MPH.L Regulatory News (MPH)

7 Apr 2005 07:00

Marchpole Holdings PLC07 April 2005 07 April 2005 Marchpole Holdings plc ("the Company") MARCHPOLE CONTINUES TO EXPAND CASTELBAJAC Marchpole Holdings plc, which designs, produces and sells high quality clothingand accessories for six world class brands (Yves Saint Laurent, Boateng,Jean-Charles de Castelbajac ('JCC'), Rossignol, Emanuel Ungaro and Ungaro), ispleased to announce that three significant contracts for their Jean Charles deCastelbajac ("JCC") business have been agreed. Extended Agreement with Itochu for Japan The Company is pleased to announce that its design agreement with Itochu hasbeen extended for a further six years from 2005 to 2011. Itochu manufacture, wholesale and retail Castelbajac collections for theJapanese market place with sales at wholesale prices for 2004 over €25 million.As part of this new agreement the design fee on these sales will be increasedfrom the current rate of 1.7% to 2.5% from October 2005. Sales for 2005 areexpected to reach €30 million. Castelbajac and Rossignol Launch New Collection Jean Charles de Castelbajac designed and launched his first Skiwear collectionfor the Autumn Winter 2002 season in collaboration with the world's number oneskiwear brand Rossignol. Over the course of the last two years sales haveincreased from €0.5 million to €3.2 million for Autumn Winter 2004 and sales forAutumn Winter 2005 are forecast to be €3.7 million. This is the fastest growingbusiness line within the Rossignol group. Following this success, Rossignol have asked Jean Charles to design and launch anew collection for the Summer. This new collection is aimed at the TrekkingOutdoor market. Launching in the Spring Summer 2006 season, the new agreement is for 5 years,with minimum guaranteed royalties over the period totalling €325,000. Castelbajac Glasses and Sunglasses The company has also signed an agreement with Codir SA to launch Castelbajaceyewear across Europe. Codir SA are the leader in market share with more than2700 retail outlets and sales of over €700 million. The contract is for 3 years, launching in Spring Summer 2005 with minimumguaranteed royalties for the period of €230,000. Commenting today, Chief Executive Greg Tufnell said : "Marchpole acquired the Castelbajac business in 2004 with the aim of creating astrong worldwide brand under its ownership. These new contracts, and thesignificant marketing contribution from the licensees, clearly demonstrate ourability to transform and grow this brand. We are successfully increasing ourpresence across a wide assortment of product categories and establishing thebrand in both Asia and Europe" For further information contact: Marchpole Greg Tufnell - Chief Executive 020 7908 7700 Michael Morris - Executive Director Shore Capital Alex Borrelli 020 7408 4090 Buchanan Tim Thompson / Nicola Cronk 020 7466 5000 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange