Black Bean
Studios
Primix Solutions Acquires Black Bean Studios
Strategic Internet Services Firm Deepens Design
Capabilities
Watertown, MA - December 6, 1999 - Primix Solutions
Inc. (NASDAQ: PMIX), a premier strategic Internet
services (SIS) firm, today announced that it has
acquired Black Bean Studios, Inc., a privately
held multi-disciplinary design firm located in
Boston. Claudio Luis Vera and Alisha Haydn Vera,
founding partners and sole shareholders of Black
Bean Studios, will be appointed to the newly created
positions of chief creative officer and executive
creative director.
Earlier this year, we took significant steps
to build up our strategic consulting capabilities
by recruiting a group of management consulting
professionals to head our centralized Strategic
Services Group and four e-business practice areas,"
said Lennart Mengwall, chairman and CEO of Primix.
"With this acquisition, we have significantly
strengthened our creative design capabilities,
adding Black Bean's proven talent and creative
leadership while more than doubling the size of
our creative group. We believe this acquisition
dramatically enhances our value proposition to
customers as an e-business services firm with
the right combination of strategic insight, technical
depth and creative talent to help them achieve
superior business results."
Black Bean Studios, with an award-winning portfolio
and impressive list of clients, is among the leading
creative design firms focused on digital media.
Its clients include Blue Cross & Blue Shield,
PBS Online, New England Financial, Digital and
Boston University.
"From the start it was clear Primix shared
our passion for great design, our vision for how
to deliver it, and the values that made Black
Bean a great place to work," said Alisha
Haydn Vera, co-founder of Black Bean Studios.
Added Claudio Luis Vera, "This is the logical
next step for our company, our people and our
clients. Primix is committed to the pivotal role
that creative design plays in delivering results
oriented e-business solutions. We saw a tremendous
opportunity for a firm that effectively combines
cross-disciplinary excellence to help clients
win, and now together we are that firm. We look
forward to setting new standards of excellence
in e-commerce solutions."
Commenting on the business and cultural fit,
Joseph W. Seebach, executive vice president-business
development said: "In addition to their creative
excellence, Claudio and Alisha bring to Primix
the same degree of passion and commitment that
is a key part of our essential e- business strategy.
The ability to deliver results-oriented Internet
business solutions is as much rooted in superior
and innovative creative design as it is in technological
depth and consulting expertise. Further, the size
of Black Bean is important. The company is large
enough to have an impact on our culture and methodology
but small enough to be integrated into our overall
business."
Although the transaction has not been audited,
the Company expects the valuation of the acquisition
to be approximately $1.8 million in cash and stock.
About Black Bean Studios
Founded in 1994, Black Bean Studios is an integrated
services firm with a focus on developing online
communications programs for companies in various
markets. The studio brings together expertise
in various design and marketing disciplines, including
user interface design, information design, new
media, graphic design, and brand strategy. The
firm is a thought leader in the graphic design
field with a strong reputation and a diverse portfolio
of award winning work, available online at http://www.blackbean.com/.
About Primix Solutions
Primix Solutions is a strategic Internet services
firm dedicated to helping clients define, develop
and deploy e-business solutions that deliver superior
business results. The Company's "essential
e-business" approach brings management consulting
insight, creative talent and systems integration
skills to customers, helping to leverage their
existing business relationships through the strategic
application of Internet technology. Primix Solutions
partners with its clients to deliver e-commerce,
customer relationship management (CRM), supply
chain management (SCM) and knowledge management
(KM) solutions. Primix Solutions has assisted
companies such as A.T. Cross, Apple Computer,
Baker Hughes, Data General, The Gillette Company,
Lucent Technologies, Rockwell Collins and Standard
& Poor's increase revenue, reduce costs, improve
responsiveness, build customer loyalty and optimize
assets. Additional information about the Company,
its approach, clients and service offerings may
be found at http://www.primix.com/. You may also
e-mail info@primix.com or call 617-923-6500.