Action Products buys into medical biz
By Staff -- Playthings, 8/11/2008 8:18:00 AM
ORLANDO, Fla.—Specialty toy and craft kit maker Action Products International is entering the medical equipment business with the acquisition of B.E. Overseas Investment Group and its portfolio.
BE is a Miami-based holding company and merchant bank that provides foreign companies intellectual and growth capital and access to US markets. Its portfolio includes substantial ownership in Visiomed International, a distributor of medical devices and home health and wellness products.
The terms of the acquisition have yet to be negotiated but Action Products' plan calls for BE's holdings in Visiomed to be folded into a new, wholly owned subsidiary of Action Products called Action Healthcare Products Inc.
[UPDATE: On August 13, Action Products said the purchase would be made via 500,000 shares of restricted Action Products common stock.]
On August 4, Action Products CEO Ron Kaplan sent a letter to the company's shareholders explaining it was “assessing a plan to structure APII as a corporation that operates a diversified portfolio of high growth companies serving the consumer products sector.” The move would help the company take advantage of the “the infrastructure we've built to secure, sell and distribute [its core toy and craft] products.”
“We are proud of both the company and the corporation we have built thus far,” Kaplan said. “With this next step, by taking advantage of our investments to date, we are now positioning our corporation for profitability and capitalization and an exciting new stage in which we seek to enter new businesses aligned with our vision of future consumer, business, and financial market economies.
As for its core children's products business, it has a new operating management team and is refocused to emphasize sales and reduce operating expense. “It is on its way to being turned to reestablished growth and profitability from its operations,” said Kaplan in his letter to shareholders.
