Sodexho's Retail Brand Group Introduces Jazzman's® Cafe Proprietary Coffee

GAITHERSBURG, Md, July 31, 2006-Sodexho, Inc. unveiled today a new proprietary line of coffees coming entirely from sustainable sources for its award-winning Jazzman's Café. Since 1999, Jazzman's Café, part of Sodexho subsidiary Retail Brand Group, LLC, has offered an eclectic mix of beverage and food options to create an authentic coffeehouse experience and now, in a bold move, launches its own signature line of roasts and single-country-origin coffees.

RBG worked closely with importers and boutique roasters to develop a line of nine specialty coffees, like Jazzman's Bold Note™ and Bold Note Decaf™. During a year-long process RBG coffee experts examined the global flavor profiles consumers have come to expect from specialty coffee and specifically from Jazzman's. The new blends reflect the company's research and were successfully piloted across the country-they will be available at all 170 locations by the fall.

The Jazzman's Café line of proprietary coffee offerings include products that are certified with the Rainforest Alliance Certified seal of approval, products that are certified as Fair Trade by TransFair USA and products that are certified as Organic by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

“Creating a proprietary coffee line for Jazzman's Café marks a milestone in the maturation of Jazzman's as a brand," said Husein Kitabwalla, vice president of development for the Retail Brand Group. "We believe this offering will exceed the expectations of our guests and give them a global palate of coffee choices."

Along with the nine varieties of coffee available in the signature line, guests can enjoy a special line of limited time offerings called Jazzman's Noteworthy Coffees™. This distinctive line of coffee features beans from farming cooperatives and communities around the world, like the Fair Trade and Organic-certified, Ethiopia Yirgacheffe from the Negele Gorbitu Cooperative in the Southern region of Ethiopia, known for its bright, sparkling Champagne-like flavor characteristics, medium body with marked notes of jasmine and lemon flavors.

“Jazzman's is already an award-winning and highly-recognizable brand in a vast market of coffeehouse concepts,” said Angelo Caggiano, newly signed Pa.-based Jazzman's franchisee. “The move to proprietary coffee will further strengthen Jazzman's strategic point of differentiation in the marketplace, as well as the overall brand identity by offering a product and flavor profile unique to the concept.”

Sodexho, Inc. (www.sodexhoUSA.com) is the leading provider of food and facilities management in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, with $6.3 billion in annual revenue and 120,000+ employees. Sodexho, Inc. offers innovative outsourcing solutions in food service, housekeeping, grounds keeping, plant operations and maintenance, asset management, and laundry services to 6,000 corporations, health care, long term care and retirement centers, schools, college campuses, military and remote sites throughout North America. Headquartered in Gaithersburg, MD, Sodexho, Inc. proudly serves as the official food service provider for the U.S. Marine Corps.