The Yankee Candle Company, Inc. Acquires Assets of GBI Marketing, Inc

Business Wire, June 7, 2004

Business Editors

SOUTH DEERFIELD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 7, 2004

The Yankee Candle Company, Inc. ("Yankee" or the "Company") (NYSE:YCC), today announced that it has acquired substantially all of the assets of GBI Marketing, Inc. ("GBI"). Total consideration for the assets purchased was approximately $13.5 million in cash, $3.0 million of which is contingent upon the achievement of certain performance objectives over the next three years.

GBI, which was founded in 1983, has been a privately owned and operated distributor of selected gift products, including Yankee Candle(R) products, to fundraising organizations. GBI services their customers from a distribution facility located in Greenfield, MA.

GBI's total sales in fiscal 2003 were approximately $15.7 million, which amount included the sale of Yankee Candle(R) products. Yankee's incremental sales from the acquisition date through the end of 2004 are projected to be approximately $6.0 million, including approximately $100,000 - $200,000 during the remaining weeks in Yankee's second quarter. The transaction is expected to be accretive in 2004 by approximately $0.01 per share; but dilutive in the second quarter by approximately half a penny per share.

"Yankee and GBI have enjoyed a long and mutually rewarding business relationship; and we have admired the progress made by the GBI team in developing their company and business model," said Craig W. Rydin, Yankee's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "We are obviously familiar with GBI's people and operations; and believe this is an exciting opportunity to combine the strengths and resources of our two companies to further develop the already successful GBI model and Yankee Candle brand. The fact that GBI operations are located nearby should also benefit transition and development efforts."

The Yankee Candle Company, Inc. is the leading designer, manufacturer, wholesaler and retailer of premium scented candles in the growing giftware industry. The Company has also extended its brand in the growing premium home fragrance market segment with products such as the Housewarmer(R) electric home fragrancers, and Yankee Candle(R) branded potpourri, sachets, room sprays and linen sprays. Yankee has a 34 year history of offering distinctive products and marketing them as affordable luxuries and consumable gifts. The Company sells its candles through a North American wholesale customer network of approximately 15,000 store locations, a growing base of Company owned and operated retail stores (300 located in 42 states as of April 3, 2004), direct mail catalogs, its Internet website (www.yankeecandle.com), international distributors and through its distribution center located in Bristol, England.

This press release contains certain information constituting "forward-looking statements" for purposes of the safe harbor provisions of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include but are not limited to the statements contained herein with respect to management's current estimates of the Company's and GBI's financial and operating results for Fiscal 2004 and any other statements concerning the Company's or management's plans, objectives, goals, strategies, expectations, estimates, beliefs or projections, or any other statements concerning future performance or events. Actual results could differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of various risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to the following: the ability of the Company to effectively and quickly integrate GBI's operations into the Company's operations; the current economic conditions in the United States as a whole and the continuing weakness in the retail environment; the risk that we will be unable to maintain our historical growth rate; the effects of competition from others in the highly competitive giftware industry; our ability to anticipate and react to industry trends and changes in consumer demand; our dependence upon our senior executive officers; the risk of loss of our manufacturing and distribution facilities; the impact on our stock price of seasonal, quarterly and other fluctuations in our business; and other factors described or contained in the Company's most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q or Annual Report on Form 10-K on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements represent our views only as of today and should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date. While we may elect to update certain forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we specifically disclaim any obligation to do so even if experience or future events may cause the views contained in any forward-looking statements to change.