By Kevin McCauley
Coltrin & Assocs. is handling Blum Growth Fund, the investment firm headed by former Burger King and Olive Garden CEO Brad Blum, who wants to be installed as CEO of the struggling Cosi fast casual restaurant chain.
BGF boosted its ownership stake in the Deerfield, Ill.-based 80-member chain to the seven percent mark on Sept. 15.
Cosi’s stock, which traded at $11.21 in March 2006, now trades at 77 cents. NASDAQ will delist it on Feb. 21, if shares haven’t traded at an average $1 per-share for 30 consecutive trading days.
Blum wants a new board to guide a turnaround at the restaurant operation. He’s offered to lead the company at a salary of $1 for the first year.
The Cosi action, according to Blum, is neither a proxy fight nor hostile takeover, but “an exercise in shareholder democracy.”
He’s looking for support from fellow shareholders to “effect positive change at Cosi and participate in a non-legally binding expression of ‘no confidence’ for the current board.”
Cosi, which has never earned a profit during its nine-year history as a public company, lost $2.8M on $51M first-half sales. It has not responded to Blum’s bid.
Senior VP Jennifer Webb handles BGF at New York-based C&A.
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