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Qualstar Cuts Workforce

Qualstar Corp. has reduced its workforce by 13 percent as a result of discontinuing unprofitable legacy product lines and old drive technologies. As of May, the Simi Valley data storage and power supply manufacturer employed about 70 people. The layoffs bring the employee total to 61 people. The action is expected to result in a savings of $480,000, the company said in a press release. The layoffs are necessary steps to improve revenue growth and profitability for shareholders, President and CEO Larry Firestone said. “Although these actions are never easy, this is one of the many steps we are taking to more effectively manage costs and streamline our operations to focus on key market opportunities,” Firestone said in a prepared statement. In July, Qualstar announced it would exit its touchless mouse business. Earlier in August, the company said it would stop making two of its tape library products. Qualstar has struggled financially in recent years. Its performance sparked a proxy battle in June to remove the board of directors. The effort failed and the company, under the direction of Firestone, who became CEO in June, has made changes to improve profitability. The announcement of the layoffs follows the reporting of fourth quarter and full fiscal year earnings. For the fourth quarter ending June 30, Qualstar reported a net loss of $2.6 million, or $0.22 per diluted share, on revenue of $4.3 million. For the same period in the prior year, the company reported a net loss of $37,000 on revenue of $4.7 million. Minus one-time charges related to inventory reserves, legal fees and settlement costs, and proxy fees the net loss would have been $900,000. For the full 2012 fiscal year, Qualstar reported a net loss of $4.1 million, or $0.34 per diluted share, on revenue of $17.1 million. In the prior fiscal year, the company had a net loss of $680,000, or $0.06 per diluted share, on revenue of $18.3 million. Mark R. Madler

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