PITTSBURGH, PA - July 8, 2003 - FreeMarkets, Inc. (Nasdaq: FMKT), the leading provider of global supply management (GSM) solutions, today announced that it has signed an agreement with Rite Aid Corporation (NYSE, PCX: RAD), one of the nation's leading drugstore chains. Under the terms of the agreement, Rite Aid will use FreeMarkets® QS(tm) and supporting services to conduct strategic negotiations for a wide range of goods and services across its operations.
"Rite Aid is deeply committed to the continuous improvement of our operations," said Jerry Cardinale, Senior Vice President, Category Management, Rite Aid. "As such, we are aggressively adopting and implementing innovative technology solutions like FreeMarkets QS that enable us to contain our costs and drive efficiencies that positively impact our bottom line."
A comprehensive, full-featured solution, FreeMarkets QS is the industry's leading sourcing application, and is ideal for structuring and executing effective online negotiations. Leveraging QS, companies can:
• Create re-usable templates for RFX, RFI and RFQ documents
• Collaborate with and manage suppliers
• Create and run a variety of competitive bidding and other negotiation activities
"We are very pleased that a leading retailer like Rite Aid is using FreeMarkets QS to drive and manage its sourcing projects," said Kevin Kerby, Vice President of Global Account Management at FreeMarkets. "Through FreeMarkets QS, Rite Aid can effectively streamline their sourcing processes, enhance the results of their sourcing projects, and achieve their most strategic business goals."