Mercedes-Benz Returns to the Runway as Title Sponsor of Fashion Week

Mercedes-Benz USA and IMG Sign Multi-year Contract for NY, LA and Miami

MONTVALE, N.J., Sept. 15 -- Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) today announced that it will expand its longstanding association with fashion by entering into a multi-year title sponsorship of all of IMG's Fashion Week properties in the United States. Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week will be a trifecta of the country's top high-fashion venues: New York, Los Angeles, and Miami. The three-year sponsorship begins with the February 2007 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week showing of the Fall 2007 collections in New York. It represents the first time all three Fashion Week venues will be under a single sponsor.

Mercedes-Benz USA has partnered with individual Fashion Week properties in the past as title sponsor of Fashion Week in New York from 2001 through 2003 and as title sponsor of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios in Los Angeles since its inception in 2003. As a reflection of a strong interest in fashion on the part of its buyers, Mercedes-Benz has frequently partnered with designers and fashion icons in its marketing initiatives. For several years, MBUSA has been in partnership with SAKS Fifth Avenue in a variety of retail and philanthropic activities.

Beyond its on-site activities in conjunction with the five shows annually, MBUSA expects to leverage its sponsorship with a full range of integrated marketing initiatives including advertising, online activities (including 52 weeks of dedicated fashion programming on the internet), partnership marketing, related consumer shows, and philanthropic activities.

About Mercedes-Benz USA

MBUSA, headquartered in Montvale, New Jersey, is responsible for the sales, marketing and service of all Mercedes-Benz and Maybach products in the United States. In 2005, MBUSA achieved an all-time sales record of 224,421 new vehicles, setting the highest sales volume ever in its history and achieving 12 consecutive years of sales growth. More information on MBUSA and its products can be found on the Internet at http://www.mbusa.com/ and http://www.maybachusa.com/.

About IMG

IMG is the world's premier Sports, Entertainment and Media Company. IMG is a diversified global business with two major business segments: IMG Sports & Entertainment, and IMG Media. IMG employs over 2,300 people in 30 countries. IMG Sports & Entertainment includes: consulting services; event ownership and management; fashion events and models representation; licensing; golf course design; client representation in golf, tennis, broadcasting, European football, rugby, cricket, motorsports, coaching, Olympic sports and action sports. IMG Media is recognized as a global leader in the delivery of traditional and new media content and services, with Internet, broadband and mobile expertise, transforming how audiences access and interact with content. More information about IMG is available at http://www.imgworld.com/.