Supply Chain Management: Liz Claiborne Inc. Selects GT Nexus To Power Global Supply Chain Operating Platform

GT Nexus recently announced that Liz Claiborne Inc. has signed a multi-year contract for an on-demand import operations platform. Delivered as a hosted service over the GT Nexus Trade and Logistics Portal, the system will help transform the way the apparel tracks and manages inventory sourced from overseas suppliers.

Liz Claiborne designs and markets a portfolio of branded women's and men's apparel, accessories and fragrance products. The Company's merchandise is available at more than 30,000 points of sale worldwide. In addition to its wholesale distribution, Liz Claiborne sells directly to customers via 383 full-priced specialty stores and 339 outlet stores in the U.S., Europe and Canada, as well as 10 e-commerce sites. In 2006, the company reported over $4.9 billion in revenue.

"Like any company with a global supply chain, we are always looking for ways to improve control and drive down costs," said Lois Davis, VP of Logistics at Liz Claiborne. "We selected GT Nexus because they offer more than a suite of applications. They also have an existing network of providers and data management services bundled into a single, on-demand platform."

The foundation of the system is a global trade and logistics data hub. Delivered "inside" of the GT Nexus Portal, the hub blends technology infrastructure, an integrated network of supply chain partners and an established information management program to capture and standardize all of the data associated with the Liz Claiborne global supply chain.

Thousands of industry providers, including carriers, 3PLs, brokers, suppliers and banks are already using the portal to support global supply chain initiatives with other GT Nexus customers. By tapping into the existing network, Liz Claiborne will get instant access to partner integrations, data intelligence and software applications that are already installed and in use around the world.

The standardized supply chain data will fuel a range of applications that automate business processes across the company and its supply chain partner network. Key capabilities include:

• Supplier Enablement - To manage purchase order exchange electronically with Liz Claiborne's global network of vendors
• In-Transit Visibility - To track orders, shipments and SKUs across transport modes from order point to final delivery
• Global Transportation Management - To reduce ocean and air freight spend through bid standardization, allocation optimization, partner compliance and analytics
• Document Presentment - To give suppliers a turnkey way to generate trade documents electronically directly from purchase orders, which then ties into Liz Claiborne's banks and accelerates payment approval and financing
• Landed Cost Management - To determine true landed supply chain costs of globally sourced goods by the time they are received at final destination

"We are thrilled to have Liz Claiborne as one of our lighthouse customers," said John Urban, president of GT Nexus. "We share a common vision on how an on-demand technology platform can add significant value across the company and beyond into the trading community. We look forward to helping the team at Liz Claiborne deliver on that vision."

"We believe GT Nexus has a great model, not just for importers but for the entire global supply chain," added Davis. "So much of the hard work of configuring hardware, connecting partners, installing software and mapping data has already been done. We literally hit the ground running from day one."

The platform went live in three weeks and Liz Claiborne is currently using it to conduct their 2007 global transportation bid. The integrated procurement, spend optimization and contract management capabilities provided by GT Nexus replace traditional manual, spreadsheet based transportation procurement processes. Global shipment visibility capabilities will be added to the platform after the bid is complete.

About GT Nexus
GT Nexus runs the world's only industry-backed, on-demand global trade & logistics portal. Today, more than 40,000 registered users, from over 15,000 organizations use a range of capabilities on the portal to optimize the global flow of goods and trade information from order point to final payment. GT Nexus connects the physical and financial supply chains. This allows buyers, sellers, banks and logistics providers to work over a common platform with a core set of information that supports multiple trade and logistics functions. Customers include Xerox, American Eagle Outfitters, Procter & Gamble, Weyerhaeuser and The Home Depot. For information, visit www.gtnexus.com.

About Liz Claiborne Inc.
Liz Claiborne Inc. designs and markets an extensive range of branded women's and men's apparel, accessories and fragrance products. Our diverse portfolio of quality brands - available domestically and internationally via wholesale and retail channels - consistently meets the widest range of consumers' fashion needs, from classic to contemporary, active to relaxed and denim to streetwear. The more than 40 brands in the Liz Claiborne Inc. portfolio are available at over 30,000 points of sale worldwide. For more information visit www.lizclaiborneinc.com.

SOURCE: GT Nexus, Inc.