S.P. Richards Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Genuine Parts Company (GPC:NYSE) and leading wholesale distributor of business and office supplies, announced today….

Effective immediately, Martin Bonk, Vice President of Operations has been promoted to Vice President of Merchandising.

A 20-year S.P. Richards Company veteran, Bonk's new responsibilities will involve guiding an experienced group of merchandise managers, directing future product selection and further strengthening vendor relationships.

"I am thrilled to be accepting these new challenges and look forward to joining our "World Class Merchandising Team," said Bonk.

"Martin's diverse background in sales, field operations and logistics will provide outstanding leadership to what is already one of the finest merchandising staffs in this industry," said Steve Lynn, Senior Vice President of Merchandising.

S.P. Richards Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Genuine Parts Company (GPC: NYSE), distributes a wide spectrum of business products to office products resellers throughout the U.S. and Canada. These products include consumable office supplies, office furniture, computer supplies, consumer electronics, and facilities supplies from all of the major industry manufacturers. S.P. Richards Company markets several private label lines under the brand names of Sparco, Nature Saver, Compucessory, and Elite Image. The company operates 43 Distribution Centers in the United States and Canada, including Horizon USA, its computer supplies subsidiary and Norwestra, a Canadian based Business

Genuine Parts Company is a diversified distribution and services company that operates four wholly owned subsidiaries. The Company is a leading distributor of automotive replacement parts in the U.S., Canada and Mexico; industrial replacement parts in the U.S., Canada and Mexico through its Motion Industries subsidiary; office products nationwide in the U.S. and Canada through its S.P. Richards Company subsidiary; and electrical and electronic components throughout the U.S. and Mexico through its EIS, Inc. subsidiary. Genuine Parts Company had 2001 revenues of $8.2 billion.