Valpak® Announces New Franchisee In Grand Rapids, Mich.

Leader in Local Print and Digital Coupons Expands in Kent County

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Nov 16, 2012, 10:08 ET

LARGO, Fla., Nov. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Valpak, a leader in local print and digital coupons, announced today that it has signed a franchise agreement with Jay and Carol Lanctot to assume ownership of the existing Valpak of Western Michigan franchise. Valpak of Western Michigan has served Kent County since 1989.

"My wife Carol and I were ready to take on a new business venture that would also benefit the Grand Rapids community and Valpak has helped us achieve this," said Jay Lanctot, Valpak of Western Michigan franchisee. "Valpak's business model and their innovative suite of print, digital and mobile solutions are the ideal way to help support small business owners and help them reach new customers."

After many years in the private fundraising field, Jay and his wife, Carol, were ready to find a way to help small businesses prosper in their hometown. After searching through various franchise categories on the Internet and in industry-specific publications, they decided that Valpak was the perfect fit for them based on the company's corporate strength, brand recognition and great infrastructure support system. The first Valpak Blue Envelope® mailing for the new franchisees was distributed in the Kent County in July and has increased over the last three months.

"It's great to the instant reaction that Valpak has had on the Grand Rapids market," said Todd Leiser, Valpak's Director of Franchise Sales. "Jay and Carol have excelled quickly and we are eager for them to bring the Valpak concept to additional businesses and deliver local savings throughout the Grand Rapids community."

A leader in cooperative direct mail, Valpak mails over 20 billion coupons to more than 40 million demographically-targeted households per month in more than 100 markets in 48 states and four Canadian provinces. Today, in addition to its flagship Blue Envelope^®, the brand offers its business customers an impressive portfolio of digital advertising products including Smartphone apps, which are also integrated into the new Passbook, Valpak Deals^®, QR codes, online coupons and SMS/text messaging to reach consumers at home and on-the-go.

Ideal candidates for Valpak franchise ownership should possess a desire to join a trusted industry-leading brand, work within a proven franchise system, develop relationships with local businesses and have a comfort level with selling new, digital technologies. Franchisees should also possess a minimum liquidity of $75,000 and a minimum net worth of $150,000.

Valpak franchisees benefit from extensive training and support including more than 300 hours of classroom, in-field and online training. Additionally, the Valpak peer mentoring program pairs tenured Valpak franchisees with new franchisees for a two-year period. Valpak also handles all of the coupon design, printing, collation and postal logistics for its franchisees, allowing them to concentrate on selling branded direct marketing campaigns to customers within their exclusive territory.

Since its launch in 1968, The Blue Envelope® has been broadly recognized and trusted, which has contributed significantly to Valpak's current success. Valpak's state-of-the-art, 470,000-square-foot manufacturing center in St. Petersburg, FL, makes it possible for the company to mail to more than 500 million homes in North America. Valpak is also backed by experienced leadership with Cox Enterprises, one of the largest media companies in North America, which acquired the brand in 1991. Recently, Cox Target Media also acquired Savings.com, a leading online source for savings and personalized deals. Working together, Valpak and Savings.com will offer consumers a more extensive selection of offers and rewarding shopping experience as content is shared across platforms.

For more information on Valpak and franchising, please contact Mike Squiteri at [email protected] or (727) 399-3695. You also may visit www.valpakfranchising.com.

ABOUT VALPAK®

Valpak, one of the leading direct marketing companies in North America, is owned and operated by Cox Target Media, along with Savings.com. With nearly 170 franchises across the United States and Canada, the signature Blue Envelope® delivers savings and value to nearly 40 million households each month. Annually, Valpak will distribute some 20 billion offers inserted in more than 500 million envelopes. Valpak also offers digital solutions with www.Valpak.com®, an online site for printable coupons, e-commerce and coupon codes, which has nearly 70 million offer views each month, as well as apps for smartphone platforms For more information about advertising with Valpak, please contact 1-800-676-6878.

About Cox Media Group

Cox Media Group is an integrated broadcasting, publishing, direct marketing and digital media company that includes the national advertising rep firms of Cox Reps. Additionally, CMG owns and operates Cox Target Media, providers of Valpak, a leading North American direct marketing company and Savings.com, a leading online coupon site and community. With $1.7 billion in revenue, the company operations include 15 broadcast television stations and one local cable channel, 86 radio stations, eight daily newspapers and more than a dozen non-daily publications, and more than 100 digital services. CMG operates in more than 30 media markets and reaches approximately 52 million Americans weekly, including 30 million TV viewers, more than 4 million print and online newspaper readers, and 18 million radio listeners. For more information about Cox Media Group, please check us out online at www.coxmediagroup.com.

CONTACT: Amanda DelPrete
Fish Consulting
954-893-9150
[email protected]

SOURCE Valpak