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BUSINESS, CHILDREN, FASHION, SHOPPING, LIFESTYLE, TECHNOLOGY EDITORS

 

Ehobbies and Rcmodels.Com Launches New Wishlist / Gift Registry with Unique Partial Purchase Feature

 

La Mirada, CA, December 6, 2002. eHobbies (http://www.ehobbies.com/), a leading retailer of toys, games, crafts and collectibles, and its sister store RCModels (http://www.rcmodels.com/), today launches a new Wishlist / Gift Registry designed to simplify the gift giving process.

 

Customers can add a variety of gifts using a convenient “Add to Wishlist” button directly from the eHobbie or RCModels web site.  Gift givers can then visit the Wishlist / Gift Registry and make a purchase.  If they are not on-line they can call a toll-free number to place the order by phone.  To avoid duplicate gifts the gift list is automatically updated with any new purchases.  The Wishlist / Gift Registry takes the guesswork out of gift buying and saves the gift giver a trip to the mall.

 

“Since many of our hobbyists have very specific needs, the Wishlist really is the only way for their friends to know what kind of gift to buy them,” says Ken Kikkawa, co-CEOwner.

 

Unlike conventional Wishlists, eHobbies’ new system has a unique Partial Purchase feature, which allows gift givers to buy the whole gift or a part of the gift.   The system automatically keeps track of partial contributions and who made it, and completes the order only when the full price is collected.  This way, the cost of expensive gifts can be easily shared by multiple gift givers.

 

“Some of our radio control models can cost several hundred dollars, which may be a bit pricey for a single gift giver,” says Seth Greenberg, co-CEOwner.  “With partial purchase, several gift givers can share the cost.  So instead of getting a $50 gift, you can get the gift that you really wanted

 

The Wishlist also contains many features designed for enriching the gift-giving experience.  For example, an on-line photo album allows a picture of the completed model to be posted and shared.  Each Wishlist also comes with a personal webpage where customers can post information about their interests.  To maintain privacy, an optional guest password can be assigned to limit access to friends and family members.

 

eHobbies selected Felicite.com (http://www.felicite.com), to develop and operate its Wishlist.  Felicite.com is a leading provider of private label gift registry and wishlist systems for on-line and off-line merchants.  Its system can be easily integrated into a merchant’s web site, retail store or catalog, and has a number of unique features such as partial purchase and photo album.

 

“We’ve known Felicite.com for several years and liked the fact that their system could be easily integrated into our Yahoo store.  Their partial purchase feature was a plus since we have many high-end items,” says Seth Greenberg.

 

eHobbies was originally launched in 1999 and served several hundreds of thousands of customers.  In May, 2001, its assets were sold to new CEOwners Seth Greenberg and Ken Kikkawa, who have re-built the “new” eHobbies into a viable and profitable company.

 

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For more information please contact:

 

Seth Greenberg, (714) 736-5148, sgreenberg@ehobbies.com