SHANGHAI, Dec. 7 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- Acorn International, Inc. (NYSE: ATV) ("Acorn" or the "Company"), today announced that the Company has reached an exclusive agreement with Guthy-Renker to market Sheer Cover(R) cosmetics in China.
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Under the agreement, Acorn will be Guthy-Renker's exclusive agent to market and distribute Sheer Cover in China. Acorn is authorized to distribute the Sheer Cover cosmetics through all its available distribution channels including both direct and non-direct TV sales. The agreement will last one year initially and open for extension pending the first year's sales performance.
Acorn and Guthy-Renker entered into the agreement due to the synergies between Acorn's developed infrastructure (in house call-center, in-house media buyers, in-house production) and Guthy-Renker's cutting edge continuity program.
"We are very excited to work with Acorn to market our Sheer Cover products in China," commented Mr. Alberto Bottene, Senior Vice President of
Guthy-Renker. "Acorn has a long history of marketing innovative and valuable products and is the market leader in the TV direct sales business. We intend to use Acorn's mature platform in China to expand Guthy-Renker's global footprint."
"We are glad to have the opportunity to work with one of the world's largest direct response television companies and introduce an excellent line of cosmetic products," said Mr. James Hu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Acorn. "The introduction of Sheer Cover to our product portfolio fits perfectly with our strategy of expanding the cosmetics business, which has been an important revenue contributor in the past quarter. We will leverage Guthy-Renker's global brand awareness and years of experience to market and promote Sheer Cover and look forward to a successful partnership in 2010."
About Sheer Cover
Sheer Cover is one of Guthy-Renker's most popular lines of cosmetics. The success of Sheer Cover in the United States can be largely attributed to the exclusive formula of light reflecting minerals, which are 100% natural, infused with skin soothing botanicals, natural sun protection, and
anti-oxidant green tea to help protect skin from the visible signs of premature aging. Sheer Cover is sold around the world. For more information visit: http://www.sheercover.com .
About Guthy-Renker
Established in 1988, Guthy-Renker is one of the world's largest direct response television companies with annual sales in excess of $1.5 billion. It is known as the leading producer of high-quality infomercials and products designed for direct response television sales, with offices in Palm Desert, CA; Santa Monica, CA; London; Beijing; Tokyo; New Zealand; and Sydney, Australia. Guthy-Renker has a superior track record of customer satisfaction for 18 years. Originally launched as a television direct marketer by Co-CEOs Bill Guthy and Greg Renker, the independently-owned, vertically-integrated company has since broadened its focus into every area of electronic retailing, making quality products available to U.S. and international consumers through broadcast television, cable and satellite, as well as internet, telemarketing, direct mail and retail channels. For more information visit http://www.guthy-renker.com .
About Acorn International, Inc.
Acorn is a leading integrated multi-platform marketing company in China, operating one of China's largest TV direct sales businesses in terms of revenues and TV air time and a nationwide off-TV distribution network. Acorn's TV direct sales platform consists of airtime purchased from both national and local channels. In addition to marketing and selling through its TV direct sales programs and its off-TV nationwide distribution network, Acorn also offers consumer products and services through catalogs, third-party bank channels, outbound telemarketing center and an e-commerce website. Leveraging its integrated multiple sales and marketing platforms, Acorn has built a proven track record of developing and selling proprietary-branded consumer products, as well as products and services from established third parties. For more information, please visit http://www.chinadrtv.com .
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
This press release contains certain statements that may include
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of federal securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included herein are "forward-looking statements", including, among other things, benefits of Acorn's expansion strategy in its cosmetic sales line with the addition of the Sheer Cover products and Acorn's anticipated continuing partnership with Guthy-Renker. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts but instead represent only our belief regarding future events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of our control. Our actual results and financial condition and other circumstances may differ, possibly materially, from the anticipated results and financial condition indicated in these forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors discussed in our periodic reports filed with and available from the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements attributable to the Company or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by these factors. In particular, our operating results for any period are impacted significantly by the mix of products and services sold by us in the period and the platforms through which they are sold, causing our operating results to fluctuate and making them difficult to predict. Investors should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. Other than as required under the securities laws, the Company does not assume a duty to update these forward-looking statements.
For more information, please contact:
Acorn International, Inc.
Ms. Chen Fu, IR Director
Phone: +86-21-5151-8888 x2228
Email: fuchen@chinadrtv.com
Web: http://www.chinadrtv.com
CCG Investor Relations
Mr. Crocker Coulson, President
Phone: +1-646-213-1915 (New York)
Email: crocker.coulson@ccgir.com
Web: http://www.ccgirasia.com
