Garden Ridge Announces New CEO, R. Randall Onstead, Jr

Business Wire, Oct 24, 2002

Business Editors

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 24, 2002

Today, Garden Ridge announced that R. Randall Onstead, Jr. has agreed to join the company as its new CEO. The announcement was made by J. William Uhrig, Managing Partner of Three Cities Research, the New York investment firm that holds a controlling interest in the growing chain of home decor and crafts stores now operating in 13 states across the country.

"We are very excited to have Randall Onstead join Garden Ridge," said Mr. Uhrig. "He is a dynamic leader with a proven ability to grow retail companies. He is a man of high personal integrity and a community leader. Professionally, Mr. Onstead has built an impressive track record in helping companies such as ours reach the next level through a strong focus on consumer needs and product presentation, and possibly most important of all, he's a team builder who is ideally suited to work with the excellent employees and suppliers we already have in place. He has a solid vision for the future of Garden Ridge, and we are confident he will lead us in exciting new directions."

Mr. Onstead is the former Chairman of the Board and CEO of Randalls Food Markets, Inc. Under his leadership, Randalls total enterprise value increased from $645 million in fiscal year 1997 to $1.84 billion in 1999. During that period, same store sales grew from a -1.32% to a +6.6%. He helped oversee the sale of Randalls to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, retaining a significant equity position. More recently, he participated in the transaction that resulted in Safeway buying all the equity of Randalls. For over a decade, he was also the company's television spokesperson.

Besides his current position as Managing Director of Chapman Partners, L.L.C., a private investment banking firm based in Chicago, Mr. Onstead also serves on the Board of Directors of JP Morgan Chase, the Greater Houston Community Foundation, and Baylor College of Medicine. In 1989, the Junior Chamber of Commerce named him one of five Outstanding Young Houstonians. He was presented the Churchman of the Year Award by the Religious Heritage Society in 1992, the JINSA (Jewish Institute of National Security Affairs) Leadership Award in 1997, and an honorary doctorate degree from York Christian College in 1994.

A graduate of Texas Tech University, he earned his bachelor's degree in marketing in 1978 and attended Harvard University's Program for Management Development in 1986. Onstead has two sons, 19 and 21. He and his wife Pam are residents of Houston.

Said Mr. Onstead, "This represents the perfect opportunity for me and Garden Ridge. I think Garden Ridge has a unique niche, wonderful product lines, great people, and great stores. I love the high-energy world of retail, of responding to changing marketplace conditions and shifting consumer needs on a daily, if not hourly basis...and of building a customer-friendly corporate culture that extends throughout the company. I'm excited by this challenge, and I look forward to our future."

Garden Ridge was founded in San Antonio in 1979. Today it has 44 stores in 13 states across the Southeast, Midwest and Southwest United States. The stores offer one of the largest collections of home decor and craft items found under one roof anywhere.

Three Cities Research, Inc. is a private equity firm formed in 1976 to invest capital in medium-sized businesses operating in established industries. TCR is the investment advisor to several capital pools totaling in excess of $650 million. Presently, the firm is investing the $452 million Three Cities Funds III, which was organized in 1999.

For more information on Garden Ridge, visit their Web site at www.gardenridge.com.

For more information about Three Cities Research, Inc, visit their Web site at www.tcr-ny.com.