Petopia.com Appoints Former National Basketball Association Executive as Vice President and Chief Development Officer.

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 18, 1999--

Mark Cohon Lends a Paw to the Fastest Growing

Pet Destination on the Web to Lead Future Growth

Petopia.com (www.petopia.com) the "Internet Pet Paradise" and the fastest growing online pet destination, today announced the appointment of Mark Cohon as vice president and chief development officer. Mr. Cohon, who served as the vice president of business development for the NBA, joins Petopia.com to build and sustain strategic partnerships.

"Mark's experience and contacts will bring tremendous strength to Petopia.com's growth and will allow us to increase more rapidly the quantity and quality of pet-related experiences that we offer our members," said Andrea Reisman, CEO of Petopia.com. "We're very excited to have an animal-lover and established coalition-builder like Mark on board."

Mr. Cohon was instrumental in the NBA's international expansion, serving initially as director and group manager of International Marketing. In 1995 he was appointed managing director of NBA Europe based in London, England, where he focused on generating new revenue for the NBA through television sales, consumer products distribution, marketing partnerships and event management. In his most recent role as vice president of business development, he oversaw the NBA's extensive fan database in addition to building new innovative revenue partnerships for the league. Prior to joining the NBA, he negotiated multiple marketing partner relationships for Major League Baseball International.

Petopia.com is a natural fit for Mr. Cohon, who was formerly a zookeeper at the Metropolitan Toronto Zoo. Mark's dedication to animals is far-reaching. In 1990 Mr. Cohon led the first Arctic youth expedition to study caribou, eider ducks, and peregrine falcons in Siberia and the Canadian High Arctic.

Mr. Cohon served on the Board of Trustees of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois from 1992 to 1995 and has served as a board member of many youth oriented, charitable organizations.

Petopia.com (www.petopia.com) offers animal lovers a vast array of products and advice for the health and well-being of their pets. Visitors to the site will find expert advice, a full range of food, care products, toys, enthusiast materials, message boards, chat groups and regular customer feedback. In addition, Petopia.com also provides open forums for members to share and gain knowledge, insight and maybe even a few housebreaking tips.

About Petopia.com

Petopia.com (www.petopia.com) the "Internet Pet Paradise" is the leading online pet retailer. A spirited online destination for pet lovers, Petopia.com provides all things pet-related, from food, grooming and healthcare products to community forums and expert advice. Petopia.com lets pet owners choose from thousands of items, get advice from leading pet professionals and interact with other pet lovers. Petopia.com is also the official co-founder of the Million Pet Mercy Mission, which aims to find loving homes for one million of the estimated six million pets threatened with euthanasia in the year 2000. Petopia.com is privately held and has received funding from Palo Alto-based venture capital firm Technology Crossover Ventures, Groupe Arnault, an affiliate of leading European consumer products giant LVMH and PETCO Animal Supplies Inc., (NASDAQ: PETC), a leading specialty retailer of premium pet food and supplies. Petopia.com is aligned with America Online (NYSE: AOL) for the largest deal in the pet category, has a comprehensive media relationship with Yahoo (Nasdaq: YHOO) and retains an exclusive Internet fulfillment agreement with Loveland Pet Products. In the spirit of celebrating its primary consumer, the company's motto is: "Let there be pets!" Petopia.com was founded in August 1998 and is based in San Francisco, Calif.