Company Press Release: Alliant Exchange
July 21, 2000
DEERFIELD, IL, and SILVER SPRING, MD -- Alliant Foodservice, Inc., becomes the preferred foodservice distributor
for all U.S. lodging brands of Choice Hotels International (NYSE: CHH) under terms of a three-year agreement signed
by the two companies.
Under the agreement, valued at $300 million to $500 million, Alliant becomes an endorsed food and supply distributor
for the 3,600 Comfort, Quality, Econo Lodge, Clarion, Sleep, Rodeway Inn and MainStay Suites brand hotels in the
U.S. The agreement takes effect August 1.
``Important considerations for us were Alliant's nationwide distribution system, their very disciplined drive to
achieve operational excellence and their commitment to e-commerce through their AlliantLink.com(TM) ordering and
service delivery company,'' said Chuck Ledsinger, Choice's president and chief executive officer. ``We are delighted
to have negotiated this partnership on behalf of our many brands.''
``It is extremely meaningful for us to establish this relationship, because it means that we have earned Choice's
business for all the right reasons,'' said Earl L. Mason, president and chief executive officer of Alliant Exchange,
Inc., and its Alliant Foodservice subsidiary. ``Just as Choice has worked hard to establish its brands, we have
entered the B2B e-commerce age determined to build our reputation for speed and reliability. We consider this agreement
recognition of our progress.''
As part of the agreement, AlliantLink.com will become a portal on ChoiceBuys.com, Choice's proprietary online purchasing
system, giving Choice franchisees easy ordering access to Alliant products. Until this is implemented, Choice franchisees
may order Alliant products from their local salesperson or through the current AlliantLink.com system.
About Choice International
Choice Hotels International is the second largest hotel franchiser in the world with almost 5,000 hotels, representing
more than 400,200 rooms, open and under development in 37 countries. Its Comfort, Quality, EconoLodge, Clarion,
Sleep, Rodeway Inn and MainStay Suites brand hotels serve guests worldwide. Choice is also a leading provider of
Internet-based ordering capabilities with ChoiceBuys.com, recently named one of the 200 most promising B2B Web
sites by Forbes.com .
About Alliant Exchange
Alliant Exchange is one of the nation's largest business-to-business e-commerce and information exchange companies,
with total sales of more than $6.5 billion. The company, one of the largest privately held enterprises in the United
States, has three operating subsidiaries -- Alliant Foodservice, Inc., a leading broadline foodservice distributor;
The Drescher Corporation, a foodservice predistribution company; and AlliantLink.com, Inc., an Internet-based service
that provides 24/7 access to a catalog of 165,000 foodservice stock-keeping units and value-added services.
SOURCE: Alliant Exchange