Estate of James J. Renier, Deceased, Kent L. Renier and Dubuque Bank & Trust Company, Co-Executors - Page 32




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          rate based on growth within the consumer electronic products                
          industry and normal inflationary price increases, while Mr.                 
          Kramer limited his growth rate to the rate of inflation.  Neither           
          of these estimates finds support in the record.  Mr. Sliwoski’s             
          6-percent growth rate is based on the consumer electronics                  
          industry as a whole and is not tailored to Renier’s specific                
          product mix.  Renier did not sell personal computers or cellular            
          telephones, both of which exhibited very high growth rates and              
          were included in Mr. Sliwoski’s growth-rate estimate.  As our               
          findings indicate, the national annual compound growth rate for             
          the items in Renier’s product mix, weighted to reflect the                  
          percentage of sales of each, was only 4.15 percent from 1989                
          through 1993.  Although Renier’s actual sales increased at a                
          compound rate of 8.3 percent from July 1988 through June 1993,              
          the majority of that increase occurred in Renier’s fiscal year              
          ended June 30, 1993.  Sales in that year, however, were                     
          substantially boosted as a result of a major flood in the spring            
          of 1993.20  If Renier’s fiscal year ended June 30, 1993, is                 
          excluded, Renier’s compound growth rate equals just 3.8 percent,            
          or slightly less than the national average for Renier’s product             
          mix.  We are thus faced with the problem of how to account for              
          Renier’s bumper sales during 1993, only a portion of which should           

               20 Although the flood likely also boosted sales in the                 
          fiscal year that began on July 1, 1993, Mr. Sliwoski did not                
          factor any of this period into his estimate of Renier’s growth              
          rate.                                                                       




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