Benetton opens flagship store in Deak Ferenc utca

Budapest, 8 March 2007 - h. 3.00 p.m. CET - Benetton Group inaugurates on March 8th 2007 its Hungarian flagship store on Budapests exclusive Fashion Street, showcase of the most important international fashion brands right in the historic centre of the city . The three-storey, 800 square metre flagship store will be one of the largest Benetton stores in Central Europe. The store is located in a period building on the prestigious Deák Ferenc utca, the main shopping street in the Hungarian capital. The flagship store offers a comprehensive range of United Colors of Benetton collections for adults, Sisley clothes and accessories. Special attention is dedicated to men with a department housing both Benetton and Sisley and includes suits and footwear. Like the others, also this megastore will highlight the image of Benetton, not only as a worldwide clothing company, but as promoter of an open, international lifestyle. This opening confirms the important growth and the strong interest of the Group in the Balkans and Eastern Europe, where the total number of stores is approximately 250. Benetton already has eight stores in the key Hungarian cities and towns of Budapest, Debrecen, Gyõr, Nyíregyháza and Pécs. In addition, in second week of March the restyling of the Benetton store in Mostar will be presented. This is an historical point of sale opened by the company in Bosnia, today completely restored. This restoration follows that of the store of Sarajevo pioneeringly opened by Benetton during the bombardments of the Balkan war. These interventions mirror the image of a country which is once again a link between different cultures, religions, usages and habits, aspects that have always characterized Benetton??™s philosophy.