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The Knot & Michael C. Fina Announce Engaging Partnership; Leading Wedding Website Names Michael C. Fina Premier Tabletop Provider to The Knot Gift Store & Registry NEW YORK --(Business Wire)-- Nov. 22, 2004 -- The Knot (www.theknot.com), the leading online wedding resource, and Michael C. Fina, Fifth Avenue-based specialty retailer of fine home goods and jewelry, announced today that they have signed an agreement making Michael C. Fina the exclusive provider of china, crystal, and silver to The Knot Gift Store & Registry, located at www.theknot.com.Under the terms of the agreement, Michael C. Fina products will be featured in the tabletop category of The Knot Gift Registry. This relationship will further empower The Knot to offer the widest, best-priced, and most stylish selection of formal and casual china, glassware, crystal, flatware, and silver on its gift registry from such popular brands as Vera Wang, Kate Spade, Lenox, Hermes, Noritake, Royal Crown Derby, Waterford, Wedgwood, Mikasa, and Reed & Barton. The Knot registries with Michael C. Fina products will be accessible through both The Knot and the Michael C. Fina websites (www.michaelcfina.com). Wedding guests will also be able to purchase Michael C. Fina items off a Knot Registry in any Michael C. Fina retail store or through The Knot Gift Registry Locator tool at www.giftregistrylocator.com. In addition, Michael C. Fina has invested in a multimedia integrated marketing program with The Knot to reach new registrants and wedding guests through online and offline promotions including banners, direct email, and print advertisements in THE KNOT Weddings national and regional magazines. Michael C. Fina will provide in-store and offline promotion for The Knot, beginning in the first quarter of 2005. "Our relationship with The Knot will give us access to an enormous national audience of brides and grooms. There is no better partner to help us attract potential registrants and service the registry needs of our engaged couples," said Jeffrey Fina, Vice President of Michael C. Fina. "We are thrilled to be expanding our brand name and The Knot's gift choices by offering our vast selection of tableware to The Knot Gift Registry." "We are excited to offer our audience of over two million unique visitors a month the best tabletop selection at the most competitive prices through our new relationship with Michael C. Fina," said David Liu, CEO of The Knot. "Our new partnership confirms our position as a one-stop bridal registry, where couples and wedding guests can seamlessly shop for wedding gifts they want, from the hottest styles in china and glassware to unique items like camping gear and electronics." While today's to-be-weds are registering for more innovative gift items, 75% of engaged couples still register for fine tableware, and 79% register for casual tableware (Roper Starch Worldwide, 2000). As of January 2005, through in-store and online registries, registrants on The Knot will be able to choose from over 5,000 dinnerware patterns, 1,200 flatware options, 2,000 stemware choices, crystal and porcelain giftware items, and a multitude of other tabletop offerings. Launched in November 1998, The Knot Gift Store & Registry features over 20,000 gift items ranging from fine china and flatware to camping gear and American Express Gift Cheques. In addition to registering by product category or traditional checklist, The Knot Gift Store & Registry gives couples the opportunity to register for products by lifestyle, occasion, manufacturer, and price. Guests can easily access and purchase from the couple's registry list online or through The Knot toll-free number (1.877.THE KNOT/1.877.843.5668). ABOUT THE KNOT INC. The Knot Inc. (OTCBB: KNOT; www.theknot.com) is one of the world's leading lifestage media and services companies. Its wedding brand, The Knot, provides today's to-be-weds with comprehensive wedding planning information, interactive tools and resources, and wedding-related shopping. Its award-winning website, TheKnot.com, is the leading online wedding destination and wedding content provider to America Online, MSN, Yahoo! and Comcast. Its newlywed website, TheNest.com, is the first online destination for the just-married audience, providing newly married couples with targeted relationship advice, living and entertaining ideas, interactive tools for daily life, and a robust community of peers. The Knot Inc. also offers a diverse collection of wedding planning print publications. The Knot produces a national publication, "THE KNOT Weddings" Magazine, and, through its subsidiary Weddingpages, Inc., publishes "THE KNOT Weddings" regional wedding magazines in 18 U.S. markets. In addition, the Company publishes a wedding planning book trilogy with Broadway Books and a gift book series with Chronicle Books; and produces a televised documentary series on The Oxygen Network and a VOD service for Comcast Cable. The Knot is based in New York and has several other offices across the country. This release may contain projections or other forward-looking statements regarding future events or the future financial performance of The Knot. These statements are only predictions and reflect the current beliefs and expectations of The Knot. Actual events or results may differ materially from those contained in the projections or forward-looking statements. It is routine for internal projections and expectations to change as the quarter progresses, and therefore it should be clearly understood that the internal projections and beliefs upon which The Knot bases its expectations may change prior to the end of the quarter. Although these expectations may change, The Knot will not necessarily inform you if they do. The Knot's policy is to provide its expectations not more than once per quarter, and not to update that information until the next quarter. Some of the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained herein include, without limitation, (i) The Knot's unproven business model and limited operating history, (ii) The Knot's history of losses, (iii) the significant fluctuation to which The Knot's quarterly revenues and operating results are subject, (iv) the seasonality of the wedding industry and (v) other factors detailed in documents The Knot files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its recent filings on Forms 10-K and 10-Q. Forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. ABOUT MICHAEL C. FINA: Serving brides and grooms since 1935, Michael C. Fina has established itself as the ultimate bridal and lifestyle specialty retailer for the consumer who demands outstanding service, the best in design, and the finest selection of bridal merchandise. The Fina family continues to strengthen the reputation of its retail institution, based on the success of its employees, the most complete assortment of home furnishings, tabletop, jewelry and timepieces, and the preeminent bridal and gift registry service in the country. |
