

The interview stems from how over the last few months, finance ministers from Russia, Thailand, Turkey, South Korea and other countries have been pointing their collective fingers at what they call a “currency war.” This time those folks are not pointing at China, but rather at Japan as it has devalued the yen in order to jump start its economy. And how during the 2012 US Presidential Debates, Mitt Romney labeled China a currency manipulator just as some countries like Brazil and others have complained about Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s easy money policy saying it will unleash a “monetary tsunami.”

Over the course of my conversation with Bernard Lietaer, we discuss:

  • the realities of what currency really is and how there are more forms of currency than just money;
  • the economic drivers behind a currency war; and
  • Bernard’s view that a new concept of money and currency, not the redistribution of wealth, increased conventional taxation, bond measures or enlightened self-interest from corporate entities, will stop the race toward “global self-destruction”.  

 

From an investor’s perspective, I drew several conclusions from my PowerTalk with Bernard:

The devaluation in the yen bodes well for US imports of Japanese products, such as autos from Toyota (TM) and Honda (HMC) as well as heavy construction equipment manufacturer Kubota (KUB). That means a tougher environment for US based companies such as Ford (F), General Motors (GM), Caterpillar (CAT) and Deere & Co. (CAT)

A strong US dollar on a relative basis will have a negative impact on US exports or foreign imports of US goods and services. That was one of the factors that curbed growth in the US economy last quarter. The impact of recent currency devaluation combined with higher gas and food prices, the payroll tax holiday expiration and sequestration related cuts will drive continued slow growth in the first half of 2013. 

Lastly for world travelers, a relatively stronger US dollar buys more imported goods and services here at home, but also lowers the cost of international travel for Americans. That is likely to be good for companies like Priceline (PCLN) and Starwood Hotels and Resorts (HOT) that has been expanding its footprint in Asia and Latin America. The flip side of that is it makes travel to the U.S. more expensive for foreign visitors and that could be additional pressure on retailers like Coach (COH), Guess? (GES), Aeropostale (ARO) and True Religion (TRLG) among others.

Subscribers are sure to notice how the interview touches on several of the PowerTrends found in my newsletter PowerTrend Profits and how it prepares us all for more successful investing.

Direct download: 02-20-13_BERNARDLIETAERPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:58pm EDT

Fellow investor,

Over the last year or so, you've probably heard a lot about “the cloud” but ask anyone what it is and you get a half baked description. The reality is there’s a lot to consider when you put our digital content in the cloud and choose a cloud provider be it for music, movies, personal documents or ones for work. Whether its Apple (AAPL) and iCloud, Microsoft (MSFT) and Skydrive, Google (GOOG) and its Drive solution or DropBox, there are shortcomings with each of them. Because the cloud is a key aspect of my Always On, Always Connected PowerTrend I wanted to do a deep dive on the subject with a mover and shaker in the space.

 

Joining me this week on PowerTalk as I discuss all things cloud with Yorgen Edholm, CEO of Accellion, a leading enterprise cloud file sharing company. We particularly focus on security concerns and how mobile technology will transform the cloud. Because Accellion serves more than 11 million customers across 1,700 of the world’s leading companies like Proctor & Gamble (PG), Kaiser Permanente, the U.S Securities & Exchange Commission, but the company is also profitable, Yorgen is a person worth talking to about the cloud, its drivers and benefits  as well as its short comings.

 

Here are some tidbits from my conversation with Yorgen: 

  • He sees mobile and the shift toward bringing your own device (BYOD)  to work as key drivers of cloud adoption;
  • Yorgen is a firm believer in the death of the PC, which means bad things for Dell (DELL) and Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), and he sees no slowdown in businesses adopting Apple’s devices, particularly the iPad.
  • Security features and other tools in the cloud environment will be the key differentiators between those cloud providers that are successful and those that are not be it with individual or enterprise customers. 
  • Amazon’s (AMZN) Web Service is a key partner for Accellion, which should serve as a reminder that there is more to Amazon than just Internet based shopping;
  • Lastly, there are a number of cloud providers out there and not only does Yorgen sees a wave of consolidation coming, but we talk about what you should consider when choosing your cloud solution.

From an investor’s perspective, I drew several conclusions from my PowerTalk with Yorgen. First, demand prospects for data center companies will remain robust as people and companies continue to shift into a cloud-based environment. That confirms my thesis behind adding Digital Realty Trust(DLR) to the PowerTrend Portfolio last October. Second, it affirms that demand for Apple’s mobile products -- smartphones and tablets -- remains strong. That not only vouches for my long-term view on Apple and its shares, but makes me feel even more comfortable about adding more shares to the portfolio over the last several weeks. Lastly, it confirms something that I have suspected for some time - there is little reason to own shares of either Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) or Dell (DELL) as neither has figured out how to monetize let alone compete in the non-PC world of smartphones and tablets. 

Direct download: 02-13-13_ACCELLIONPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:38pm EDT

Fellow Investor,

This week’s PowerTalk  is with Tom Stemberg, the founder and former CEO of Staples and the Managing General Partner of the $300 million Highland Consumer Fund.  He’s also a member of the Job Creators Alliance.

It’s no secret that job creation has been challenging - 155,000 per month on average over the last 25 months - frustratingly slow.  As we learned recently, the January unemployment rate ticked back up to 7.9% With gas and good prices climbing, plus the expiration of the payroll tax holiday - it doesn’t paint a favorable picture for consumers, particularly those that have been part of the long-term unemployed.

Now we’re hearing that tax revenues are back on the table when it comes to solving the country’s debt problem. As it stands today, there’s more than $52,000 in debt per citizen and more than $146,000 debt per taxpayer. 

All of this plays right into the Rise and Fall of the Middle Class PowerTrend that subscribers to my PowerTrend Profits newsletter hear me talk about so much.

In the interview Tom and I discuss unemployment and the January jobs data.  We also take a look at why Congress and the President are struggling to create jobs (hint: they can’t get out of their own way), the impact of regulation on small and medium sized businesses, what to expect from consumer spending in 2013, the types of companies Tom sees delivering growth in this economy and more!

Sincerely,

Chris Versace
Editor, PowerTrend Profits
Founder & Host, PowerTalk 

 


Direct download: 02-07-13_STEMBERGPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:22pm EDT

Fellow Investor,

Welcome to another edition of PowerTalk, where we bring you insightful conversations with key business people and other subject matter experts that take you behind the scenes and in the know. As always the goal is to arm you with an informed perspective and data points that lead to better investing decisions.  

I’m your host Chris Versace, Editor of the investing newsletter PowerTrend Profits - be sure to check out ChrisVersace.com for more on that and be sure to sign up for my free weekly e-letter while your there.

Joining me this week is NY Times best-selling author Daniel Pink. You’ve probably read his best selling books Drive or A Whole New Mind or caught him on CNBC, CNN or another network. Today we’re going to talk about his new book - To Sell is Human Not only is it a great read, but Dan brings together an astonishing amount of data and presents it in a clear and crisp fashion. Whether its talking about how we are all salespeople in one form or another or how technology -- smartphones and the Internet for example - are changing the role of sales and sales people, Dan addresses it all. He even has rechristend that famous Alec Baldwin saying in the hit movie Glenn Gary, Glenn Ross from “A - Always, B - Be, C - Closing” to “Attunement, Buoyancy and Clarity.” All that and we also touch on what all of this means for companies like Tupperware (TUP), Herbalife (HLF), Nu Skin (NUS) and Avon Products (AVP) among other sales organizations.  

As always, we cover a lot of ground so let’s get to it and remember to pick up Dan’s new book -- To Sell is Human at a bookstore near you or download it from Amazon or Apple’s iBooks.


Direct download: 01-31-13_DANIELPINKPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:39am EDT

Fellow Investor,

This week’s PowerTalk interview is with Patrick Sweeney, President and CEO of dwinQ, a social media product placement company.  He’s also the author of RFID for Dummies and a frequent speaker on technology’s impact on business and life.

Be it Facebook (FB), Instagram, LinkedIn (LNKD), Google+ (GOOG), Twitter, Pinterest or any other one you can name, social media is changing how we communicate and interact with family, friends, co-workers, products and brands. It’s making for some big business.  Research firm BIA/Kelsey forecasts U.S. social media ad revenues to reach $9.2 billion in 2016, up from $4.6 billion in 2012 - that’s a compound annual growth rate of 19.2%. Impressive but again that’s just in the U.S and social media is part of a global shift in behavior that is  a cornerstone of my Always On, Always Connected PowerTrend.

Patrick explains how dwinQ is showing companies like Disney, Cadbury, Vail Resorts, and Heineken how to leverage social media to build their brands and enhance their customers’ experiences.  He also shares his perspective on a number of companies being impacted by social media - companies like Costco (COST) and Amazon.com (AMZN) as well as Facebook (FB) and talks on the multiplier benefit associated with sponsored events and social media marketing. 

It’s a fascinating look at how social media and technology are combining to change the way companies do business. 

Direct download: 01-23-13_DWINQPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:43pm EDT

Fellow Investor,

This week’s PowerTalk interview is with Keith Bliss, Senior Vice President at Cuttone and Company, one of the largest floor brokers on the NYSE.   Keith is an old friend of mine, and he shares what he sees from the trading floor these days.  He starts the conversation off by saying 2013 is shaping up to deliver a lot more of the same for investors as 2012 – mixed economic signals, political battles and all.

We also cover why the U.S. equity markets are still the best place to put your money, how to put ETFs to work for you, the risks investors face in 2013, the looming debt ceiling crisis and how you could be affected if Washington doesn’t get a deal in place, taxes, unemployment and more!

Finally, we take a look at the potential threats that Keith believes could derail the markets and the economy in 2013, including energy costs, politics and currency wars. 

 

Sincerely,

Chris Versace

Direct download: 01-18-13_BLISSPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:42pm EDT

Direct download: 01-09-13_VISAPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:Consumer -- posted at: 10:16am EDT

Fellow Investor,
This week I’m talking with Greg Martin from General Motors. Greg’s an Executive Director of Communications Strategy and News Operations as well as an easy person to talk to. He reminds us that while the auto industry may appear simple, there are many layers to it from manufacturing the cars, competing with Ford, Chrysler and others to dealing with car dealerships and the end consumer. 
Over the next while, we talk about those things as well as the rebound in auto demand, the auto bailout and issues that caused the company to be called Government Motors; how the company has remade itself over the last few years and what lies ahead given a significant portfolio overhaul and several new technologies. 
In some ways, it’s a nice follow up to my talk with Gary Shapiro of the Cosumer Electronics Associatin because Greg confirmed that auto and consumer electronics will be a big deal at the upcoming consumer electronics show. He even mentioned that GM is working with Apple (AAPL) and its Siri voice interface.
It’s a insight ful talk and Greg Martin was a pleasure to talk with. Hopefully we’ll be able to talk again in several months to follow up on GM product. revamp and a number of other things.
Direct download: 12-26-12_GENERALMOTORSPOWERTALK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:11am EDT

1