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Hartville Announces the Appointment of Christopher Edgar to the Position of Chief Marketing Officer

Posted on: Wednesday, 8 February 2006, 09:00 CST

Hartville, Group, Inc. (OTCBB: HTVL), one of the nation's leading pet insurance providers, today announced that Christopher C. Edgar, a direct marketing veteran with extensive experience in brand development and direct sales strategies, has joined the Company as Chief Marketing Officer.

Mr. Edgar has more than a decade's experience in creating and managing direct-marketing brands for targeted niche markets. As the co-founder of dELiA*s Corp., a publicly traded direct-mail, online, and store retailer of teen girls' apparel, accessories and cosmetics, Mr. Edgar served as executive vice president, chief operating officer, vice chairman and director prior to the company's acquisition by Alloy, Inc. in 2003. In addition to establishing a $90 million direct operation under several catalog and online titles, he led development of a 65-store, $75 million retail chain, launched a successful $35 million international product development program, served as a director of the company's online marketing subsidiary, and participated in the evaluation and integration of several direct mail and retail acquisitions.

Mr. Edgar will oversee the branding, marketing, and distribution functions for Hartville, which include corporate brand strategy and execution, participation in product development, and marketing through direct-to-customer and affiliate relationship channels. He will also be responsible for making continued enhancements to the Company's on-line initiatives.

"Hartville's platform of existing insurance products and customer service operations create a unique opportunity to build a valuable brand in a growing market," Mr. Edgar commented. "The realities of increased veterinary costs, growing consumer interest in pet care, and a host of education and distribution channels provide natural growth opportunities for pet insurance products. Improved brand management, dedication to direct marketing disciplines, and the cultivation of appropriate affiliate partnerships can further improve Hartville's standing as a quality, affordable, value-added pet insurance provider."

Dennis C. Rushovich, Hartville's President and Chief Executive Officer, added, "We are pleased to have the opportunity of retaining a sales and marketing veteran of Chris' caliber. We view this position as the last critical piece in the remaking of Hartville. During the last six months, we have rationalized our organization, decreased expenses, and significantly improved both our policy closure and retention processes. Our next priority is to improve and increase our sales and marketing initiatives to drive new business, and we believe that Chris represents the right addition to help us accomplish this goal. We are excited to have Chris join the Hartville team."

About Hartville Group, Inc.

Hartville Group, Inc. (Hartville Group) is a holding company whose wholly owned subsidiaries include Hartville Re Ltd. (Hartville) and Petsmarketing Insurance.com Agency, Inc. (the Agency). Hartville is a reinsurance company that is registered in the Cayman Islands, British West Indies. Hartville was formed to reinsure pet health insurance that is being marketed by the Agency. The Agency is primarily a marketing/administration company concentrating on the sale of its proprietary health insurance plans for domestic pets. Its business plan calls for introducing its product effectively and efficiently through a variety of distribution systems. The Company accepts applications, underwrites and issues policies.

Except for historical information, all other information in this news release consists of forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, anticipated or implied. The most significant of these uncertainties are described in the Company's Form 10-K, Form 8-K and Form 10-Q reports. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement.

Source: Business Wire

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