Pop Superstar Debuts Her New Candie's Ad

NEW YORK, Aug. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Candie's (Nasdaq: CAND) spokesperson, Kelly Clarkson, unveiled her new print ad today at a press conference held in the Candie's, Inc. Times Square headquarters. Kelly is following in the footsteps of previous Candie's celebrity spokeswomen such as, Destiny's Child, Ashanti, and Kelly Osbourne.

Commenting on the Candie's ad, which shows America's "Idol" being "idle" in the bathtub, Kelly Clarkson, stated, "It's on the sexy and glamorous side, with diamonds and bubbles everywhere. I don't like to be pigeonholed, and I love Candie's because they never pigeonhole people in their campaigns."

"We had so much fun with Kelly Clarkson; she's such a Candie's girl," stated Dari Marder, Creative Director, Candie's, Inc. "We hope that this Kelly ad will become as iconic as some of our previous campaigns featuring stars like Jenny McCarthy and Alyssa Milano. It's playful, sexy and taps into 'right- this- moment' pop culture."

The print ad will break in October issues of Instyle, Cosmopolitan, YM, Seventeen, Teen People and Teen Vogue.

This is the first such endorsement for Ms. Clarkson, who was propelled into fame when she became America's first "Idol." Kelly's debut album, Thankful, the smash RCA/19 Entertainment release has been certified platinum by the R.I.A.A., and entered the Billboard Top 200 album chart at No. 1.

The campaign was shot by famed photographer Davis Factor, styled by Phillip Bloch, and created by Candie's in-house advertising agency.

Candie's, Inc. is in the business of licensing the Candie's and Bongo name on a variety of young women's footwear, apparel and fashion products, and is a leading designer, distributor and marketer of jeans wear under the Bongo brand through its wholly owned subsidiary, Unzipped Apparel, LLC. Candie's also arranges for the manufacture of footwear products for mass market and discount retailers under the private label brand of the retailer. The Company operates Candie's retail stores across the United States. For investor information please visit the corporate web site at http://www.candiesinc.com.

SOURCE  Candie's, Inc.
    -0-                             08/27/2003
    /NOTE TO EDITORS:  Photo available at http://www.featurephoto.com /
    /CONTACT:  Maria Dolgetta of Candie's, Inc., +1-212-819-2084,
mdolgetta@candiesinc.com/
    /Web site:  http://www.Candiesinc.com /
    (CAND)

CO:  Candie's, Inc.; Bongo; Unzipped Apparel, LLC
ST:  New York
IN:  FAS REA ADV