Respond.com Escorts Couples Down the Aisle; Online Shopping Service Helps With Wedding Planning Including Romantic Honeymoons, Engagement Rings and Personalized Advice

Business Wire, March 31, 2000

Business/Technology Editors

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 31, 2000

Respond.com(TM) (www.respond.com), the leading online shopping service that allows buyers to "shop by request," is helping brides and grooms across the country plan and celebrate their nuptials. Couples who use Respond.com will find a complete, personalized service to guide them through the many challenges associated with planning a wedding, starting with finding the perfect engagement ring, hiring a wedding coordinator and booking a romantic honeymoon.

"No matter the wedding related request, Respond.com is the perfect place for couples to turn to for all of their planning needs," said Will Clemens, CEO of Respond.com. "Because of this great online shopping service, brides- and-grooms-to-be no longer need to schedule appointments and run from party planner to flower shop, but instead can take care of all their wedding details from the comfort of their own home."

One Respond.com user, Susan Henry, spent several months looking for an engagement ring that truly reflected her taste. Susan and her fiance were almost ready to give up on her dream ring when they found Respond.com's service. "I listed exactly what I was looking for, but had my reservations because I hadn't been successful in any stores yet and thought why should this be any different?" said Susan. "But, it was different and extremely helpful. I received several responses on the first day and each one had great ideas, including tips on buying a wedding ring. My fiance and I were thrilled with the selection, personal service and the prices, and I found my perfect ring. Respond.com is a great shopping source, and we will be returning to the service again."

Other Respond.com buyers have inquired about honeymoons, wedding services such as a coordinator, wedding dresses, bridesmaid gifts, flowers and many other wedding needs. In one instance, a shopper, Liz Goetz, needed suggestions to plan her honeymoon so she turned to Respond.com for personalized service from a travel specialist to book her romantic trip. "I put in a request for an eight day stay at the Moon Palace, an all-inclusive resort in Cancun," said Liz. "I received a multitude of great offers and selected the one from Kristy Reidelberger from Go Away Travel. She not only came through with a great price, but also has been very responsive to my many questions and requests. I am very pleased with her and the Respond.com service, and am looking very forward to my honeymoon."

Respond.com's free online shopping service provides a way to shop for thousands of products and services without the time and effort -- which many brides and grooms feel stretched for -- of combing through phone book listings, search engine results, or waiting for the right item to appear for the right price on an auction site. Instead of spending hours or days shopping store to store, surfing the Web or calling sellers, buyers simply tell Respond.com what they are looking for via email and then let the sellers respond to them. In addition, buyers remain anonymous until they are ready to buy. Buyers can use Respond.com to comparison shop, describe a product in generic terms if they are not sure what they are looking for and even track down hard-to-find or complex goods and services -something extremely useful in planning all the intricacies of a wedding and impossible with other e-commerce sites.

About Respond.com

Respond.com(tm) (http://www.respond.com) is the leading online shopping service that allows buyers to "shop by request" using their own words to request a wide range of products and services. Unlike online auction sites or shopping search engines, Respond.com takes the work out of shopping, saving buyers effort and time. Sellers with Respond.com benefit by receiving highly targeted leads from customers who are ready to buy. Respond.com has partnered with America Online, American Express, Excite@Home and additional online businesses to provide their members access to Respond.com's community of buyers and sellers. Based in Redwood City, California, the company is funded by The Barksdale Group, Benchmark Capital, Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Private Equity along with Access Technology Partners, Amerindo Capital Management, Attractor Investments and Index Ventures. Respond.com was founded in 1998.