Atlantic joins Atlas Van Lines, marking the largest agent conversion in history.

EVANSVILLE, Ind.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 14, 1997--Atlantic (formerly Atlantic northAmerican), the country's largest van line agency group, announced today that it has joined forces with Atlas Van Lines, the nation's fifth-largest carrier of household goods and specialty products.

With 715,000 square feet of warehouse space and revenues of $70 million, Atlantic's conversion to Atlas marks the largest in the history of the moving industry.

As part of the conversion, Atlantic will officially change its name to Atlantic Relocation Systems. The organization now becomes the largest agency group within the Atlas Van Lines' system. Atlantic brings to Atlas a network of 11 agencies located in eight states, a vehicle fleet of 600 units, and more than 600 employees.

According to Atlantic founder, owner, and president Ted Alger, the decision to join Atlas is based on the agency's desire to maintain future growth in an increasingly competitive industry.

"The only way to survive in the future is to be in a two-partner environment," says Alger. "That means agent-ownership rather than corporate ownership. We believe Atlantic and its people are better served in an agent-owned environment such as Atlas', where we have the freedom to provide quality service and control our own destiny. Atlas is the up-and-coming van line in the industry, recognized for developing new and aggressive programs to meet customer needs."

Wally Saubert, Atlas chairman and chief executive officer, believes the Atlantic-Atlas conversion will have a tremendous impact not only on Atlas but the entire industry.

"In an era of declining market share, this move may force other van lines to rethink their structure and possibly examine the benefits of agent ownership. It's a win-win-win situation for everyone -- the customer, who gets excellent service; agents and drivers, who profit; and the van line, which can grow despite a competitive environment. The fact that a quality organization like Atlantic would take the risk of conversion after 27 years with another van line is proof that agent ownership is where the future of our industry is headed."

Saubert says the addition of Atlantic will broaden Atlas' ability to service existing customers while expanding its corporate customer base, particularly in the area of special products where Atlantic is a recognized expert in the industry.

As a result of Atlantic joining Atlas, new distribution centers are being established nationwide. These centers, called Atlas Specialized Transportation Express Centers (ASTEC), will allow Atlas to service the 28 prime markets involved in high-technology and special products transportation. Previously, Atlas had a presence in only a handful of select markets.

Atlantic Relocation Systems is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The agency also has operations in Philpot, Ga., Houston and Dallas, Texas, Tampa and Sarasota, Fla., Denver, Col., Indianapolis, Ind., Phoenix, Ariz., Los Angeles, Calif., and Chicago, Ill.

Founded by Ted Alger as Atlantic Moving & Storage in 1966, Atlantic had been an agent of northAmerican since 1969.

During the past 30 years, the 62-year-old Alger has become a major figure within the moving industry. His rise to prominence is a rags-to-riches story that began in Greece and is still unfolding. Alger started Atlantic with two trucks and $500 in the bank. Today, Atlantic is the largest single van line agency in the country, and growing.

With world headquarters in Evansville, Ind., Atlas is a major transporter of household goods and special products through some 600 agents across the U.S. and Canada, and over 800 worldwide.

CONTACT: Atlas Van Lines

Jim Huth, 812/421-7183

or

Keller Crescent Co.

Wendy Flanagan, 812/426-7720