Westborough Entertainment Firm Sees Revenue Rebound
MATT PILON
With one fiscal quarter remaining in the year, Westborough-based Paid Inc. has already surpassed its previous revenue record.
*First three quarters of 2012
Westborough-based Paid Inc., which went through a major management shakeup over the summer, posted record revenue in its third quarter, setting the stage for its biggest year of sales in more than 15 years of business.
Paid – which offers brand management and marketing services for musicians, entertainers, athletes and others and trades on the OTC Bulletin Board – saw big jumps in its touring revenue and merchandising sales, which its new CEO credited to a focus on growth.
"Paid is having its best revenue year ever and we expect progress to continue," said Austin Lewis, who was appointed in July.
Touring Drives Business
Paid's clients have included some big names, such as Aerosmith, David Byrne, John Legend, Faith Hill, Run DMC, The Moody Blues and others.
Touring revenues jumped more than fivefold in the third quarter, due to several clients touring, while merchandising sales more than doubled, thanks in part to an undisclosed client's nationally televised event and other promotions, the company said.
Total revenue for the quarter was just under $7.1 million, up from $1.6 million during the third quarter of 2011. The recent quarter brought the company's total sales for the first nine months of 2012 to $10.6 million, which is higher than its best ever year, 2010, in which it brought in $7.1 million.
This summer, the company proposed spinning off a subsidiary to manage its patent portfolio, which contains several patents for an online shipping calculator the company developed. A second subsidiary would handle celebrity services.
New Management
Those changes in the company's structure, though they have not yet taken place, are now being shepherded by Lewis, a longtime Paid shareholder and investment management executive in New York City who replaced former Paid CEO Greg Rotman this summer.
Paid said in its earning release this month that it had reduced its employee headcount and salaries in an effort to cut overhead costs and streamline the business. The company reported having 32 full time equivalents at the end of 2011. It did not disclose how many positions had been cut.
Keith Garde, president of Paid's celebrity services division, said the company is focused on enhancing its VIP experience programs, engaging consumers through mobile and wireless communication channels, and adding higher-margin travel packages and programs designed for celebrity clients' charitable fundraising and other campaigns. The company also hopes to target more corporate and institutional customers.
Losses Persist
Though its revenues are looking up, Paid's bottom line continues to suffer. Its net loss for the third quarter was $911,300, up from a loss of $803,300 a year ago. For the first nine months of the year, the company has lost $3.6 million, up from a loss of $2.6 million during the same period in 2011.
Paid has lost more than $22 million since 2006. It's stock has been trading below 10 cents a share since mid-July.
WBJ Web Partners
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