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To: Milk who wrote (105)	5/18/1999 10:43:00 PM
From: James Lee Baldwin	Respond to of 202

TAHG info Post 1 Gold Coast Resources, Inc. (GCRI) Gold Coast Resources, Inc. (GCRI) was reorganized December 1996. The Company's primary thrust has been the acquisition of small projects and companies that needed additional funding, management, promotion, or other administrational help. Since the reorganization management has been successful in acquiring numerous entities and assets. Most recently it acquired The Travel Agents Hotel Guide (TAHG) in the last quarter of 1997. TAHG is currently the #2 hotel guide, in terms of competition, in what is projected to be an $8 billion industry by the end of 1998. This should cause great excitement for GCRI. We expect GCRI to go to at least $8.00 over the term and should be able to reach it's previous high of $20 in the long term. GCRI already consists of numerous subsidiaries including: + Biostasis, a company with a patent pending storage process for perishable produce and flowers. Biostasis has a pending arrangement with Mexico that could reap millions in profits for the company. And several other companies that can be viewed on their web site (see link below) The main emphasis of this write up is dedicated to the recent acquisition by GCRI of TAGH. The Travel Agent's Hotel Guide's Media Kit may be seen on the Company's web site. A direct link can be found below. For many years the only real competition to TAHG, the Hotel and Travel Index has enjoyed a near monopoly for providing travel agents with a printed hotel research guide. Because of their near monopoly and tremendous cash flow it is reported that this business was the major part of a package purchase for over $500 million in 1991 by Reed Publishing. TAHG is the only direct competition for the Hotel and Travel Index which has sales of $80,000,000+ in each of the previous 3 years. The operating profits were approximately 40%. Due to the acquisition, TAHG has made plans to vastly increase its fiscal growth. Conservative estimates suggest TAHG's market share, with its intensified and accelerated marketing plan, product/service development and customer service, should be about 20% of that of the Hotel and Travel Index to generate approximately $20,000,000 (combined cash and trade) sales in the next two years. A survey of travel agents revealed the following about the TAHG product: + Over 70% of new TAHG agents said it was superior to the competition. + Another 63% said that TAHG's "User friendliness" is what sets it apart from the competition. + Over 80% of TAHG agents said it's main advantage over the Hotel and Travel Index was its "ease of use" and "cost value".; + Furthermore, another 60% said that TAHG has a more efficient format than the Index and 58% said its compactness makes TAHG their favored choice over the Index. + An overwhelming 98% of TAHG users said that its format and layout helped them increase productivity by decreasing research time (thereby increasing profits). Responses from customers indicate that TAHG is enjoying an excellent reputation. The first issue of TAHG was printed in the fall of 1984. It is the intent for the Company to grow to a point where it is operating beyond its original intended scope and become competitive with the industry leader, the Hotel and Travel Index. TAHG has expanded its scope to compete for a larger share of the market and has the objective to "produce a high quality, high use, good value publication that sets the standards for hotel researching effectiveness, while maintaining a high level of cash flow and profitability for the shareholders". TAGH enjoys an established track record of excellent support from and for its customers. Based on the research Stockwatchman has done into TAHG, including going to their current base of operation in Sacramento to check things out first hand, we feel that the acquisition of TAHG by GCRI makes it a good acquisition in the small cap portfolio.

To: Milk who wrote (105)	5/18/1999 10:45:00 PM
From: James Lee Baldwin	Respond to of 202

TAHG info post 2 The Travel Agent's Hotel Guide The Travel Agents Hotel Guide was designed by travel agents for travel agents. Based in Seattle, Washington, the first issue was printed in the fall of 1984. It was immediately hailed as an answer to an evident need in the industry : The need for a smaller and easier to use hotel reference manual. After six successful growth years, The Guide moved to Portland, Oregon, where it began a relationship with ITEX Corporation( The world=s largest barter company). As an associate company of ITEX, TAHG's purpose was to generate hotel room script (by trading advertising in TAHG to hotels for room nights) for use by ITEX member companies. The Travel Agents Hotel Guide is proud to be emerging as a champion of travel agents nationwide, helping to reduce research time by providing critical information in a lightweight, compact and portable format. The 8.5"x11" one inch thick book allows it to be easily and freely circulated within a travel agency, or to be carried by an agent on the road or by a traveling salesperson. It fits into any standard briefcase with ease. Which cannot be said of its main competitor. Travel agents are the largest source of hotel reservations. The very nature of their job requires that they constantly match traveling people with empty seats and hotel rooms. For success in today's competitive market, a hotel needs to be sure that travel agents throughout the country are aware of their property. A great an efficient way to do that is to advertise in the Travel Agents Hotel Guide. Why the Guide works. Travel agents earn income as a result of commissions. The more reservations they make, the more money they earn. It has long been recognized that if agents can speed up their research time, they will earn more money. Yet they have long been burdened by the large, cumbersome and time consuming hotel researching manuals that are available. fortunately, they have a choice today. Travel agents across the country have come to appreciate the easy to use format of the Travel Agents Hotel Guide. With all the pertinent information at their fingertips, minus the cumbersome size and research difficulties of other guides, The Travel agents Hotel Guide can literally increase an agents income, by reducing research time by 50% or more! It is also a perfect fit for the popularity of the Central Reservation Systems. A light weight form allows it to literally sit on the agent's desk to be used as soon as information is needed; immediately accessible for CRS entries. TAHG is updated, published and distributed twice a year to more than 100,000 travel professionals most at subscription request. Each issue has a user-ship of 3 agents, is used by over half of the travel schools in the US, lists and advertises over 10,000 hotels in North America. TAHG has now grown to a point where it is operating beyond its original intended scope and has become a competitive operation with the industry leader, the Hotel and Travel Index. TAHG has expanded its distribution and marketing to compete for a larger share of the market and "To provide the best travel research guide to travel agents and the best value for the advertising dollar for the customers of TAHG. Background For many years the Reed Hotel Directories Network (through its publications; Hotel and Travel Index, Hotel and Travel Index International and The Official Hotel Guide) has enjoyed a near monopoly for providing travel agents with a printed hotel research guide. This lack of competition and the resulting profitability prompted Read to pay over 700 Million dollars for the Travel Index when they acquired it. This purchase price for a business that does little more than print and sell advertising in 71,000 books 4 times per year! TAHG is the only direct competition for the Hotel and Travel Index. Our operation has been producing $1,500,000 plus in sales each year for the last three years that ITEX owned the Guide and has operated profitably since it was founded in 1984. Revenue projected for fiscal year 1999 without external funding is expected to be $2,000,000. Concept The Travel Agents Hotel Guide was already the preferred research guide by the travel agents ITEX distributed to. Our guide provides the travel agent with an easy to use, better organized, and transportable hotel research guide. Compared to the Hotel and Travel Index's competitive products (the closest product available today) our product is easier to use and easier for our advertising customers to justify buying, because we offer the option of trading hotel room script for their ad. The ability to barter unsold room inventory for advertising that will increase a hotel cash income is a capability unique to the Travel Agents Hotel Guide. Our strategy for meeting the competition is to expand our marketing and distribution, and offer barter as well as cash payment options. This approach is generating a tremendous amount of interest throughout the travel industry. TAHG'S target market includes Hotels, Motels, Airlines, Hotel supply/ management firms, Travel agents, Cruise Lines Etc... All products of TAHG are protected by the trademark and copyright laws