SAN FRANCISCO, March 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- ING DIRECT USA, the nation's largest direct bank, wants to revolutionize the way the San Francisco community thinks about saving money. Today, ING DIRECT's President and CEO, Arkadi Kuhlmann, San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee and members of the community announced a new ING DIRECT Cafe opening at 101 Post Street, three blocks from Union Square.  

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100407/NY82932LOGO-b )

"San Francisco needs a great place to innovate.  We want to make saving money as simple as having a cup of coffee.  The Cafe will create a true retail and community experience for San Francisco and foster those kitchen table-like discussions about saving.  101 Post Street will be a place for local ING DIRECT customers, entrepreneurs, artists and technology advocates to sip, socialize and save their money," said Arkadi Kuhlmann, President and CEO of ING DIRECT.

"I'm excited that ING DIRECT has selected San Francisco as the home of their next Cafe," said Mayor Edwin M. Lee. "CEO Arkadi Kuhlmann and the ING DIRECT team are innovative partners who are committed to creating jobs, educating San Franciscans about financial empowerment and investing in our future. The Cafe is a welcome addition to our City, and I look forward to its grand opening later this year."

As its eighth Cafe nationwide, San Francisco is a strategic next choice for ING DIRECT. The city celebrates innovation and the Cafe will provide a space for aspiring entrepreneurs to work and collaborate while enjoying a great cup of coffee.  Similar to its other locations, the ING DIRECT Cafe will proudly brew a selection of coffees and teas from the Bay Area's own Peet's Coffee & Tea.

"This is a unique blend of coffee cafe and online banking," said Peter Keim, General Manager, Food Service and Licensing, Peet's Coffee & Tea, Inc. "Since our partnership began in 2001, we have been very impressed by ING DIRECT's commitment to our brewing standards.  We cannot think of a better place than our own backyard to offer customers a convenient way to get their banking done and enjoy a freshly brewed cup of Peet's."

A Retail Cafe Experience at #101Post

The Cafes are designed to educate, inspire and share the values of ING DIRECT by providing a face-to-face and interactive retail experience.  In addition to information about ING DIRECT and talking to knowledgeable Associates, the Cafe will offer free Wi-Fi Internet access and office space for local information technology developers to work.  It will also serve as a location for community meetings and events, including local consumer, lifestyle, arts, social and non-profit organizations. 

The new Cafe at 101 Post Street is an extraordinary retail opportunity.  This 17,000 square foot retail location is one of the few distinctly modern buildings in the exclusive Union Square trade area.  101 Post Street is a retail showcase offering contemporary architecture, abundant glazing and more than 130 feet of street frontage.  

The four floors of the Cafe and additional retail space will create approximately 60 jobs.  Working with local contractors, the Cafe will open in late 2011.  The community can learn more about the Cafe, including updates on the construction and design, by following #101Post on Twitter, becoming a fan of ING DIRECT's Facebook page or visiting its YouTube channel.

Financial Education

As part of ING DIRECT's commitment to financial education, the ING DIRECT Kids Foundation will partner with Books for Kids, a national literacy organization, to open a preschool library in San Francisco this year.  Located at a Head Start facility near the Cafe, the library will feature popular children's literature as well as books for children to understand the basics of earning, saving, spending and sharing. The location of the library will be announced later this year.

The Cafe location, on the corner of Post and Kearny Streets, is owned by Castlehill Properties, Inc./Taylor Clark.  The Cafe will be a collaboration of design and construction with Pompei A.D. supporting ING DIRECT's creative vision and layout along with Plant Construction, the longtime contractors of the building, providing the renovation and construction support.  

ING DIRECT USA's Cafes are currently located in New York City; Philadelphia; Chicago; Los Angeles; Honolulu; Wilmington, Delaware; and St. Cloud, Minnesota.

About ING DIRECT USA

ING DIRECT, the nation's largest direct bank and largest thrift, is dedicated to inspiring Americans to become a nation of savers. Since its inception in 2000, more than 7.6 million Americans have entrusted their savings with ING DIRECT, building the bank to $91.3 billion in assets.  ING DIRECT has developed a comprehensive social media Savers Community, including Twitter, Facebook and its We, The Savers blog.  For more information about ING DIRECT call 1-800-ING-DIRECT, and for information about its commitment to financial education visit Planet Orange.  

Style note to Editors: ING DIRECT is always capitalized and never referred to as ING.

About Peet's Coffee & Tea, Inc.

Peet's Coffee & Tea, Inc., (PEET), is the premier specialty coffee and tea company in the United States. The company was founded in 1966 in Berkeley, Calif. by Alfred Peet. Peet was an early tea authority who later became widely recognized as the grandfather of specialty coffee in the U.S. Today, Peet's Coffee & Tea offers superior quality coffees and teas in multiple forms, by sourcing the best quality coffee beans and tea leaves in the world, adhering to strict high quality and taste standards, and controlling product quality through its unique direct store delivery selling and merchandising system. Peet's is committed to strategically growing its business through many channels while maintaining the extraordinary quality of its coffees and teas. For more information about Peet's Coffee & Tea, Inc. visit www.peets.com.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Steve O'Halloran, ING DIRECT
302.467.6643
sohalloran@ingdirect.com

SOURCE ING DIRECT USA