Manchester Designer Outlets will sponsor each Friday's $10,000 Open Welcome Stake during the six-week 2007 Vermont Summer Festival. Photo Credit - David Mullinix

April 17, 2007 – East Dorset, Vermont – Manchester Designer Outlets and the retail brands it represents will sponsor all six $10,000 Open Welcome Stake classes during the six-week Vermont Summer Festival taking place July 11 to August 19, 2007, in East Dorset, VT.

The renewed and expanded agreement with Manchester Designer Outlets marks the largest and broadest local sponsorship in the history of the Vermont Summer Festival. Polo/Ralph Lauren, Escada, Giorgio Armani, Hickey Freeman/Bobby Jones, Tumi and BCBG Max Azria are the six Manchester Designer Outlets brands participating in this unique sponsorship agreement. Each brand will sponsor one of the $10,000 Open Welcome Stakes taking place every Friday at 1 p.m. during the Vermont Summer Festival horse show. The winner of each Open Welcome Stake will receive their share of the $10,000 purse as well as a prize from the sponsoring brand.

"We received very positive feedback from last year's event and are delighted that the Vermont Summer Festival has expanded to six weeks in 2007, giving an additional retail brand the opportunity to be involved with this exciting sponsorship opportunity," said Ben Hauben, President of Manchester Designer Outlets. "The Vermont Summer Festival is one of the most prestigious horse shows in the Northeast and the Manchester Designer Outlets include some of the world's top brands making the partnership a perfect match. We see this partnership as helping to make the Festival, our stores and the town of Manchester even more of a destination this summer."

Ruth Lacey, Marketing Executive for the Vermont Summer Festival, agreed, saying, "Once again, Manchester Designer Outlets and the brands they represent have stepped forward in support of our show jumping event. We’ve crafted a relationship that drives business to the retail stores in Manchester while also making the prizes that we award to the winning athletes more attractive. It's clearly a win-win scenario for both the Vermont Summer Festival and Manchester Designer Outlets."

Manchester Designer Outlets signifies the newest trends in today’s shopping experience: boutique-like specialty stores offering everything from designer label fashions for men and women, to luxury home furnishings, distinct gifts and stylish accessories – metropolitan or handcrafted, international or American. Shopping at the Manchester Designer Outlets stores offers a wide array of culture, style and sophistication – a retreat for shoppers and travelers with savings up to 70% off retail prices from top name brands.

New England’s largest “AA” rated hunter/jumper horse show, the Vermont Summer Festival offers over $700,000 in prize money, making it the richest sporting event in the state of Vermont. Each week of competition features a $10,000 Friday Open Welcome Stake, sponsored by Manchester Designer Outlets, and, for the first five weeks of competition, a $30,000 Sunday Grand Prix. The 2007 Vermont Summer Festival closes with the grand finale, the $50,000 Vermont Summer Celebration Grand Prix on Sunday, August 19. Each of the six weeks also features a $10,000 Show Jumping Hall Of Fame High Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper class, part of the Show Jumping Hall of Fame Jumper Classic Series, and is also a member event of the Marshall & Sterling League and the North American League.

For more information on the 2007 Vermont Summer Festival including sponsorship opportunities or to download a prize list, please visit www.vt-summerfestival.com or e-mail: info@vt-summerfestival.com.

For further information on Manchester Designer Outlets, please e-mail mdo@sover.net or visit www.manchesterdesigneroutlets.com.