Ethan Allen Unveils Its First Dedicated Ethan Allen Kids Store; New Ethan Allen Brand Juvenile Furniture Store Opens at Westfarms Mall, CT

Business Wire, August 25, 2003

Business Editors/Retail Writers

FARMINGTON, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 25, 2003

Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH), a leading home furnishings manufacturer and retailer, announced their next step, in a bold marketing strategy, by opening its first dedicated Ethan Allen Kids Store, at the Westfarms Mall in Farmington, CT.

The new 2,000 square foot store will test the success of an individual store devoted exclusively to Ethan Allen's quality-crafted and competitively priced juvenile furnishings. This exciting new store will offer everything from casegoods, accents and upholstery; to comforters, matching sheet sets and window treatments.

The Ethan Allen Kids store, a complement to the other 9 full-line stores throughout Connecticut, is entirely focused on the savvy, energetic and hip lifestyles of today's youth. At the heart of the store, surrounded by the Ethan Allen Kids furniture collection, is the Ethan Allen Kids design center. Here, the store staff encourages kids and their parents, in a team effort, to choose products that reflect the child's style and will create the right look for their perfect bedroom. Ready-made products, like comforters and sheet sets, are available for immediate sale. The Ethan Allen Kids store even has a special Ethan Allen Baby section, full of cribs, changing tables, sheet sets and blankets.

"As the success of the Ethan Allen Kids collection continues in the full-line stores, the Ethan Allen Kids store was developed to seize the opportunity to grow the business in juvenile furnishings," stated Farooq Kathwari, Chairman and CEO of Ethan Allen Inc. "The concept behind the new Ethan Allen Kids store is to offer a 'kid friendly' environment. Kids are invited by the Ethan Allen Kids store staff to actually take part in the decorating process. The collection is displayed in lifestyle vignettes making it easier for kids to focus on the products that appeal to their personal style, and enables them to create their own unique space. The Ethan Allen Kids collection appeals to parents because it is crafted with the same quality standards and value that is synonymous with the full range of Ethan Allen brand products."

To celebrate the opening of the new Ethan Allen Kids Store, Ethan Allen is offering a Grand Prize of an Ethan Allen Kids Bedroom Makeover, valued at up to $5,000 for the Westfarms Mall "Look Cool for School Makeover Event" on August 23, 2003. Three contestants receive the chance to be "made over" live on stage to look like their favorite star. The audience will then choose one contestant as the recipient of the grand prize.

The Ethan Allen Kids store is the first of two planned Ethan Allen Kids stores to be opened by the end of 2003. The Ethan Allen Kids multi-tiered marketing campaign also includes a store within a store concept throughout Ethan Allen's full-line stores across the country and overseas, and as well as advertising nationally on television, in magazines and newspapers.

Ethan Allen Inc., a leading manufacturer and retailer of quality home furnishings, sells a full range of products through an exclusive network of over 300 stores in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and there are 17 overseas. The company has 14 manufacturing facilities and three sawmills.

For more information on the new Ethan Allen Kids store, log onto www.ethanallen.com, www.shopwestfarms.com, or call 1-888-EAHELP1.