Forward Industries Encourages Shareholders to Focus on the Best Plan Ahead for the Future of the Company

WEST PALM BEACH, FL--(Marketwired - Dec 19, 2014) - Forward Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: FORD)

• Reiterates strategic vision and plan held by the current Board and management
• Reviews lack of direction and transparency in "90 Day Plan" submitted by Terence Bernard Wise
• Highlights findings by Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services that certain members of Terence Bernard Wise's slate of director nominees are unqualified
  
  

Forward Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: FORD) today requested that shareholders review its proxy statement for the 2014 Annual Meeting of Shareholders recently mailed to shareholders. Forward also issued the following letter to shareholders reviewing the submitted plans for moving the Company into the future.

Dear Shareholders:

On Monday, December 15, 2014, your Board and management presented to Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. ("ISS") its clear and viable plan for realizing shareholder value at Forward. During our meeting, we highlighted some of the challenges we face in pursuing additional organic growth for the Company and explained how we are addressing these challenges by working with internationally-recognized financial advisors to help unlock shareholder value either through a strategic acquisition and/or a sale of our core case business.

We invite you to review the full presentation that we made to ISS to learn more about the rationale behind this plan. The presentation also illustrates what our slate of experienced board nominees is already pursuing to help bring this plan to fruition. (http://www.viewourmaterials.com/FORD/)

To ensure Forward remains on the right path with the right team, please cast your vote for the WHITE proxy card.

MR. WISE'S PLAN LACKS STRATEGIC INSIGHT, SUBSTANCE AND QUALIFIED NOMINEES

Director and shareholder Terence Bernard Wise, who is seeking to overthrow the current Board in its entirety, has presented his "Action Plan: The First 90 Days," which was not made public until just 15 days before the Annual Meeting of Shareholders. We believe the timing of the release of this so-called "plan" was tactical and it is not the best possible strategy for moving Forward into the future.

While Mr. Wise purports to put a plan in place, we believe it would introduce continuous upheaval and disruption to the business.

• Forward's business and stability would be immediately disrupted by the firing CEO Rob Garrett, who was critical to the turnaround of the Company.
• Mr. Wise would also like to appoint Michael Luetkemeyer as interim CEO until a permanent one is named. As mentioned in our presentation, Mr. Luetkemeyer oversaw the destruction of significant shareholder value as CFO of TranS1, Inc. 
• By planning to pursue organic growth only when Forward Industries already holds nearly 100 percent of the diabetic case market share in the United States, Mr. Wise illustrates his lack of long-term vision for shareholder growth and profitability.
• Mr. Wise states that he hopes to "streamline Forward's operations, prioritizing efficiency and shareholder transparency," but offers no concrete examples of what he and his slate of nominees will do to realize this claimed objective.