NuGene International Inc (OTCMKTS:NUGN) Is Today's OTC Focus

NuGene International Inc (OTCMKTS:NUGN) is climbing up the charts again and making news after being quiet for almost 7 months. The last we heard from the company was back in December when it said that it had signed an agreement with Kevin Harrington, Original Shark from the ABC show Shark Tank, to spearhead the launch of the new NuGene kathy ireland retail product line. Most will remember NUGN from last summer when it launched a multi-million dollar promo campaign. With the uptick in volume and price, could a new promo campaign be getting started again?For those not familiar with the company, NuGene International describes itself as "specializing in developing manufacturing and marketing proprietary regenerative cosmeceutical and pharmaceutical products based on adipose derived human stem cell and human stem cell media. The US Department of Health and Human Services calls regenerative medicine the "next evolution of medical treatments." The regenerative medical market (which includes cosmeceuticals and pharmaceuticals) was estimated at $7.2 billion in the US in 2014 and is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years according to RNCOS Business Consultancy Service Global Cosmeceuticals Market report."NuGene's claim to fame is really its association with supermodel and serial entrepreneur Kathy Ireland. The company says that "NuGene kathy ireland's cosmeceutical and pharmaceutical products are based on proprietary stem cell based regenerative formulations derived from non-controversial, adult human stem cell derived media obtained from adipose tissue. NuGene kathy ireland's exclusive products combine its in-house advancements, proprietary technologies, and patent pending formulations. The company has four patents pending covering 15 unique applications. NuGene kathy ireland's goal is to leverage its knowledge and expertise to develop age-defying cosmeceutical skincare and hair care products in addition to pharmaceutical products based on the same regenerative science platform."Last summer, NuGene was the subject of a $2.28 million hard mailer campaign featuring Kathy Ireland with the promotional headline: ”Did Kathy Ireland just discover Botox without the needle? Super model Kathy Ireland sells an estimated $2b at retail annually and just partnered with NUGN.” According to the disclaimer, "Casson Media Group, Inc. (CMG), an affiliated company of MicroCap MarketPlace, has received nine thousand dollars in cash compensation from Result Corporation, a third party shareholder of NUGN to assist in the writing of this Advertisement, and anticipates receiving potential future subscription and advertising revenues, the amount of which is not known and cannot be predicted at this time. Result Corporation, besides compensating CMG, paid $2,280,000 to marketing vendors to cover all the costs of creating and distributing this Advertisement, including printing and postage, in attempt to boost investor and market awareness."The third party that paid for the marketing campaign were most likely the shareholders purchased 148,200 shares at $0.25 apiece for $37,050 who in the previous shell Bling Marketing Inc. Two forward splits later, these now number 11,144,640 free trading shares of NUGN common stock.The latest news from NuGene is two appointments as the company looks to beef up its corner suite. The former President of SkinMedica, Ted Schwarz, joined NuGene's board of directors last month. The company highlighted his nine years at SkinMedica before the company was purchased by Allergan for $350MM. Joining him is Steve Carlson who will be NuGene's new President & CEO. He was Allergan's Senior Vice President of Marketing where he lead the licensing, development and early commercialization of one of the worlds most recognized brands - Botox. Carlson then went on to become the President & CEO of Obagi Medical Products, a global pharmaceutical skin care line which was acquired by Valeant Pharmaceuticals Inc (NYSE:VRX) for over $400 million. Helping to usher in Steve Carlson was none other than Kathy Ireland. She said in the press release:

“I’m thrilled that industry-visionary Steve Carlson will take the helm at NuGene kathy ireland®. Steve shares my passion for the revolutionary stem cell technology we use in our NuGene kathy ireland® skin care line. Everyone at kiWW is excited to be working with Steve and this team because of our great belief in the quality and wonderful results of the product. NuGene…'Miracles Happen^TM'.

Currently trading with a market cap of $33 million, NUGN is an exciting story among small caps on the OTC Markets. The ticker has a history of promotion and this creates an opportunity for smart penny stock investors. Keep in mind that NUGN reported in the quarter ending March 2016 $213k in revenues, a net loss of just over $1m, $149k in cash, $1.3m in total assets, and $2.3m in total liabilities of which $1.2m comprises short and long term debt. For the latest updates on NUGN, sign up for our free small cap newsletter today!Disclosure: We have no position in NUGN and have not been compensated for this article.