CROSSMARK® To Market Planalytics’
Services to Consumer Goods Industry

Manufacturers and Retailers Plan for Weather Impact on Consumer Spending

PLANO, Texas - CROSSMARK today announced that it will market Planalytics' weather impact analysis services to help manufacturers and retailers of consumer products in planning more effectively for the weather’s impact on consumer buying patterns.

Planalytics, based in Wayne, PA, projects market-level product sales and category performance for manufacturers and retailers of consumer goods. Planalytics uses its long-range climate forecasts tied to proprietary knowledge of how weather affects consumer demand.

CROSSMARK, one of the largest sales and marketing firms in the consumer goods industry, helps manufacturers increase product sales at the retail level. An important component of forecasting product sales includes applying Planalytics’ technologies to inventory management, pricing and promotion strategies, and new item roll-outs. Weather can have a greater impact on consumer buying patterns than frequently used marketing tactics, such as temporary price reductions, advertising or in-store displays.

"Weather greatly affects the consumer's decisions about buying merchandise. A one percent change in consumer buying can have a major impact on store sales," said John Thompson, CROSSMARK executive vice president. "We are excited to help our manufacturing and retail clients utilize Planalytics’ extraordinarily accurate and long-range weather intelligence to forecast buying patterns.”

Fred Fox, Planalytics president, said, "We are excited about the new alliance with CROSSMARK. With its extensive experience and client base in the consumer goods space, Planalytics can help many more companies make rapid and dramatic improvements that go right to their bottom line.”

Planalytics is a supply chain planning and optimization technology company that helps companies make more effective and profitable decisions by forecasting weather-driven changes in supply, demand and prices for products and services. Companies in all industries use Planalytics' technologies to avoid squandered opportunities and poor financial results caused by the unanticipated impact of weather volatility. For more information visit their web site at http://www.planalytics.com.

CROSSMARK (http://www.crossmark.com) is a professional business services company providing integrated solutions in sales, marketing, technology and supply chain optimization for the consumer goods industry. Headquartered in Plano, Texas, CROSSMARK employs more than 10,000 associates.

For more information on CROSSMARK, contact Guy Davis at guy.davis@crossmark.com.

For more information on Planalytics, contact Jim Gagne at 610-407-2956 or jgagne@planalytics.com.