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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE LEARNING EXPRESS CELEBRATES GRAND OPENING AT BELZ FACTORY OUTLET WORLD - ST. AUGUSTINE St. Augustine, FL (January 7, 2004) - Learning Express, a retailer of educational toys and games for children, announces the opening of its newest "neighborhood toy store" at Belz Factory Outlet World - St. Augustine. Located across from PacSun, Learning Express offers nearly 5,000 square feet of arts and crafts supplies, toys, games and gifts that combine fun and education to inspire young minds. "The new toy store greatly compliments the existing mix of stores at the mall," said Andrew J. Groveman, president of Belz Factory Outlet Division. "Belz Factory Outlet World strives to offer our customers some of the most diverse shopping in St. Augustine." "When we started talking to people in the area about where to move our Mandarin location, Belz Factory Outlet World in St. Augustine was the name that came up often," said Ken and Angie Genova, owners of Learning Express. "The move is an opportunity for us to increase sales with all of the great traffic at the Belz outlet mall, and it is mutually beneficial for the mall to have a toy store. It's a great location for us." The Learning Express concept was set in motion in 1987 when the president of the board of directors of a private preschool saw a need for a store offering high quality games and toys to inspire young minds. The retail plan that emerged is based on the idea that learning should be fun, playthings should encourage creativity and intellectual growth, the shopping experience should be enjoyable and businesses should give back to their communities. The specialty toy store remains dedicated to giving back to the community. Each store gets involved in important local causes through community fund-raising programs and donations of children's products. As a true "neighborhood toy store," each Learning Express offers a calendar full of fun events and becomes a hub of activity for kids and families. They are firm believers in quality and substance of product, educational value, product innovation and customer satisfaction. The toy retailer also rewards its customers by offering free gift-wrapping everyday, a V.I.P. shopping reward program, a bi-monthly newsletter with coupons and great new products, wish-list registry to guide friends and family for birthdays and holiday shopping, gift certificates, UPS shipping and personalized products free of charge. About Learning Express Learning Express specializes in educational toys and games for kids from birth to early teen and offers frequent in-store activities. The product mix includes science and nature kits, games and puzzles, construction sets, wooden trains, arts and crafts supplies, infant and preschool developmental toys, books, plush, dolls and more. In-store activities include story times, summer craft club, character appearances, workshops and demonstrations. About Belz With headquarters in Memphis, Belz is a multi-faceted real estate company with more than 30 million square feet of developed property, including more than 40 shopping complexes, ranging from community shopping centers to regional malls. In addition to its retail holdings, the company has developed and owns a group of premier hotels, including the flagship Peabody Hotels in Memphis and Orlando and the recently opened Peabody Hotel in Little Rock, Ark. Additional information about Belz is available at www.belz.com. | ||