another co., signs on...when oh when will this stock price
take off..."probably the day after I sell it." LOL
The Dress Barn Contracts With Hanover Direct Subsidiary, Keystone Fulfillment
WEEHAWKEN, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 2, 1999--
Keystone to Provide Comprehensive Telemarketing, Order Processing
and Fulfillment Services for Retailers New, Catalog Division
Hanover Direct, Inc. (AMEX: HNV) announced today that The Dress Barn, Inc. (NASDAQ: DBRN) has contracted with Keystone Fulfillment, the Company's one-stop e-commerce/direct marketing services provider, to be the exclusive provider of all telemarketing, order processing and fulfillment services for the new Dress Barn Direct Marketing Division. The new division is expected to enter this rapidly growing market with its new Dress Barn catalog mailed to homes throughout the United States in September 1999.
Under the terms of the agreement, Keystone will provide a comprehensive range of services including order fulfillment and processing, credit card transaction processing, customer service and maintenance of customer files, receiving, warehousing and distribution services for the new Dress Barn catalog. Dress Barn will utilize Keystone's 750,000 square-foot state-of-the-art warehouse facility in Roanoke, Virginia to retain all inventories under one roof, process orders quickly and coordinate shipping more efficiently.
"We welcome Dress Barn as a valued addition to our client portfolio for Keystone Fulfillment. It is yet another demonstration of Keystone's aggressive role in positioning itself to become a market leader in third-party outsourcing services," stated Rakesh K. Kaul, President and CEO of Hanover Direct, Inc.
"Our agreement with The Dress Barn, Inc. demonstrates the value-added services Keystone can provide to name brand retailers wanting to enter additional channels of distribution. The flexibility, scalability and expandability afforded by our multi-title, multi-channel 'plug-and-play' platform has been designed to provide the consistent level of service their customers expect. Furthermore, our experience in handling men's and women's apparel gives us a clear advantage as we respond to customer requests," stated Richard M. Metzler, President of Keystone Fulfillment, Inc.
The Dress Barn, Inc. operates a national chain of specialty stores offering career and casual fashions to the working woman at value prices. The Company's 683 'Dress Barn' and 'Dress Barn Woman' stores operate in 43 states. The Dress Barn catalog will be used to develop new channels of distribution, which leverage the Dress Barn brand and extend the brand reach outside its existing retail markets.
"We believe Keystone can deliver not only capacity, but also the seamless systems integration and customized service our retail shoppers have come to expect from our stores, " said Martin Alpert, VP
General Manager, Catalog Division of The Dress Barn, Inc. "The launch of our new catalog will help us identify new customers and new retail markets and represents the first step in our exploration of new retail channels of distribution for the Dress Barn brand. Keystone, a diversified fulfillment services provider with extensive fashion experience, is a good partner for our new business initiatives and is one more example of Dress Barn's commitment to providing unsurpassed quality and customer service."
Keystone, launched last year, provides robust, easy-to-install e-commerce/direct marketing solutions services to companies wanting to enter into new, direct channels of distribution. Its unique multi-title, multi-brand systems platform has the versatility and flexibility to handle a wide range of product categories in a 24/7-service mode. Its roster currently includes companies such as L.L. Knickerbocker Co., The National Geographic Society, United Retail Group, www.mercata.com, recently launched by Mercata, Inc., a privately held company with funding from Vulcan Ventures, Inc., and KBkids.com, a new internet joint venture between BrainPlay.com and Consolidated Stores Corporation. Keystone is also the third party fulfillment services vendor Excite exclusively promotes to others wanting to participate in its shopping channel.
Keystone is also able to provide 'front-end' logistical services required by e-commerce companies such as telemarketing, order processing, credit card transaction processing, customer database management and systems programming and interface support plus a comprehensive range of fulfillment, order management, inventory control and web marketing. It can provide new Internet players with virtually every resource they need, from web site creation to creative marketing to promotional/catalog development to structured financing, to be successful e-commerce entrepreneurs. Through its association with the Hanover Direct portfolio of catalogs and associated web sites, as well as a growing roster of third-party clients, Keystone has obtained expertise in a broad range of product categories such as home fashions and home improvements, men's and women's apparel, and gifts.
Hanover Direct, Inc. (AMEX: HNV), and its business units, provide quality, branded merchandise through a portfolio of catalogs and e-commerce platforms to consumers, as well as a comprehensive range of Internet, e-commerce, and fulfillment services to businesses. The brand marketing division is comprised of the Company's catalog and e-commerce web site portfolio of home fashions, apparel and gift brands, including Domestications, The Company Store, Colonial Garden Kitchens, Kitchen & Home, Improvements, The Safety Zone, Silhouettes, Tweeds, International Male, Austad's, Undergear, and Gump's By Mail. The Company also owns Gump's, a retail store based in San Francisco. Each brand can be accessed on the Internet individually by name. The web services division is comprised of the Company's Internet marketing services group, systems platform, fulfillment and telemarketing and third party fulfillment service vendor, Keystone Fulfillment Inc. (www.keystonefulfillment.com). Information on Hanover Direct, including each of its divisions, can be accessed on the Internet at www.hanoverdirect.com.
CONTACT:
Hanover Direct, Inc.
Brian C. Harriss
Sr. VP - Chief Financial Officer
201/272-3224
or
AGG International
Public Relations
Paula Zwerdling, Managing Director
212/869-8230
E-mail: paula@aggintl.com
KEYWORD: NEW JERSEY
BW0079 AUG 02,1999
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