The Consumer Stock Network

Welcome to The Consumer Stock Network, an independent research site devoted to retail and consumer-related equities. First and foremost, our goal is to provide unbiased, fundamental analysis. Though we prefer long-term investment horizons, we recognize that timing is everything in today's market. As such, we will provide you real-time analysis for the consumer/retail sector so that you may take advantages of market irregularities. This includes earnings previews well before a company's release date, instant earnings reviews, and real-time analysis of any company or market specific catalysts.

That said, we hope to differentiate ourselves from other consumer/retail strategists by offering a comprehensive site. Other features we hope to offer include:

• Top Picks. In May, we will introduce the Consumer Stock Network Top Ideas List. This will be a ongoing feature where we provide our favorite investment recommendations in the consumer/retail space, including both long and short plays. Because accountability is very important to us, we will also personally invest in our top ideas. As new ideas present themselves, we will make adjustments and keep you abreast of the situation. To measure our overall performance, we benchmark our Top 10 List against the Standard & Poor Retail Index.
  
• Tutorials. Though it may seem relatively straightforward, the truth is that the consumer/retail industry features a number of complexities that may influence your investment analysis. From time to time, we will try to provide you with the finer points of consumer/retail stock investing, including commentary on same-store sales, markdown activity, inventory controls, weather, calendar shifts, and any other topics of interest.
  
• Management Insight. Over the course of 10+ years of personal and professional investing, we have been fortunate enough to encounter many of the best and brightest minds in retailing. At present, we have working relationships with the management teams of approximately 60-70 publicly traded and privately-held consumer companies. Whenever possible, we will provide retail management perspectives through interviews and panel discussions.
• Store-Level Analysis. It is one thing to grasp a company's fundamentals, but we believe a well-rounded consumer/retail investor understands a company down to the store level. Throughout our time as a sell-side analyst, we prided ourself on continuous store visits, conversations with distributors, and other pertinent channel checks. From these visits and discussions, we have built an expansive network of retail store and supply chain managers, and we hope to provide you with ongoing commentary from our sources to augment your investment strategies.

We have experience with the majority of companies we have linked to on this page, but would certainly welcome additional ideas or investment opportunities you have been working on yourself. Feel free to e-mail us at rjhottovy@consumerstocks.net with any comments, questions, or any additional feedback.