COPPELL, Texas--May 26, 1999-- TST/Impreso, Inc. (Nasdaq National Market: ``TSTI''), a manufacturer and distributor of hard copy imaging products for commercial and home office applications, today announced that it has entered into a vendor relationship with Corporate Express, Inc. (Nasdaq National Mkt: ``CEXP'').
Under this agreement, TST/Impreso, Inc. will provide IBM branded paper and imaging products to Corporate Express for sale to its customers. Corporate Express will offer the full line of IBM branded paper and specialty products. These products range from copy paper to high quality photo paper for digital printing.
``We are very excited to become the supplier of the complete line of IBM branded paper and other hard copy imaging products to Corporate Express, one of the world's leading suppliers of essential office and computer products and services to large corporations,'' stated Marshall Sorokwasz, President and Chief Executive Officer of TST/Impreso, Inc. ``In addition, Corporate Express will be a primary distributor for IBM Roll Paper. IBM Roll Paper is specifically designed for IBM's InfoPrint family of continuous-feed printing systems, like the InfoPrint 3000 and InfoPrint 4000, which produce high-quality output for a variety of statements, direct marketing and book applications. Corporate Express is an ideal customer to help us maximize the penetration of this product in a market with a potential size of $400 million in annual sales.''
``Corporate Express has built its worldwide reputation upon the provision of superior products and excellent customer service to major corporations,'' said Todd Elmers, Corporate Express Vice President of Merchandising. ``An important part of our strategy at Corporate Express is developing relationships with key suppliers that meet the needs of our customers. Working with TST/Impreso, Inc. will provide our customers with yet another solution to meet their imaging and paper product needs.''
``This relationship with IBM as a primary distributor of these new products is a significant opportunity for Corporate Express,'' said Sam Reese Corporate Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Corporate Express. ``Rarely is a company presented with a new market opportunity of this size that has such a perfect fit with our customer base and broad distribution infrastructure. We are working closely with IBM to get products into customers hands.''
``In the past several weeks, TST/Impreso has announced an extension of, and expansion in, its contract with IBM, along with increases in sales and significant improvements in profitability. As a result of these developments, along with a firming in paper prices and this relationship, management is very optimistic regarding our Company's performance in the foreseeable future,'' concluded Sorokwasz.
Corporate Express, headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado, is the leading supplier of essential office and computer products and services to corporations that value innovative procurement solutions. In its continuing operations, Corporate Express employs 15,000 people and operates in more than 300 locations, including 89 distribution centers in the United States, Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Ireland, New Zealand and the Netherlands.
TST/Impreso, Inc. is a manufacturer and distributor of hard copy imaging products for commercial and home use in domestic and international markets. Headquartered in Coppell, Texas (Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex), TST/Impreso operates three manufacturing plants and distributes its products through 47 warehouse locations. The Company's website domains are www.hotsheet.com, www.shopsheet.com, www.impreso.com and www.tstimpreso.com.
The common stock of TST/Impreso, Inc. is traded on Nasdaq's National Market System under the symbol ``TSTI''.
This press release may include statements that constitute ``forward-looking'' statements, usually containing the words ``believe'', ``estimate'', ``project'', ``expect'' or similar expressions. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, continued acceptance of the Company's products in the marketplace, competitive factors, new products and technological changes, paper prices and raw material costs, dependence upon third-party vendors, and other risks detailed in the Company's periodic report filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking statements, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release.
For further information, please contact:
Marshall Sorokwasz
972/462-0100 ext. 103
or
R. Jerry Falkner, CFA, Investor Relations Counsel
800/377-9893
www.rjfalkner.com