I-Berhad (7029-H) - Bursa Malaysia

12
Dear Shareholders,
On behalf of the Board of Directors, I am pleased
to present the Annual Report and Accounts of
I-Berhad for the year ended 31 December 1999.
When the new management took over I-Berhad on 4 August 1999, we charted a new business direction for
the Company. In the past, the Company was mainly an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM). Although
the products manufactured by the Company met the stringent quality standards set by the Japanese OEM
buyers, there was hardly any sales under the Company’s own brand.
We thus took the decision to introduce our own ‘i’ brand of products into the market. But more importantly,
we positioned the ‘i’ brand as intelligent, innovative, interactive and international and competed with the
leading brands in the country. We felt that this positioning is justified given the Company’s manufacturing
track record as well as the current product technology.
The Board recognises that the Company is operating in a highly competitive industry. The home appliances
industry has a number of established players in the local market. However, the Company has been able to
establish a “beachhead” in this industry because of our innovative and imaginative approach to create new
demand for our products. Our performance in the past six months has shown that the domestic demand is
still growing and that the momentum of growth will be sustained as the country’s economy is gaining strength.
More importantly, the new management has managed to arrest the declining sales trend. The Company’s
turnover peaked at RM139.6 million in the early 90s and since then, the turnover had been decreasing year
by year. For the financial year ended 31 December 1999, the Company’s sales increased when compared
to the previous year. This sales turnaround is even more impressive when the economic climate is taken
into consideration.
Over the past six months, we have transformed the Company from a purely domestic manufacturing concern
into an aggressive marketing cum manufacturing concern. The transformation has yet to be completed. When
completed in two to three years’ time, the Company will have home-grown technology, an internationally
recognised brand and be a market leader.
To support the expansion programme, the Company had on 20 January 2000 announced the following:
1. Proposed bonus issue of 20,196,000 new ordinary shares of RM1.00 each;
2. Proposed rights issue of:
Chairman’s Statement
a. 40,392,000 new ordinary shares of RM1.00 each and
b. RM40,392,000 nominal value of 5-year 5% Irredeemable Convertible Unsecured Loan Stock (“ICULS”)
with 40,392,000 free detachable warrants.