NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Nov. 5 CA-CollectorsUniverse
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Nov. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Collectors
Universe, Inc. (Nasdaq: CLCT), a leading provider of value-added
authentication and grading services to dealers and collectors of high-value
collectibles, diamonds and colored gemstones, announced the launch of a
program by the Company's diamond subsidiary, Gem Certification & Assurance
Lab, Inc. (GCAL), in conjunction with Ideal Diamond Solutions
(http://www.idealdiamondsolutions.com) to provide a customizable website
module that jewelry retailers can use at no direct cost to market and sell
GCAL certified diamonds and jewelry to their customers.
The website module was designed and implemented by Ideal Diamond Solutions
(IDS), a provider of Internet-based e-commerce programs for jewelers, as a
free offer from them to encourage the more than 2,400 retailers that are
registered as members on the Certified Diamond Exchange to use the Internet as
an additional selling tool during the 2008 holiday season and beyond. The
Certified Diamond Exchange (CDE), an affiliate of GCAL, is an online
business-to-business diamond and jewelry market which was established in
November 2007, to enable diamond dealers, diamond cutters and jewelry
manufacturers to list exclusively GCAL certified diamonds and jewelry for sale
to CDE members that are jewelry retailers. At any one time there are
thousands of GCAL certified diamonds, valued in the tens of millions of
dollars, available for purchase on the CDE.
"There is a lot of added value that comes with GCAL certified diamonds,
and this is a great tool to help retailers make more diamond sales," stated
Larry Chasin, President of IDS. "This new development in online retailing
links to the jewelry retailer's existing website or can be introduced as a new
website if the retailer has no Internet presence. We are thrilled to be
partnering with GCAL to create this new selling opportunity and we're
particularly excited to help retailers become more Internet enabled."
"This program was designed by IDS to be available for the thousands of
jewelry retailers during this holiday season and we are pleased that Larry
Chasin and his team selected GCAL and CDE as their partners to provide access
to online inventory," explained Chief Executive Officer Michael Haynes. "As
retailers choose to participate in this free program from IDS, we anticipate
an increase in demand for GCAL certified diamonds for this holiday season and,
as the program gains momentum, also for the coming calendar year."
The free, customizable website provided by IDS is an interactive,
business-to-consumer website bearing the retailer's own name and brand
identity and offers a wide selection of GCAL certified diamonds and jewelry as
listed on CDE but priced with a retail margin. Because IDS provides a
turnkey, commission based solution, a participating jewelry retailer member
can, without capital or investment, offer and sell GCAL certified diamonds and
jewelry from a virtual inventory with the entire administrative interface,
including fulfillment, credit card processing, online marketing and customer
service provided by IDS. Search engine optimization is also available from IDS
for an additional fee.
About Collectors Universe
Collectors Universe, Inc. is a leading provider of value added services to
the high-value collectibles and diamond and colored gemstones markets. The
Company authenticates and grades collectible coins, sports cards, autographs,
stamps, currency, diamonds and colored gemstones. The Company also compiles
and publishes authoritative information about United States and world coins,
collectible sports cards and sports memorabilia, collectible stamps, diamonds
and colored gemstones. This information is accessible to collectors and
dealers at the Company's web site, http://www.collectors.com, and is also
published in print.
Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains statements regarding our expectations, beliefs
or views about our future financial performance, which constitute
"forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of
words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "estimate,"
"project," or future or conditional verbs such as "will," "would," "should,"
"could," or "may."
Due to a number of risks and uncertainties to which our business is
subject, our actual financial performance in the future may differ, possibly
significantly, from our expected financial performance as set forth in the
forward-looking statements contained in this news release. Information
regarding those risks and uncertainties, and their possible impact on our
future financial performance, include, but are not limited to, the risks that
our strategy to expand into new collectibles and other high value asset
markets, such as the diamond and colored gemstone markets, and to offer new
services in our existing markets will not be successful in enabling us to
improve our profitability or may even cause us to incur losses. Additional
information regarding these and other risks and uncertainties to which our
business is subject is contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for our
fiscal year ended June 30, 2008, which we filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission on September 30, 2008.
Due to these risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place
undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this news
release, which speak only as of its date, or to make predictions about our
future performance based solely on historical financial performance. We also
disclaim any obligation to update forward-looking statements contained in this
news release or in our Annual Report or Quarterly Reports filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.
Contact:
Joseph Wallace Brandi Piacente
Chief Financial OfficerInvestor Relations
Collectors UniverseThe Piacente Group, Inc.
949-567-1245 212-481-2050
Email: jwallace@collectors.com Email: brandi@thepiacentegroup.com
SOURCE Collectors Universe, Inc.
