Press Release Details

MELVILLE, N.Y., Jan 12, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Henry Schein, Inc. (NASDAQ: HSIC), the largest provider of healthcare products and services to office-based practitioners in the combined North American and European markets, today announced the acquisition of leading companies serving the veterinary, dental and medical markets in certain European countries. Together these three companies had 2008 sales of approximately EUR 110 million ($150 million). Terms of the transactions were not disclosed. The transactions recently closed and are expected to be accretive to Henry Schein's 2009 financial results.

"The acquisitions of Noviko, DNA Anthos Impianti and Medka further strengthen our leading presence in Europe and bring Henry Schein new veterinary, dental and medical customers," said Stanley M. Bergman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Henry Schein. "We look forward to sharing best practices between these newly-acquired organizations and our existing operations, and to using our combined strengths to enhance our Pan-European presence."

About Noviko

Noviko is the leading distributor of veterinary supplies in the Czech Republic, with 2008 sales of approximately EUR 52 million ($70 million). Founded in 1996, Noviko is headquartered in Brno. Noviko sells products for both small and large animals, and veterinary clinics. Dr. Jaromir Koudela will continue to serve as Managing Director of the business.

"Noviko is a clear market leader with a history of commitment to customer service, and is an excellent complement to our veterinary businesses in the United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Austria, Portugal and France," said Mr. Bergman. "Noviko expands our animal health presence to the Czech Republic market and provides a base for expansion into the Eastern European markets. With this acquisition, we believe Henry Schein now is the largest Pan-European animal health distributor."

About DNA Anthos Impianti

DNA Anthos Impianti (DNA) is the Italian distribution arm of Cefla Dental, a leading manufacturer of dental equipment, including brands such as Anthos, Stern Weber, MyRay, Mocom, Castellini, and Suzhou Victor Dental. DNA is a leading distributor of the Anthos brand of dental equipment in Italy, which is estimated to have the nation's largest installed unit base. DNA also sells dental consumable merchandise and provides technical services. With 2008 sales of approximately EUR 32 million ($43 million), DNA is headquartered in Imola, and has 14 branches and seven showrooms across the country, complimenting Henry Schein's current network of showrooms. Andrea Gentilini will join Henry Schein's management team in Italy as General Manager, Equipment.

"DNA is a long-standing leader in the Italian dental equipment market, and adds national equipment sales and service capabilities to Henry Schein's offering in Italy," commented Mr. Bergman. "As part of this transaction we have entered into a five-year agreement with Cefla to distribute Anthos products in most regions of Italy on an exclusive basis."

About Medka

Medka is a full-service provider of medical consumables, equipment and technical services primarily to physicians. Founded in 1920, Medka is headquartered in Berlin, and had 2008 sales of approximately EUR 27 million ($36 million). Gerd-Peter Wunderlich, Managing Director of Medka since 1974, and owner of the Company for the majority of this time, will be responsible for Henry Schein's medical business in Germany.

"For nearly 90 years Medka has been serving the needs of physicians across Germany," commented Mr. Bergman. "With the addition of Medka, Henry Schein expands our comprehensive range of products, equipment and value-added services to physicians in Germany. Medka complements our current German operations by providing geographic coverage throughout Germany."

About Henry Schein

Henry Schein, a Fortune 500(R) company and a member of the NASDAQ 100(R) Index, is recognized for its excellent customer service and highly competitive prices. The Company's four business groups - Dental, Medical, International and Technology - serve more than 550,000 customers worldwide, including dental practitioners and laboratories, physician practices and animal health clinics, as well as government and other institutions.

The Company operates through a centralized and automated distribution network, which provides customers in more than 200 countries with a comprehensive selection of more than 90,000 national and Henry Schein private-brand products in stock, as well as more than 100,000 additional products available as special-order items.

Henry Schein also offers a wide range of innovative value-added practice solutions for healthcare professionals, such as ArubA(R), the Company's electronic catalog and ordering system. Its leading practice-management software solutions have an installed user base of more than 52,000 practices, including DENTRIX(R), Easy Dental(R), Oasis(R) and EXACT(R) for dental practices, MicroMD(R) for physician practices, and AVImark(R) for animal health clinics.

Headquartered in Melville, N.Y., Henry Schein employs over 12,000 people and has operations or affiliates in 20 countries. The Company's net sales reached a record $5.9 billion in 2007. For more information, visit the Henry Schein Web site at www.henryschein.com.

In accordance with the "Safe Harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, we provide the following cautionary remarks regarding important factors that, among others, could cause future results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements, expectations and assumptions expressed or implied herein. All forward-looking statements made by us are subject to risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance and achievements or industry results to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These statements are identified by the use of such terms as "may," "could," "expect," "intend," "believe," "plan," "estimate," "forecast," "project," "anticipate" or other comparable terms. A full discussion of our operations and financial condition, including factors that may affect our business and future prospects, is contained in documents we have filed with the SEC and will be contained in all subsequent periodic filings we make with the SEC. These documents identify in detail important risk factors that could cause our actual performance to differ materially from current expectations.

SOURCE: Henry Schein, Inc.

Henry Schein, Inc.
Steven Paladino, 631-843-5500
Executive Vice President &
Chief Financial Officer
steven.paladino@henryschein.com
or
Susan Vassallo, 631-843-5562
Vice President
Corporate Communications
susan.vassallo@henryschein.com