I held my meeting with Ryan yesterday. As always it was quite informative and I left with a very positive outlook on the future of VATE.
Currently management is extra focused on finalizing the S-1. This will add the credibility required to attract investors to take VATE to the next level, such as; hire key headcounts, guarantee lines of credit to help with inventory, add and improve plant and equipment, as well as marketing resources. It takes 2 years of audits to complete the S-1. Finally all are complete and it is now a waiting game on the SEC to review and approve. Once that is resolved things will truly open up for VATE.
The RTD teas are selling very well and that is where the primary focus of growth is currently. I don't have any insight to numbers but the team seems very upbeat.
As you can tell the outstanding share count hasn't materially changed for sometime. Ryan mentioned that he tightly managing the business and has no desire to issue shares. This is very important to him.
The CBD coffee looks fantastic. He gave me a few bags with the different flavors and I can't wait to try them. We should hear more about that soon.
Although the CO distributor appears to be new and is "small" they have already sold out their first order and have another large order which should be sold out shortly after receipt.
As you can imagine there are many surprise hurdles that must be overcome due to the unique laws of each state relative to CBD. The Elev8 team is overcoming each issue one by one. Their distributors have been instrumental in helping VATE move ahead. As we all know the FDA regulations for CBD in food will open up many avenues for our amazing company.
I am still as enthused as ever about Elev8! They are a real company. Not a BS OTC imaginary company. I believe that Ryan is working his plan and has not wavered once since I have known him. He is making sure he doesn't get ahead of himself and will not put the company or the investors at risk by making rash decisions. He is in it for the long haul. He understands that investors are very impatient but he is not one to do anything outside his plan to appease anyone.
Reasons why I am committed to VATE:
Two years ago I invested in VATE due to the promise of hemp coffee. I tried it and could immediately tell it was a great tasting quality product. As I investigated the company in more detail, I began to know Ryan Medico. Ryan is a young, aggressive, intelligent and ethical CEO. His education and background in accounting and finance sets him up perfectly to navigate the shark infested waters of business and OTC. He has developed a business plan that allows him to systematically move the company forward and yet flexible enough to adjust to the unknowns that we all are painfully aware of, including; banking, credit, CBD regs, interstate commerce, Amazon, etc.
As it became clear that the exponential growth we all desire was to land on CBD, I contacted RM and held face to face meetings with him last February and again in September. During our discussions it was clear that he had the vision and temperament to make Elev8 a success. He informed me that he was to be launching CBD RTD coffee and tea, which he allowed me to taste. The flavors were fantastic. They included; peach, lemon, green tea hibiscus and CBD iced coffee. It was immediately clear that he had a winner.
Since then he announced the retirement of over 160,000,000 shares and has made the investments necessary to grow the business as aggressively as possible under the current regulatory climate. VATE is now able to produce the coffee in house with the purchase of Blessed Bean. The investment in BB has opened the door to new offerings like single serve coffee, numerous new flavors, as well as a lucrative white label business.
Due to the amazing acceptance of the RTD tea they are now increasing their focus on that market with the launch of the additional flavors of RTD tea. Depending on Q4 numbers it is possible that VATE may exceed $1M in revenues for 2019.
RM has also been extremely judicious as it relates to the packaging and promotion of the current product line and any future offerings. It is common knowledge that the lack of FDA guidance has made the business climate extremely challenging. Only those companies that have taken baby steps and have made every effort to “dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s” will stand a chance. I believe RM has done everything possible to ensure success. Until the FDA is crystal clear we won’t know for sure if RM nailed it but I believe he will.
I have made no bones about my commitment to VATE. However, it goes far beyond what you all see on paper. I have gotten to know RM and I believe him to be as committed to the success of this company and to the shareholders as anyone I have ever met. In order maximize shareholder value he has kept the staff to a minimum and is working 80-90 hours a week handling many of the business functions himself until they hit the proper inflection point. This is the main reason press releases are limited. He is simply focused on executing the business. I have been an executive in business myself in the tech industry and retired after 25 years running global sales. I know what it takes to succeed in business and Ryan Medico is making all the right moves.
If you don’t want to take my word for it then go to Orlando and meet Ryan for yourself. Then let me know your thoughts. in the meantime I will be meeting with him again in early March. I will report back with more positive news no doubt.
If I am wrong about RM then I am out a significant amount of money. But... If I am right then I am at the beginning of something magical!
