January 5th, 2009
Dear Clients:
This past year presented many great challenges, to say the least, and we have all experienced some degree of loss. We have seen our firms, our colleagues, our friends and our wealth impacted in ways that seemed unimaginable at the year’s outset. I am, therefore, all the more grateful for your support, and I am able to report that, despite obvious headwinds, we remain absolutely committed to growing and improving our boutique research business in the years ahead.
We recently expanded our firm from 12 to 15 people, adding two research associates and one sales associate to our team. We see a great opportunity to provide independent, experienced, differentiated fundamental research during what should prove to be an inflectional market in 2009 and beyond. With virtually all of our sell-side competitors sharply reducing their resources and commitment to research and distribution, we hope to be even more impactful.
With a new year, a new administration, a materially lower stock market, and fewer firms competing for ideas, I remain very optimistic for those investors who are able to persevere. I am not sure when or how, but I expect the market’s resiliency to lead and provide confidence for a fragile U.S. and global economy at some point during 2009. Driven by inventory restocking and expected massive infrastructure stimulus, well-executing transportation companies and stocks should be at the forefront of this eventual inflection toward recovery.
I thank you for the opportunity to bring you our perspective and ideas on freight, the macro economy and the 31 companies we cover and to service you in both traditional and non-traditional manners. Further, we hope to continue to offer new, innovative products like our doh! interactive models, short audio file briefs and Monthly Macro reports. While 2008 was a challenging year, I am pleased that our clients — for the sixth consecutive year, and eight of the past nine — voted us No. 1 in Institutional Investor magazine’s All American Research poll. This achievement was especially rewarding this year given our more targeted research distribution, smaller sales force and six-week publishing hiatus right before re-launching at Wolfe Research.
On behalf of our firm, thank you again for your confidence and support. We pledge to work hard in 2009, once again, to bring new ideas and more creative products to you and to provide responsive, anticipatory service. Please let us know what we can do better or different going forward, as we continue to strive to improve.
All the best for a better 2009!
Regards,
