Gloucester, Mass., January 19, 2007 -- Retail organizations are developing private labels and proprietary brands to improve margins and offer more personalized and differentiated collections to multi-channel customers. As they focus on improving time to market to continuously refresh their "look", internal product development organizations are playing an increasingly important role in executing on the delivery side with products that reflect current trends, yet retain the unique personality of the store.

These product development organizations might be centralized overseas to be closer to production or a virtual team of designers, merchants, buyers and factories. These groups are charged with creating limited editions, accessories or rounding out a collection and in some cases, creating the look for an entire line or department. Whatever the structure, clear communication and collaboration is the key to reducing cycle times to speed new products to market.

At the 2007 A.G. Edwards' Retailing Conference, Sue Welch, founder and CEO of TradeStone Software, the leader in enabling domestic and international sourcing through a Unified Buying Process, will discuss the emergence of product development organizations and the key role they play in bringing highly profitably and distinctive products to market. In addition, Welch will highlight how the Unified Buying Process plays a central role in supporting private label and proprietary branding strategies by creating tighter collaboration between designers, merchants and buyers from concept to delivery.

What: Creating the Right Mix: Leveraging Product Development Organizations to Improve Time to Market, Drive Margins and Ensure Customer Loyalty through Private Labels

Who: Sue Welch, founder & CEO of TradeStone Software

Where: 2007 A.G. Edwards' Retailing Conference
The Biltmore Hotel, Coral Gables, Fl.

When: Monday, January 22, 2006; 9:30 a.m. EST

Welch's presentation is part of the A.G. Edwards' Retailing Conference 2007: The Technological Imperative. For more information or to schedule a time to speak with Sue Welch, please contact:

Chuck Tanowitz or Annie Klein/Schwartz Communications/781-684-0770/ This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

About TradeStone Software, Inc.
TradeStone Software enables retailers and manufacturers to plan, design, collaborate on and purchase goods from across the world as easily as from across the street. TradeStone’s Unified Buying Engine uses Web services technology to layer across an organization’s existing infrastructure while its modular software fills in buying process gaps to provide a single view, access and interaction across the entire procurement process. The first and only complete solution for global sourcing, product lifecycle management, and unified order management, TradeStone’s intuitive "No Training" technology helps people throughout the supply chain to collaborate globally, enabling users to focus on speeding innovative products to market. Marquee customers include American Eagle Outfitters, The Children’s Place, Deutsche Woolworth, Ocean State Job Lot, Pacific Alliance and Federated Department Stores. TradeStone Software is based in Gloucester, Mass. and can be found on the Web at http://www.TradeStoneSoftware.com.

Contact:

Tania Stockbridge
TradeStone Software
978-281-3723
tstockbridge This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it