August 2005

TIETEX LAUNCHES EUROPEAN SALES AND DISTRIBUTION OPERATION.

Expansion Coincides With Roll-Out Of New Brand Identity; Hagemeijer Appointed European Sales Director.
    
SPARTANBURG, SC -- Tietex International, Ltd., has announced a major expansion into Europe as an integral part of its intensified global marketing strategy.

Reed Cunningham, president and COO, said the company has established Tietex Europe BV in Oirschot near Eindhoven, The Netherlands. "We have located our sales headquarters in Oirschot and warehousing operations near Rotterdam. Our focus will be on the sale of upholstery fabrics throughout Europe; so a key strategy will be to have our fabrics available ex-stock for immediate delivery to meet the ever-changing needs of our customers," he said.

In conjunction with the European initiative, Cunningham said the company has tapped Dirk Hagemeijer to head up the new sales division. A veteran of 23 years in the textile industry, Hagemeijer will have direct sales responsibility and will supervise independent sales agents working with manufacturers and wholesalers.

Mike Durham, president of Tietex Interiors, the division that manufactures and markets upholstery, said the launch of the new sales division coincides with the corporate-wide implementation of a new Tietex brand identity, both of which will debut at Decosit in Brussels, September 10-13.  "As we enter new markets on a global basis, we have seen the need to create a marketing presence that more closely reflects our strategic business plan," Durham said. "We have made a major commitment to style and fashion, so we believe we must look the part as well as act the part," he added.

The emphasis on marketing the Tietex brand coincides with a blended business strategy, Durham said. "For instance, in addition to our European and Asian investments, we recently invested in a major weaving facility in North Carolina to take advantage of the benefits domestic production gives us and our customers."

Interiors VP of Sales Doug Henderson said the initial strategy in Europe is to market the company's proprietary Murena fabric, introduced in the U.S. three years ago. "We have had a lot of success with Murena, and we believe this is just the right product at the right time for the right market.

"We believe Murena will receive a very favorable reception in Europe because it is a contemporary performance fabric that comes in a number of constructions that continue to be popular throughout the world," he said.

But the company will not limit itself to residential upholstery marketing, Henderson said. He confirmed that the European sales division also has plans to pursue the contract industry and associated products like office panels, seating and wall coverings.

In addition to upholstery, Tietex manufactures and markets fabrics for a wide variety of consumer and business end uses, including engineered technical fabrics for the medical, hygiene, industrial equipment and construction markets, as well as for home furnishing segments such as bedding, drapery and window treatments.

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