Alec Glover Also Outlines Aggressive Internet Commerce Commitment
SAN JOSE, Calif., Feb. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Alec Glover, president and CEO of
Hello Direct, Inc. (Nasdaq: HELO), discussed the Company's record 1998
financial results last Friday at an investor conference hosted by THE RED CHIP
REVIEW in Phoenix, Arizona.
"We have just completed the most profitable quarter and year in the
Company's history, and those results are directly attributable to a strategy
we began implementing over a year ago," said Glover. On January 27, Hello
Direct reported fourth quarter net income of $823,000, or $0.16 per share, a
38 percent increase over net income in the same quarter of the previous year.
Net income for 1998 reached $2.7 million, or $0.51 per share, a 50 percent
increase over net income in 1997.
"During 1998, we grew our margins significantly by focusing on our most
profitable customers and channels, and by eliminating nearly half our products
because they did not meet new profitability requirements," said Glover. "In
addition, we have just introduced new proprietary telephone productivity tools
whose sales have exceeded our initial forecasts."
According to Glover, Hello Direct also has made investments to more
rapidly develop its outbound telemarketing and Internet commerce sales
channels. "The Internet is now our fastest-growing channel, approaching
10 percent of total sales in the fourth quarter," he said. "Our recent
acquisition of PhoneZone.com, the leading Web-based buyer's guide, positions
Hello Direct to extend its Internet leadership by building the marketplace for
a wider range of telecom products and services."
THE RED CHIP REVIEW is the nation's leading source of information on
small-cap stocks. Hello Direct was recently named by RED CHIP REVIEW as one
of its "Top Picks for 1999."
Hello Direct, Inc. (http://www.hellodirect.com) is the leading developer and
direct marketer of telephone productivity tools including headsets,
teleconferencing, wireless and related desktop products. Through its
distinctive catalogs, Website and outbound telemarketing programs, the Company
offers a broad selection of commercial-grade brand name, proprietary and
private label products at competitive prices that provide solutions to its
customers' evolving communication needs.
SOURCE Hello Direct, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.hellodirect.com
CONTACT:
Raymond E. Nystrom, Vice President
Operations, Chief Financial Officer, of Hello Direct,
408-363-5075; or General Information, Don Markley, or Analyst
Inquiries, Reid Cox, of The Financial Relations Board,
415-986-1591
NOTE TO EDITORS: For more information on Hello Direct, Inc. via
fax at no cost, dial 1-800-PRO-INFO (908-544-2850 outside the
U.S.), ticker symbol: HELO
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