press releaseS

March 24, 2006
Moretz Receives Wal-Mart’s 2005 Supplier of Year Award

NEWTON, NC -- Moretz Inc. has received the Wal-Mart 2005 Supplier of the Year award for the retailer’s Ladies Socks Dept. 27. This is the third year in a row Moretz has achieved the honor. The Moretz, Inc. team will be honored for the award at a celebration held at Wal-Mart headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas recently. Rich Stober, president, massmarket sales, Moretz, Inc., made the announcement."To earn the award that many consider the industry’s highest honor for three consecutive years is truly a testament to Moretz associates for their dedication to continuous improvement," said Mr. Stober.

Wal-Mart and Moretz, Inc. have been working together since 2000. Moretz, Inc. works with Wal-Mart, to provide sport, dress/casual, and fashion socks for its high volume, international network of stores. Moretz, Inc. dedicates an in-house team of sales, marketing, and design/merchandising professionals to create and manage the sockwear programs for Wal-Mart stores. Leveraging Moretz Inc.’s Vendor Inventory Management system, the team consistently increases sales for Wal-Mart per square foot, turns, fill rates, and profitability.

Moretz Inc. is a family owned, privately-held business founded by Hugh Moretz in 1946. Headquartered in Newton, North Carolina, Moretz, Inc. ships more than 2.6 million pairs of socks every week. Moretz Sports, a division of Moretz, Inc. manufactures PowerSox, America’s number one performance sport sock, as well as PowerSox Outdoor and Gold Plus. Moretz Sports is the exclusive sock licensee for Kathy Ireland, New Balance, Under Armour, PGA Tour and Coleman brands.

Additionally, Moretz, Inc. manufactures for a select group of private label partners including Target, Old Navy and Wal-Mart which awarded Moretz the 2003, 2004 and 2005 Wal-Mart Supplier of the Year. Moretz Marketing, a division of Moretz, Inc., is a full service marketing and licensing division specializing in creating and managing lifestyle brands including John Elway Home by Bassett Furniture Industries. Visit www.moretzsports.com for further information; online purchasing; or to locate a Moretz Sports retail partner.

###

Jennifer A. Maguire
Maguire Public Relations, Inc./moretz inc.- 60 yrs. In ‘06
land/fax: 212-366-1796
cell: 917-596-5136
email: jen@maguirepr.com
www.powersox.com