Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
Really? You have confirmation that Wine Plant of Eraskh exists? Can you please pass that information on along with a location and directions. I have two people in a hotel in Yerevan who visited the village there this past weekend and found no Wine Plant of Eraskh. I guess they weren't looking in the right place. I will have them return tomorrow to confirm. Funny that a plant that has supposedly been there for 47 years and employs 90% of the village's able bodied workers is so hard to find and not one person knew about it.
Marani now selling at a good rate? Where? As far as the phone number for Costco, I'm not sure why you need me to'post that but here you go:
714-338-1933
That's the Tustin store. I've called different stores over time and any one of them can give you product availability in any given store in the area. I called this particular store yesterday and the had zero Marana in stock, none on reorder and no store in Southern California with Marani in stock.
Who knows? Some contract distiller somewhere. Somewhere in Russia. Probably at one one hundredth the cost they pay to Wine Plant which is most likely owned by Margrit.
Just got my confirmation from Armenia. Wine Plant of Eraskh does not exist. How about them apples? Where has all that money they've been paid gone? Why did Margrit buy a million dollars in vodka inventory from a plant that doesn't exist? Just take a look at that Hermes pocketbook on her shoulder. My sister in law has the same one. $8000.00. Must be nice. MRIB has been her personal piggy bank for twenty years.
Yes. This is very true. So any advice to buy and spend your money on MRIB should come with extreme warning of loss. Nobody has anything to gain telling you not to buy MRIB. It's those that tell you to buy that have something to gain.
Be aware that MRIB is an insolvent company with no employees, no cash, no revenues, no assets and is non-reporting, non-audited and currently over a month late with their non-audited financials. Their CEO is a high school educated residential real estate broker with no experience and a 15 year track record of abysmal failure and a loss of over $30 million. And no one knows where the money went.
There are terrible conflicts of interests with insiders and toxic lenders hold board positions. MRIB has diluted the stock over 100% in less than a year and most shareholders have lost 99% of their initial investment. The company has not communicated with the public and its shareholders in over six months and most of their customers have abandoned them. Invest here and you will lose it all.
And a p.s.... For roughly 30-60 days following that six month period there were over 250 million shares appear to have been loaded off very carefully in regular daily chunks of around 6-7 million shares a day at no less than $.02 and in the month of April about half that volume was at $.03 and above. Incredible trade timing, eh? Now I don't think many MRIB traders are throwing around a couple of hundred grand a day trading this or any penny stock so I'm wondering who received the proceeds off of all those sales? I don't think you could find more than 10-15 common MRIB holders who made any significant reletive profit. Maybe a couple grand here or there for a few lucky ones but nowhere near almost $8 million in shares sold.
To anyone who speaks with Margrit I have a good question. From the little reporting we have from MRIB there are some things we do know. We know that on or near The end of September 2013, Margrit alone owned more than 35 million shares. On October 1, 2013 Margrit and family received just shy of $1 million in MRIB stock via a preferred issue in debt forgiveness. I can't believe that Margrit consummated that deal at any less than market value at the time if not more as a premium to cash. That would result in a total holding of roughly 335 million shares given the market price and conveniently a nice little kicker for a well timed dividend in 2014. If safe harbor on her preferred was six months that would land her 300 million plus shares at anywhere between $.02 and $.04 PPS and a value just shy of $7 million. My question is, what were the terms of the preferred and what was the disposition of that transaction and subsequent stock issue? And given the percentages and if we are to assume Margrit didn't sell why does she not report her holdings as required? Or did she sell it all and doesn't want anyone to know about it?
I keep hearing that Margrit and crew aren't making any money off of MRIB and how they are making such great sacrifices financially and that there's no significant money or opportunity for them to line their pockets. Sure looks like there was plenty of loot available not to mention enormous opportunity over the past year. And insiders knowing all the PR was bullshit there was very sound strategy for selling at the right time.
Sound familiar?
Marani Brands Extends Distribution to India and Southeast Asia
Proudly Announces its Partnership with Fairmacs Group
March 16, 2009 03:15 PM Eastern Daylight Time
LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Marani Brands, Inc. (OTCBB:MRIB) continues its expansion with the signing of an agreement with the Fairmacs Group to handle warehousing and distribution of its products throughout India and Southeast Asia.
The Fairmacs Group of Companies (www.fairmacs.com) was founded in 1956 with the vision of building an integrated world of services that provides absolute customer satisfaction. Today, Fairmacs’ strength comes from innovative solutions and a range of services that deliver excellent value. “Fairmacs is equipped to handle the distribution of Marani’s products not only in India, but also Southeast Asia. This is a partnership that we are very excited about as it will accelerate our business into the well established and rapidly growing spirits markets of India and Southeast Asia. Fairmacs has an excellent reputation in the global trade and can handle our products from the point they leave our ports to the point they hit the shelves,” said Marani CEO Ara Zartarian.
NEWS!
In a telephone communication with Costco customer service this morning a Costco representative confirmed that Marani vodka is no longer stocked at any of their stores in Southern California and there are no re-orders pending in their system.
Costco reordering with a coupon program? Where did you hear this? Why are you mentioning it just now? On a Saturday. Sounds to me like you made it up just today to avoid the horrible truth. I called Costco this morning and Marani is no longer listed in stock at any store in CA. Where are you getting such details? Come to think of it you were also the one who said NY sales were huge and that turned out to be a bust and to date there is still no retail outlet in NY selling Marani.
To know of a coupon program which is a big deal with Costco would require some serious inside info pre-launch. So what confirmation do you have of this MRIB info and when and where did you get it? Your credibility is seriously in question here and your MRIB claims continue to go unsupported. I think most MRIB investors would like some answers. Honestly, to know about any marketing program at a point where no store is even stocking the product would indicate one must be an insider or the company itself.
Just called Costco (Tustin store). It appears Marani is now discontinued in all stores. Game over folks. Even Burbank showing zero stock. Margrit is one helluva' a CEO. Lost the biggest asset MRIB had. Total Wine has one bottle sold in the last two months. Doubt it's there for much longer. The reason for not releasing financials is becoming oh so clear. Margrit is doing nothing. Just collecting the last of a couple of paychecks and calling it a day.
While the licenses are expiring and the only state they sell in, CA, has already expired, they still have 90 days before the license is automatically revoked which would require them to go through the entire approval process over again.
The major issue is that no reseller can order or buy from them until the license is renewed. My suspicion that Margrit basically shut the company down in October casts somewhat of a shadow on that renewal prospect though. I just don't understand why she hasn't taken any action. IIRC, I think it's $348 for each of the licenses they are required to carry. Is the money situation that bad or maybe the towel has already been thrown in?
It's a small price to pay for just the appearance of being in business and a slight chance of survival versus being shut down from selling altogether as they are currently. And as I read the regulations, they also cannot act as an importer and/or exporter as it relates to foreign contracts like Brazil. Unless Margrit has simply walked away from vodka sales her actions mystify me. She's not even doing what should be done to keep things going for selling stock. Perhaps she is at a point where she has milked it dry. Don't spend another dime and pick up the few final scraps through stock transactions. Good news is that would indicate no need for a reverse split. Bad news is that it would signal the end of MRIB for good. There will be no MRIB 3.0 despite an incredible amount of inventory. I'm sure that inventory somehow or some way belongs to an outside entity. It doesn't even appear on the inventory in the financials. We may never know the status of the last container received. Going on our way to two months late with the final 2014 quarterly results.
Chewie, how do you know there are any unconverted shares and/or financiers are holding? How do you know the lights are still on? First of all, toxic financiers don't invest in these stocks. They rape and pillage. They don't hold what they know has a good chance of being worthless paper in a New York minute. It's not in their DNA.
Second, I would have agreed with you to a certain point, and to my own amazement, that there were unconverted shares, but given recent revelations there's a far more realistic and logical explanation. There was no source of revenue other than debt so one would have to believe the shares would continue to flow. Even I was sure of such. I was wrong. I don't think there are any more or at least nothing of significance. I think MRIB basically shut down six months ago. Margrit stopped paying bills and employees and stopped raising debt and/or could no longer find any with the devastated PPS. No company, no salaries, no expenses... No need for any more convertibles. In January we were all under the impression that MRIB was still in operation albeit very quiet. Then we find out five months after the fact that everyone stopped getting paid and left. It all makes sense now. The tiny volume, stagnant PPS and overall lack of interest and activity in MRIB combined with absolutely no communication from the company itself. It all points to a company that was shut down over six months ago.
And I don't think it's any coincidence that the exact, and I mean exact, same series of events and situation took place back in 2010. Funny, first time around the MRIB cycle was roughly 18 months shutting down without notice sometime in September of 2009 but they continued the ruse for another year. Didn't even have a license. Well guess what... MRIB version 2 is at that 18 month point. Started it up in September of 2013 and kept it going for a year or so and then went dark and quiet in early October 2014. And now we're six months later and it would seem there haven't been any expenses for the past six months, we haven't heard squat from MRIB and there are no employees. I'd say theres a very real possibility and strong evidence that MRIB was shut down back in late September starting with the departure of Dan Senters. Just like 2009-2010, Margrit and MRIB are following the plan and playbook to a tee. It's a mirror image right down to the final PR issued in 2010 claiming shipments finally started to India. Those were MRIBs last words before the shutdown became known. Three years later we found out they never did ship.
The last thing we've heard from MRIB in their latest iteration is the same thing. A oft repeated claim of a foreign shipment. The only difference this time is instead of India, it's Brazil... And dollars to donuts, just like India, it will never ship, MRIB will simply go away, stagnate to $.0001 and well... Game over.
Roughly one year ago. PPS at or near $.04...
called MRIB yesterday ! DAN answered the phone ! the only thing holding us back is gov't paper work. it makes things go so slow. just the fact that he came to MRIB is huge. why leave an established com. and go to a start up ?? enough said. he said things are going very well.
brandy has to go through all the crap to get approved but is a great product !! money is no issue with these people, believe me !
like Margrit said 6-12 mons this is huge!! I think we can be $2 a share by end of year !! maybe more. should be .10/.15 now.
I think wine is next product to be brought in.
full line and a huge business plan a head. do not get caught looking back and regretting buying into this !!
It would appear there are no conversion shares left and I assure you no toxic financier is "retaining" anything. That's absolute nonsense. That's not what they do. They get out ASAP. No spread left for them so no new money, no more conversions. Just a stataic state of insolvency and no operating cash.
Margrit stopped paying bills and people over six months ago and shut the company down. It's dark and dormant. She couldn't raise any more money so it's over. There's nothing left to dump or convert because she can't get any more money.
Good question Reindl... One that never gets answered. MRIB is shut down. I'm pretty much convinced of that. Go to their offices. I'm sure there's no one there. Margrit is out shopping. Costco is dead and there's nothing new coming. Loss for the last quarter is going to be huge. Only good news is the toxic funders won't touch MRIB anymore. No spread. No room to run downward. No revenues and huge debt. Wait until you see the terms or her preferred from last year. Bet she made a ton. Yet she can't even speak proper english or file some simple financials. Everything to hide and no transparency. I doubt they can find an orange jump suit that fits her. But it will be a good giggle watching her pick up track along the 405.
I guess I just don't understand the basis or logic for buying more MRIB.
This may be a silly analogy but I look at MRIB stock as milk compared to wine. Accumulating and improving a better average price, albeit still a loss, is fine but as previously stated there has to have a reasonable expectation of appreciation or gain over that average price. Milk goes bad, wine doesn't and most wine appreciates in value and quality over time or at least there's very reasonable expectation of such. Wine can be resold. Try and resell a case of expired milk. LOL. Wine has a timeless market with intrinsic value at any given time. Milk is a perishable with no market and a static to decreasing value over time without any expectation of appreciation.
I think anyone buying more MRIB is setting themselves up for a fridge full of spoiled milk at the end of the day. Time is an enemy here. Further buying only keeps the charade alive and going at great expense to MRIB shareholders doing so and more loss of wealth. It creates a false sense of confidence for existing folks holding and hoping in the form of a seemingly stable PPS (for a while as the ridiculous tape paints in a thin market illustrate) but in the end it just supports a receptacle for insiders to keep loading off stock albeit in smaller chunks but still at huge profit.
I'm curious as to why anyone would continue buying MRIB? As history is repeating itself from 2009-2010 in a mirror image, forecasting the results is not difficult. I'd say we're already 90% down that road. All that's left is the reverse split and Margrit's resignation and a fat severance package.
Averaging down only makes sense if there is an expectation of a recovery and there seems to be absolutely no indication of any possibility of such and the PPS will just continue to stagnate and with no liquidity just finally go to zero as folks take their tax losses.
The facts all point to a shut down. You can't have a company with no revenues, no employees, no cash on hand, no credit, no debt options and sales force or customers let alone operate in a foreign country albeit a ruse and charade. I doubt MRIB can even pay their minimal rent at this point. The license to sell their product in the only state they have a retail presence has been expired for weeks. MRIB couldn't sell right now if they had any orders. I guess it doesn't really matter as the one Costco they have left has enough stock for a year and the other retailers don't sell squat. Sounds like MRIB ends up where they started when this scheme restarted. A public shell scam with some five year old stock on a few scattered retail shelves. See you in 2019!
Go MRIB 3.0.
Merit? Sure as long as you can both prove fraud and establish damages as a direct result of the action. That's the tough part. Courts generally have a tough time finding guilt versus looking at it as someone who made a bad investment without proper DD or caution. Then proving it? All they need is some boiler plate contract to say "here it is". They never claimed it was guaranteed or non-recourse.
The other issue that may have more merit is Wine Plant of Eraskh. May be a long shot but is that plant does not exist which I suspect and they have been paid by MRIB you have real criminal fraud. Whole new ball game. That's why I think it's important if not imperative to confirm the plant exists. So far the evidence points to a big no on that. Another issue with teeth is in examining other vendor payments like Zodiac. If they've ben paid any substantial amounts, looking at what they've produced couple with a non arms length relationship, you might have something. Last would be putting the convertible debt and financiers under the microscope. Too much insider activity there and too many unknown mystery lenders.
Jail time is exceedingly rare especially when there was an actual appearance of an attempt at running a legitimate company as lame as it might have been. Bad sales doesn't make it a scam, just a bad investment in the court's view. Management overpaying themselves through salaries, options, stock, perks, etc. isn't criminal. It's up to shareholders and the board to govern it. You could have always done a proxy vote or call for special meeting. Didn't do that? Judge will say too bad, the legal option was available.
One other interesting milestone IIRC is the statute of limitations in reference to any legal action against MRIB or their officers/directors. Who knows, although I doubt it they may have D&O insurance as a source for a recovery. But come September marks two years since the start of the MRIB ruse and the statute of limitations runs out and they are all in the clear if no action has been initiated. The biggest teeth in an action would be BRazil which was announced back in 2013. I don't think the court would view additional announcements as any new violation.
GMan, I think you may be chasing dragons. MRIB is insolvent other than inventory and dollars to donuts there's a secured creditor of some sort and a UCC filing on that. Wouldn't be surprised if it was Margrit Enterprises, International or Marani Spirits as a wholly owned subsidiary with recession rights. Can't get blood from a stone.
The bigger problem is cost. It's good money after bad. These cases can get really expensive, certainly relative to possible recovery and government authorities usually are of no help unless or until something is uncovered in a civil action that merits their involvement. And even in that case there's still no money or recovery. A lawyer or two gets disbarred, some scamsters get banned from future public company involvement and what usually amounts to some slaps on the wrist.
Just had a thought... Maybe VFox can chime in. When MRIB expanded the A/S my bet is there were some insider deals, options, warrants, preferred, etc. Is there a minimum safe harbor like 180 days? What I'm wondering is if we are just waiting for Margrit et. al. to reach safe harbor and timing their execution of sales following a reverse split. But as I see it, IIRC, we're just about two weeks away from that milestone. Another possible reason for no reporting. Those deals would have to be reported. I wonder how MRIB investors would react if Margrit and kin got all sorts of "performance" based stock? (Tongue firmly in cheek).
With MRIB it looks like there's good news and bad... Looks like the dilution has stemmed probably as the result of shutting down the operation and not paying any employees starting over six months ago. Timing fits right in with the pattern of new issues and associated immediate conversion ending with the biggest issue of 250 million shares last month which probably covered debt from August-September expenses which was most likely their high point.
The bad news though is overwhelming. Most likely MRIB is now shut down for all intents and purposes as convertible debt dried up and with no cash, revenue source, employees or credit you really can't run a company. The second part of that is the only thing left for MRIB survival is a reverse split. The really is no other option outside of Powerball but considering she's never invested a dime in MRIB I doubt Margrit would share that with MRIB. LOL
Probably also the reason we haven't seen financials. As bad as we all know they are, combined with a reverse split would have pretty disastrous results and would only buy a few more months of life. But then again, that might be all Margrit wants. God knows how much she sacked MRIB for.
Those promoting it are insiders trying to keep it alive.
Few hundred dollars lost then. The Soviet conflict in the early 90's was well documented including the bombing of the only wine producer in that village. Los Angeles Times did a story on it. The issue was that it was a border area.
No buyers. No one interested in this stock. Averaging down? You can sell it for less later.
Huge move up based on what? Sales? There are none. MRIB is insolvent and dark. They are for all intents and purposes out of business. All proof shows that. You have nothing to tell us otherwise.
California License still not renewed. MRIB cannot legally sell in CA anymore. The last reorder from the ONE Costco store in Burbank made it in just under the wire. They are now only licensed to sell in Around four states where they have no distribution or retailers. Just fodder for PR a year ago.
Spec, I think it's over. MRIB doesn't seem to care about selling vodka. They do seem to care about buying it though. Paid Wine Plant of Eraskh a ton of money for vodka they can't sell. What does that tell you? Paying a place that was destroyed by missiles in 1991 for $1.6M in product? I'd bet it's more too. I'd bet if you really audited MRIB the Wine Plant of Eraskh has received closer to $25 million.
Holding their shares... LOL. Versus selling them at a 99.99% loss before the end of the year? What you have is 200 MRIB longs hanging on to to $600K in under water stock which will soon be worthless. Half of them probably don't even have gains to write off against. That's why it's so thin. $300K or so floating around. The stock and company are dead. Little more time left.
You should order a pizza and have it delivered to Margrit there. LOL. Bet you're right though and there's no one there.
With the exception that Walt Disney and Adolph Coors were incredibly talented and intelligent ambitious visionaries. Margrit is a second rate residential real estate broker with a 30 year track record of mediocrity and failure. They also made tremendous personal sacrifices to build businesses while Margrit has not contributed a thing and considers accruing part of her undeserved overpriced salary a major sacrifice while never making a single capital contribution.
What's really sad and lame is Wine Plant of Eraskh is not even a good lie. The website put up to try and dispel the charade claims it employs basically every able bodied worker in the village and they say they've been in business since 1967 yet they've only had one client, MRIB and Margrit in their entire history and not a single sale of anything until MRIB and Margrit came along. Furthermore they list no other shipments or customers in their short history other than MRIB or Margrit. It's a total fraud. MRIB probably pays them and then simply wires the money back to Glendale, CA. IRS none the wiser. It's so transparent. Seems to me those orange jump suits are starting to look pretty real. Have to see if there a midget ladies husky size.
Any common contract distiller. Meanwhile Wine Plant of Eraskh is getting payment for doing nothing because the place was destroyed in 1991. Probably owned in name by Margrit. You think it's difficult to get someone to create a bottle and fill it? Go call Dan Senters' old company. They'll do it in a minute private label. That's all they do. Eraskh is the biggest part of the scam. Why do you think Margrit bought 4000 cases when the company had no license in 2010? Why did she buy 1400 cases two months ago with more than that in inventory already and NO SALES? Wake up and smell the vodka. Why does a company buy product they don't need, can't sell and can't afford. Just answer that question.
Dmeeusen, for a couple of bucks a bottle I can find a contractor to make the product. No big deal. The belief in "real product" is what all of this MRIB ruse is based on and it can be done for almost nothing.
There is no Wine Plant of Eraskh. Just a front to launder money for fictional product.
If Margrit and MRIB have not shut down she needs to do at least two things fast. Renew the CA liquor distribution license and get the financials out. $1500 should get that done plus any accounting fees. If that's not done by next week you can stick a fork in this one because they're done.
If not, it's over because there is no excuse for not doing so other than they are out of business and there is no possibility of any further sales with no retailers outside the state of California. Just facts and common sense.
Joerich, I think you're right and it may be over. I thought about it this morning. $600K in bag holders seems about right. There's no one left except for those refusing to sell thinking there's nothing to lose. There's no liquidity left. Couple of stragglers trying to buy at $.0005 and retail it out at $.0006 for some chump change but that's it. No buyers, no sellers, no interest.
Gold, as you seem to have Margit's ear maybe you can ask her if MRIB intends on rectifying their license status in California or if they're throwing in the towel? As for the next quarter you say is "very good" I'm not sure where you see MRIB sales coming from with no license to sell. What we have for next quarter is one Costco, a handful of Total Wine stores who can't seem to sell a single bottle and HiTimes who seems to sell only to MRIB shareholders. Forget about Restaurant Depot. Doubt they've sold a bottle. Love to hear Margrit's response.
DJ, the fact of the matter is that no reseller could take the chance of working with MRIB. The penalties are too harsh and simply not worth it. To see an expired license they would have to decline any involvement until such time the license reflected a non-expired status.
Still an active account but still expired. That just means it has not been revoked, cancelled or withdrawn but it has not been paid for so it will continue to reflect that it has expired. As soon as its paid for and renewed it will reflect February 2016 as the expiration date in the query system. If it goes 90 days without renewal it will be auto-revoked.
If a distributor or reseller were to check today they would not, actually cannot legally, do business with MRIB because of the expired license. The problem is if a reseller did buy from MRIB and MRIB never renews the license or is auto-revoked down the road it's big trouble for the reseller including but not limited to suspension and/or revocation of their own license. Read the penalty section.