Remember L.L Knickerbocker Co.?
It once was a publicly traded Lake Forest seller of dolls, jewelry and accessories. L.L Knickerbocker generated more than $100 million in yearly sales pitching collectable products on the Home Shopping Network and QVC before filing for bankruptcy in 2000.
Now the company is back with a new name and direction.
Rancho Santa Margarita’s RG Global Lifestyles Inc. has ditched porcelain dolls and jewelry. But it’s still quirky: RG Global focuses on water treatment plants and an Orange County-themed energy drink called OC Energy.
The company runs two water treatment subsidiaries, Catalyx Fluid Solutions and Aquair Inc., as well as OC Energy Drink Inc.
“For a smaller company like us, we’re really focused on trying to build shareholder value and grow the business,” said Juzer Jangbarwala, RG Global’s chairman and chief technology officer.
RG Global is small. The company’s shares trade on the low-profile over-the-counter ex-change with a recent market value of about $20 million.
The company has about $1 million in yearly sales and isn’t profitable.
So far, round two hasn’t been easy. The company saw a shake-up earlier this year with the death of its founder and former chairman and chief executive, Louis L. Knickerbocker.
Knickerbocker died from a heart attack in April. His death was well publicized after his appearances on the reality show “The Real Housewives of Orange County.” His ex-wife is one of the housewives.
Before Knickerbocker’s stint on the show, he founded International Beauty Supply Ltd. in 1985 and made collectable toys and teddy bears under the Knickerbocker Toy Co. brand. He changed the company’s name to L.L. Knickerbocker in 1993 and took it public in 1996.
L.L. Knickerbocker struggled after it bought companies that weren’t profitable. When it went bankrupt in 2000, it sold its assets to Lake Forest-based Marion LLC, which now goes by Charisma LLC.
Horst Geicke, cofounder of VinaCapital Group Ltd., an investment bank focused on Vietnam, purchased L.L. Knickerbocker’s ticker and public shell.
In 2004, RG Global started working on a business plan that included combining with Amerikal International Holding Inc., an Irvine maker of vitamins and health products.
RG Global has restructured since Knickerbocker’s death.
Grant King, who headed L.L. Knickerbocker in Thailand, now is chief executive.
Bob Glaser, Knickerbocker’s longtime friend and coworker, is president of the OC Energy Drink unit.
The company started investing in water technology patents early on. They make up the bulk of sales.
It formed Catalyx Fluid Solutions in 2002 to work on treatment plants for water that’s contaminated from oil and gas production.
In 2004, it started Aquair, which builds systems that filter water from commercial and industrial air conditioners.
OC Energy Drink started last year after Knickerbocker saw an opportunity to tap the energy beverage market with a local twist with shows such as “The O.C.,” “Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County” and “The Real Housewives of Orange County.”
Knickerbocker “saw that the OC lifestyle was booming so he wanted to capitalize on that,” Glaser said.
The company is using its tie to “Real Housewives,” according to Glaser.
The drink’s spokeswomen, known as the OC Angels, are regular cast members on the reality show. One of them is Knickerbocker’s daughter, Lindsey Knickerbocker.
The company has some contracts.
Earlier this month, RG Global signed a $10 million distribution deal for sales of its OC Energy drink in 1,000 Michigan convenience stores by fall.
The company is talking to distributors in other states, Glaser said. The drink could be in all 50 states by the end of 2009, he said.
On the water treatment side, RG Global in July signed a five-year, $20 million contract to build and operate a water treatment plant for Yates Petroleum in Wyoming. The plant is set to treat water that’s contaminated from coal bed methane production.
The company is in talks with other gas producers in the area, Jangbarwala said.
This fall, RG Global plans to lease an 8,000-square-foot office in Anaheim to test and design its water treatment products, Jangbarwala said.
OC Energy plans to open an office in Claremont by November so that it can be closer to the company that makes and packages its drinks, Glaser said.
“We’ve got big plans but we’re definitely starting out small,” Glaser said. “I just wish that Lou could’ve lived longer so that he could see where his second chance was going. We just hope that we’re doing the right thing and making him proud.”
