Louis Posen’s dream of becoming a movie director was coming to an end. The 19-year-old was studying film at California State University at Northridge in 1991 when he was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a degenerative eye disease that leads to blindness. Looking for another creative endeavor, he bought a book called How to Run an Independent Record Label and launched Hopeless Records from his garage.

Today, Hopeless is profitable, employs nine people, and will gross $5 million this year. Boosting revenues and earnings every year in an industry barraged by digital piracy and slumping sales is an accomplishment. But Posen has another hit on his hands: He figured out a way to spin a sizable chunk of the money his company generates into philanthropy. “Although we didn’t really plan it,” Posen says. “we’re part of this whole movement of social entrepreneurship.”

The notes of inspiration came seven years ago, after a compilation of the label’s artists called Hopelessly Devoted to You Too sold more than 100,000 copies. Posen realized there was strength in numbers. He created another label called Sub City, a play on the word subsidy and on the punk rock subculture in which the company specializes. Then he offered his artists the option of releasing their records on Hopeless or Sub City.

If they choose Sub City, 5% of the gross goes to «www.businessweek.com» (BusinessWeek, 5/24/07). On a $14 compact disk that’s about 70 cents, but those dimes add up. Posen recently celebrated what he calls a “million-dollar milestone,” having given more than $1 million to charity. Half of the money comes from the artists’ royalties, the other from Posen’s profits. Creative Philanthropy

Sub City also sponsors tours from which 10% of ticket sales go to various causes. The label works with more than 50 charities, including causes such as fighting blindness and music education in schools. Not every band chooses to participate. Posen figures about 3 of the 10 releases his company puts out each year are on the Sub City label. “Some artists prefer to give on their own,” he says. “Some can’t afford it.”

Posen learned to be creative from a business standpoint early on. Punk rock isn’t a huge market. His top selling album—from a band called Avenged Sevenfold—has sold 400,000 copies in the U.S. That’s 100,000 shy of what’s needed to qualify as a gold record. Posen generates extra revenue for his company by keeping the rights to sell a couple of merchandise designs from each of his bands, such as a T-shirt or a poster. He also takes a fee for licensing their music to television shows and movies. It’s a business model many «www.businessweek.com» (BusinessWeek, 6/28/06) are now pursuing. “Louis has the spirit of an entrepreneur and a heart of gold,” says Mitchell Wolk, an executive at Warner Music Group («www.businessweek.com»), which helps distribute Posen’s albums. “He is truly an inspiration to us all.”

«www.businessweek.com» (BusinessWeek, 8/8/07) is difficult. The segment isn’t driven by hit singles or radio airplay like most of the music business. Instead, Posen and his team must build awareness for their artists through appearances in record stores, on social networking sites such as MySpace («www.businessweek.com») and PureVolume, and through relationships with other companies looking to stay in tune with youth culture such as the Hot Topic («www.businessweek.com») retail chain. Hopeless Lifestyle

On Sept. 25, for example, Hopeless is releasing the new album from All Time Low, a pop-punk quartet from suburban Baltimore. The company has a marketing alliance with Hollister, an Abercrombie & Fitch («www.businessweek.com») spin-off that will sell the CD in its stores and stream All Time Low’s music on its Web site. “We call ourselves a record label but we’ve never looked at ourselves as being in the record business,” says Posen, dressed casually in jeans and Vans sneakers. “It’s a lifestyle.”

Left with only the ability to see light and dark in one eye, Posen takes a cab to work most mornings. His wife picks him up at the end of the day. At the office, he uses a software program called Jaws that reads his e-mails and Excel spreadsheets aloud. With profits from the business, Posen recently bought a 5,500-square-foot warehouse in the Los Angeles suburb of Van Nuys. On a recent September morning, he was bumping into walls and furniture. “We moved in two weeks ago, and I’m still getting used to the place,” he says.

Scientific studies have shown that the blind can become suburb musicians, their ears compensating for the loss of sight, а la Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles. “Not me,” Posen says. “I’ve tried to play guitar, drums, everything.” Posen has more than made up for his lack of musical ability, finding other ways to make music and give back to others at the same time. “Losing your sight is not something anyone would choose,” he says. “But there are worse things that can happen to you.”

The young child of a cash depot manager was kidnapped at gunpoint by thieves disguised as police, the Old Bailey heard today at the opening of the trial of eight people charged over Britain’s biggest cash robbery.

The child - whose name, age and gender cannot be given for legal reasons - and its parents were held hostage while the gang carried out a 53m raid on the Securitas depot in Kent in February last year.

The court heard details of the “cruel ruse” played on the family of the depot’s manager, Colin Dixon.

The gang used what looked like a police car and theatrical disguises to waylay Mr Dixon after stopping his car as he drove home, said Sir John Nutting, QC, prosecuting.

“Lured to this vehicle, Mr Dixon was then taken at gunpoint to an isolated farm where he was interrogated about the depot, and about its security arrangements, by men armed with guns,” said Sir John.

His wife Lynn and their child were then tricked away from their home in Herne Bay, Kent.

Sir John said men in police disguises told Mrs Dixon that her husband had been taken to hospital after a car accident. They offered to take her and her child to see him. “Mrs Dixon’s kidnappers used a cruel ruse, first to invade her home and then to trick her into driving away in their car,” said Sir John. “Distracted by anxiety, Mrs Dixon woke her [child] and left the house hurriedly in order to drive to her husband’s hospital bedside with those whom she believed to be sympathetic and kindly policemen,” he said.

“She realised how wickedly she had been deceived when the ‘policeman’ passenger produced a gun.

“She too was driven to the same farm where her husband was being held prisoner.”

John Fowler, 58; Stuart Royle, 48; Jetmir Bucpapa, 26; Lea Rusha, 35; Michelle Louise Hogg, 32; Roger Coutts, 30; and Emir Hysenaj, 27; deny conspiracy to rob.

They also pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to kidnap Mr Dixon, his wife and child, and conspiracy to possess firearms.

Keith Borer, 53, denies handling stolen money.

The case continues.

The metal may have slumped, but its prospects are driving new production, writes Barry FitzGerald.

NORMALLY a metal price-slump would be enough to take the wind out of the sails of any mining operation.

However, BHP Billiton’s Nickel West, the business unit that houses the Western Australian sulphide nickel assets delivered with BHP’s “cheap” $A9.2 billion takeover of WMC in 2005, and Ravensthorpe, the $US2.2 billion ($A2.5 billion) BHP-bred push in to the world of laterite nickel, appear to be resisting any slow-down.

Nickel West is, in turn, part of BHP’s global stainless steel materials (SSM) business unit, which was massively profitable in the 2007 financial year when nickel prices averaged a bumper $US17.21 a pound.

SSM’s earnings before interest and tax rocketed 310 per cent to $US3.6 billion, making it the second biggest contributor to group profit behind base metals.

Rising nickel stocks and economic growth concerns brought on by the US sub-prime credit crisis have since seen nickel retreat to $US14.70 a pound, 15 per cent below the 2007 average. But, rather than battening down the hatches, Nickel West has started out on a new wave of growth, on top of what is to come next year from Ravensthorpe.

But don’t look for more big commitments like Ravensthorpe, not immediately anyway.

A $A1 billion development of the big but technically challenging Yakabindie deposit is under constant review and there is the life-extending Perseverance Deeps project at Leinster, plus the development of the satellite Cliffs and Rocky’s Reward (second time around) deposits there as well.

Rather, the focus of the new growth phase is on exploration and incremental production increases at its suite of mines to ensure the supply needs of its hungry downstream assets Kalgoorlie nickel smelter and Kwinana refinery are fully met.

The downstream assets will play their part by seizing incremental production increases and locking in more efficiency gains to maximise margins.

The stimulant for the focus on new growth opportunities has been the favourable outlook for nickel.

While the nickel price has given up a chunk of last year’s surge, it remains a fabulous price. And, according to Nickel West president and chief operating officer, Marcelo Bastos, the strong demand for nickel could be sustained for a long time, thanks to China’s infrastructure boom.

Sixty-five per cent of nickel goes in to making stainless steel.

“If you have to develop a country like China, and like India you are going to need nickel,” Mr Bastos said.

A mining engineer originally poached by BHP from Brazil’s home-grown mining giant, CVRD, Mr Bastos moved from BHP’s Cerro Mataso nickel project in Colombia to take up the Perth-based Nickel West position in January.

Apart from learning that there is no point trying to book a restaurant for the oh-so Latin American time of 9.30pm in mid-week Perth, Mr Bastos has managed to inject some Brazilian flair in to his growth ambitions for Nickel West.

He recently convinced BHP to make its biggest-ever commitment to nickel exploration in WA $US120 million over the next three years.

“This is by far the most impressive exploration budget for nickel in WA. No one has ever spent such a big amount of money.”

The program is now being ramped up and its main focus will be exploration for new ore positions in and around existing mines.

Mr Bastos wants Nickel West to “go concentrate long” to increase the flexibility and growth options of the downstream processing assets.

And, while merger and acquisition activity could also feature in Nickel West’s growth ambitions, it is exploration that Mr Bastos believes will deliver the lowest-cost growth opportunities.

Mr Bastos’ appointment was part of the sweeping overhaul of management posts since the WMC acquisition. Brazilians and South Africans now dominate executive ranks.

Delays at Ravensthorpe and its massive budget blow-out also forced management changes, but the big shocks could be a thing of the past.

According to Mr Bastos, SSM’s Yabulu refinery in Queensland should produce its first metal from Ravensthorpe’s mixed nickel-cobalt hydroxide intermediate product in the March quarter next year.

“We don’t have much more to do with our construction. So it makes us very confident that there will be no additional cost,” he said.

But he added that there may be “some variation, but nothing significant to the total”.

Despite the revised budget of $US2.2 billion, Ravensthorpe is expected to be “very competitive” compared with its sulphide cousins.

The reporter toured Nickel West operations except for Ravensthorpe as a guest of BHP Billiton. The reporter owns BHP Billiton shares.