American Greetings Announces Acquisition of Watermark Publishing

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Mar 04, 2011, 08:00 ET

CLEVELAND, March 4, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- American Greetings Corporation (NYSE: AM) today announced that its European subsidiary, UK Greetings Ltd., has acquired Watermark Publishing Limited (Watermark), a privately held company located in Corby, England. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Watermark is a leader in the United Kingdom in the innovation and design of greeting cards. Established in 1990, Watermark has grown to approximately $40 million of annual revenue and employs about 250 associates.

Gary Rowley, chief executive officer of UK Greetings Ltd. said, "We are delighted to announce the acquisition of Watermark Publishing Limited and welcome them into the UK Greetings family. For many years we have watched and admired the creativity of Watermark. Their product has a unique style and tone that resonates with the consumer. Moreover, we believe that their greeting cards complement our current product offering and support our broader product leadership strategy."

About American Greetings Corporation

For more than 100 years, American Greetings Corporation (NYSE: AM) has been a creator and manufacturer of innovative social expression products that assist consumers in enhancing their relationships. The Company's major greeting card lines are American Greetings, Carlton Cards, Gibson, Recycled Paper Greetings and Papyrus, and other paper product offerings include DesignWare party goods and American Greetings and Plus Mark gift-wrap and boxed cards. American Greetings also has one of the largest collections of electronic greetings on the Web, including cards available at AmericanGreetings.com through AG Interactive, Inc. (the Company's online division). In addition to its product lines, American Greetings also creates and licenses popular character brands through the American Greetings Properties group. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, American Greetings generates annual revenue of approximately $1.6 billion, and its products can be found in retail outlets worldwide. For more information on the Company, visit http://corporate.americangreetings.com.

Factors That May Affect Future Results

Certain statements in this release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Federal securities laws. These statements can be identified by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historic or current facts. They use such words as, "anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "project," "intend," "plan," "believe," and other words and terms of similar meaning in connection with any discussion of future operating or financial performance. These forward-looking statements are based on currently available information, but are subject to a variety of uncertainties, unknown risks and other factors concerning the Company's operations and business environment, which are difficult to predict and may be beyond the control of the Company. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those suggested by these forward-looking statements, and that could adversely affect the Company's future financial performance, include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties specific to the acquisition of Watermark Publishing, such as unexpected costs or liabilities that may arise from the acquisition of Watermark; the ability of Watermark to retain key personnel; and the impact of the results of operations of Watermark on the Company's ability to achieve the strategic and financial objectives related to the transaction.

In addition, this release contains time-sensitive information that reflects management's best analysis as of the date of this release. American Greetings does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect future events, information or circumstances that arise after the date of this release. Further information concerning issues that could materially affect financial performance related to forward-looking statements can be found in the Company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the "Risk Factors" section of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K.

SOURCE American Greetings Corporation