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Cintas Partners with Southwest Airlines to Help First-Ever Employee-Designed Uniforms Take Flight

CTAS, LUV | August 5, 2016

Cintas Partners with Southwest Airlines to Help First-Ever Employee-Designed Uniforms Take Flight

The new uniforms will roll out in June 2017

Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS) today announced that it has partnered with Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) to create the carrier's first-ever employee-designed uniforms. More than 40,000 Southwest employees will begin wearing the new uniforms in June 2017.

“Our Employees are at the heart of our brand, so it was important to get them involved in the uniform design process,” said Sonya Lacore, Vice President Cabin Services and Executive Sponsor of the uniform redesign project at Southwest Airlines. “From selecting fabrics to technical design details, our Employees collaborated with Cintas, who helped guide us throughout the entire design process.”

More than 120 Southwest employees across 37 cities tested pieces for fit, comfort, performance, functionality, durability, aesthetics, style and ease of care. The Cintas uniform program will feature a modern, fresh look with splashes of Southwest’s signature colors of bold blue and warm red.

“Southwest continues to be a trailblazer in the airline industry by recognizing the important role their employees and their uniforms can play in brand strategy,” said Caroline Bartek, Creative Director at Cintas. “It was inspiring to work side-by-side through this process with so many passionate Southwest employees from different areas of the company. Together, we have built relevant, functional, modern uniform designs through personal connections and a deep understanding of each other’s needs. We’re honored and excited to bring the Southwest Airlines’ employee-designed uniforms to life.”

For more information about Cintas, please visit www.cintas.com or call 1-800-UNIFORM.

About Cintas Corporation:

Cintas Corporation helps more than 900,000 businesses of all types and sizes get Ready™ to open their doors with confidence every day by providing a wide range of products and services that enhance our customers’ image and help keep their facilities and employees clean, safe and looking their best. With products and services including uniforms, floor care, restroom supplies, first aid and safety products, fire extinguishers and testing, and safety and compliance training, Cintas helps customers get Ready for the Workday™. Headquartered in Cincinnati, Cintas is a publicly held company traded over the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol CTAS and is a component of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.