As we have explained in other special reports, companies often cannot initially disclose with whom a contract has been signed for legal reasons, but we have encouraged and reminded our members to perform their due diligence and look to regulatory filings to see if the company is named there. It’s not always, but it is always worth the quick gander.
CRS Electronics Inc. (TSX-Venture:LED) (OTCQX:LEDCF), a Lighting Facts partner and leader in the rapidly-growing market of high efficiency light-emitting-diode ("LED") or solid state lighting ("SSL"), issued news in August of a new supply agreement with "a national leading North American Retailer," but details could not be released at the time as the agreement was subject to the retailer’s confidentiality policy. CRS was not allowed to name the retailer, which wasn’t disclosed in filings either, as it would be a breach of policy until the rollout of the Energizer® LED program began.
For more than a dozen years, CRS has been a developer and manufacturer of LED lighting products. About a year ago, CRS scored a major win for its organization with an exclusive license agreement with Eveready Battery Company, Inc., a subsidiary of Energizer Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:ENR) for CRS to manufacture a suite of LED lighting products under the brand name Energizer.
The term of the Exclusive Agreement is from January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2015.
Now building upon that deal, CRS is adding to its list of major partners by revealing the company from the supply agreement announced in August. The company? Canadian Tire Corporation Ltd. (TSX:CTC) (TSX:CTC.A), one of the most recognized names in Canada. In fact, according to the Canadian Tire website, more than 90% of the Canadian population lives with 15 minutes of a Canadian Tire store and more than 80% of the population shops at their stores each year.
This bodes well for potential future sales for CRS.
"Canadian Tire is a significant retail partner, which will greatly assist us as we continue to expand our North American retail base," said Scott Riesebosch, President of CRS Electronics. Under terms of the agreement, CRS will supply a range of Energizer LED lighting products including the A19, MR16, GU10 and a variety of PAR lights (typically referred to as "pot lights").
Canadian Tire has committed to showcasing the Energizer lights in creative and attention-getting merchandisers designed to educate consumers on the benefits of LED lighting in their homes throughout Canadian Tire locations. Products are scheduled to be available in Canadian Tire stores within weeks.
Shares of CRS have still struggling on the whole in 2011, but the possibility of strong sales serving as a driver to counterweight some operational losses that have been reported in the past should keep this company on the radar of investors.
Over the last 30 days, shares have risen a dime each to now be trading at 40 cents, but there is still plenty of headroom before 52-week highs of 87 cents could be reached again. Proper due diligence is, of course, encouraged.
