Not sure if this has been posted yet, but its in regard to a investor who posted some bashings on YB about the Medica Health Fair. Another investor got a reply by email back from Andrew Whelan about what "really" went down.
I forwarded an email to Andrew Whelan (CEO of BIEL) while he was at the Medica Health fair on Nov. 19-21, 2009 in Germany (Europe's largest health care trade show). It included the comments from the basher that were mostly (about 80%) untrue; you may remember it was the posting with the two pictures of BIEL's display booth. Anyway, I knew at the time it was a basher trying to play their game. Here is Andy's response:
Thank you for forwarding the information.
This alleged shareholder showed up at the Maryland state booth the Medica show in Dusseldorf twice and demanding to know why we had not issued a press release about our attendance. He then insisted that we stop and answer his asinine questions.
His conduct was rude and presumptuous in that we had nothing better to do at the show than to answer his questions. Common courtesy mandates that you ask for a meeting at an appropriate time and place. To just barge in to embarrass the Company and its employees in front of state officials, customers, and other exhibitors with inappropriate questioning is just rude and arrogant.
As to the bulletin boards posting the facts are:
We attended the show with out a press release because that is what we do, we recruit and support distributors. If we do it right 2/3’s of our sales will be international sales.
As to the disingenuous photographs, we did not have a booth but rather an Information Kiosk in the Maryland State booth in the US Pavilion. We paid a $2,000 fee. There were 6 Maryland companies in the booth with 4 Maryland staffers, including the States agents from the Berlin and Paris offices. The US Department of Commerce provided 15 country experts, a lounge with coffee and soft drinks for meetings, an evening reception for us and our guests, and technical support. The State’s and Federal export programs are an excellent source of help and financing. We are eligible for a $5,000 grant for the show and the US Commerce Department’s financing guarantees our receivables.
Attempting to try, as suggested, to out gloss the major corporations exhibits is an absurd proposal. We are using our design budget with product designers to improve our products not to placate egos.
In addition to our Marketing Director we had several people from our Benelux distributor, which gave us language fluency in Hebrew, French, Spanish, Dutch, German, and obviously English. We collected in excess of 100 leads, including some immediate firm deals. We also had the opportunity to meet and spend some good quality time in discussions with potential US distributors. We were there to conduct business and we had more than adequate resources.
As to the comment that the infomercial is not suitable for Netherland customer, the displayed commercial addresses Canadians. Please inform the fellow that Canada is not in the Netherlands.
It is not my displeasure with small or large investors; it is my lack of patience for self righteous arrogance that presumes we all need to stop and give them our undivided attention. The Medica show display booth was not the time or the forum for hostile questioning.
Regards,
Andy
AI
