Staples -- World's Largest Office Products Retailer -- to Meet 34 China Suppliers at Global Sources' Private Sourcing Event

Global Sources

2007-04-02 13:56 3629

HONG KONG, April 2 /Xinhua-PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Staples, ranked as the world's largest office products retailer with US$16 billion in annual sales, is set to meet 34 China suppliers at Global Sources' (Nasdaq: GSOL) Private Sourcing Event on April 2 in Shenzhen.

(Logo: http://www.prnasia.com/sa/200701111135-min.jpg )

Global Sources' chairman and CEO, Merle A. Hinrichs, said: "Private Sourcing Events provide the ideal solution to the sourcing needs of volume buyers by delivering quality, pre-selected suppliers with export-ready products.

"China produces 25 percent of the world's printer ink and toner cartridges. Exports of office furniture topped US$400 million in 2005 alone.

"Growth in office supply exports is being driven by the increasing quality of China-made products. This, in turn, is attracting more top buyers like Staples to source from the region."

Staples Brands Group Asia managing director, Albert Seet, said: "We've participated in five Private Sourcing Events already this year and had great results. Global Sources consistently delivers the kind of experienced, quality-focused suppliers we're looking for.

"To make the most of this unique sourcing opportunity, we're sending five buying teams to meet suppliers at the event."

World's Top Buyers Scheduled to Attend Private Buyer Meetings and Private Sourcing Events

Many of the world's top buyers including Carrefour, QVC and RadioShack are scheduled to meet Global Sources suppliers at upcoming Private Buyer Meetings or Private Sourcing Events.

Private Buyer Meetings will be held during the China Sourcing Fairs at Hong Kong's AsiaWorld-Expo. Dates of the Fairs are:

-- Electronics & Components, April 12-15

-- Fashion Accessories, April 12-15

-- Underwear & Swimwear, April 12-15

-- Gifts & Home Products, April 20-23

Private Sourcing Events scheduled for May are:

-- GPS & Accessories -- May 10, Taipei

-- TVs, Displays & Video Devices -- May 15, Shenzhen

-- Doors, Flooring, Door / Window / Cabinetry Hardware -- May 17,

Guangzhou

-- Power Supplies, Batteries & Accessories -- May 22, Hong Kong

-- Baby Travel & Care Products -- May 23, Ningbo

-- Furniture -- May 25, Shenzhen

-- 2-way Radios -- May 28, Shenzhen

-- Ready-to-Wear Garments, Winter Garments, Fashion Casual Footwear --

May 30, Hangzhou

Suppliers wishing to participate in Private Sourcing Events should contact csm@globalsources.com. Buyers can apply to participate by contacting privatesourcingevents@globalsources.com. More information about Private Sourcing Events is available at http://www.globalsources.com/SITE/PSE.HTM .

Private Sourcing Events Complement Global Sources Print, Online, Trade Show Media

Private Sourcing Events are part of Global Sources' sourcing and product information services which include Global Sources trade magazines, Global Sources Online ( http://www.globalsources.com ), Global Sources Direct

( http://www.globalsourcesdirect.com ) and the China Sourcing Fairs

( http://www.chinasourcingfair.com ).

About Global Sources

Global Sources is a leading business-to-business (B2B) media company and a primary facilitator of two-way trade with Greater China. The core business is facilitating trade from Greater China to the world, using a wide range of English-language media. The other key business segment facilitates trade from the world to Greater China using Chinese-language media.

The company provides sourcing information to volume buyers and integrated marketing services to suppliers. It helps a community of over 560,000 active buyers source more profitably from complex overseas supply markets. With the goal of providing the most effective ways possible to advertise, market and sell, Global Sources enables suppliers to sell to hard-to-reach buyers in 230 countries.

The company offers the most extensive range of media and export marketing services in the industries it serves. It delivers information on 1.8 million products and more than 150,000 suppliers annually through 13 online marketplaces, 11 monthly magazines, over 100 sourcing research reports and nine specialized trade shows which run 22 times a years across seven cities. Suppliers receive more than 10 million sales leads annually from buyers through Global Sources Online ( http://www.globalsources.com ) alone.

Global Sources has been facilitating global trade for 36 years. In mainland China it has over 1,600 team members in 44 locations, and a community of over 1 million registered online users and magazine readers for

Chinese-language media.

Global Sources Press Contact in Asia:

Camellia So

Tel: +852-2555-5021

Email: cso@globalsources.com

Global Sources Investor Contact in Asia:

Eddie Heng

Tel: +65-6547-2850

Email: eheng@globalsources.com

Global Sources Press Contact in U.S.:

James W.W. Strachan

Tel: +1-602-978-7504