Member Info for Skindle

Thanks for your opinion Ejackson. Mr Ashley's appointment as chairman is by no means a "shoe in". I am certain there are other candidates. Mr Ashley's condition of supplying Express Gifts with Sports Direct products is that he takes the chair. While our board see great merit in Sports Direct selling its product range through Express Gifts, they will not be leveraged into making a decision that is detrimental to the long term stability of the business having worked so hard to get it there in the first place. By setting strict conditions of appointment to protect the small shareholder they will place the ball firmly back in the Sports Direct court. The trouble is, time is running short as Mr Sugden will step down on the 29th July. We now have a nervous wait until the next move is made.

This is confusing. Yes Schroders hold 20% of the shares and some websites confirm this but others are still quoting only 17.50%. More importantly, what has happened to my good friend Ejackson with whom I have shared much speculating over the last few months. Just when some positive corporate news breaks, Ejackson goes missing. Come on Ejackson, we need to hear your views on this latest development.

What has gone un-noticed and unannounced is the increase in Schroders holding from 17.35% to 20% coupled with the Sports Direct increase of 12.68% to 29.90% gives a total increase in holding between the two of them of 15.33%. Where have these shares come from I wonder ? My concern now is whether these two along with Toscafund will take the company private at an unrealistically low value. Is this scenario possible ?

If Mr Ashley is that keen to take over as chairman, why doesn't he just make a sensible offer for the whole business ?

Well, that has broken through two levels of resistance in one morning. No news yet but an announcement must be imminent. My breath is still baited !!

Well, that has broken through two levels of resistance in one morning. No news yet but an announcement must be imminent. My breath is still baited !!

Have I been somewhat premature in my criticism of our board. Maybe the last sixteen months or so has been about sorting out the balance sheet and our borrowing terms once and for all. We have reached a point of resistance/support. Should the share price be able to breakout above say £1.80, our next point of resistance/support is £2.00. Thereafter we can look to around the £2.28 level. Currently I am just thankful that we have recovered so well and so quickly since that dark day on the 14th June. I am sure I speak for us all in saying long may this rally continue.

Something is pushing the price up 1GW_. Most retailers took a hit on Friday including N Brown who were down 14.12%. As you say, any company requiring a strong pound has taken a battering so what is providing us with lift ? Certainly not heavy buying as volume was quite low. The AGM has been set for the 29th July 2016, four weeks from next Friday and we still don't know the name of our new chairman. Does Mr Ball have the suitable credentials to take up the position ?

Across all markets yesterday and one that will be remembered long into the future. I am sure with the passage of time Friday 24th June 2016 will be awarded its own special title, Bonkers Friday or something similar. As for our own interest, well, an early drop to £1.28 was followed by a strong rally back up to its original finishing price from the day before which was a huge relief to me. I hope some of you used that moment to pick up some shares at a knockdown price. As for that RNS earlier in the week featuring the Edison report, as Ejackson says, very very unusual. Last year they quietly popped the Edison report onto the website without any announcement. There is definitely something going on, quite what, I am at a loss to explain. I am hopeful of some pre AGM action prior to our current chairman departing, his final act so to speak. I am waiting with baited breath !

Well done Downbutnotout, never be afraid to take a profit. There must still be a big upside to this share but our current incumbent would not be drawn on whether Sports Direct would make a bid when asked recently by Investors Chronicle. Mr Sugden again failed to convince IC of the case for Findel so they have retained their sell rating. What is wrong with that man ?

Why does a man who has spent six years trying to save a business walk away from it (with a parting self congratulatory "my work here is done" note) just when the share price drops to its lowest point since early 2013 ? Ill health maybe ? A better offer from elsewhere ? Retirement ? A shared dislike (with you Ejackson) of Mr Ashley ? This is a question I hope we have the answer to very soon.

All very interesting and thought provoking opinions Ejackson. A few of my own. Our chairman has made it clear he is leaving at the conclusion of the 2016 AGM without naming a successor. The wording suggested to me that the board haven't even made a final decision yet as to who that successor is going to be. That strikes me as very odd. Sixteen months ago we had a full time chief executive and a non executive chairman, in about three weeks time there is a chance that we won't have either. If they have made a decision why didn't they name him/her ? The company have chosen to throw every last excoptional item into the last two years results, almost as if they were trying to negatively affect the share price. Is it beyond the realms of possibility that this public airing of all the skeletons in the cupboard could form part of a Sports Direct terms of offer. I have been disappointed by our boards apparent lack of effort in seeking any alternative acquisition interest, could that be the reason ? None of our board have bought a single share between them since July 2014. That shrieks of a board with no confidence in its business. On the other hand, since Mr Kowalski bought shares, the price has halved in value, so maybe these people don't know any better than us. That's all for the moment, if more come to mind I will post as necessary.

I am sure our chairman has made a significant contribution to returning Findel to better health in the early days but can't help thinking he should have handed the reigns over at the the AGM in 2014. Indeed if you look back and read all of his statements since taking over in March 2015 virtually none of his predictions of growth and debt reduction has been realised. As for the Kitbag saga, well, that was just plain misleading. So I think it fair to say that he has lost the trust of the market and probably the major shareholders. His departure can't come soon enough so I look forward to welcoming our new incumbent within the next few weeks. Let's just hope that we have seen the last of those enormous exceptional items which have become a characteristic part of the final results. At this ridiculously low price and a new chairman about to take over, I think we have some reason for optimism.

I am sure our chairman has made a significant contribution to returning Findel to better health in the early days but can't help thinking he should have handed the reigns over at the the AGM in 2014. Indeed if you look back and read all of his statements since taking over in March 2015 virtually none of his predictions of growth and debt reduction has been realised. As for the Kitbag saga, well, that was just plain misleading. So I think it fair to say that he has lost the trust of the market and probably the major shareholders. His departure can't come soon enough so I look forward to welcoming our new incumbent within the next few weeks. Let's just hope that we have seen the last of those enormous exceptional items which have become a characteristic part of the final results. At this ridiculously low price and a new chairman about to take over, I think we have some reason for optimism.

What do you both make of the fall in value today ? Is it possible that negative information from the final results tomorrow has been leaked into the market. As in more recent times the fall would appear to have been prompted by low volume. The current share price in pre consolidation terms is now 7.75 pence. The "special" shareholder only rights issue price going back to March 2011 was 6.54 pence. It really does look to me like the market is pushing for a complete change at the top. The introduction of a five pence a share dividend might just help to win back some defecting investors.

In anticipation of another set of poor results I would like to make the following statement. I would like to ask Mr Sugden to step down as promised and I would like Mr Kowalski to resign as finance director for his failure to deal with the rogue financial product dating back to 2006. Mr Kowalski has held his position for six years and has been richly rewarded for his service. This oversight will potentially cost the company up to £10m. I am afraid someone has to take responsibility. Back in October 2014 the board commissioned a strategic review to consider whether Kitbag should be retained or sold. After eight months, in May 2015, it was announced that Kitbag was to be retained and developed. In September 2015 it was announced that the company had entered into a provisional agreement to sell Kitbag. Is it any wonder that investor sentiment is at an all time low ? All investors in the last two years will be nursing losses, for Gods sake let's make Final Results Day 2016 the turning point for share price growth. A change at the top will hopefully bring renewed confidence and belief.

Very interesting information Stevo51, lets hope that this forms part of the final results statement next week.

Sounds wonderful Ejackson, the perfect place to escape the worry of our diminishing investments for a while. I had put the fall last week down to a stock overhang following those large transactions which should have been followed by an appropriate RNS but as usual long term shareholders are left to try and guess. Ever since Sports Direct bought in last September this company has become more secretive and unpredictable than North Korea ! We know that the chairman does not want to continue in his role on a long term basis and I am not sure he would be re elected anyway, were he to put his name in the hat for another term at the 2016 annual general meeting. This might well be our boards last results release in its current form. If that is the case, will they send us off on a positive note or will it be more dire bad news and promises of jam tomorrow !

1) anything with a + in front of the pre tax profit (post exceptional costs) figure. 2) a new executive chairman is announced. 3) a resumption of dividend payments. 4) The company announce that they have agreed acquisition terms with Sports Direct. Any one of these four may support the share price and indeed send it up. If none of these points prove to be true, then we can expect to test new lower levels.

I really don't understand what is going on with this company at the moment. Last week over 8% of the company changed hands at £1.7465-£1.75 and the share price did not move. Yesterday just over 15,000 shares were traded and the price dropped by over three per cent ! Why ? I am really beginning to wonder whether the cause of this continuing fall is to do with our present incumbents. We are now only three pence our lowest point of 2015 and 2016. This is a damming indightment of our current regime and maybe results day is the opportunity for the company to announce the appointment of a new executive chairman. The current one is clearly not in favour with the market, maybe a change will herald the turning of the corner. My guess is that the forth coming results will be riddled with yet more bad news but after this I can see calmer waters as the two remaining brands are profitable and will yield better figures over the coming months. My hope is that someone out there can see the potential and will invest in the hope of some better times, not under this watch though.