Creative Computers Names Scott W. Klein CEO of new eCOST.com Subsidiary.

TORRANCE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 10, 1999--

Creative Computers, Inc. (NASDAQ:MALL) today announced that Scott W. Klein has been appointed President and CEO of its new e-commerce subsidiary eCOST.com, http://www.ecost.com.

Klein comes to eCOST.com from PrimeSource Building Products, Inc., where he held the position of Executive Vice President and COO. PrimeSource is one of the nation's largest distributors to the retail building material industry. Klein brings to eCOST.com a list of achievements that closely match the needs of eCOST.com. "These credentials are a huge asset in growing a new business in what has become the hottest marketplace of all time: The Internet!" stated Creative Chairman and CEO Frank Khulusi.

After graduating with a B.S. in Accounting from Syracuse University, Klein worked in Brand Management at Proctor & Gamble. He was directly involved in the marketing of many products including Tide Detergent, P & G's first billion dollar brand. Later Klein joined PepsiCo, Inc., where he held a number of Marketing and Sales positions before becoming Director of Marketing. Klein was instrumental in the design of a geographic approach to selling Pepsi products and helped develop Pepsi's number one position in "the freedom of choice marketplace."

An original founder of PrimeSource, Klein has, during the past 15 years, overseen Sales, Marketing, Distribution, MIS, and held a position on the Board of Directors. In 1998 he was an integral part of the team that engineered the sale of PrimeSource to one of the largest trading companies in the world, bringing shareholders of this private company a healthy return on their investment.

"The search for a CEO of this exciting new business was a challenging one. Our goal was to find an individual with a well-rounded business background and a proven track record of building a profitable business. The industry where Scott joins us from is one that requires aggressive marketing, outstanding creativity, along with tight expense controls, superior people skills and a drive to do whatever it takes to succeed," stated Khulusi.

"I am excited about the eCOST.com opportunity. The past 20 years have prepared me well for the challenges that lie ahead," Klein said. "I will be working with a great team to expand on the eCOST.com concept, products offered, and user experience. The eCOST.com site is a great platform to start from!"

About eCOST.com

During April, 1999, the Company launched a new Internet enterprise: eCOST.com, http://www.ecost.com, to attract customers seeking low prices without sacrificing service. Creative intends to follow the same successful formula the company has employed for its uBid subsidiary: using in-house e-commerce expertise and the Company's back office infrastructure to develop a dynamic e-commerce enterprise. Similar to the uBid subsidiary, eCOST.com has been structured as a separate company with a separate management team.

eCOST.com is dedicated to offering consumers and businesses the combination of very low prices on computer hardware, peripherals, software, and consumer electronics with remarkable convenience. eCOST.com expects to offer over 50,000 name-brand products many of which are not widely available through competitive web sites. On most items, customers can view the actual wholesale cost and make purchasing decisions based on a product's true value. The state of the art automation and expense control allows eCOST.com to provide customers with an itemized breakdown of the fees they will be charged.

The Company has made sure that customers can shop quickly and easily. The search engine, site navigation, product information, streamlined checkout process and price points give eCOST.com an edge over cut-rate online competition. Customers will no longer have to settle for an inferior online experience to save money. eCOST.com was designed knowing that a customer's time is as valuable as the money they are spending.

Creative Computers, Inc. is a leading direct marketer of personal computers and related products. The Company offers over 55,000 products to its customers. The Company creates demand for its products through its distinctive, full-color PC Mall, MacMall and ComputAbility catalogs, out-bound marketing, Internet marketing and its web sites, and other promotional materials. The Company's staff of over 400 knowledgeable sales executives, telemarketing, customer service and technical support personnel work together to provide high-level customer service and gain customer loyalty. Creative also sells computers, computer-related products and consumer electronics, from a variety of leading manufacturers, in an Internet auction format, through the Company's wholly-owned subsidiary, uBid, Inc. uBid's web site is located at http://www.ubid.com.

Customers may call PC Mall sales at 800/555-MALL, MacMall sales at 800/222-2808, and ComputAbility sales at 800/558-0003, or shop Creative on the Internet at http://www.pcmall.com, http://www.macmall.com, http://www.ubid.com, http://www.computability.com or http://www.ecost.com.

Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations and assumptions contained in the foregoing are forward-looking statements. The realization of any or all of these expectations is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties and it is possible that the assumptions made by management may not materialize. There can be no assurance that the Company's new eCOST.com subsidiary will be developed successfully, achieve market acceptance or be profitable. In addition to the factors set forth above, other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations include the ability of eCOST to achieve a leadership position in its industry either near term or beyond; competition from companies either currently in the market or entering the market; competition from other catalog and retail store resellers and price pressures related thereto; uncertainties surrounding the supply of and demand for products manufactured by and compatible with Apple Computer and clones thereof; our reliance on Apple Computer, IBM, Hewlett Packard, Compaq and other vendors; and risks due to shifts in market demand and/or price erosion of owned inventory. This list of risk factors is not intended to be exhaustive. Reference should also be made to the risk factors set forth from time to time in the Company's SEC reports, including but not limited to those set forth in the section entitled "Certain Factors Affecting Future Results" in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for 1998.