By the end of the exhibition, on Sunday 18 January - following what discussions between Loud's management and the show's organisers one can only imagine - a front page story on the show newspaper, UpBeat Daily, said the rumours were unfounded.
Speaking to UpBeat Daily and Music Inc publisher Frank Alkyer, Loud CEO Rodney Olson, who took over management of the group last August, said the earlier news report was "totally unsubstantiated and painted the wrong picture of our situation. The truth is Loud has an envied senior management, supportive ownership in Sun Capital and a solid plan for success."
When asked about Loud's recent voluntary de-listing from NASDAQ, he said: "The cost of being a public company far outweighs the benefits. We spend close to $1m a year on legal fees and other activities that we believe are better invested in the business."
Olson said the company had experienced problems when a contract manufacturer of some EAW product lines stopped production in late 2008, but that replacement production was now up and running. He added that the company was "now fixing long-standing product availability issues that have been limiting our growth, as well as our customers' growth, for quite some time."
He added: "Loud is well positioned to emerge from this period in a strong position."
(Lee Baldock)
