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Ziebart Store of the Future to be Dedicated

9 September 1998

Ziebart Store of the Future to be Dedicated in Royal Oak, Michigan

    DETROIT, Sept. 9 -- The first two prototype stores of the
future for Ziebart International will open this month in Royal Oak and Madison
Heights, Michigan.  Sporting a new logo, new colors and a new marketing theme,
the customer-friendly concept stores will be dedicated on Wednesday, September
9 with a ceremony at the newly-decored Ziebart outlet on 31313 Woodward Avenue
and Rockingham, north of Thirteen Mile Road, in Royal Oak.
    The event begins at 11:30 a.m. with refreshments and entertainment and
continues at noon with remarks from Ziebart Chairman, Chief Executive Officer
and President, Thomas E. Wolfe, Royal Oak Mayor Dennis Cowan and other Royal
Oak city dignitaries.
    The new Ziebart look forsakes the blue and gold corporate colors of the
company that came to symbolize rustproofing, and introduces a dominant new red
sign and red facia accent.  The new look is designed to help change the
Ziebart image from rustproofing to the Ziebart of the future, offering a
complete array of automotive accessories and car-protection services.
    Incorporated into the bright crimson design is the new Ziebart marketing
theme, "Survival Gear for Cars."  The Survival Gear theme is carried through
in Ziebart displays, advertising and service packages which are called
Survival Plans.
    Survival Gear for Cars was the theme selected by consumers through a
variety of research methods.  It represents a new focus on helping vehicle
owners maintain and enhance the value of their cars and trucks with a variety
of services and accessories.
    Ziebart Chairman Wolfe says the new store prototypes reflect a brand-new
Ziebart.  "The design projects a totally different appearance from the old
Ziebart rustproofing store," he notes.  "It declares, 'This is an automotive
aftermarket store.'  I've had a number of people come up to me after driving
by the new store on Woodward and ask me if I'm starting a new business, and
that's what I want -- to implant in the consumer's mind that we're starting a
new company.  We are starting a new business."
    After a year of testing and tweaking at the flagship store on Woodward and
a sister store on John R south of Fourteen Mile Road in Madison Heights, the
new design will be rolled out across North America, and around the world.  The
carpet-and-tile showroom is laid out in zones, with separate areas for each
product line.  They feature full-color graphics of products and services.
Photos of people enjoying their cars and trucks, and interactive floor
displays add a touch of fun to the information they provide.
    At the ceremony, Wolfe will officially announce "Z-Wheels," a partnership
with the metro-Detroit Meals-On-Wheels organization.  The Royal Oak store will
provide detailing and protection services to their vehicle fleet for one year.
Ziebart International Corp., headquartered in Troy, Michigan, has over 600
locations in 44 countries across the globe.