OVERLAND PARK, Kan., June 5, 2002 - Sprint (NYSE: FON, PCS) announced today that it has signed a multiyear, multimillion dollar communications services agreement with Chico's (NYSE: CHS), a premier national women's clothing retailer that specializes in a unique brand of women's sophisticated casual clothing. The agreement will connect more than 300 Chico's stores in 40 states with high-speed data services, voice services and a variety of other technologies.
"Chico's has excelled in the retail industry not only because of our commitment to quality in our merchandise, but to our valued customers as well," said Scott Edmonds, Chico's President and Chief Operating Officer. "We selected Sprint because they understood our needs and were able to develop a solution that would allow our communications needs to keep pace with the rapid growth of our company."
Sprint will provide frame relay data network services, network monitoring, long distance service and a range of Customer Premise Equipment (CPE). The services will increase Chico's continued expansion as well as support key in-store initiatives such as their Chico's Passport customer loyalty program. The CPE is made by Cisco and packaged along with Sprint solutions as part of a recently announced go-to-market strategy between the companies.
Founded in 1983, Chico's began in a small store on Sanibel Island, Florida. The company, which specializes in private-label designs and impeccable customer service, has 324 stores in 40 states and the District of Columbia.
"Sprint's relationship with Cisco allowed us to quickly implement our new telecommunications infrastructure," Edmonds added. "The integration between the two was seamless and provided a significant upgrade over our previous system."
"Chico's is a progressive company with an aggressive growth plan," said Gary Linsin, Southeast Area President, Sprint Business Sales. "We met with Chico's and looked at the needs of their business now and also discussed their future needs. Combining our strength with our strategic relationship with Cisco, Sprint was able to create and deliver a complete communications solution for Chico's that not only addressed their current infrastructure concerns but will also grow with their future telecommunications needs."
Sprint and Cisco announced in December 2001 the expansion of their relationship through a three-year strategic relationship. The agreement builds on a long-standing relationship between these telecommunications and networking industry leaders to forge strong sales, joint marketing and technology development ties well into the future. Sprint and Cisco have teamed up in sales and marketing efforts to deliver a wide range of equipment and services to customers. Initially, the companies are focusing on jointly selling IP-based and broadband services, including dedicated IP, IP VPN and IP telephony.
