TWEETER GOES LIVE ON TRADECARD IN LESS THAN 45 DAYS TO EXPAND OPERATIONS OVERSEAS
Global Trade Platform Enables Consumer Electronics Retailer to Optimize Cash Flow and Facilitate Growth
NEW YORK, Dec. 6, 2006 - TradeCard Inc., the leading provider of global trade products for financial and physical supply chain automation, announced today that consumer electronics retailer Tweeter has gone live on the TradeCard Platform to grow its import business, reduce transaction costs and extend supply chain visibility. The implementation was complete in less than 45 days.
"TradeCard enabled us to roll out our import business on a global trade platform that automates processes and allows us to increase business volume while lowering our transaction costs," said Rick Penney, Vice President of Product Development and Sourcing at Tweeter. "By automating fulfillment and settlement processes on an open and flexible platform, we can optimize our cash flow and maintain better relations with our overseas suppliers as we continue to grow."
Previously, nearly all of Tweeter's purchasing and procurement operated domestically. TradeCard enables Tweeter to automate transactions with vendors in China and provides on-demand access to a network of more than 2,000 trading partners around the world that transact on the TradeCard Platform. TradeCard injects financial services into its global trading network to optimize cash flow and merge physical and financial aspects of the supply chain.
"There's extreme supply chain and finance pressure in the consumer electronics industry and TradeCard is helping companies like Tweeter meet shifting demands through visibility, agility and cash optimization," said Kurt Cavano, CEO of TradeCard. "Tweeter's rapid TradeCard deployment enabled it to begin processing transactions on the TradeCard Platform less than two months after signing on - and they're already seeing results. Tweeter has streamlined the procurement to payment process to extend visibility, improve margin and cash flow, and grow business overseas without adding staff."
Collaboration with suppliers through TradeCard adds agility to the supply chain to help buyers and suppliers meet rapidly shifting pressures and demands, such as increased transaction frequencies and specialized orders. TradeCard provides a local "feet on the street" customer support team that speaks 32 languages and supports customers in 40 countries.
About Tweeter
Tweeter Home Entertainment Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: TWTR) was founded in 1972 by current Chairman Sandy Bloomberg. Based in Canton, Massachusetts, the company is a national specialty consumer electronics retailer providing home and mobile entertainment solutions. The company's fiscal 2005 revenues were $795 million. Tweeter has been named a "Consumer Electronics Retailer of the Year" by Audio-Video International every year since 1979. Tweeter Home Entertainment Group, Inc. now operates 153 stores under the Tweeter, hiFi buys, Sound Advice and Showcase Home Entertainment names in the New England, Las Vegas, Texas, Southern California, Mid-Atlantic, Chicago, Southeast, Florida and Phoenix markets. The company employs more than 3,200 associates. Further information on the Tweeter Home Entertainment Group can be found on the company's web sites at http://www.twtr.com and http://www.tweeter.com.
About TradeCard
TradeCard is the leading provider of on-demand supply chain management solutions. The TradeCard Platform synchronizes financial transactions with physical events in the global supply chain to help customers automate trade transactions from purchase order to payment and chargebacks. Buyers, sellers and their trading partners manage transactions through a web-based platform with online financial services integrated into the workflow. This turnkey transaction management enables customers to improve margins and enhance growth, with extra-organizational supply chain visibility. TradeCard's on-the-ground trade experts throughout the world assure superior supply chain agility.
TradeCard manages global trade for thousands of users in over 40 countries, including Columbia Sportswear, Rite Aid and Wolverine Worldwide. TradeCard Inc. is headquartered in New York City and has offices in San Francisco, Hong Kong, Brussels, Taipei, Seoul, Tokyo, Colombo, and Shenzhen. TradeCard is located online at www.tradecard.com
*****
This press release contains a number of matters that constitute forward-looking
statements. The presentation reflects the current views of TradeCard's
management with respect to future events and is subject to risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those contemplated in such forward-looking statements.