|
Bombardiers Promotional
Stunt
To coincide with the publication of Bombardiers in
1995, I decided to simultaneously spoof both the financial world and the publishing world
by selling shares that paid out after one year based on the performance of the hardcover.
On pub day we had a trading party in a makeshift trading pit in the back room of Harry's
Bar on Wall Street, which was attended by Jack Kemp, Dick Cavett, and Playboy's Miss
April. The event was covered by Entertainment Tonight. Publishing people who came to party
had never quite seen a book party like it. For a few months, shareholders were able to buy
and sell their shares via a secondary market maintained on an 800 number. A year after
publication, the BONDS shares paid $4 to each holder (who bothered to turn their share
in). Here are some highlights from the prospectus we used to sell the shares:
Prospectus
500 Shares
Random House
B*O*N*D*S
Bombardiers Obligation Notes Duplicating Sales
Initial Public Offering
In March of 1995, Random House Holdings will privately offer 500
Shares that will return income based upon the sales performance of Po Bronson’s first
novel, Bombardiers, to be concurrently published by Random House Inc. Before the
offering, there has been no public market for the shares. See "Investment
Considerations" for certain information that should be considered by prospective
purchasers of the Shares offered hereby.
Global Underwriting Syndicate
Random House, Inc. North America
Secker & Warburg ltd. United Kingdom
Droemer Verlag Germany
Kadokawa shoten Japan
Rcs rizzoli
Italy
Gulden Dahl Denmark
The date of this prospectus is September 2, 1994
A Letter from the Publisher
Dear Investor,
It is my pleasure to offer you the unprecedented opportunity to
invest in what we believe will be the business novel of the 1990s, by one of the
most exciting new authors we have had the priviledge to publish.
The bombardiers in Po Bronson’s brilliant novel are bond
salespeople who hustle financial products they barely understand. They are the soldiers of
an economic superpower, ragtag troops staking the front lines of corporate influence. Set
at the nexus of pure capitalism, the Information Economy, and high technology, Bombardiers
will change the way you think about modern business.
Months before its March 1995 publication date, Bombardiers
has already become an international sensation among speculators in the publishing
business, with a $250,000 sale to Britain, deals with top publishers in Germany, Japan,
Italy, Denmark, and Norway, and a $75,000 paperback floor.
Now, we are offering you the chance to ply your capitalist talents
in the lucrative and seductive realm of American fiction. We believe fiction is one of
America’s most vital growth industries, and that Po Bronson is one of its most
promising assets. In t his prospectus, you will learn the financial and literary reasons
why you should bet on Bombardiers.
The marketing and sales juggernaut is about to begin. We hope you
will join us.
Sincerely,
Harold M. Evans
Legal Matters
These Shares have not been approved or disapproved by the Securities
and Exchange Commission or any state securities commission nor has the Securities and
Exchange Commission or any state securities commission passed upon the accuracy or
adequacy of this Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
No publisher, publicist, or agent has been authorized to give any
information or to make any representations other than those contained in this Prospectus
and, if given or made, such information or representations must not be relied upon as
having been authorized by the Offerer or any of the global Underwriters. Until March of
1994, all publishers effecting transactions in the Shares are required to deliver a
Prospectus to the purchaser.
In addition, all purchasers of the Shares are entitled to a free
copy of either the advance Reader’s Edition or the hardcover edition. Because the
Novel has a retail value ($21.00) in excess of the expected Share offering price ($4.00),
these Shares do not represent a security.
Our Offer
The B.O.N.D.S. will return to investors $1.00 for every 10,000
copies of the novel that are sold in one year in North America. The expected offering
price is $4.00 per share, based on Random House’s first printing of 40,000 copies.
Net Sales as of March 31, 1996 Value of B*O*M*B*S Profit/Loss (per
share)
10,000 copies $1.00 -$3.00
20,000 copies $2.00 -$2.00
40,000 copies $4.00 $0.00
60,000 copies $6.00 $2.00
80,000 copies $8.00 $4.00
To coincide with the publication of the book, Random House will host
an offering party in New York City in early March. Those in attendance will have first
priority to purchase Shares.
Remaining shares will be allocated to those who have reserved them
by phone in advance of the offering.
For both those in attendance and those reserving by phone, you are
limited to one share per person of the initial offering. However, after the initial
offering, you are free to purchase as many shares as you like from other shareholders on
the open market.
We urge you to call 800-###-#### soon to reserve your share.
All phone reservations will be "on account," meaning no money will change hands
until after the year is concluded.
All phone reservations will be "on account," meaning no money will change hands
until after the year is concluded.
Those allocated shares will be sent unofficial certificates of
ownership.
Shareholders can follow their investment by listening to a biweekly
voice mail message at the same number, 800-###-####. This will recap recent reviews and
all events that affect the sales expectation. Each month, we will include the number of
copies shipped (gross sales), and we will report net sales figures on a semi-annual basis.
It is probable that a secondary market will develop among
shareholders, but to avoid conflict of interest the underwriters will not participate in
any secondary market.
At the end of the year, checks and/or invoices will be sent to all
registered owners.
The expected class of investors includes booksellers and the general
public, particularly readers employed in the financial markets.
Report of Independent Accountants
To the Shareholders of B*O*N*D*S:
It is my opinion, based on my extensive grilling of Po Bronson about
the plot line to Bombardiers, that he is truly the one who wrote it. My audit also
involved interrogating Random House Associate Publisher Walter Weincz about the potential
use of shady bookkeeping practices to hide unit sales, and my concerns were satisfied. As
discussed in notes A and E to the consolidated financial statements, Random House Holdings
changed its method of recording accrued sales in 1994 to adopt the provisions of
F.A.S.B.
Standards No 106, "Now-You-See-’Em, Now-You-Don’t."
Stormin’ Norman Walker, C.P.A.
San Francisco, California
September 1, 1994
Investment Considerations/Risk Factors
Start-Up Uncertainty: As with all other business startups, there is no sales history to gain
comfort from. This is the author’s first book; he has no established audience and
zero name recognition among traditional book buyers. Several factors, however, will
moderate this risk. First novels draw an inordinate share of media attention and the
publishing "buzz" about this novel is already intense due to the numerous
foreign sales. In addition, the author has worked in publishing for six years, currently
serving as Associate Publisher of Mercury House and as a board member of Consortium Book
Sales & Distribution. His contacts and knowledge of the industry will give him an
insider’s edge.
Comparable Books:
We could not find any books with quite this approach to the subject matter. Its vision is
gritty and its characters are slightly bizarre. Most nonfiction business-oriented writing
largely assumes the "Great Man Theory" of history, where individual business men
control entire markets and alter the course of economic history through their visionary
management tactics and entrepreneurial savvy. Bombardiers shows a different view, a
view of ordinary employees who are not in control. It is a view of economic history in the
way that great war novels are a footsoldier’s trench-level view of political history.
We see the very unusualness of the novel as one if its strengths.
Core Audience:
Although we expect this novel will appeal to anyone who feels like they’ve spent
their life at their desk, we have decided to specifically target our marketing to readers
working in the financial sector. This is a class of people that isn’t known to spend
a lot of time in bookstores. They’re hard to reach, and they’re jaded about the
way their culture is portrayed in the media. Nevertheless, we are undaunted. These people talk.
Word-of-mouth can spread like a summer brushfire. Because of this factor, the British
publisher Secker & Warburg made a conscious decision to publish Bombardiers
simultaneously with Random House—to make sure traders in New York could laugh over
the book with brokers in London.
Liquidity:
Investors with liquidity as a high priority should not invest in B*O*M*B*S. No guarantees
are made about a public market developing for the B*O*M*B*S. As a consequence, investors
may have difficulty rapidly realizing the underlying value of shares prior to maturity. In
order to facilitate trading, the author will maintain the toll-free 800# to connect
potential buyers and sellers.
Expert Opinions
Mario
Puzo:
"Bombardiers is a wonderful read. Bronson is a man to watch. You will never
invest again."
Ron Carlson, author of Plan B for the Middle
Class: "This is called ‘bursting
on the scene.’ The energy, savvy, and posture of this engaging, big story simply
demand attention. Po Bronson’s manic and relentless bond traders are a cornerstone to
the American metaphor. His book is as large as life and will have its way."
Irving R. Levine, Chief Economics Correspondent,
NBC: "After reading Po Bronson’s Bombardiers,
I laughed all the way to the bank—to remove my bonds from the safe deposit box to
cash them in! Anyone who cares about money won’t want to miss the wild ride with the
Bombardiers." |
