Electronics Boutique Reports 2004 Holiday Sales Results

Electronics Boutique Reports 2004 Holiday Sales Results
~ Total Sales Rose 22% to $666 Million ~ ~ Comparable Store Sales Increase 3.6%
~ 


WEST CHESTER, Pa., Jan. 10  /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Electronics Boutique
Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ:ELBO), the leading global specialty retailer of video
games and related products, today announced sales results for the nine- week
holiday period ended January 1, 2005.  Total sales increased 22.3% to $666.0
million from $544.4 million in the same period last year, and comparable store
sales rose 3.6%.

Commenting on the holiday results, Jeffrey Griffiths, President and Chief
Executive Officer, stated, "Our 2004 holiday selling season benefited from
strong software sales, led by Microsoft's Halo 2 and Take Two's Grand Theft
Auto San Andreas, and the successful launch of the Nintendo DS platform.
However, as the quarter progressed, the industry-wide hardware shortage became
more significant than we initially anticipated.  Thus far in January, which is
an increasingly important month for us, our software lineup remains strong and
our customers continue to redeem holiday gift cards."

The industry-wide hardware shortage affected not only the Company's top line
but also its margins due to lost sales of higher-margin software and
accessories that typically accompany a hardware purchase.  As such, based on
early trends in January, the Company now expects diluted earnings per share to
be at the lower end of its previously announced ranges of $1.62 to $1.72 for
the fourth fiscal quarter and $2.20 to $2.30 for the full fiscal year.

The Company expects to announce fourth quarter and year-end results for fiscal
2005 in mid-March.

About Electronics Boutique Holdings Corp.

Electronics Boutique, a Fortune 1000 company, is the leading global specialty
retailer dedicated exclusively to video game hardware and software, PC
entertainment software, accessories and related products. As of January 1,
2005, the company operated 1,981 stores in the United States, Australia,
Canada, Denmark, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Puerto Rico and Sweden -
- primarily under the names EB Games and Electronics Boutique. The company
operates an e-commerce website at http://www.ebgames.com/. Additional company
information is available at http://www.ebholdings.com/.

This release contains forward-looking statements, including statements by
Jeffrey Griffiths and those related to the financial performance of Electronics
Boutique for the fourth quarter and the full fiscal year ending January 29,
2005, and to projected sales and consumer demand for the balance of the fiscal
year.  Forward-looking statements refer to expectations, projections and other
characterizations of future events or circumstances and are often identified by
the use of words such as "may," "will," "expect," "believe," "anticipate,"
"intend," "could," "estimated," "continue" or comparable terminology. In
addition to factors specified in Electronics Boutique's recent filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, there are other factors that could cause
actual results to materially differ from those expressed or implied in these
forward-looking statements, such as the schedule and sell-through for new
software releases, consumer demand for video game hardware and software, the
timing of the introduction of new generation hardware systems, pricing changes
by key vendors for hardware and software and the timing of any such changes,
the adequacy of supplies of new and pre-played product, increased competition
and promotional activity from other retailers, and the availability of
locations for, and timing of the opening of, new stores. In light of the risks
and uncertainties inherent in the forward- looking statements, these statements
should not be regarded as a representation by Electronics Boutique or any other
person that the projected results, objectives or plans will be achieved.
Electronics Boutique undertakes no obligation to revise or update the
forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date
hereof. 

DATASOURCE: Electronics Boutique Holdings Corp.



CONTACT: James A. Smith, Chief Financial Officer of Electronics Boutique

Holdings Corp., [phone]; Investors: Cara O'Brien or Melissa Myron,

Media: Melissa Merrill, all of Financial Dynamics, [phone], for

Electronics Boutique Holdings Corp. 



Web site:  http://www.ebgames.com/ 

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