KANSAS CITY, Mo., March 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Payless Cashways, Inc.
(OTC Bulletin Board: PCSH), a full-line building materials and finishing
products company focusing on the professional builder, remodel and repair
contractor, institutional buyer, and project-oriented consumer, today
announced more information about its e-commerce strategy.
The Company reported that it is developing a new special order processing
system via the Internet. This new web-based system is being piloted with
several vendors and one store before being rolled out with multiple vendors to
all stores in the second half of the year. Special orders currently represent
approximately 10% of annual sales and are cumbersome and expensive to process
in a paper environment. This business-to-business Internet initiative is
expected to streamline the process and improve profitability of special order
items.
The web-based special order system will provide a foundation for a variety
of on-line e-catalogs designed for use by each type of professional customer,
such as plumbers and electricians. To accomplish this initiative, and as
previously announced, the Company has reassigned Dennis Smith, Lewis Logan,
John Cramer and Jim Hollingsworth to an e-commerce development team to focus
on the Company's business opportunities over the Internet.
Another piece of the Company's e-commerce strategy is the exploration of
fulfillment arrangements with a large number of e-commerce companies, who can
utilize the excess capacity of the Company's extensive sourcing and
distribution capabilities. The Company is currently involved in discussions
with several of these companies, including MichaelHoligan.com. Payless
Cashways' infrastructure was created and designed for much larger business
volume prior to its reorganization, which puts the Company in position to
fulfill the needs of others through the developing convergence of "clicks and
bricks."
About the Company
Payless Cashways, Inc. is a full-line building materials and finishing
products company focusing on the professional builder, remodel and repair
contractor, institutional buyer, and project-oriented consumer. The Company
operates 150 stores in 18 states located in the Midwestern, Southwestern,
Pacific Coast and Rocky Mountain areas. The stores operate under the names
Payless Cashways, Furrow, Lumberjack, Hugh M. Woods, Knox Lumber and
Contractor Supply.
Forward-Looking Statements
Forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. There are certain
important factors that could cause results to differ materially from those
anticipated by the forward-looking statements made above. These statements
are based on the current plans and expectations of the Company and investors
are cautioned that all forward-looking statements involve risks and
uncertainty. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially are the following: competitor activities; stability of customer
demand; stability of the work force; supplier support; consumer spending and
debt levels; interest rates; housing activity; lumber prices; product mix;
growth of certain market segments; weather; an excess of retail space devoted
to the sale of building materials; the successful implementation of an
Internet ordering system; the success of the Company's strategy, including its
e-commerce opportunities; and the successful completion of the new credit
service agreement implementation. Additional information concerning these and
other factors is contained in the Company's SEC filings, which are available
by contacting the Company or on the Company's web site, payless.cashways.com .
SOURCE Payless Cashways, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.payless.cashways.com
CONTACT:
Millard Barron, President and CEO of Payless
Cashways, Inc., 816-347-6000, or
web.investor@payless.cashways.com, or General, Mark Shaffer,
312-640-6763, or mshaffer@frb.bsmg.com, or Analysts-Investors,
Jack Cotto, 312-640-6755, or jcotto@frb.bsmg.com, both of The
Financial Relations Board
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