CARY, N.C. (July 31, 2006) — A new trade publication targeted at the fast-growing, ever-changing subprime auto industry will launch in early October, the publishers of Auto Remarketing announced this morning. Titled SubPrime Auto Finance News, the new publication will be published twice a month and have a circulation of approximately 56,000 new and used car dealers, along with industry representatives.

More specifically, the new publication will launch the week of Oct. 9, according to Ron Smith, president of Cherokee Publishing Co., which will produce the new trade journal. It is slated to publish the second and fourth week of each month. Jennifer Reed, current online editor for Auto Remarketing, will serve as editor for the new publication.

(More information on SubPrime — including content and advertising — may be obtained by contacting Cherokee's home office at (800) 608-7500. A sample layout is available at www.subprimenews.com.)
"We have watched with interest the major changes occurring within the subprime automotive industry, and we believe the time is right for a major national publication that will report on the news impacting this industry segment," said Smith. "SubPrime will fill that need with hard-hitting news stories, outstanding features and columns by industry leaders in the subprime field."

In addition to the twice-per-month trade journal, Smith said Cherokee Publishing will also be utilizing other communications methods to keep dealers and industry executives abreast of the latest news. "We will also launch a free weekly e-newsletter that will highlight major stories impacting the industry, along with a new Web site that will provide additional in-depth information and valuable content."

Both the news journal and the e-newsletter are free to dealers and industry officials, Smith noted.

Cherokee Publishing launched Auto Remarketing in 1990 as a bimonthly publication, moving to monthly in 1994. In 2002, Auto Remarketing became a semimonthly trade magazine, publishing the 1st and 15th of each month.

Cherokee Publishing also produces two popular industry e-newsletters, Auto Remarketing Today and Used Car Manager Weekly. Additionally, the company produces two of the industry's leading conferences with iRemarketing Conference & Trade Show and the National Remarketing Conference & Used Car Expo.

Since there are already several major conferences focused on the subprime automotive industry, and its subset buy-here, pay-here, Smith said there are no plans to introduce an additional conference.

"Instead, we saw the most significant void being in the availability of ongoing news and content," he said. "The information shared in these conferences is outstanding, but there is no ongoing reporting follow-up that will benefit dealers over the course of time.

"This industry is very specific and highly regulated. And, it is constantly changing. One inadvertent error can cost a dealer thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars. Our goal is to keep dealers and funding sources better informed so that they can continue to make this industry segment extremely profitable," Smith added.

Bill Zadeits, Cherokee's vice president and associate publisher of the new trade journal, agreed with the need for SubPrime Auto Finance News. "The subprime industry is increasingly complex and wrought with implications from regulatory, tax and legal forces," he said. "Dealers and financing sources must stay informed and educated on industry best practices, trends and changes.

"The subprime finance market is growing at more than twice the rate of traditional automotive financing. The Non-Prime Auto Finance Association reported that this market segment was $260 billion in 2006 and growing," Zadeits also said.

More information on SubPrime — including content and advertising — may be obtained by contacting Cherokee's home office at (800) 608-7500.