LAS VEGAS, Sept. 28, 2001 (PRIMEZONE) - PurchasePro (Nasdaq:PPRO) today said that it will not meet its market opportunities for sales traction it had anticipated for the third quarter ending Sept. 30, 2001.
Richard L. Clemmer, chief executive officer, said, "When I discussed what I believed in August to be our market opportunities in the third quarter, the company certainly did not expect the economic environment to soften as much as it has.
"Historically, software sales are closed at the end of a quarter. The unspeakable events of September 11 severely impacted our ability to close transactions we had anticipated. Buying activities in our industry have virtually ground to a halt. However, we believe that PurchasePro remains top of mind with those customers we have been working with in the third quarter. We believe that potential third quarter sales have simply been delayed."
Clemmer pointed out that, "In our August 7 conference call, I did confirm that the third quarter would be 'the trough' as far as revenues are concerned. I believe this remains true."
He added, "When I was appointed chief executive in June, I knew categorically that turning PurchasePro around would be a challenge. While I had done extensive due diligence, it has now become clear that PurchasePro's history was considerably more challenging than what I had initially perceived. However, our management team and I remain convinced and confident that PurchasePro is not only a viable, going concern but that it is one that can and will grow.
"To that end, I have asked Allen Winder, chief operating officer, to personally focus even more of his time on our sales efforts. Allen stepped up to the chief operating officer position in June in order to help with the infrastructure rebuilding that PurchasePro required for its turnaround. With that infrastructure largely in place, Allen will focus on the specific pipeline we have developed with our pilot program to transition these to paid licenses in the near term."
Allen Winder, chief operating officer, said, "We have put together a professional sales staff that we have extensively trained. We have provided them with a focused sales methodology and a differentiated message. Over the near term, I will intensify my focus to drive this force and our sales to a point at which they fulfill the PurchasePro promise."
Clemmer said that, "We initiated a pilot program for our e-Source reverse auction product this summer. We were successful and continue to be successful in generating pilots. It is virtually impossible to predict the timing of conversions to licenses for the e-Source product because of our lack of history with this product. On this point, it is interesting to note that on September 19 we launched our e-Source television commercials from funds pre-paid in the first quarter of this year. To date, they have been successful in generating qualified leads for this product. This television campaign is supported by a highly targeted direct mail campaign that is also generating a significant number of leads for our products.
"The events of September 11 and the subsequent uncertain economic environment have shown us that we do not have sufficient visibility to issue guidance or future estimates at this time. To this end, I can say that we have an active pipeline of sales activity and contracts awaiting approval. We will continue to announce new business as it is finalized."
About PurchasePro
PurchasePro(r), www.purchasepro.com, is a B2B e-commerce leader with the stated goal of providing software to enable enterprises of all sizes to gain universal access to the world's largest commerce network. The PurchasePro commerce network comprises more than 250,000 businesses, authorized to buy and sell, and powers hundreds of private-label marketplaces. PurchasePro provides the following B2B e-commerce solutions: e-Procurement for enterprise-wide procurement; e-Source for strategic sourcing; v-Distributor for online distributors; and e-MarketMaker for Internet market makers.
This news release may include forward-looking statements, which are subject to the "Safe Harbor" created by Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that can cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements represent only the views of certain members of management and are based on limited information available to us now, which is subject to change. We have no current plan to update these statements. Actual results may differ substantially from what we say today and no one should assume at a later date that the forward-looking statements provided herein are still valid. They speak only as of today.
For more information about these risks and uncertainties, see the SEC filings of PurchasePro.com, Inc., including the section titled "Factors That May Affect Results" in its 10-K filing for the period ended Dec. 31, 2000, and its 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2001, which are available from the company on request and on the Internet at the SEC's Website, www.sec.gov. Note: PurchasePro is a service mark of PurchasePro.com Inc. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.