Corporate Report

Corporate Report

by Sean Roth | Associate Editor

HSN, DISH Network partner

on speedy purchase ITV service

HSN and the DISH Network satellite TV service, have launched the HSN Shop by Remote interactive TV service. HSN's Shop by Remote will allow EchoStar's more than 12 million DISH Network subscribers with ITV-enabled set top boxes the ability to buy products from home, with just a few clicks of their remote.

Shop by Remote, was designed with the support of interactive provider Tandberg Television. Most purchases via Shop by Remote take less than 60 seconds to complete, less than half the time it takes via HSN's automated phone service.

Currently, customers can access Shop by Remote through the interactive shopping section on DishHOME channel 100. In the next few weeks, customers will be able to access the service directly through HSN (DISH Network channels 84 and 222) by simply pressing select on their remote when they see an item they want to purchase.

"HSN is excited to partner with DISH Network for the national launch of Shop by Remote," Peter Ruben, executive vice president of Affiliate Sales & Marketing for HSN, said in a press release. "Our initial trials of Shop by Remote in the New York/tri-state area and Hawaii have generated very favorable results, signaling the great potential..."

Other technology ventures HSN is trying include podcasting recorded and original programming, video-on-demand and streaming live video via www.hsn.com.

Kangaroo sweetens OSI deal,

vote delayed until June 5th

Faced with approval troubles for its private buyout, Kangaroo Holdings Inc. and Kangaroo Acquisition Inc. have increased their payout offer for stockholders of Tampa-based OSI Restaurant Partners Inc. The deal increases the payout to $41.15 per share in cash from $40.00 per share. The new offer is a 27% premium over the closing price of a share of OSI common stock on Nov. 3 the last trading day prior to announcement of the merger, and a 2.9% premium over the previous merger offer.

The proposed agreement also changes its approval requirements, slightly reducing the votes needed for approval. The new agreement requires both a majority vote of the total shareholders, including insiders. and a separate majority vote of all non-insiders shareholders as a group.

Kangaroo Holdings Inc. is controlled by an investor group comprised of funds with Bain Capital Partners LLC and Catterton Management Co. LLC. OSI's founders and members of its management will exchange shares of OSI's common stock for shares of Kangaroo Holdings Inc. in connection with the merger.

OSI's board of directors has adopted the merger agreement and is recommending stockholder approval. Wachovia Securities LLC served as financial advisor to the special committee, and rendered a fairness opinion to the special committee.

At a special meeting of stockholders held on May 25, the stockholders voted to adjourn the vote on the merger until 11 a.m. on June 5.

Florida Bank Group agrees to merger with Cygnet Financial

Florida Bank Group Inc., a Tampa-based bank holding company, executed a definitive merger agreement with Cygnet Financial Corp. of Ponte Vedra Beach. Cygnet Financial Corp. is a bank holding company, whose sole subsidiary is Cygnet Private Bank, which has total assets of $114 million.

The merger offer consists of a payout of at least 90% in Florida Bank Group stock and about 10% in cash

The merger, approved by the boards of both companies, is subject to regulatory and shareholder approval, and is expected to close in the third quarter of this year.

"We are excited about our partnership with Cygnet and deepening client relationships and market reach in the greater Jacksonville area," Corey J. Coughlin, president and CEO of Florida Bank Group said in a press release.

Florida Bank Group subsidiary, Bank of North Florida started operations in December. In total, Florida Bank Group's assets and deposits in the greater Jacksonville area are expected to exceed $150 million and $100 million, respectively.

Florida Bank Group Inc. currently has three subsidiaries: Bank of St. Petersburg, Bank of North Florida and Bank of Tallahassee.

Nicholas Financial opens

central purchasing center

Nicholas Financial Inc. has opened a central purchasing center to underwrite automobile loans and service loan contracts from the company's headquarters in Clearwater. The primary focus of the central purchasing center will be to establish a presence for the company in new markets. The new venture will also allow the testing and development of Nicholas Financial's loan origination programs in new markets to determine the viability of the company's sales strategies in a given area.

The central purchasing center is part of a larger push by Nicholas Financial to expand. The company's goals include significantly growing the size of loan portfolios in existing branch offices and the acquisition of bulk loan contract portfolios.

Mr. ShowerDoor opens

store in Sarasota

The tub and shower enclosure company Mr. ShowerDoor has opened its third Florida location at 7484 S. Tamiami Trail in Sarasota.

The Daubmann family - father Bill, mother Donna, and sons Keith and Douglas - opened its first Florida Mr. ShowerDoor in Naples in 2003.

"I had planned on retiring in Florida," Bill Daubmann says in a press release. He previously owned and operated two Mr. ShowerDoor locations in Springfield, Mass., and Hartford, Conn., before selling them to move to Florida.

The Florida stores in Naples, Fort Myers and Sarasota are still run by the Daubmann family. Bill and Donna oversee the general operations while Keith and Douglas take care of sales, service and installation.

The company has been responsible for such high profile projects as The Trump National Golf Club and the Grand Hyatt New York Hotel.

Mr. Shower Door is the exclusive manufacturer and distributor of Luxus shower enclosures.

Etc...

Walter Industries Inc.

announces dividend 

Tampa-based Walter Industries Inc. announced that its board of directors has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.05 per common share, payable on June 8 to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 11.

Walter Industries, with annual revenues of $1.3 billion, is a producer and exporter of metallurgical coal for the global steel industry and also produces steam coal, coal bed methane gas, furnace and foundry coke and other coal-based products. 

USF Health joins

U.S. Prevention Network 

USF Health will be the first academic medical institution to join the U.S. Preventive Medicine's U.S. Prevention Network. As the exclusive member of the U.S. Prevention Network in the Tampa Bay area, USF Health will open several Centers for Preventive Medicine focused on helping individuals detect and treat health risks at the earliest stage. USF Health will also introduce a benefit program called The Prevention Plan.

Services through USF Health Services are expected to be available in spring 2008.

USF Health is a partnership of the University of South Florida's colleges of medicine, nursing, and public health; the schools of basic biomedical sciences and physical therapy and rehabilitation sciences; and the USF Physicians Group. 

Caldwell Trust hits

$400 million in assets

Venice-based Caldwell Trust Co. has topped $400 million in assets, according to R. G. "Kelly" Caldwell, Jr., president and senior trust officer. Headquartered in Venice, with additional offices in Sarasota and Punta Gorda, the independent trust company was chartered in Florida in November 1993 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Venice-based Trust Cos. of America.

National In-Store survey 

highlights "clean" retail's impact

A study performed by Sarasota-based National In-Store and M/A/R/C Research in March found that 14% of consumers said they would stop visiting a store that was not as clean as they would like, and 29% said they would only visit the store to pick up a few items they couldn't find elsewhere. Further the survey found that grocery and drug stores should pay particular attention to store cleanliness since their shoppers are among the highest percentage measured that would "stop going to a store" if the store is not perceived as being clean.

The survey included responses from 6,400 in-store audits as well as more than 30,000 shoppers.

National In-Store, part of Omnicom Group Inc. offers a wide range of merchandising, sales training, events & demos, ISO certified fulfillment, experiential marketing, mystery shopping, quality assurance and technical services. 

American Momentum Bank CEO funds new Moffitt center

Entrepreneur/philanthropist Donald A. Adam says he will donate $20.4 million to the development of a Comprehensive Melanoma Research Center at Tampa's H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute. The center will conduct research on melanoma and translate that into cutting-edge patient treatment. The donation represents the largest single gift in Moffitt's history.

Adam, a melanoma survivor himself, is chairman and CEO of American Momentum Bank in Tampa. With $100 million in capitalization, American Momentum represents the largest bank start up in Florida history.

"Melanoma is the fastest growing cancer in the United States, with Florida ranking second in the nation in number of cases," Dr. William Dalton, president and CEO of Moffitt, said in a press release. "This center will allow us to respond even more aggressively to Florida's growing melanoma rate and reduce the state's burden."

Moffitt sees more than 1,500 new melanoma patients a year and is one of the top three cancer centers by volume in the United States.

The donation will almost entirely fund the first five years of research and development at the new center. During that time, the research and medical team plans to recruit from around the country to add to its melanoma researchers, conduct clinical trials on new cancer drugs and pursue the Melanoma Genomics Project, which maps the development of the diseases on a molecular level.