Women's Leadership Exchange Returns to Southern California for 2008 West Coast Summit -- Aug. 12th

LONG BEACH, CA, Jul 31 (MARKET WIRE) --
The Women's Leadership Exchange (WLE), a social entrepreneurship founded
by and for successful businesswomen, announced today the WLE West Coast
Summit will be held on Tuesday, August 12, at the Long Beach Convention
Center. This year's event features a dynamic program to help business
owners and executives of small to mid-size companies rise above the
effects of today's tough economy and turn crisis into opportunity. Expert
speakers will cover topics such as building sales momentum, green growth
strategies, tactics to triumph in tough times, breaking through barriers,
boundaries and biases, and more.

Four successful businesswomen will be honored with Compass Awards:
Sung-Joo Kim, who has been named one of the "Top 50 Women to Watch" by
the Wall Street Journal, and owns a $120 million company; Tracey Doi,
group vice president and CFO of Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., and
named by Automotive News as one of the top 100 women in the auto
industry; Frieda Rapoport Caplan, founder & chairman of the board or
Frieda's, Inc., the first woman-owned and operated wholesale produce
company in the United States; and Dr. Geraldine Knatz, executive director
of the Port of Los Angeles, who oversees the daily operations and
internal management of the nation's number one container port. The roster
of distinguished keynote speakers and honorees is headed by an
extraordinary woman, Dr. Sarah Weddington, who successfully argued the
landmark Supreme Court case, Roe v. Wade.

Leslie Grossman and Andrea March, cofounders of the WLE, said, "After six
successful years of running WLE conferences across the country, we are
producing a West Coast Summit to fulfill demands from regional
businesswomen. This year's Summit addresses the specific needs of Southern
California business owners."

Innovative features at the WLE Summit include SpeedCoaching, six different
seminars, and a special general session in the afternoon focused on
helping women break through barriers, boundaries and biases. Ten
SpeedCoaches will spend five minutes with each attendee for a private
coaching session. Attendees will gain invaluable advice and insight as
they move from table to table and meet with experts from various fields
including marketing, sales, management and leadership. The six seminars,
led by top business experts, are designed to help attendees tackle the
tough climate caused by Southern California's current economic
challenges. The final general session of the day will feature an
interactive discussion about diversity with an emphasis on recent
research findings that demonstrate how embracing diversity as a universal
business practice can generate an array of opportunities.

The full-day program also offers attendees the opportunity to connect with
successful CEOs and top executives, to network with local entrepreneurs,
and to renew their sense of purpose in business and provide new ideas to
propel their success.

OPEN from American Express' President, Susan Sobbott, WLE's founding
partner, says, "Over the past six years, OPEN has worked closely with WLE
and we have seen women make significant strides in every arena of
business. WLE's Summits and Conferences have definitely been a
contributing factor because they bring women together in the most
impactful way. All of us at OPEN are proud of our role with WLE and we
are delighted to help bring this Summit to Southern California's
entrepreneurial and executive women." In addition to OPEN from American
Express, corporate partners include Union Bank of California, WLE's
exclusive Southern California banking partner, IKEA, Morgan Stanley,
American Airlines, Best Buy, Bermuda Department of Tourism, and fashion
brands, Donna Morgan and Ali Roe.

The cost to attend the conference, which includes facilitated networking,
breakfast, luncheon, a cocktail reception, and raffle, is $199 until
August 6, then $249 after that. Register at
www.womensleadershipexchange.com or call 888.937.5800.

Media Contacts:

For Women's Leadership Exchange
David Bernstein
212-209-1570
Email Contact

Holly Ferris
562-429-6456
Email Contact

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