GEORGE LITTLE MANAGEMENT, DMG WORLD MEDIA & CROW HOLDINGS FORM ALLIANCE

Business Publisher, Nov 30, 2000

dmg world media (London) is the lead investor in a consortium to invest in an e-commerce platform for the North American gift and home industry. The $21 million Internet alliance funding provided by dmg, George Little Management (White Plains, NY) and Crow Holdings (Dallas, TX) will develop online services through Whereoware.com. The alliance is taking a 75% stake in Whereoware.com, which went live in June of this year.

The formation of the alliance follows ding's $70 million acquisition of a 25% interest in George Little Management, with an option for future investment, earlier this month.

dmg world media is taking a 44.75% overall stake in Whereoware.com. The new site will offer e-commerce capabilities, product catalogs, industry news, and research and analysis. dmg said the marketplace will "open up new markets for the 10,000 gift manufacturers and help the 180,000 independent retailers...to source the latest bespoke products." By 2004, Whereoware.com hopes to publish 3500 catalogs for 36,000 clients.

dmg world media said that both the new alliance and the investment in George Little Management are part of its strategy to focus on four core sectors, including Home Interest, Gifts, Arts & Antiques and Sports Retailing, as well as to develop new media assets. The company said the gift and home industries are particularly suited to online trading due to the large number of small buyers and sellers, the in-efficiences of product search and the high rate of new product introduction.