OK, the market didn't get crushed today, but it's not like we've decidedly evaded a meltdown. We're still right on the cusp of bigger technical trouble. Was that too much of a jolt to get the new week started? Sorry - didn't mean to freak anyone out. Truth be told, even a stumble from here isn't going to be anything to sweat just yet. The market ebbs and flows all the time, and even a pullback now isn't likely to start a new bear market or mark the beginning of a recession. We're just saying, the bulls are still playing with fire. SCN Elite Opportunity Free Alerts Get premium select stock picks via email and mobile text alerts from our SmallCap Network Elite Opportunity Team. It's 100% FREE! No strings attached and no credit card required. Click here to sign-up today! The cool part is, the market's lines in the sand are pretty easy to see. Many of them were mentioned late last week. For the S&P 500 the make-or-break line is still 2065, where the 50-day moving average line and the lower 20-day Bollinger band are about to converge. That line was also a ceiling in January, so it could easily convert itself into a floor now. The VIX also opened above its pivotal 20-day moving average line at 15.0 today, though it rolled back from that open to close right around the key short-term average. As for what to make of it, we're not impressed or particularly bullish based on the fact that the bears didn't follow-through on Monday. This is where the bulls are supposed to put up a fight, and they did. The war isn't over yet though. Today's bullish volume was moderate at best.... even more tepid than the market itself. It's going to take a lot more effort than this to push the market away from the edge of the cliff. Just for the sake of getting a grip on the bigger picture, the NASDAQ is also getting interesting. It put pressure on, but didn't break under, its 20-day moving average line at 4920. It's close though, and the VXN seems to be working harder to move upward than the VIX is working. I can't help but wonder if we're going to see the market's red flags first appear on the NASDAQ Composite's chart rather than the S&P 500's. Whatever the case, we're watching them both, and we'll be ready to show you and explain the ramifications if and when the time comes. And, it could come as early as tomorrow. Stay tuned. Oh, by the way... I can go ahead and tell you know that the Elite Opportunity's free stock trading alert service suggested a bearish ETF trade on Thursday evening, right in front of Friday's pullback. For those of you who are receiving - and acting - on those alerts, you would have gotten into a trade early on Friday before the meltdown began. Although the selloff has yet to really take hold, those people have a lot of wiggle room now, and are well ahead of the curve on any marketwide dip. But you don't get those free text and e-mail alerts? Well, although you're a little behind the eight ball with Thursday's notice, you can make sure you get an early start on the next one - JUST SIGN UP. It's fast, free, and easy to get on board. This page will tell you everything you need to know and do. Or, cut and paste this link: https://www.smallcapnetwork.com/pages/SCNEOL/v1/ From the Site We want to put a little extra time into our feature below, so we're going to be real short and sweet with the site's highlights today. There's no fanfare or buildup, or even a quick description. I'm trusting the titles of today's titillating commentaries will be enough to let you decide which of them you want to read. In no particular order... Small Cap FuelCell Energy (FCEL) Earnings Report: Further Share Stabilization? (BLDP & PLUG) Three Fear Resistant Commodities That Look Tasty IntelGenx Technologies and Zogenix, Redux.... Again (IGXT, ZGNX) ON THE MARKET - Not So Fast The New Software-Oriented BlackBerry Still Misses the Point (AAPL, GOOGL, MSFT, BBRY) Don't forget, YOU can submit articles at the site too. If they're savvy enough, you may even seen some of them featured here in the newsletter. This Little Pizza Chain is Cooking Up Something Big Back on February 5th we made a point of explaining how you could tell the quality of a company or a business idea by the caliber of the talent working for the organization. In the same sense star athletes don't want to bother playing for weak teams that will simply hold them back from a championship, the nation's top business people don't want to work for a company that's going to not let their business acumen flourish. The company in question at the time was Giggles N Hugs (GIGL), which had just convinced former California Pizza Kitchen CFO Phiip Gay to join the young company's management team as its chief business development officer. Those of you who know the California Pizza Kitchen story will also know the eatery has grown from one unit back in 1985 to more than 230 locations now, and generates estimated annual revenue north of $500 million thanks to its frozen-pizza licensing deal. Well, Phiip Gay was around for a big part of that growth, with his expertise helping to make California Pizza Kitchen the huge success it is today. Gay didn't do it alone, or course. There were a bunch of brilliant people working -- and leading -- California Pizza Kitchen over the past three decades, making it what it is now. One of those people was John Kaufman, the former Vice President of Operations of California Pizza Kitchen. Kaufman actually joined the California Pizza Kitchen team back in 1986 when there was still only one restaurant, and he was there for the first nine years of its initial growth. By the time he left in the mid-90's it had opened another 64 units. In fact, one could arguably say John Kaufman put the company on the growth trajectory that's helped make it such a popular chain today. He really is an all-star within the restaurant world. Care to guess where John Kaufman is working now? Incredibly enough, the same Giggles N Hugs Phiip Gay joined a month ago. Kaufman is now the interim president of GIGL. To say it's a real coup for the young Giggles N Hugs is an understatement. It's perhaps game-changing, as Gay and Kaufman have both proven they understand the specialty restaurant business. They've proven they can succeed in growing such a business. Indeed, one has to wonder if rapid expansion is at the top of mind for the GIGL Board of Directors who know the kind of potential the company has, and know who and what it will take to reach that full potential. Though the press release announcing the hiring of Kaufman (you can read it below) didn't get into the details, it's news that merits a revisit of the growth plans the SCN examined way back in July of last year when we explained: As of right now, there are three Giggles N Hugs locations. All of them are at major malls in the Los Angeles area. And, all three have been smashing successes. Last quarter, the company drove $822,000 in sales, which aligns with the company's estimates that a fully-developed unit (after four years in business) can generate approximately $1.5 million in annual revenue, if not more. Based on the 25 or so units the corporation plans to have up and running by 2018, Giggles N Hugs Inc. should be driving approximately $40 million in annual sales by then. That's huge in comparison to the current market cap of only $12 million, and frankly, the revenue and growth estimates seem intentionally muted. It seemed like a lofty goal at the time, but do-able all the same. With Gay and especially Kaufman at the helm now though, it would almost be surprising if the growth pace didn't push the company to that size soon. Kaufman and Gay have both orchestrated similar success before. The press release is below. But, if you're not familiar with the restaurant concept and really want to get a grasp on what Kaufman and Gay are seeing that's so special, here's the SCN's very first look, which explains everything. Former COO of California Pizza Kitchen Joins Giggles N' Hugs Executive Team Los Angeles, March 5, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Giggles N' Hugs, Inc. (GIGL), owner and operator of family-friendly restaurants that bring together high-end, organic food with active, cutting-edge play and entertainment for children, hired John Kaufman, former Vice President of Operations of California Pizza Kitchen (CPK), as its new interim president. While at CPK, Kaufman worked alongside Philip Gay who was the CFO, and currently serves as chief business development officer of Giggles N' Hugs. Together with the founders of CPK, Kaufman and Gay laid the foundation and grew the company from one location to more than 70 locations when he left the company after its sale to Pepsi co. After his success at CPK, Kaufman was recruited by Lee Iacocca Chairman of Koo Koo Roo and former Chairman and CEO of the Chrysler Company, to lead operations as president and COO of Koo Koo Roo, one of the fastest growing healthy casual restaurant concepts. In less than three years, Kaufman and the Koo Koo Roo team opened an additional 20 locations, bringing the total to 45, and turned the company from cash flow negative to cash flow positive by focusing resources on the core brand, increasing performance, controlling costs, and improving customer service. Kaufman stated, "I'm excited to become a part of the Giggles N' Hugs team. This is a unique concept whose time is now, filling a significant void in the market place. I'm confident that the success of our first three locations in Los Angeles, together with the work of Philip and the rest of our all-star team, gives us the necessary foundation to rapidly expand operations moving forward." During Kaufman's 36 years of experience in the restaurant industry, he has opened more than 100 restaurants including 2 of his own, Truxton's American Bistro. Kaufman has worked with some of the most successful restaurant companies to maximize operational effectiveness and significantly increase cash flow and customer counts. By combining his proven leadership skills with a deep understanding of the food industry operations, P&L management, menu/brand development, and systems and procedures, Kaufman created beneficial relationships with owners, staff, customers, and management that enabled him to achieve and maintain substantial increases in productivity, service, and profitability. "To have the two main executives who grew California Pizza Kitchen from just two locations to the behemoth that it became is unbelievable and a huge testament to the strength of the Giggles N' Hugs concept," stated Joey Parsi, founder and CEO of Giggles N' Hugs. "I can't think of two better executives to have on our team at this stage of our growth. Add in Todd Star, the former head of westcoast leasing at Westfield USA who is now spearheading our expansion with all the major mall owners in the country, along with Sean Richards, who ran operations at Pink Taco, House of Blues, and the Hooters Casino, and then top it off with Joan Barnes, former CEO and founder of Gymboree, we truly have assembled one of the best management teams in the restaurant world." About Giggles N' Hugs Giggles N' Hugs is the first and only restaurant that brings together high-end, organic food with active, cutting-edge play and entertainment for children. Every Giggles N' Hugs location offers an upscale, family-friendly atmosphere with a dedicated play area that children 10 and younger absolutely love. We feature high-quality menus made from fresh and local foods, nightly entertainment such as magic shows, concerts, puppet shows and face painting, and hugely popular party packages for families that want to do something special. Forward Looking Statements: Certain statements in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Words such as "may," "might," "will," "should," "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "continue," "predict," "forecast," "project," "plan," "intend" or similar expressions, or statements regarding intent, belief, or current expectations, are forward-looking statements. While the Company believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on any such forward-looking statements, which are based on information available to us on the date of this release. These forward looking statements are based upon current estimates and assumptions and are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including without limitation those set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). Thus, actual results could be materially different. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. Contact: INVESTORS RELATIONS CONTACT Joey Parsi CEO/Founder Giggles N Hugs Joey@gigglesnhugs.com Bruce Haase RedChip Companies, Inc. 800.733.2447, ext. 131 bruce@redchip.com