Elder-Beerman Expands Operations to New State; Sixty-Seventh Department Store to Open in Muscatine, Iowa.

Business Editors

DAYTON, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 1, 2003

The Elder-Beerman Stores Corp. (Nasdaq:EBSC) plans to open a department store in its new store format in Muscatine, Iowa. Elder-Beerman will locate the store in the Muscatine Mall. The store will open during November 2003 in time for the Christmas selling season. The store will be the company's 67th department store and the 12th store in the new format. It will be Elder-Beerman's first store in Iowa.

"We look forward to bringing Elder-Beerman to Muscatine. It's a wonderful town and we are excited to become a part of it," said Bud Bergren, Elder-Beerman's president and chief executive officer. "Elder-Beerman is committed to providing value, fashion, selection and service to our customers in an inviting and convenient shopping environment."

The Muscatine store will carry fashion apparel, accessories and shoes for women, juniors, men, young men and children, better cosmetics and fragrances, and home furnishings. The store's one story format, designed to meet the demands of the smaller to midsized market, will incorporate a panoramic view of the store from the moment the customer enters, a racetrack design and wider aisles for ease of navigation, and bright, cheerful lighting to highlight merchandise assortments.

"Elder-Beerman will serve as the cornerstone of the redevelopment of Muscatine Mall," commented Michael Fontana, vice president and group manager of L&H Real Estate, the mall's operator. "Their exciting store design and merchandise assortments are a perfect fit for Muscatine."

Mayor Richard W. O'Brien of Muscatine stated, "I feel certain that I can speak for all Muscatine area shoppers when I say that we are truly pleased and excited that a high quality organization like Elder-Beerman has chosen to open a new store in our Muscatine Mall. I believe Elder-Beerman will be a strong community partner that will cater to the needs of a large segment of our people. Not only is this a great start toward new economic and retail development, it will also add support to our tax base and help to further rejuvenate our mall."

The nation's ninth largest independent department store chain, The Elder-Beerman Stores Corp. has its headquarters in Dayton, Ohio and currently operates 66 department stores and two furniture galleries in Ohio, West Virginia, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Kentucky, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. With the opening of the Muscatine store, Elder-Beerman will operate 67 department stores in nine states.

This press release may contain "forward-looking statements," including predictions of future operating performance, events or developments such as future sales, profits, expenses, income and earnings per share. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "hopes," and "estimates," and variations of such words and similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements.

Because forward-looking statements are based on a number of beliefs, estimates and assumptions by management that could ultimately prove inaccurate, there is no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate. Many factors could materially affect actual future operations and results. Factors that could materially affect performance include the following: increasing price and product competition; fluctuations in consumer demand and confidence, especially in light of current economic conditions; the availability and mix of inventory; fluctuations in costs and expenses; consumer response to merchandising strategies, advertising, marketing and promotional programs; the timing and effectiveness of new store openings, particularly the new concept store opened in April 2003; weather conditions that affect consumer traffic; the continued availability and terms of bank and lease financing and trade credit; the outcome of pending and future litigation; consumer energy costs, debt levels and paydown rates on consumer debts, including amounts owed to Elder-Beerman; the impact of new consumer bankruptcy laws; inflation, interest rates and the condition of the capital markets. National security threats and warnings in the wake of September 11, 2001 and continued U.S. involvement in Iraq could magnify some of those factors.

Elder-Beerman undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.