Rutherford Announces New Hires, New Customers and New Product Updates at NBWA
Beverage industry’s most advanced route accounting and distribution management software continues growth in down economy

HOLLAND, Michigan — September 21, 2009 — Rutherford & Associates, developer of the industry’s leading route accounting and distribution management software for food and beverage distributors, ends the summer with 20 percent staff growth; the addition of six new customers, and upgrades and additional product offerings with its flagship product, eoStar.

To support the continued growth of the company, Rutherford has created technology sales and customer service jobs for the Holland, Mich. area. Since January 2009, Rutherford has added new employees in sales and in customer service, increasing the staff by 20 percent.

With its expanded sales team, Rutherford has been able to inform more and more companies of its industry-leading capabilities and its best-selling product, eoStar. Since June 2009, eoStar has welcomed five new companies to its growing customer roster, including:

• International Cellars, Vienna, Va.
• Summit Beverage, Missoula, Mont.
• Harpoon Distributing, Boston, Mass.
• Marketplace Selections, Peoria, Ill
• CJW Inc, Racine, Wisconsin

"When I started this company, my goal was to provide unparalleled service and the tools to allow distributors to grow their business," said Michael Rutherford, founder and president of Rutherford & Associates. "We’ve done that, and are on track to raising the bar even further as we implement more customers – our true partners in developing the best software and support organization in this market."

In April, 2009, Rutherford announced the release of the newest version of eoStar. EoStar is designed to effectively integrate the functions of the food and beverage distribution business. It is built on an innovative platform that allows for advanced customization of the software to meet the diverse needs of distributors nationwide. EoStar 2009 is built upon these features and functions, taking it to the next level. Today, Rutherford announces four new features available on eoStar:

Customer self-service Web ordering
This Web-based ordering module allows distributors to easily place and track orders and manage accounts completely online. Designed to be flexible and easy-to-use (no training required), beer distributors now easily can provide a Web commerce presence that anyone can use.

Supplier Web Reporting
Now suppliers to distributors running eoStar will be able to access depletions, distribution and sales reports through a Web browser or from their Web-enabled phone anytime, seven days a week, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The easy-to-use navigation makes it simple to access the real-time information. Additionally, suppliers can securely export their reports into Microsoft Excel®, Adobe PDF®, Microsoft Word® or even flat-file format for convenience and portability. Suppliers no longer need to wait for reports from the distributor, and no longer does the distributor require dedicated personnel to provide information to its partners.

Tap Surveys
New this year, especially to beer distributors, is the specialized Tap Survey Module. This exciting and easy-to-use integrated component of eoStar makes managing on-premises draft accounts easy. With the enhanced competitor tap tracking, now distributors can easily report on share and improve their performance in the all-important on-premises draft business.

WMS Integration
In Rutherford’s effort to provide the most concise and integrated Distribution Management Software, eoStar now integrates its warehousing operation components with the following warehouse control vendors: AGI Warehouse Management System, Dematic Material Handling and Warehouse Control Systems, and Manhattan Associates. These full-scale integrations add-on to eoStar’s already high-quality, real-time warehouse information subsystem. Now, the eoStar-enabled distributor can have a fully integrated solution for every aspect of the modern distributor, from sales and delivery automation all the way to advanced material handling.

eoStar manages distribution operations for industry-leading distributors nationwide. eoStar streamlines enterprises and manages more than $2 billion in consumer packaged goods, predominately beer and wine, for distributors across North America. eoStar’s mobile solutions have saved customers an average of 8½ minutes per stop per day, when compared to their prior solutions.

To learn more about Rutherford and eoStar, visit the Rutherford booth at NBWA 2009 Booth #1133 for a demonstration of eoStar and see how easy it is to enhance your modern sales presence.

Rutherford & Associates is a MillerCoors Strategic Partner and a Microsoft Certified Gold Partner in business intelligence, data management solutions and ISV/software solutions.

Follow Rutherford on Twitter @eoStar

About Rutherford & Associates, Inc.
Rutherford & Associates brings more than 25 years of route accounting software experience to beer and wine distributors. Rutherford provides customers with the tools, training and resources they need to more effectively manage their inventory, mobile resources and assets to enhance revenue, reduce operating costs and improve customer service. In 2007, MillerCoors company named Rutherford & Associates a strategic partner, working closely with Rutherford on the technological roadmap and implementation to improve the MillerCoors distributor system. For more information, visit www.eostar.com, call 800-270-7558, or visit our open online wiki forum at wiki-eostar.com

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Media Contact:
Deana Goodrich
Airfoil Public Relations
goodrich@airfoilpr.com
248-304-1457

Rutherford® and eoStar® are registered trademark of Rutherford & Associates, Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Copyright © 2009 Rutherford & Associates, Inc. All rights reserved.

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