Angie's List Losses Mount While Executives Pocket Millions

Everything that is wrong with American business today is epitomized by locally-based Angie's List. You have a company that always seems to get good buzz in the local media, and their founders are the darlings of the media who can do no wrong. The company has never made a dime in its 16 years of existence and its losses are piling up faster than the snow during a winter blizzard, but investors keep lining up to dump more money into the company. Governor Mitch Daniels and Mayor Greg Ballard gave their stamp of approval to it by announcing recently a $14 million economic development incentive package for a planned expansion of the company's downtown Indianapolis headquarters. The announcement came just one week before the company's executives announced that this great investment opportunity could be your's as it rolled out its plans for its initial public offering. Although it's never turned a profit, the latest filings with the SEC show its top two executives are receiving multi-million dollar compensation packages even as the company's losses are mounting at a record pace. The IBJ's Scott Olson has the numbers:

The provider of online consumer reviews reported Monday in its latest Securities and Exchange Commission filing that the company lost $43.2 million through the first nine months of 2011, pushing total losses since 2006 to $160.6 million.

Its loss through Sept. 30 represents a 59-percent increase from the same time frame last year, when losses totaled $27.2 million . . .

Its latest SEC filing does not provide a price at which company shares will be sold to raise the $75 million. No date has been set for the official offering, but the filing still indicates it will take place in 2011.

But it does give information on executive compensation. Angie’s List Chief Marketing Officer Angie Hicks earned a base salary in 2010 of $148,550, but her pay grew to nearly $4.2 million when including $3 million in stock awards and other compensation.

CEO and company co-founder Bill Oesterle earned a base salary of $254,995 last year and total compensation of $2 million when counting $1.4 million in stock awards and other compensation.

Aren't you just waiting with bated breath to learn whether the wise manager of your retirement fund will invest in Angie's List? Be sure and check out the comments section for Olson's story. Lots of good tidbits there.