( BW)(SC-MILLIONAIRE.COM)(MLRE) Millionaire.com Announces Acquisition of The Great Gatsby's Auction Gallery, Inc. Business Editors HILTON HEAD, S.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 15, 1999-- Acquisition Builds Millionaire.com's Combined Historic Revenues to More Than $30 Million Millionaire.com (OTC BB:MLRE), the leading source of luxury and unique products and services, today announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire The Great Gatsby's Auction Gallery, Inc. of Atlanta, Georgia. Upon completion of the acquisition, effective February 13, 1999, and the previously announced acquisitions of the New Orleans Auction Galleries, Inc. and the St. Charles Gallery, Inc., Millionaire.com will have combined historic revenues in excess of $30 million. The Great Gatsby's Auction Gallery houses the largest assemblage of antiques, collectibles and architectural reproductions in the United States. The Gatsby facility includes a 100,000 square foot auction facility, three fine art galleries as well as an antique automobile showroom and a three acre permanent garden statuary display. With a constantly changing inventory of over 5,000 items coupled with items featured on their website, www.gatsby's.com, Gatsby's did approximately $14 million in revenue and returned a 14 percent pretax profit (unaudited) in 1998. "The combined power of Millionaire magazine, the Millionaire.com portal and online auction site and global auction houses provide Gatsby's worldwide exposure to our target market--the affluent," said Ted Tzavaras, president of Gatsby's. "Our near term goal is to immediately integrate our online catalogue with Millionaire.com's online clearing house network. We will also provide a steady supply of goods for Millionaire.com's Global Emporium auction in South Carolina." "The Great Gatsby's is truly one of the most established and unique auction houses in the world," said Robert (Rusty) White, president & CEO of Millionaire.com. "This acquisition further positions Millionaire.com as a force in the emerging online auction world, capable of redefining the standards of marketing to the affluent. As Ebay (NASDAQ:EBAY) pioneered online auctions for the general public, so Millionaire.com intends on defining this space for the high-end affluent public." About the Great Gatsby's Auction Gallery, Inc. The Great Gatsby's Auction Gallery, founded in 1979, is located in Atlanta, GA. The Gatsby facility includes a 100,000 square foot auction facility, three fine art galleries as well as an antique automobile showroom and a three acre permanent garden statuary display. For more information on The Great Gatsby's Auction Gallery, Inc., please visit www.gatsby's.com. About Millionaire.Com Millionaire.com (OTC BB:MLRE) is the leading source for luxury products and services, offered through the Millionaire.com portal and auction Web site and Millionaire magazine. Founded by Robert White, the creator of The Robb Report, Millionaire.com combines the power of electronic commerce, print media and retail auctions to sell the very best the world has to offer. Based in Bluffton, South Carolina, Millionaire.com operates the Millionaire.com auction Web site, Millionaire magazine, and several renown retail and auction houses including The Global Emporium, Bluffton, SC; Great Gatsby, Atlanta, GA; New Orleans Auction Galleries, New Orleans, LA; and the St. Charles Gallery, Inc., New Orleans, LA. Millionaire.com's wide-ranging products and services include rare automobiles, fine art, properties, unique antiques and fantasy shopping for the discriminating buyer. For more information on the company visit millionaire.com. Certain statements and information included in this release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Federal Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1955. Such forward-looking statements involve known an unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements
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KEYWORD: SOUTH CAROLINA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: REAL ESTATE MERGERS/ACQ |