Leather Bella Becomes the 500th Manufacturer to Connect with FurnishNet

Business Wire, Sept 23, 2004

SAN DIEGO -- Milestone Implementation a Strong Indicator of Growing Trend towards Internet-Based Electronic Document Exchange to Reduce Errors and Costs, Speed Deliveries and Increase Customer Satisfaction

FurnishNet, a leading provider of Internet-based supply chain solutions, announced today that Italian furniture importer Leather Bella was the 500th manufacturer to be connected to the FurnishNet electronic document exchange. Tony Pellegrini, Sales Manager of Leather Bella, accepted the award at High Point, N.C. from Ron Sellers, Vice President of Sales for FurnishNet.

"One of our competitive advantages in the leather market is that we can deliver goods quickly from our U.S. distribution centers," said Pellegrini. "Using FurnishNet to electronically exchange business documents means that we can deliver to our retailers even faster and more accurately."

FurnishNet has accelerated the industry's adoption of Internet-based Electronic Document Exchange by adding 110 manufacturers in the last 12 months to reach the 500 mark. They currently have over $2.4 billion of home furnishings purchases under contract for electronic processing and are on track to process over 500,000 purchases electronically for FY2004, a 64% increase over FY2003.

"Our rapidly growing list of connected manufacturers benefits all retailers who want to realize the benefits of electronic document exchange," said Sellers. FurnishNet's Internet-based exchange makes it easy for any manufacturer or retailer, whether they're currently using EDI VANs or not, to streamline their supply chain."

FurnishNet's solution for Transaction Management speeds the accurate transmission of purchase orders, purchase order acknowledgements, advance ship notices, invoices, and many other transaction types. By integrating e-mail, web applications, electronic data interchange (EDI), and XML into a unique "Any-to-Any" exchange, FurnishNet is able to translate business transactions into appropriate formats for the immediate electronic flow of information between business partners of any size, running on any corporate system. This reduces errors and costs and shortens delivery cycles to improve customer service.

About Leather Bella

At Leather Bella, our product is 100% made from leather by Italian craftsmen in our factories in Italy. We even own the tanneries where the leather is prepared. Leather Bella products are warehoused in the United States for quick shipment, avoiding the delays that are normal when shipping furniture from Italy.

About FurnishNet

Over 575 of the nation's leading retailers and manufacturers are using FurnishNet's electronic document exchange solution to streamline their supply chains. For more information or a list of connected manufacturers, please call 1-800-854-2263 ext. 2525, or visit www.furnishnet.com and take the Self-Guided Tour.