1-800-FLOWERS.COM's Bill Shea Named "CFO of the Year"

Long Island Business News recognizes Mr. Shea for outstanding fiscal leadership

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Aug 27, 2012, 06:30 ET

CARLE PLACE, N.Y., Aug. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. (NASDAQ: FLWS), the world's leading florist and gift shop, is pleased to announce that William E. Shea, Senior Vice President, Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM has been named by Long Island Business News as a recipient of its "CFO of the Year" Award. The award recognizes Long Island's top financial officers for their outstanding fiscal and asset management, innovative contributions to their company's performance, commitment to their profession and involvement in the community.

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"Everyone throughout our organization salutes Bill for this prestigious and well-deserved honor," said Jim McCann, CEO and founder of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. "Bill is the primary architect of our financial platform and strong balance sheet. He has also been a key contributor to our successful growth strategy over the years, providing a keen focus on margins and managing operating expenses by leveraging our business platform. He has also been an integral part of our M&A team, helping to identify opportunities and successfully close deals that have provided significant contributions for our company, including the additions of Fannie May Fine Chocolates, The Popcorn Factory and Cheryl's cookies and baked gifts, among others."

Mr. Shea joined the 1-800-FLOWERS.COM finance team in 1996 and helped steer the company through its initial public offering in 1999, officially assuming the title of CFO in 2000. In his role as head of finance, Mr. Shea is responsible for the company's banking, audit and insurance strategies and relationships as well being an integral part of the company's business development and M&A teams. "When the economy took a sharp downturn in the Fall of 2008, Bill immediately recognized the need to focus on maintaining and enhancing our financial strength and flexibility. He worked closely with our bank syndicate and all of our internal managers to formulate a financial plan that helped us navigate the unprecedented recession during which we were able to pay down more than $100 million in debt while concurrently helping to remove tens of millions of dollars of operating expenses from our platform," said McCann.

Mr. Shea has served on the Executive Board of the Suffolk County Council of the Boy Scouts of America and he sits on the Finance Committee of the Parish of the Holy Cross in Nesconset, Long Island, New York.

For additional information on 1-800-FLOWERS.COM and to learn about its portfolio of brands, visit www.1800flowers.com, www.facebook.com/1800flowers and www.twitter.com/1800flowers.

About 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc.

1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. is the world's leading florist and gift shop. For more than 35 years, 1-800-FLOWERS® (1-800-356-9377 or www.1800flowers.com) has been helping deliver smiles for our customers with gifts for every occasion, including fresh flowers and the finest selection of plants, gift baskets, gourmet foods, confections, candles, balloons and plush stuffed animals. As always, our 100% Smile Guarantee backs every gift. 1-800-FLOWERS.COM's Mobile Flower & Gift Center was named winner of the Mobile Shopping Summit's "Best Mobile Site of 2011." 1-800-FLOWERS.COM was also rated number one vs. competitors for customer service by STELLAService and named by the E-Tailing Group as one of only nine online retailers out of 100 benchmarked to meet the criteria for Excellence in Online Customer Service. 1-800-FLOWERS.COM has been honored in Internet Retailer's "Hot 100: America's Best Retail Web Sites" for 2011. The Company's BloomNet® international floral wire service (www.mybloomnet.net) provides a broad range of quality products and value-added services designed to help professional florists grow their businesses profitably. The 1-800-FLOWERS.COM "Gift Shop" also includes gourmet gifts such as popcorn and specialty treats from: The Popcorn Factory® (1-800-541-2676 or www.thepopcornfactory.com); cookies and baked gifts from Cheryl's® (1-800-443-8124 or www.cheryls.com); premium chocolates and confections from Fannie May® confections brands (www.fanniemay.com and www.harrylondon.com); gift baskets and towers from 1-800-Baskets.com® (www.1800baskets.com); incredible, carved fresh fruit arrangements from FruitBouquets.com^sm (www.fruitbouquets.com); wine gifts from Winetasting.com® (www.winetasting.com); top quality steaks and chops from Stock Yards® (www.stockyards.com); as well as premium branded customizable invitations and personal stationery from FineStationery.com® (www.finestationery.com). The Company's Celebrations® brand (www.celebrations.com) is a premier online destination for fabulous party ideas and planning tips. 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. is involved in a broad range of corporate social responsibility initiatives including continuous expansion and enhancement of its environmentally-friendly "green" programs as well as various philanthropic and charitable efforts. Shares in 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. are traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market, ticker symbol: FLWS.

About Long Island Business News

Long Island Business News is Long Island's only publication devoted to local commerce and has been the premier source of news and data on business, economic trends and the region's robust entrepreneurial sector for more than 50 years. The publication is the leading source for news on Long Island's 120,000-plus businesses. In addition to 52 weekly editions, Long Island Business News publishes a full line of annual publications, including the Book of Lists, the Tech Island Directory, Doing Business on Long Island and the nonprofit community's Annual Philanthropy Day Directory.

SOURCE 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc.