Processing Content
Strategic Alliance With Bank of America To Increase Fleetwood Competitive Advantage in RV Market RIVERSIDE, Calif., March 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- FleetwoodEnterprises, Inc. (NYSE: FLE) announced today that it is launchingFleetwood Financial Services (FFS), a new RV finance unit that will provideinnovative, exclusive benefits to its recreational vehicle dealers, as wellas competitive retail financing to the dealers' customers. The core offerings of FFS were co-developed with Bank of America DealerFinancial Services, and are designed to strengthen Fleetwood's partnershipwith its dealers and drive retail sales by enhancing customer financingoptions. The new venture will provide attractive wholesale and retailfinance alternatives, reduce dealers' flooring costs, and further enhancethe competitive advantage of Fleetwood's RV products as they are marketedthrough its U.S. network of independent motor home and travel trailerdealers. "This initiative is more comprehensive than any financing programcurrently available in the recreational vehicle industry and we believe ithas exceptional potential to benefit our business partners," said Paul C.Eskritt, president of Fleetwood's RV Group. "One of its uniquecharacteristics is the scalability of the various wholesale and retailfinancing programs, which will allow dealers of all sizes to have anopportunity to participate, making them and their retail customers thegreatest beneficiaries of this exclusive arrangement." Bank of America and Fleetwood have a longstanding relationship, andBank of America has a leading share of retail financings in the RV industryand a major share of floorplan financing for Fleetwood's products. "Bank of America is an ideal choice for this venture because of itssize, scale and prominence in the recreational vehicle financing arena,"said Elden L. Smith, president and CEO of Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc. "As aresult, FFS will offer very attractive exclusive financing options to ourdealers. We expect that the alliance will enable both Fleetwood's RV Groupand Bank of America Dealer Financial Services to increase revenues, marketshare, and dealer distribution. Various programs and incentives will beemployed to support our products; increase the value and importance of ourrelationships with our dealers, which should result in increased shelfspace; and drive retail sales of our products. FFS is positioned to makeFleetwood's dealers more profitable as well as significantly increase thecost effectiveness of our marketing efforts." "We are delighted to have formed this strategic alliance withFleetwood, a leading manufacturer in the RV industry," said Ellsworth S.Clarke, president of Bank of America Dealer Financial Services. "Ourcomplementary market positions, Fleetwood's deep dealer base, and Bank ofAmerica's market-leading performance in RV finance are powerful elements incombination and we look forward to offering the resulting value propositionto our dealer customers and the individual buyers of Fleetwood products." Fleetwood was exclusively advised in this arrangement by AppliedStructured Finance LLC. About Fleetwood Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc., through its subsidiaries, is a leadingproducer of recreational vehicles and manufactured homes. This Fortune 1000company, headquartered in Riverside, Calif., is dedicated to providingquality, innovative products that offer exceptional value to its customers.Fleetwood operates facilities strategically located throughout the nation,including recreational vehicle, factory-built housing and supply subsidiaryplants. For more information, visit the Company's website athttp://www.fleetwood.com. About Bank of America Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) is one of the world's largest financialinstitutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle marketbusinesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing,asset management and other financial products and services. The company'sGlobal Corporate and Investment Banking group (GCIB) focuses on companieswith annual revenues of more than $2.5 million; middle-market and largecorporations; institutional investors; financial institutions; andgovernment entities. GCIB provides innovative services in M&A, equity anddebt capital raising, lending, trading, risk management, treasurymanagement and research. Bank of America serves clients in 175 countriesand has relationships with 99 percent of the U.S. Fortune 500 companies and83 percent of the Global Fortune 500. Many of the bank's services tocorporate and institutional clients are provided through its U.S. and UKsubsidiaries, Banc of America Securities LLC and Banc of America SecuritiesLimited. For additional information, visit http://www.bankofamerica.com. About Applied Structured Finance LLC Applied Structured Finance LLC ("ASF") is a Seattle-based specialtyinvestment bank that advises manufacturers on the creation of strategicvendor financing programs. This press release contains certain forward-looking statements andinformation based on the beliefs of Fleetwood's management as well asassumptions made by, and information currently available to, Fleetwood'smanagement. Such statements, including those regarding enhancingFleetwood's competitiveness, sales, market share, and dealer distribution,reflect the current views of Fleetwood with respect to future events andare subject to certain risks, uncertainties, and assumptions, includingrisk factors identified in Fleetwood's 10-K and other SEC filings. Theserisks and uncertainties include, without limitation, the lack of assurancethat we will regain sustainable profitability in the foreseeable future;the effect of ongoing weakness in the manufactured housing market and morerecent weakness in the recreational vehicle market; the effect of globaltensions, volatile fuel prices, interest rates, employment trends, stockmarket performance, availability of financing generally, and other factorsthat can have a negative impact on consumer confidence, which in turn mayreduce demand for our products, particularly recreational vehicles; theavailability and cost of wholesale and retail financing for bothmanufactured housing and recreational vehicles; our ability to comply withfinancial tests and covenants on existing debt obligations; our ability toobtain the financing we will need in the future to execute our businessstrategies and to meet the terms of our outstanding convertible debtinstruments; the cyclical and seasonal nature of both the manufacturedhousing and recreational vehicle industries; expenses and uncertaintiesassociated with the entry into new business segments or the manufacturing,development, and introduction of new products; the potential for excessiveretail inventory levels in the manufactured housing and recreationalvehicle industries; the volatility of our stock price; repurchaseagreements with floorplan lenders, which could result in increased costs;potential increases in the frequency of product liability, wrongful death,class action, and other legal actions; and the highly competitive nature ofour industries. Contact: Lyle Larkin, Vice President - Treasurer (951) 351-3535
Kathy A. Munson, Director - Investor Relations (951) 351-3650
