Yankee Candle Turns Up The Heat at the 2007 CMA Awards With This Year's Hottest Country Music Stars

Yankee Candle Turns Up The Heat at the 2007 CMA Awards With This Year's Hottest Country Music Stars

SOUTH DEERFIELD, Mass., Oct. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2007 Country Music Association Awards is heating up this year! As the official candle of "The 41st Annual CMA Awards," Yankee Candle will burn bright as the hottest Country Music stars hit the stage.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071001/NYM035 )

"Yankee Candle is thrilled to once again be named the official candle of the 2007 CMA Awards", said Rick Ruffolo, Senior Vice President of Brand, Marketing, and Innovation for Yankee Candle. "Each of us at Yankee Candle takes great pride in supporting the stars of Country Music and their dedicated fans."

The CMA Awards, recognized as "Country Music's Biggest Night,(TM)" are a perfect fit for the #1 name in the candle business - Yankee Candle. "Yankee Candle is America's first choice in candles ... just like Country Music is America's first choice in music," commented Ruffolo. "Both are distinctly American experiences."

Yankee Candle offers the world's largest variety of candle and home fragrance scents with classic fragrances such as Clean Cotton(R), Country Linen(R), Buttercream(R), Home Sweet Home(R), Harvest(R), and Macintosh(R), as well as Holiday favorites including Christmas Cookie(R), Mistletoe(R), and Home for the Holidays(R). These classics are treasured American institutions much like the rich traditions of Country Music.

And just like Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, and Little Big Town, Yankee Candle's newest stars such as Sun & Sand(R), Tahitian Tiare Flower(R), Mango Peach Salsa, and Creme Brulee have become instant hits with fans across the country.

"We are delighted to have Yankee Candle return as a partner with the CMA Awards again this year," said Paula Milton, CMA Director of Business Development. "The CMA Awards are our industry's homecoming, and Yankee Candle will help set a magical mood for the event."

"The 41st Annual CMA Awards" will air on Wednesday, Nov. 7 (8:00-11:00 PM/EST) on the ABC Television Network live from the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tenn. Artists confirmed as performers thus far include: Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, Eagles, Martina McBride, Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, George Strait, Sugarland, Josh Turner, Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban, with more artists to be announced soon.

About The Yankee Candle Company, Inc.

The Yankee Candle Company, Inc. is America's leading designer, manufacturer, wholesaler and retailer of premium-scented candles. For generations, this distinctly American company has provided the world's best and largest assortment of candles and home fragrance products in over 17,250 wholesale store locations, in over 430 company-owned retail stores, via direct mail catalogs, and its Internet website (www.yankeecandle.com) ... along with international distribution in Europe.

About the Country Music Association and the CMA Awards

The CMA Awards nominees and winners are determined by the 6,000 industry professional members of CMA, which was the first trade organization formed to promote an individual genre of music in 1958. The first "CMA Awards Banquet and Show" was held in 1967. The following year, the CMA Awards were broadcast on NBC Television for the first time - making it the longest running, annual music awards program on network television. The show aired on NBC through 1971, and on the CBS Television Network from 1972 through 2005, before moving to the ABC Television Network beginning in 2006.

In 2006, "The 40th Annual CMA Awards" ranked in the Top 5 with the Academy Awards, the Golden Globes, Grammy Awards and Emmy's during the 2006-2007 season for awards shows among total viewers. With "The 40th Annual CMA Awards," ABC won Monday evening in both total viewers (16.0 million) and adults 18-49 (5.4/13). According to Nielsen, research estimates that more than 30 million viewers watched all or part of the ceremony.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071001/NYM035
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com

Source: The Yankee Candle Company, Inc.

CONTACT: Allie Ingberman of Bratskeir & Co., +1-212-679-2233 ext. 988,
aingberman@bratskeir.com

Web site: http://www.yankeecandle.com/

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Profile: International Entertainment