DAYVILLE, Conn., Dec. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- United Natural Foods,
Inc. (Nasdaq: UNFI) (the "Company") and Select Nutrition Distributors, Inc.
("Select") have entered into an agreement to form a distribution partnership.
Under the terms of this distribution partnership, Select will distribute
certain health and beauty aids ("HBA") and vitamins, minerals and supplements
("VMS") to the Company's customers. Products subject to this agreement will
be carried in Select's inventory and shipped to the Company's customers via
UPS or other similar parcel delivery service.
For the Company's customers, this distribution partnership substantially
broadens the selection of VMS and HBA products that they can purchase from the
Company. In addition, the process for purchasing, ordering and billing these
products will be handled in the same manner as the Company's current products:
products will appear in the Company's catalog and all products, including
those distributed by Select, can be ordered together and billed on the same
invoice. The Company's customers will not see any change in the ordering
process, other than in the enhanced selection of products.
For the vendors of VMS and HBA products covered under this distribution
partnership, the products currently sold to the Company will be sold solely to
Select. For the vendors of VMS and HBA products that currently sell to Select
but not to the Company, the products will be made available to the Company's
customers, subject to the Company's review and approval. Vendors affected by
this distribution partnership will be contacted individually.
Implementation of this distribution partnership will be effected in
stages. It is expected that the first stage will begin by March 31, 2004 with
full implementation targeted for May, 2004.
About Select
Select distributes branded vitamins, herbs, dietary supplements, health
and beauty aids to over 5,000 customers nationwide. Privately held since its
founding in 1975, Select purchases products from 450 manufacturers and carries
16,000 items in its warehouses. Select sells to health food stores,
pharmacies, sports clubs, spas and medical offices and delivers products to
customers via UPS or similar package delivery service. For more information
please call 866-804-8844.
About the Company
The Company carries and distributes over 32,000 products to more than
14,000 customers nationwide. The Company serves a wide variety of retail
formats including conventional supermarket chains, natural product
superstores, independent retail operators and the food service channel. For
more information on the Company, visit its website at www.unfi.com .
"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995: Statements in this press release regarding the Company's business
that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve
risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties,
which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the
forward-looking statements, including but not limited to general business
conditions, the impact of competition and our dependence on principal
customers, see "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual report on Form 10-K
filed with the Securities and Commission on October 22, 2003, and its other
filings under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Any forward-
looking statements are made pursuant to the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995 and, as such, speak only as of the date made. The Company
is not undertaking to update any information in the foregoing reports until
the effective date of its future reports required by applicable laws.
SOURCE United Natural Foods, Inc.
-0- 12/12/2003
/CONTACT: Rick Puckett, Chief Financial Officer of United Natural Foods,
Inc., +1-860-779-2800, General Information, Joseph Calabrese, +1-212-445-8434,
or Analyst Information, Susan Garland, +1-212-445-8458, both of Financial
Relations Board/
/Web site: http://www.unfi.com /
(UNFI)
CO: United Natural Foods, Inc.; Select Nutrition Distributors, Inc.
ST: Connecticut