Hip Hop Flop

After seeing the videos taken at the "grand opening" of H3 Enterprise's second restaurant in Miami, I've decided to bail. While their flagship operation in Tampa looked well-planned and well-executed, the Miami franchise is a tiny place in a run-down strip mall - an embarrassment to a brand that's not established enough to be forgiven for such a mistake.

And so, like most of their customers, I'm getting out and probably won't be back:



Since the company was approaching my loss limit of 50%, it was probably only a matter of time before I bailed out anyway ... and I expect that, given time, I won't have any regrets for getting out early.

Miami HipHopSodaShop Grand Opening on May 22

H3 Enterprises will be opening its second "Hip Hop Soda Shop" in Miami this weekend, and has announced that ...

The Miami HipHopSodaShop launch is a celebration of the evolution, flava, and cultural genius of Miami hip-hop. The grand opening will pay tribute to the artistic talent of Miami hip-hop artists Rick Ross, Trina, Trick Daddy, Grind Mode, Flo-Rida, Luther Campbell, Ball Greasy, Gorilla Tech, Brisko, Bizzle, DJ Chipman, DJ Khaled, DJ Entyce, and DJ Ali.

For what it's worth, I have no earthly idea who any of those people are ... but I hope that their target market has.

H3 Announces Grand Opening in Miami

H3 Enterprises announced today that ...

The Grand Opening of the HipHopSodaShop in Miami, Florida is scheduled to begin on May 21, 2008 and will last until July 21, 2008.

On one hand, it's great that the store will be opening in time for Memorial Day weekend, as I expect that this will boost its performance out of the gate and help them to build a client base at the beginning of the summer holidays.

On the other hand, I do wonder why an "Opening" is going to last for a two-month period. No details were provided on this matter, and it could be that they will open an unfinished restaurant, with a promise of additional features to be added over the next few months. That could do them more harm than good.

Weekly Summary

Another week has passed ...


It's pretty clear that H3 Enterprise s (HTRE) Petel (PTEI), and possibly Blue Star (BLSH) have gone sour and are unlikely to bounce back - I may dump them next week and salvage what cash is left, and start looking for another position or two to replace them.



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Quarterly Report

Here's a graph of the portfolio's performance for the first quarter:


Since my approach is to invest in companies that have the potential for high returns in the six- to twelve-month range, it's premature to begin assessing the success of that strategy, but given the turbulence in the market, and the high degree of risk in small-cap stocks, I think it's done fairly well so far.

Of the 13 companies I've invested in, I've only made two serious mistakes (Pilgrim Petroleum and GoIP Global), though a couple of others (H3 Enterprises and Blue Star Health) are shaping up to be serious dogs, and the jury's still out on whether the remainder will live up to their potential.

H3 Enterprises (HTRE)

Company:	H3 Enterprises
Web Site:	http://www.h3inc.com
Purchase Price:	$0.11
Current Price:	Click Here

H3 Enterprises has created a new franchise, called the "Hip Hop Soda Shop," a theme restaurant for teens. They have opened their first restaurant recently (proving there's more than just talk to this one) and have plans to open others in major cities across the country.

Their concept strikes me as being like "Chuck E. Cheese" for a slightly older crowd, which strikes me as a great idea. I can't think of another corporation that's looking to give teens and young adults a place to hang out ... or maybe others have tried and failed. If they can make it work, it could be a gold mine.

I expect this one will take off when word gets out, and will dump my shares when it hits 50 cents. On the other hand, if there are signs of trouble and it looks like it won't expand, I'll cut my losses.