drooling along with the riffraff. If she was going to drool, she wanted to do it in the privacy of her own home, with a staff to wipe her chin—and anything else that needed wiping. She often said that she found old age ugly and generally pathetic, which meant, of course, that that’s how she viewed herself. Elaine, on the other hand, truly believed that there was something almost beatific in the faces of old people. She’d always been drawn to the elderly, far more than to the other end of the spectrum: children. But when she tried to explain this to her mother, her mom just brushed it off by saying “Wait till you get old. You won’t find it so ‘beautiful’ then.”
Maybe her mom was right. Elaine wasn’t feeling very sure about anything tonight, especially her own judgment. She returned her attention to the filet of sole, which was suitably blah. The roasted brussels sprouts were okay. Mrs. Knox had made them in honor of Danny’s arrival. Incomprehensible as it was, brussels sprouts were Danny’s favorite vegetable. He craved them the way other people craved chocolate.
Nobody talked much about Tracy, and for that Elaine was grateful. She’d spoken of little else since last night and desperately needed a break. She’d already had too much wine, but she figured she was allowed. Actually, as she looked around the table, everyone, except for her mom, was drinking more than usual. Coming face-to-face with suicide was probably taking a toll.
As the dessert plates were removed and the final round of coffee poured, Alex cleared his throat and said that there was something he’d like to discuss with everyone. He said he knew it was bad timing, but he’d started a process in motion many months ago and now needed to talk about it. All he needed was ten minutes.
Elaine had been planning to hit the couch in the music room and check out for a few hours, but Alex seemed so keyed up, she felt it was only fair to stay and hear him out. She glanced at Marchand and saw that he was chewing his bottom lip, looking nervous.
“Okay,” began Alex, pushing back from the table and crossing his legs, “this may sound like it’s coming out of the blue, but I’ve been thinking seriously about this for almost a year. Mom, everyone, I believe it’s time to take Veelund Industries public.”
“Public?” repeated Danny. He seemed puzzled by the proposition.
“Just listen, all right?” said Alex. “Let me explain. This past winter, I had our annualized revenues pulled for the last five years. I gave them to a financial service company—P.J.I. in Boston. In today’s market, you can’t just tread water. You either grow or you die. We need to expand, add to our visibility, but to do that we need money. I want to build on Dad’s dreams. Not just with the Log Lodges, but with all our divisions. Going public would allow us access to new capital through both equity and debt financing. We’d be able to attract better people if we could offer stock options. We convert our debt to equity and strengthen the company’s balance sheet. It’s win win.”
Nobody said anything for several long moments.
Finally, Danny crossed his arms. “You want to do this through an IPO?”
“Possibly. We could do it more quickly through a reverse takeover.”
“What’s that?” asked Elaine. Her head was throbbing.
“It’s complicated,” said Marchand.
“Meaning what?” said Elaine. “Women can’t possibly understand?”
“No, of course not,” said Alex. “If you want me to take you through it step by step, I will. But for now, let’s just address the basic concept. Should we take the company public? I think the answer is yes.”
Danny looked over at Elaine. “There’s a significant cost associated with going public, I believe. I’ve spent a lot of time studying the stock market, as well as investing in it. This last downturn has nearly finished me off. I’m not sure that’s where we want to be.”
“Wall Street will
Maybe her mom was right. Elaine wasn’t feeling very sure about anything tonight, especially her own judgment. She returned her attention to the filet of sole, which was suitably blah. The roasted brussels sprouts were okay. Mrs. Knox had made them in honor of Danny’s arrival. Incomprehensible as it was, brussels sprouts were Danny’s favorite vegetable. He craved them the way other people craved chocolate.
Nobody talked much about Tracy, and for that Elaine was grateful. She’d spoken of little else since last night and desperately needed a break. She’d already had too much wine, but she figured she was allowed. Actually, as she looked around the table, everyone, except for her mom, was drinking more than usual. Coming face-to-face with suicide was probably taking a toll.
As the dessert plates were removed and the final round of coffee poured, Alex cleared his throat and said that there was something he’d like to discuss with everyone. He said he knew it was bad timing, but he’d started a process in motion many months ago and now needed to talk about it. All he needed was ten minutes.
Elaine had been planning to hit the couch in the music room and check out for a few hours, but Alex seemed so keyed up, she felt it was only fair to stay and hear him out. She glanced at Marchand and saw that he was chewing his bottom lip, looking nervous.
“Okay,” began Alex, pushing back from the table and crossing his legs, “this may sound like it’s coming out of the blue, but I’ve been thinking seriously about this for almost a year. Mom, everyone, I believe it’s time to take Veelund Industries public.”
“Public?” repeated Danny. He seemed puzzled by the proposition.
“Just listen, all right?” said Alex. “Let me explain. This past winter, I had our annualized revenues pulled for the last five years. I gave them to a financial service company—P.J.I. in Boston. In today’s market, you can’t just tread water. You either grow or you die. We need to expand, add to our visibility, but to do that we need money. I want to build on Dad’s dreams. Not just with the Log Lodges, but with all our divisions. Going public would allow us access to new capital through both equity and debt financing. We’d be able to attract better people if we could offer stock options. We convert our debt to equity and strengthen the company’s balance sheet. It’s win win.”
Nobody said anything for several long moments.
Finally, Danny crossed his arms. “You want to do this through an IPO?”
“Possibly. We could do it more quickly through a reverse takeover.”
“What’s that?” asked Elaine. Her head was throbbing.
“It’s complicated,” said Marchand.
“Meaning what?” said Elaine. “Women can’t possibly understand?”
“No, of course not,” said Alex. “If you want me to take you through it step by step, I will. But for now, let’s just address the basic concept. Should we take the company public? I think the answer is yes.”
Danny looked over at Elaine. “There’s a significant cost associated with going public, I believe. I’ve spent a lot of time studying the stock market, as well as investing in it. This last downturn has nearly finished me off. I’m not sure that’s where we want to be.”
“Wall Street will
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