October 5, 2004
To Whom It May Concern:
It gives me great pleasure to recommend Maurice Heffernan. Maurice was Vice President of Finance and Operations at Bodytrends Health and Fitness, Inc. from February 2000 thru July 2004, when we sold the company. He came to us highly recommended, and we were not disappointed. Maurice is a capable and talented business person and a very fine human being. The quality of his work, his commitment, his strategic insight and his attitude are all A-plus. You will be very happy with him.
Maurice is one of the three best financial guys I've worked with in my career. Maurice's financial reports were excellent - possibly the best I've seen. He thinks both operationally and financially which allows him to focus his management team on the key financial metrics that really matter. As our business changed and morphed it was uncanny how Maurice was able to evolve the financial reporting so managers and the Board fully appreciated the most profitable slices of our business. I trust you'll find his financial reports to be the best you've ever worked with.
Maurice's ability to stretch cash is legendary. His ability to hang onto cash always impressed me and the entire Board. The vast majority of our growth was financed with internally generated cash, making equity funding unnecessary, and that would not have been possible without Maurice's able leadership.
Maurice is bright, disciplined in his thinking, and readily grasps the big picture. He is a very quick study, has a good sense for strategy, and he makes quick accurate decisions that directly benefit the bottom-line and increase shareholder value. He combines visionary thinking with a "resources required versus results" mentality which makes for very good decision-making. When things got a little bumpy after 9-11, Maurice stepped forward with a Plan which the Board adopted as our guide back to profitability. As a participant in Board Meetings, his insights and point of view were always helpful and valued by Board Members.
Maurice has the highest integrity, and he is very loyal to those individuals and organizations that are a part of his life. While at Bodytrends he regularly received offers from other companies, but he always assured the Board that he was committed to seeing the Bodytrends "project" through, regardless of how attractive the other options. He sticks with things and finishes what he starts. When we recently sold the company, Maurice played a key role in optimizing the valuation and the transaction, and he stayed with us until every "t" was crossed and "i" dotted.
I highly recommend Maurice, and I am confident you will be well served by him in any capacity. Please feel free to call me at 805-969-1191 should you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Timothy K. Bliss
Chairman of the Board, Bodytrends Health and Fitness, Inc.
Partner, Investment Group of Santa Barbara