WOLVERINE WORLD WIDE CHOOSES TRADECARD TO REDUCE SUPPLY CHAIN COSTS
Hush Puppies manufacturer eliminates reliance on letters of credit - will use TradeCard's products and services
to automate cross-border settlements
New York, May 16, 2001 - Financial supply chain service provider TradeCard announced today the
addition of Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (NYSE:WWW), a leading global marketer of branded footwear including Hush
Puppies, CAT and Merrell Performance Footwear, to its growing list of high-profile customers that are using
TradeCard to automate their cross-border procurement, fulfillment and account settlement processes.
"A large portion of our footwear is sourced from contract factories located in Asia and other parts of the
world," said Stephen L. Gulis, Jr., Wolverine's chief financial officer. "Our challenge is to find
ways to optimize cash flow while at the same time ensure that our products get to market on time. Until now,
letters of credit were the instruments of choice to support financing of the more than 25 million pair of
footwear we source from contract suppliers each year. Now TradeCard, which was introduced to us through
Comerica, a TradeCard alliance partner and one of our major banks, is being used to automate our previously
paper-intensive procurement financing operations, resulting in improved workflow, stronger supply chain
management, cash flow and most importantly, better services to our customers."
According to a Cap Gemini Ernst & Young benchmarking study of 150 large companies, the firm believes that
automation of the financial supply chain with TradeCard's technology along with targeted business process
realignments could save companies 50 to 100 basis points of top-line revenue. Such savings result from
improvements to working capital, risk management, and business process costs, including the labor and fees
related to purchasing, invoicing, accounts receivable, accounts payable, treasury, and cash management.
Wolverine's transactions with TradeCard flow seamlessly through their Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system,
which is fully integrated with the TradeCard network. Such integration allows companies like Wolverine, which
have made significant ERP investments, to further leverage their existing ERP infrastructure for TradeCard
transactions. TradeCard member companies without ERP systems can access the TradeCard network via a browser.
Regardless of the method companies use to transact with TradeCard, they can see what all the parties to an active
transaction are doing in a collaborative environment, providing them the information they need to make better-informed payment decisions. At the same time, they have access to TradeCard's business alliance network of trade-
related companies.
"We are essentially locating all the information related to the flow of goods and money to one vantage point so
all the participants involved in a transaction can make better decisions," said Kurt Cavano, Chairman and CEO of
TradeCard. "Wolverine will significantly benefit from TradeCard's selection of transaction workflows. They will
be able to manage all of the critical issues such as order management, exposure management, reconciliation,
receivables and payables matching online, for less cost than traditional tools allow for today."
Through a single platform that hosts a suite of financial services, TradeCard now enables virtually any type of
domestic or cross-border trade transaction. TradeCard's platform infrastructure combined with a powerful
transaction network and product features comprise a complete financial supply chain offering. A financial supply
chain platform can help buyers and sellers better manage their accounts payables and receivables processes by
providing more accurate information and visibility into their transactions while automating many of the labor-
intensive aspects of payables and receivables management.
Comerica Bank, which first introduced Wolverine World Wide to TradeCard, was pleased by the progress of the
Wolverine World Wide / TradeCard relationship.
"Wolverine World Wide is one of our key clients," said Mike Rinkus, First Vice President and officer in
charge of Comerica Bank's Trade Finance Group. "Just as they were looking for ways to reduce their trade
transaction costs through improved working capital and process efficiencies, we were embarking on our
relationship with TradeCard. It is extremely satisfying to see such key partners link together in a mutually
beneficial way - a relationship we hope to see duplicated with other clients and TradeCard in the future."
About TradeCard
TradeCard is a financial supply chain service provider. TradeCard's secure transaction infrastructure greatly
reduces the inefficiencies and uncertainties found in traditional domestic and cross-border trade transaction
processes. By streamlining and enhancing the steps necessary for purchase order approvals, payment decisions and
settlement, TradeCard provides a cost-effective, practical and patented service for financial supply chain
management. TradeCard, Inc. is headquartered in New York City with offices in San Francisco, San Diego, Chicago,
Hong Kong, Taipei, Seoul and London. TradeCard can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.tradecard.com.
About Wolverine World Wide
Wolverine World Wide, Inc. is the leading global marketer of branded non-athletic footwear for men, women and
children. Wolverine World Wide markets footwear through its powerful stable of brands including Company owned
brands - Hush Puppies®,Wolverine®, Merrell®, Bates®, and Hy-Test - as well as brands licensed
to the Company - Caterpillar, Harley-Davidson and Coleman. To learn more about the Wolverine World Wide
family of footwear, go to www.wolverineworldwide.com.
About Comerica
Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA) is a multi-state financial services provider headquartered in Detroit, with
banking subsidiaries in Michigan, California and Texas, banking operations in Florida, and businesses in several
other states. Comerica also operates banking subsidiaries in Canada and Mexico, as well as a trade processing
company in Hong Kong. Comerica is the 19th largest bank holding company in the U.S., a Fortune 500 company
with $50 billion in assets, and is among the top 200 banking companies in the world, based on assets. Comerica
is the nation's 10th largest commercial business lender and among the top 20 small business lenders. Comerica
can be found on the World Wide Web at www.comerica.com.
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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.