After a Long Winter, the Spring 2001 Forecast Is: Torrid!

Business Wire, March 14, 2001

Business Editors

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 14, 2001

Hot Topic Opening Six Mall Locations and Internet Store

to Give Plus-Size Young Women the Alternative Style They Deserve

After years ... no, make that a lifetime, languishing in boring shapeless garments with nowhere to shop, plus-size Gen X and Gen Y women can now match the style, excitement and selection long lavished on smaller-sized women with the launch of the mall-based retail chain, Torrid.

Torrid is the brainchild of Los Angeles-based Hot Topic Inc. (Nasdaq:HOTT), whose 278-store publicly held retail chain rang up $257 million in sales last year by leveraging the direct connection between music videos, teen pop culture and alternative fashion.

Catering to one of the fastest-growing market segments in the United States, Torrid plans to take aim in a mall setting at hip, young female consumers ages 15-30, wearing sizes 14-26. More than 30 percent of young American women wear size 14 or larger, which contributed to a market segment that totaled more than $29 billion in sales last year.

Commonly thought as being over the age of 40, the plus-size customer is typically between the ages of 15 and 30 years.

"For the past two years, we have been hearing passionate pleas from mall shoppers and our employees for cool plus-size apparel and accessories," said Betsy McLaughlin, chief executive officer and president.

"Many people don't realize that the junior mall apparel chains don't carry sizes 14 to 26, so if you want to wear the same hip fashion as your friends, you're out of luck!"

Torrid will offer an exciting selection of apparel, lingerie, shoes and accessories centered around various lifestyles, including club-wear, street-wear, rockabilly and renaissance -- the majority of which will be exclusive to the store.

In addition, the entire assortment will be available for purchase online at www.torrid.com.

The Torrid Collection includes:

Club

The club-wear collection easily flows from daytime apparel into nighttime club-wear featuring your "basic black" wardrobe elements with punk-inspired hardware accents completed with vinyl and leather bottoms.

Street

This collection features branded street-wear and rave-type apparel as well as casual denim elements focused on bottom and novelty tees.

Rockabilly

Appealing to all ages and personalities, this group includes an assortment of retro-inspired clothing and accessories.

Renaissance

A sweeping collection that includes gothic and prom girl dresses.

The first six stores will open this April/May in suburban mall locations near Los Angeles; San Diego; Denver; Omaha, Nebraska; Boston; and Annapolis, Md. To design the stores, the company selected the award-winning firm of Jon Greenberg & Associates to work with its internal team.

This news release contains forward-looking statements about Torrid and Hot Topic, such as statements relating to Torrid store opening, anticipated product mix and the potential for consumer acceptance of the Torrid concept and its products. These statements involve risks and uncertainties, including risk and uncertainties associated with the development and execution of new retail concepts, the risk that available cash or mall space will not be adequate for planned expansion and risks and uncertainties with respect to new store openings including risks associated with Hot Topic's Torrid concept and Internet store, fashion and music trends, competition from other retailers, uncertainties generally associated with specialty retailing, as well as other risks detailed from time to time in Hot Topic's Securities and Exchange Commission reports, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Jan. 29, 2000. The historical results achieved are not necessarily indicative of future prospects of the company.