LexieTech
LexieTech Incorporated (or "LexieTech") is a multinational corporation in the City of Heroes MMO.
Originally based in Paragon City, the corporate headquarters moved to the Rogue Isles after control of the company was returned to CEO Lexie Lothora.
Company History
"Clean" Origins
LexieTech was originally a "clean" company created by shipping magnate Leeland Lothora for his daughter, Alexandra (or "Lexie"). In other words, it was a small company that had no involvement whatsoever in the questionable business dealings that were normal for Leeland's operation.
LexieTech made cheap personal radios. They used substandard parts and cheap labor, but nobody really complained. It provided steady labor for those that needed it, and it gave the marketplace cheap radios that could be given away as stocking stuffers.
When Leeland was arrested by federal prosecutors looking to force him to testify about his associates in The Family, they were able to seize everything connected to the shipping empire... except for LexieTech. Ownership of the company was in Alexandra's name, and under the control of the family attorney, Lawrence X. Technis. When Leeland and his wife were found dead, LexieTech was the only company left in the Lothora name.
LexieTech remained a small radio manufacturing company, providing a sustainable income for Alexandra and her fraternal twin brother Alexander that was held in trust until they turned 18.
Branded
Once the twins took over, LexieTech was restructured. They turned the trust money into seed money to expand the business into personal entertainment. They used their social connections as the surviving Lothora family members to not only get investors, but also to spread the word of the new venture. The twins used the initials "LT" as their brand, with Alexander - now going by the name "Alexi" - running the day-to-day operations and Lexie using her beauty to be the "face" of the company.
The "LT" brand exploded overnight, becoming a pop sensation being promoted by professional athletes, celebutantes, and actors and actresses. The trust-fund crowd showed off their stylized "LT" players. With the Internet becoming "the thing" in the 1990's, LexieTech made full use of the new technology as a way to get the word out about their products.
Downfall
Unfortunately, there was a dark side to the "LT" brand, and a secret to the company's huge financial success.
Not all of their money came from the manufacture and sale of audio players.
Manufactured in warehouses in Striga Isle and brought into Talos Island, LexieTech provided a flood of unique firearms to the criminal element. Firearms that could be disguised as other electronic devices. Weapons made of hard plastics; capable of going through any security zone without detection yet still be just as lethal.
These weapons were then sold to the rich and powerful. Rap artists would tout their "LT" brand audio players, but also carry their LexieTech-made concealed pistols when they needed to "teach someone some respect". Bodyguards and private security groups would carry LexieTech-manufactured assault weapons into courtrooms without detection.
Eventually this caught the eye of several agencies, including the Supergroup Oversight Committee (the precursor to Vanguard) under the command of Colonel John Battlerock (retired). It took several months, but eventually Battlerock was able to link the weapons to LexieTech and to Alexi Lothora specifically.
Rather than fight the charges in court, though, Alexi tried to flee the country. He was stopped in a spectacular battle over the skyline of Steel Canyon when his transport crashed, killing him.
The federal government then descended on LexieTech, shutting down the illegal operations.
With her twin brother dead, Lexie assumed control of the company. Even though she was able to convince prosecutors that she was kept in the dark of her brother's activities, she was still hell-bent on revenge. She immediately used what little resources she had left at her disposal to try to bring down Colonel Battlerock and his SOC group. For her efforts, she ended up being institutionalized for "exhaustion".
Dormant Phase
With Lexie in a clinic, control of the company again fell to a now aged Lawrence X. Technis. But this was short-lived, as the investors of LexieTech moved to put the company in receivership until a new CEO could be selected. Even though Lexie had majority control of the company's stock, she was not able to exercise that power as long as she was in an asylum. The receivership company spent some time rebuilding the "LT" brand with new legitimate audio technology and then made the company public, which would eventually dilute Lexie's power considerably.
Return To Power
After a few years "recovering", Lexie was able to be returned to civilization. However, the receivership company refused to let Lexie resume control of her company. She had only forty percent ownership of her company when she was released, thanks to the company's stock going public in her absence. This gave her a seat at Board of Directors, but little else.
Lexie wanted to prove her value to her own company, so she took control of the one branch that the receivership company thought she would never accept: a small operation located in the Rogue Isles.
Little did they know it was where she wanted to be in the first place.
Within months of taking over that part of the company, Lexie transformed it into a technological powerhouse. She also made sure it was staffed with some of the most deliberate and ruthless associates she could get, most of whom were either friends from her past or acquaintances who had a few secrets of their own. They worked on the other shareholders to sell their shares to Lexie, and they did it by any way they could.
With majority control turned back over Lexie, she took the company private again.
Since then, LexieTech has been succeeding in making "quality" products, both legitimately and illegitimately. It is one of the top-three successful companies in the Rogue Isles, and one of the top-ten in Paragon City.
Corporate Office
Previously, LexieTech corporate offices were in Steel Canyon. However, after Lexie resumed control, she moved the corporate offices to Cap au Diable in the Rogue Isles. They currently reside in the prosperous Aeon City zone of the island, near the Architect Entertainment building.
Noted Products
Early Years
Flex Radio - First generation cheap portable radio
Flex Tape - First generation cheap portable cassette player
LT Brand
LT Player - Portable cassette player
LT Music - Portable digital audio player
LT Dimple - Small digital player
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Related Information
LexieTech was first referenced in "Guardians of the Dawn GRADUATION" #2. The corporate office itself was seen in "Furia and the Guardians" #1.
