The investor group's offer is, in my opinion, worth a look if Eberhart can first obtain solid verification that the investors are certified and legitimate. The risk that this investor group is duping foreigners is not insignificant, and I think Eberhart should solicit additional council on top of Ms. Keiko Ohara in order to establish this group's legitimacy or lack thereof.
Secondly, I think it's important for Eberhart to consider alternative strategic investors that could potentially infuse cash into WineInStyle in exchange for a controlling interest. For instance, Suntory has a massive presence in Japan with its Hibiki brand, and they would make a noteworthy strategic investor that could increase WineInStyle's value. (On a similar logical thread, one of Suntory's distributors would also be a strong strategic investor in WineInStyle since it would increase WineInStyle's distributive power).
If no other options are available and Eberhart's desire to spend more time in Palo Alto with his family is very time-sensitive, then I would recommend he sell (given the investor group's legitimacy is robustly confirmed). This move would give support to the current CEO Khoo and allow Eberhart to spend time at home. Furthermore, as mentioned in the case, this cash infusion is critical to supporting growing inventory and staff, and it seems like Eberhart is extremely loath to take further credit solutions (such as Costco's U.S. line of credit) to finance WineInStyle.
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