FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JESSE.HANSEN&Co ACQUIRES WALTER DRAKE, INC.

Direct Marketer of Consumer Products Joins Growing Jesse.Hansen&Co Group

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - February 21, 2002 - Jesse.Hansen&Co, a private investment firm focused on marketing-driven growth companies, today announced that the firm, together with affiliates and the Walter Drake management team, has acquired Walter Drake, Inc. 

Based in Colorado Springs, CO, the fifty-four year old company is a nationwide direct marketer of home products and gifts through its Walter Drake and Home Marketplace catalogs and websites. Walter Drake was acquired from its parent, Foster & Gallagher in November 2001, in a bankruptcy auction held subsequent to the parent's Chapter 11 filing last July.

With revenues of approximately $60 million, Walter Drake has built a national brand and reputation marketing through direct mail catalogs and the Internet. The Company provides unique, inexpensive gifts, gadgets and personalized items in addition to household goods and kitchen products. Walter Drake has built an established, loyal customer base through its diverse and continually expanding product line and its longstanding reputation for providing superior customer service.

"We look forward to working with Jesse.Hansen&Co who provides a breadth of experience in multi-channel marketing," said Jon Medved, President of Walter Drake. "We are excited about this new partnership which provides us with the operational independence and financial flexibility to focus on growing our business."

"With a sterling reputation for customer service and a highly experienced management team, Walter Drake represents an excellent investment opportunity for us," said John Hansen, President of Jesse.Hansen&Co. "We look forward to working with Jon and his team as they continue to build the business."

About Jesse.Hansen&Co: Jesse.Hansen&Co is a San Francisco-based investment firm that partners with management to invest in leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, and expansion capital funding for emerging and established growth companies.  Since 1986, the principals of Jesse.Hansen&Co have been responsible for about $100 million of private equity investments, and with over 25 years of senior operating experience, have been instrumental in aiding the growth of their investments in powerful consumer brands, including Peet's Coffee & Tea (NASD: PEET), Franzia wine, Wired Magazine, Bare Escentuals cosmetics, Performance Bicycle Shop, Bell Helmets, MD Formulations and Design Within Reach, among others. For more information please visit www.jhco.com.

Contact: Pat Collins - 415-364-0318 collins@jhco.com