News Release Announcement of Expanded Agreement with Above the Treeline

Released December 1, 2006


For More Information, contact:
Nancy Guthrie, CBA Media Relations: (615) 376-4430
John Rubin, Above the Treeline: (734) 996-2730

CBA CROSS:SCAN Expands Partnership with

Above the Treeline: Agreement enhances CROSS:SCAN reports, saves time and money for both current and future Above the Treeline subscribers who are CBA member stores

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO  (December 1, 2006) – CBA and Above the Treeline (Treeline) announce a joining of services through an expansion of their existing agreement.  This expanded partnership will provide Treeline’s leading edge retail data management and analysis tool at a reduced cost for CBA member stores, and make participation in CBA’s CROSS:SCAN (Christian Retail Official Sales Statistics) program seamless. Additionally, the combined services agreement will allow Christian stores submitting data to CROSS:SCAN through Treeline to receive and analyze the CROSS:SCAN reports using Treeline’s dynamic outputs.

“We've just made transmitting and analyzing retail sales data much easier, less time-consuming, and more valuable for Christian retailers," explained Bill Anderson, CBA President and CEO. “This expanded partnership allows retailers to use Treeline’s streamlined technology to easily and seamlessly submit their data to CROSS:SCAN. The CROSS:SCAN reports, powered by Treeline’s robust capabilities, enable  retailers to easily and quickly analyze their own store-level data alongside an powerful industry-wide picture so they can make sound decisions that better serve their customers, reduce costs, and improve profitability.”

HOW RETAILERS SUBMIT DATA TO TREELINE

Under the expanded agreement with Above the Treeline, Christian retailers can establish automated transmissions of daily data to Above the Treeline at no cost. Treeline’s customized secure interface insures that no data is sent anywhere without express authorization from each retail entity. For CBA member retailers who have contracted to submit data to CROSS:SCAN, Treeline will automatically format and transmit that data to CROSS:SCAN for them at no cost and no additional effort.

HOW RETAILERS WILL USE TREELINE TO ACCESS CROSS:SCAN

The newly expanded service agreement also enables retailers submitting to CROSS:SCAN through Treeline to access all CROSS:SCAN reports through Treeline’s website. These Treeline-enhanced CROSS:SCAN reports will take advantage of Treeline’s unique, easy-to-digest visual format - further enhancing the information currently available to CROSS:SCAN subscribers.

CBA MEMBERS SAVE MONEY WITH TREELINE

CBA member retailers who are already using Above the Treeline will now save money under the expanded agreement. CBA has negotiated new, reduced rates for existing CBA members who are also Treeline subscribers, as well as CBA members that become new Treeline subscribers beginning December 1. CBA member retailers who choose the Summit service, which provides extensive, in-depth reporting and analysis, will save 40% off the standard setup fee and 10% off the standard monthly fees. CBA members may use the Base Camp version of Above the Treeline at no cost.

TREELINE’S BACKGROUND WITH CBA

Stores that use Above the Treeline services have easy internet access to their own data in the clear, easy-to-understand format that has made Above the Treeline so popular among the over 220 Christian stores who have embraced it since it’s launch.  Current retail users have praised Treeline for helping them make better, more profitable and customer-friendly decisions using these reports.

“Our customers are seeing powerful results from their use of Above the Treeline,” noted Treeline founder and CEO John Rubin.  “We recently studied our four largest retail customer groups, representing revenues of over $79 million in combined annual sales.  Their performance over the past two years while consistently using Treeline resulted in increased inventory turns by 24%, increased sales in aggregate by 13%, and reduced average inventories by 0.5%.”

“Several years ago we knew we had found a great partner for CBA member stores when we studied what Above the Treeline actually offered retailers.  Treeline is a service that was developed by retailers for retailers, and allows a retailer to understand and use intelligence in their own data to make better inventory, pricing, and merchandising decisions for their own benefit,” said Anderson. “Over the past three years, we’ve seen the health of stores dramatically improved using Above the Treeline, as they are able to see their own data in clearer ways and in a more timely fashion. This new step with Treeline will be a significant benefit to those aspiring retailers who take advantage of it.”

“This agreement enhances what CBA is already delivering through CROSS:SCAN to the over 600 stores that have contracted to submit their data.  Ideally, we would like to have all CROSS:SCAN participants submitting their data directly to Treeline who will then send subscriber data at the store’s request directly to CROSS:SCAN for weekly processing,” said Anderson. “With enriched CROSS:SCAN reports and the unparalleled quality of Above the Treeline analysis, this expanded partnership will help CBA member stores more easily and effectively mine the richness of their own data as well as help us as an industry see a higher definition picture of what is happening across the entire Christian Retail Channel.”

Above the Treeline has a successful five-year track record of serving their retail customers, extensively collecting, scrubbing and developing analysis for retail sales data.  Treeline currently processes the sales data of over 42 million SKU’s of product per day for their customers.  CBA’s CROSS:SCAN program has been actively and securely collecting, aggregating and reporting retail sales data across the entire Christian Retail Channel successfully for participating stores since March of 2006.

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Questions and Answers for Retailers on CROSS:SCAN and Above the Treeline Efficiencies and Confidentiality

Q. Can I send my data through the Above the Treeline process but have it only go to CROSS:SCAN?

A. Yes. If you desire, your data can pass right through Above the Treeline and not be part of any of the Above the Treeline community reports. CROSS:SCAN data is completely secure and will not be sent anywhere without express written consent of the retailer.

Q. If I give my data to Above the Treeline will it automatically be sent to CROSS:SCAN?

A. No. Above the Treeline data is completely secure and will only be sent to CROSS:SCAN if you make that a part of your contractual agreement with Above the Treeline.

Q. What do I do if I want to take advantage of this simplified process and cost savings to send data to CROSS:SCAN via Above the Treeline?

A. If you are already submitting data to CROSS:SCAN, contact Treeline at 734-996-2730 or cross:scan@abovethetreeline.com, to sign up and notify them that you are already sending to CROSS:SCAN.

If you are using Above the Treeline and have not yet contracted to submit data to CROSS:SCAN but want to do so, contact CBA at crossscan@cbaonline.org to request a CROSS:SCAN contract, and notify Treeline that you want your data submitted to CROSS:SCAN.

Q. What can submitting my sales data to CROSS:SCAN do for my store that Treeline doesn’t do?

A. CROSS:SCAN reports provide the top selling products for the broadest range of reporting stores in the industry, helping your store insure that you have the right products on the shelf for your customers.

Q. What can accessing the tools of Above the Treeline do for my store that submitting my data to CROSS:SCAN doesn’t do?

A. Above the Treeline provides similar types of top seller reports as CROSS:SCAN, but also offers a complete system to help you manage your inventory easier and more efficiently. Above the Treeline’s visually appealing tools include a category analysis function, links to your supplier partners (if desired) and aids to help you identify products to return. Go to www.abovethetreeline.com and select ‘Request a Demo’ from the main page to get a guided tour of Above the Treeline’s features.

 

A Q&A with John Rubin, founder and CEO of Above the Treeline

Q. What are the basic differences between the free-of-charge Base Camp version of Treeline, and the Summit version?

A. The Base Camp version was designed for stores who were primarily interested in using just the top seller reports in Above the Treeline. The Summit version provides full access to all of Treeline’s web and email-based reports

Q. When I send my data to Above the Treeline, who else will get to see my data?

A. No one does, without your permission. Before joining Above the Treeline, you must agree to a contract which binds us to not reveal your individual data to anybody outside of your organization without your express consent. At this point, there are two types of parties to whom you can give consent: individual suppliers/publishers (who can just see their own titles) and CROSS:SCAN.

Q. Can Above the Treeline also automatically send my data to STATS or my marketing group?

A. No. Any transmission of data requires your consent.

Q. Which POS systems are currently capable of transmitting data to Above the Treeline?

A. All of the major industry point-of-sale systems including IBID, IRT, Bookstore Manager, Booklog, Revelation Retail, Wordstock, and Visual Anthology among others. If you are on another POS system or have your own, please let us know and we will work with you to develop the necessary interfaces

Q. How much time/work is involved in getting set up to use Above the Treeline and then in maintaining participation?

A. It depends a bit on your point-of-sale system. The sign up process is completely online, but there are, in most cases, some steps you need to take on your end to get the data transmissions set up. Once you sign-up, we will send those instructions on to you.

A Q&A with Bill Anderson, CBA President & CEO

Q. Why does CBA want more Christian retail stores using Above the Treeline?

A. More Christian stores using Above the Treeline and having their data sent directly to CROSS:SCAN via Treeline is a win-win-win proposition. First and foremost, the stores win as they have an easy-to-understand and easy-to-access store-specific (and industry-specific) comparison data a few clicks away on the web. Above the Treeline wins as they have more stores using their state-of-the-art service.  And our industry wins as we use the higher definition picture of what is happening in Christian retail stores for the exclusive benefit of Christian retail stores.

The bottom line is that CROSS:SCAN and Above the Treeline are complementary, providing the best data analysis available to retailers today, and providing that data to your industry association through the same data transmission so that it can be leveraged for the improvement of the entire Christian Retail Channel.

Q. How do you foresee this expanded agreement impacting the continuing growth and development of CROSS:SCAN?

A.   This partnership will strengthen the unity of Christian retailers through CROSS:SCAN by making it easier for them to participate, to analyze the reports, and to contribute to a high definition picture of the strength and activity of our channel.  This agreement removes some of the technological barriers that some stores have run into as they have wanted to share their data with CBA in CROSS:SCAN but could not easily do so.  And as we continue to work together, we anticipate that the quality and usefulness of our reports will grow by benefiting from the expertise Treeline has developed through the years.