The Hour Glass

[Boon]

It was really a tongue-in-cheek question on a lazy Sunday afternoon. If it was offensive or appears to be confrontational please accept my apology.

Thanks for responding. It serves to vindicate my gut feel that you know something about the business and you are modest. Very modest and very experienced.

The takeway from this is your opinion counts. Ultimately it is my decision. My money

No worries !!! I do not find your action offensive.

Thanks for your compliments. Cheers !!!

[Boon]

Hi everybody, i just register on the forum and want to say thank you as i follow the discussion on Hour Glass and learn many things, very impressive research, high quality comments and analysis....so it's time to say thank you.

I am french but live and work in Thailand and i have a passion for watches, Hublot is one of my favorite brand and i discover in 2010 The Hour Glass as they are an exclusive partner. During a trip to Singapore i visit "L'atelier at Ion and Hublot at Marina Bay and was very impress by the service so i try to do some research on the company and find out that it' a listed company on SGX. I have decided to invest in "The Hour Glass" not only for the "numbers" but for the passion, it's great business so when the price is right i buy this stock regularly. Now it represent 52 % of my portfolio, i know many of you gonna tell me that it's risky...but i have 36 years old and it's time or never to take risk.

I must say also that "Malmaison" is a very impressive concept for a french like me, choices are impressive like "Corthay" for the shoes. It will be too long to explain all my passion for watches and for this company but i am in the ship for a very long time.

Thanks again to everybody,

Best regards,

Welcome on board !

Wow, THG represents 52% of your entire portfolio. I think it is risky, but as long as you feel comfortable and have strong conviction in what you are doing, why not? I guess this could be attributed entirely by your passion for luxury watches, am I right ?

Being French, it would be nice if you could share with us your perspective as to why you are so passionate about luxury watches.

And being a watch lover, how would you react to such a question: " What is the difference between reading time from a cellphone and a watch?"

Cheers

[pacyfiq]

Thanks for your comments. I must say after 2 years that month after month i feel comfortable with my decision, it's risky for sure but it's not very different when you buy a new house, a new car or even when you married, it's also risky. As i decide to buy shares on a regular basis if the price go down i can buy more shares....and it makes me happy.

Passion for luxury watches is important in my decision but it also help me to think about the decisions management make, for example with Hublot it was the right move at the right time, Hublot become more and more popular for watches lovers. I spend time on forums like Timezone and i can have a good feeling about the market.

About your question, if i want to know the date or the time i will use my iphone, not my watch. Many people understand the difference between a Ferrari and a Toyota but they don't understand the difference between a Patek and a Casio, they even don't understand the concept of manual and automatic movement, quartz...
When i lived in France it was at 40 minutes from Geneva...so a Swiss watch remind me my home. I can watch during 1 hour a "Tourbillon", passion is passion, 15 years ago i travel across Europe and USA following Michael Jackson as i was a fan but i understand also 100% that some people simply don't like the man or the artist. About THG i am impress about the choices of the management, future is bright for luxury products in Asia, it's a great business, and last but not least in my humble opinion the price is cheap.

[dydx]

From the way you write, pacyhq I think you are a passionate man and watch collector, and also a serious investor, and IMHO it is not unusual at all that THG would appeal to someone like you. You remind me of another French man I came to know, and he spent quite a few years in the timber industry in Indonesia and in the course of his time spent looking for good timber in the jungle there he also hunted a tiger which he proundly displayed its skin in his office.

To me, THG is also akin to a rare find!

[pacyfiq]

From the way you write, pacyfiq I think you are a passionate man and watch collector, and also a serious investor, and IMHO it is not unusual at all that THG would appeal to someone like you. You remind me of another French man I came to know, and he spent quite a few years in the timber industry in Indonesia and in the course of his time spent looking for good timber in the jungle there he also hunted a tiger which he proudly displayed its skin in his office.

To me, THG is also akin to a rare find!

A tiger is such a beautiful creature, very sad to finish on a wall like a trophy!

[namralk]

I too find Malmaison to be a great retail concept. From the pics and what I read (blogs), Malmasion is like a one-stop-men-luxury concept store. Corthay shoes for guys. Customised perfume. I believe they sell ties too? It’s like a big (& rich) boy candy shop.. how do the boys resist such an environment?

I do not own any luxury timepiece but I observe that once someone buy the first piece, chances of getting "hooked" is high. And usually the pieces that one buy after that will be more expensive. This could be because as one increases his knowledge in watches, he buy the more complex (& more dear) watches. For those who may buy to reflect their status symbol - “I’ve arrived”…. of course the next time he/she would need to up the ante. So THG is in a biz where revenue growth is almost for sure (captive & increasing customer base & price).

At slightly more than 1 time book, IMHO, it fulfils Buffett’s 4 criteria of selecting good biz :

- Easily understandable biz
- Favourable long term prospects
- Honest & competent management
- Priced attractively

[dydx]

From the way you write, pacyfiq I think you are a passionate man and watch collector, and also a serious investor, and IMHO it is not unusual at all that THG would appeal to someone like you. You remind me of another French man I came to know, and he spent quite a few years in the timber industry in Indonesia and in the course of his time spent looking for good timber in the jungle there he also hunted a tiger which he proudly displayed its skin in his office.

To me, THG is also akin to a rare find!

A tiger is such a beautiful creature, very sad to finish on a wall like a trophy!

I was told the tiger attacked his group, so it was more like a self defence situation. Anyway, its skin was laid on the floor of his office, like a carpet.

[dydx]

The latest THG FY12 (ended 31Mar12) AR - especially the 5-page Chairman's Statement by Dr Henry Tay - makes excellent reading.....
http://info.sgx.com/listprosp.nsf/6c6be9...b003833aa/$FILE/THG_AR2012_25%20June.pdf

In his own words, Dr Tay has articulated succinctly THG's critical success factors - long-range and rational business strategies, well-thought-out business expansion moves, strong focus on operational efficiencies and profitability, financial prudence, continuous improvement, and building a strong team and corporate culture.

[guru]

By far one of the best pieces I've come across. Numbers are continuing to look impressive. I'm definitely looking to add a little bit more once xd.

the company does not allow script div this year

The latest THG FY12 (ended 31Mar12) AR - especially the 5-page Chairman's Statement by Dr Henry Tay - makes excellent reading.....
http://info.sgx.com/listprosp.nsf/6c6be9...b003833aa/$FILE/THG_AR2012_25%20June.pdf

In his own words, Dr Tay has articulated succinctly THG's critical success factors - long-range and rational business strategies, well-thought-out business expansion moves, strong focus on operational efficiencies and profitability, financial prudence, continuous improvement, and building a strong team and corporate culture.

[dydx]

I am so pleased to note that since Dec10, THG's share price has out-performed STI - i.e. the SGX market average - by over 60%.....
http://finance.yahoo.com/echarts?s=E5P.S...=undefined;

I believe it is fair to say that for THG, the best is yet to come!