Hunter Douglas Acquires Isoteck UPPER SADDLE RIVER, N.J., Oct. 18, 2000 - Hunter Douglas announced the acquisition of Isoteck, a company that designs, develops and extrudes specialty PVC products for the custom window coverings market.

Isoteck was privately owned by Michael and Walter Biro and David Swinscoe. It is located in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., and employs more than 100 people. Isoteck is particularly known for its emphasis on research and development and the introduction of innovative products.

Marvin B. Hopkins, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hunter Douglas Inc., stated, "Isoteck is an excellent fit with Hunter Douglas because of its history of innovative new products, one of the hallmarks of Hunter Douglas." Hopkins also pointed out that Isoteck is highly respected for its superb research and development, resulting in superior new products for the large vertical and horizontal blinds markets. "I welcome Isoteck's management and all its employees to the Hunter Douglas family," he said. "Its unique expertise and its reputation for quality products will be valuable assets to Hunter Douglas."

Hopkins explained that Isoteck will continue to operate under current management and will retain a separate and distinct identity to service its existing customer base. It will also be closely affiliated with the Hunter Douglas vertical blinds operations located in Ft. Lauderdale and Miami, Fla.

Hopkins also pointed out that the acquisition will allow Hunter Douglas to leverage Isoteck's advanced technologies, processes and research and development in creating new proprietary products, for which Hunter Douglas is known. This will augment the current Hunter Douglas vertical and horizontal window coverings offerings, leading to expanded market opportunities.

The acquisition was completed on October 13, 2000. The terms of the transaction were not announced.

Hunter Douglas is the leader in custom window coverings in North America. The Company's products include Luminette Privacy Sheers^®, Silhouette^®, Nantucket^TM and Vignette^® window shadings, Duette^® and Applause^® honeycomb shades, Serenette^TM SoftFold^TM Shadings, Country Woods^® and Beyond Woods^® wood blinds, Lightlines^® aluminum blinds, EverWood^® and WoodMates^® alternative wood blinds, Palm Beach^TM Custom Shutters, Millenia^® vertical blinds, Brilliance^® pleated shades, Remembrance^TM window shades, Jubilance^TM roman shades and Facades^TM cornices, valances and moldings.