ZEISS HOSTS SIXTH ANNUAL NORTH AMERICAN SALES MEETING
Company unveils new U.S. sales team structure[/i]
CHESTER, Va., November 6, 2003 – Carl Zeiss Optical, Inc., recently held its sixth annual North American sales meeting at the Kingsmill Resort in Williamsburg. The three-day event provided the opportunity for Zeiss territory managers and company representatives from across the U.S. to meet and discuss year-end results and future marketing and technology plans. In addition, a new sales team structure was introduced.

"The purpose of this annual meeting was to provide essential information and resources necessary for our sales team to share experiences, stay ahead of the competition, keep up with technology and market Zeiss products to the ophthalmic community," said Roland Sitzler, vice president of sales, Carl Zeiss Optical, Inc. "The meeting also gave us the opportunity to introduce and discuss the new structure of our sales department."

This year marks the 10th anniversary since Zeiss began lab partnerships and distribution of Zeiss semi-finished lenses and AR equipment in the U.S. Since then, the number of Zeiss partner labs in the U.S. has increased tenfold. As a result, it became necessary to handle Zeiss partner lab business relationships differently.

Gary Shepson, the regional sales manager for the Central region of the U.S., will take on the newly created position of national sales manager, wholesale. In this role, Gary will be responsible for developing and maintaining the relationship with Zeiss partner labs nationwide. Gary will lead a dedicated team of Zeiss lab sales managers and together they will devote one hundred percent of their time to handling all lab inquiries and meeting the needs of all Zeiss partner labs. Gary has almost 15 years of optical industry experience. In the past, he served as a sales manager with Sola Optical in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and an account manager with Pentax Vision in Seattle, Washington.

In addition, a dedicated sales team has been created to handle the Zeiss eyecare professional (ECP) customers. Robin Rhodes, formerly the regional sales manager for the Western region of the U.S., is now the director of sales, west, and John Ditski, formerly the regional sales manager for the Eastern region of the U.S., is the director of sales, east. Together, they will lead a team of Zeiss territory managers and will focus their efforts towards better serving Zeiss eyecare professional customers.

"The changes to the structure of our sales force are just an example of how we consistently strive to provide the best service possible to all of our customers," said Ed Greene, president, Carl Zeiss Optical, Inc. "With the new changes, both the ECP and Zeiss partner lab will begin to receive more attention from their Zeiss representative."

A "Wild Wild West"- themed event was held to celebrate the conclusion of this year's meeting. At the event, the sales force mingled with Zeiss employees from the home office and enjoyed fine food, refreshments, dancing and casino-style games.

During the "Wild Wild West" festivities, Sitzler delivered recognition awards for the following:
o Outstanding Sales Performance – Overall Lens Sales – U.S. – 2002/2003
1) Garth Curtis (western region)
2) Judy Johnson (eastern region)
3) Shahryar Salamat (western region)
o Outstanding Sales Performance – Highest Sales Volume Increase – 2002/2003
- Ross Eckert (eastern region)