LOS ANGELES, CA, Jan. 16, 2007 -- Advanced Visual Technology (AVT), a market leader in macro and micro space solutions, today announced it will provide The Container Store, the nation’s leading retailer of storage and organization products, with the Retail FOCUS technology to streamline store and shelf planning, design and execution. After an extensive evaluation of the marketplace for a total space planning solution, the retailer chose AVT’s Retail FOCUS Merchandiser to support the company’s 39 stores located from coast to coast.

The Container Store’s business philosophy centers on supporting the stores so that they are able to do what is most important in retail: service customers’ needs. As a part of that support, the company wants to more effectively manage their merchandising processes and initiatives. At the forefront will be Retail FOCUS Merchandiser which provides an AutoCAD® based photo-realistic interface for retailers to visually manage fixturing, category, planogram and product merchandising in a 3-D, walk-through environment.

“We found AVT’s Retail FOCUS Merchandiser to be a powerful yet very flexible solution,” said Joe Wilkinson, Visual Sales Planning Director, The Container Store, “While there are other solution providers in the marketplace, AVT was the only company with proven experience, proven technology and the ability to implement their software in accordance with our existing platforms and processes.”

The Container Store has received several accolades for their innovative edge. In 1999 they received the Retail Innovator's Award from the National Retail Federation. And for seven years in a row, they have been on FORTUNE magazine’s annual list of “100 Best Companies to Work For”.

“We are very excited to be working with such an innovative and customer conscious retailer,” said Mark Teichman, EVP Global Sales and Marketing, AVT, “We believe that our Retail FOCUS Merchandiser technology coupled with The Container Store’s clearly defined processes and passion for customer service will prove to be a highly successful combination.”

Implementation of Retail FOCUS Merchandiser will begin immediately.

About Advanced Visual Technology

Founded in 1997, AVT is a United Kingdom-based company that provides the retail industry with a unique visual space planning solution called Retail FOCUS. Retail FOCUS unites merchandising, store planning, construction, operation and inventory management into CAD-based floor plans to produce a seamless flow of store-specific merchandising information and an accurate capture and analysis of fixture data, allocated space and adjacencies. Efficient execution of merchandising initiatives, accurate, dynamic floor plans which trigger fact-based layout decision and a higher return per square foot are some of the benefits Retail FOCUS offers. With satisfied clients across the world, Retail FOCUS is a proven global success.

About The Container Store

The Container Store currently has 38 locations across the country. In 2007, the retailer will open its first store in Missouri (St. Louis) on March 3 and its second in Denver (Cherry Creek), in September. The Container Store offers free closet design services every day in its stores and online using elfa, the premiere shelving and drawer system. Visit www.containerstore.com for more information about store locations, the product collection and services offered. Sales for 2006 are projected at an excess of $500 million. The Container Store is privately held.

Contacts 
Advanced Visual Technology Ltd.
Nayla Ammar
(323) 957-0579
nammar@avtretail.com
or
The Container Store
Joe Wilkinson
(972) 538-6553
joew@containerstore.com