DUANE READE INC
S-1, 1997-12-24
DRUG STORES AND PROPRIETARY STORES
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  AS FILED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION ON DECEMBER 24, 1997 
                                                    REGISTRATION NO. 333- 

                      SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION 
                            WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549 
                                   FORM S-1 
                            REGISTRATION STATEMENT 
                                    UNDER 
                          THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933 

                               DUANE READE INC. 
            (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter) 

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<CAPTION>
  <S>                                            <C>                            <C>
              DELAWARE                      04-3164702                      5912 
  (State or other jurisdiction of        (I.R.S. Employer       (Primary Standard Industrial 
   incorporation or organization)      Identification No.)      Classification Code Number) 
</TABLE>

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
<S>                        <C>                                            <C>
           DABACO INC.*                          NEW YORK                       11-2731694 
            DRI I INC.*                          DELAWARE                       04-3166107 
           DUANE READE*                          NEW YORK                       11-2731721 
  (Exact name of registrant as         (State or other jurisdiction          (I.R.S. Employer 
    specified in its charter)       of incorporation or organization)     Identification Number) 
</TABLE>

*GUARANTORS 
                               440 NINTH AVENUE 
                           NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10001 
                           TELEPHONE: 212-273-5700 
   (Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, 
                 of registrants' principal executive offices) 

                             MR. ANTHONY J. CUTI 
                               DUANE READE INC. 
                               440 NINTH AVENUE 
                           NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10001 
                           TELEPHONE: 212-273-5700 
   (Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area 
                         code, of agent for service) 

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<CAPTION>
  <S>                               <C>
                           Copies to: 
     Steven Della Rocca, Esq.         Stephen M. Besen, Esq. 
         Latham & Watkins           Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP 
  885 Third Avenue, Suite 1000           767 Fifth Avenue 
     New York, New York 10022        New York, New York 10153 
     Telephone: 212-906-1200          Telephone: 212-310-8000 
      Telecopy: 212-751-4864          Telecopy: 212-310-8007 
</TABLE>

   APPROXIMATE DATE OF COMMENCEMENT OF PROPOSED SALE TO THE PUBLIC: As soon 
as practicable after this Registration Statement becomes effective. 

   If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered 
on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities 
Act of 1933, check the following box. [ ] 

   If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering 
pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, please check the following 
box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier 
effective registration statement for the same offering. [ ] 

   If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) 
under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act 
registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement 
for the same offering. [ ] 

   If delivery of the prospectus is expected to be made pursuant to Rule 434, 
please check the following box. [ ] 

                       CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE 
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

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<CAPTION>
                                      PROPOSED MAXIMUM 
     TITLE OF EACH CLASS OF          AGGREGATE OFFERING        AMOUNT OF 
  SECURITIES TO BE REGISTERED             PRICE(1)          REGISTRATION FEE 
- -------------------------------  ------------------------- ---------------- 
<S>                              <C>                       <C>
% Senior Subordinated Notes due 
 2005...........................        $75,000,000             $22,125 
Guarantees of % Senior 
 Subordinated Notes due 2005 ...                -- (2)             $     0(3) 

- -------------------------------  ------------------------- 
</TABLE>

<PAGE>
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
(1)   Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee 
      pursuant to Rule 457(o) under the Securities Act. 
(2)   No separate consideration will be given with respect to the guarantees.
(3)   All of the subsidiaries of Duane Reade Inc. will guarantee the payment 
      of the     % Senior Subordinated Notes due 2005. Pursuant to Rule 
      457(n) under the Securities Act of 1933, no filing fee is required. 

   THE REGISTRANT HEREBY AMENDS THIS REGISTRATION STATEMENT ON SUCH DATE OR 
DATES AS MAY BE NECESSARY TO DELAY ITS EFFECTIVE DATE UNTIL THE REGISTRANT 
SHALL FILE A FURTHER AMENDMENT WHICH SPECIFICALLY STATES THAT THIS 
REGISTRATION STATEMENT SHALL THEREAFTER BECOME EFFECTIVE IN ACCORDANCE WITH 
SECTION 8(A) OF THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933 OR UNTIL THIS REGISTRATION 
STATEMENT SHALL BECOME EFFECTIVE ON SUCH DATE AS THE COMMISSION, ACTING 
PURSUANT TO SAID SECTION 8(A), MAY DETERMINE. 

<PAGE>

   INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS SUBJECT TO COMPLETION OR AMENDMENT. A 
REGISTRATION STATEMENT RELATING TO THESE SECURITIES HAS BEEN FILED WITH THE 
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION. THESE SECURITIES MAY NOT BE SOLD NOR MAY 
OFFERS TO BUY BE ACCEPTED PRIOR TO THE TIME THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT 
BECOMES EFFECTIVE. THIS PROSPECTUS SHALL NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER TO SELL OR 
THE SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY, NOR SHALL THERE BY ANY SALE OF THESE 
SECURITIES IN ANY STATE IN WHICH SUCH OFFER, SOLICITATION OR SALE WOULD BE 
UNLAWFUL PRIOR TO REGISTRATION OR QUALIFICATION UNDER THE SECURITIES LAWS OF 
ANY SUCH STATE. 

                    SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED   , 199 

PROSPECTUS 
       , 1998 

                                 $75,000,000 

                               DUANE READE INC. 
                       % SENIOR SUBORDINATED NOTES DUE 2005 

[DR LOGO] 

   The     % Senior Subordinated Notes due 2005 (the "New Senior Subordinated 
Notes") are being offered hereby (the "Offering") by Duane Reade Inc., a 
Delaware corporation ("Duane Reade" or the "Company"). The Offering is part 
of the Refinancing Plan (as defined herein) of the Company. See "Prospectus 
Summary--Refinancing Plan" and "Use of Proceeds." 

   The New Senior Subordinated Notes will mature on      , 2005. Interest on 
the New Senior Subordinated Notes will be payable semi-annually on       and 
      of each year, commencing on      , 1998. The New Senior Subordinated 
Notes will be redeemable at the option of the Company, in whole or in part, 
at any time on or after      , 2002, in cash at the redemption prices set 
forth herein, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, thereon to the 
redemption date. In addition, at any time prior to      , 2001, the Company 
may, at its option, on any one or more occasions, redeem up to 40% of the 
aggregate principal amount of the New Senior Subordinated Notes originally 
issued at a redemption price equal to     % of the aggregate principal amount 
thereof, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, thereon to the redemption 
date, with the net proceeds of a public offering of equity securities by the 
Company; provided that at least     % of the original aggregate principal
amount of the New Senior Subordinated Notes will remain outstanding immediately
following each such redemption. Upon the occurrence of a Change of Control
(as defined herein), each holder of New Senior Subordinated Notes will have
the right to require the Company to repurchase such holder's New Senior Notes 
at a price in cash equal to 101% of the aggregate principal amount thereof, 
plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, thereon to the date of repurchase. 
See "Description of New Senior Subordinated Notes." 

   The New Senior Subordinated Notes will be general unsecured obligations of 
the Company and will be subordinated in right of payment to all existing and 
future Senior Debt (as defined herein) of the Company, including indebtedness 
pursuant to the New Credit Agreement (as defined herein). The New Senior 
Subordinated Notes will rank pari passu with any future senior subordinated 
indebtedness of the Company and will rank senior to all subordinated 
Indebtedness of the Company. The New Senior Subordinated Notes will be 
guaranteed (the "Subsidiary Guarantees"), jointly and severally, on a senior 
subordinated basis by all of the Company's subsidiaries (the "Subsidiary 
Guarantors"). The Subsidiary Guarantees will be subordinated in right of 
payment to all existing and future senior debt (including the guarantees 
under the New Credit Agreement) of the Subsidiary Guarantors. On a pro forma 
basis after giving effect to the Refinancing Plan (as defined herein), 
including consummation of the Offering and the Common Stock Offering (as
defined herein) and the application of the proceeds thereof, as of 
September 27, 1997, the Company would have had outstanding approximately
$130.0 million of Senior Debt and the Company and its subsidiaries would have
had approximately $260.0 million of aggregate outstanding liabilities, 
including trade payables. 

   Consummation of the Offering will occur concurrently with and is 
conditioned upon consummation of the Refinancing Plan. As part of the 
Refinancing Plan, the Company is offering (the "Common Stock Offering")
      shares of its common stock, $.01 par value per share (the "Common 
Stock") for estimated net proceeds of $92.0 million. See "Prospectus 
Summary--Refinancing Plan" and "Use of Proceeds." 

   SEE "RISK FACTORS," BEGINNING ON PAGE 10, FOR A DISCUSSION OF CERTAIN 
FACTORS THAT SHOULD BE CAREFULLY CONSIDERED BY PROSPECTIVE PURCHASERS OF THE 
NEW SENIOR SUBORDINATED NOTES OFFERED HEREBY. 

THESE SECURITIES HAVE NOT BEEN APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED BY THE SECURITIES AND 
EXCHANGE COMMISSION NOR ANY STATE SECURITIES COMMISSION NOR HAS THE 
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION OR ANY STATE SECURITIES COMMISSION PASSED 
UPON THE ACCURACY OR ADEQUACY OF THIS PROSPECTUS. ANY REPRESENTATION TO THE 
                       CONTRARY IS A CRIMINAL OFFENSE. 

- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

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<CAPTION>
                                                       UNDERWRITING       PROCEEDS 
                                     PRICE TO THE      DISCOUNTS AND       TO THE 
                                       PUBLIC(1)      COMMISSIONS(2)   COMPANY(1)(3) 
- ---------------------------------  ---------------- -----------------  ------------- 
<S>                                <C>              <C>                <C>
Per Senior Subordinated Note  ....          %                 %               % 
Total.............................         $                 $               $ 
</TABLE>

- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
(1)    Plus accrued interest, if any, from the date of issuance. 
(2)    For information regarding indemnification of the Underwriter, see 
       "Underwriting." 
(3)    Before deducting expenses payable by the Company estimated at $    . 

   The New Senior Subordinated Notes are being offered by the Underwriter, 
subject to prior sale, when, as and if delivered to and accepted by it, 
subject to various prior conditions. The Underwriter reserves the right to 
reject any order in whole or in part. It is expected that delivery of the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes will be made in New York, New York on or about 
    , 1998. 

                         DONALDSON, LUFKIN & JENRETTE 
                            SECURITIES CORPORATION 

                                   
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                               [FLIP OUT PAGE] 

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                               [FLIP OUT PAGE] 

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                              [PICTURES TO COME] 

CERTAIN PERSONS PARTICIPATING IN THIS OFFERING MAY ENGAGE IN TRANSACTIONS 
THAT STABILIZE, MAINTAIN OR OTHERWISE AFFECT THE PRICE OF THE NEW SENIOR 
SUBORDINATED NOTES, INCLUDING STABILIZING TRANSACTIONS, SYNDICATE COVERING 
TRANSACTIONS, AND THE IMPOSITION OF PENALTY BIDS. SPECIFICALLY, THE 
UNDERWRITER MAY OVERALLOT IN CONNECTION WITH THE OFFERING AND MAY BID FOR AND 
PURCHASE THE NEW SENIOR SUBORDINATED NOTES IN THE OPEN MARKET. FOR A 
DESCRIPTION OF THESE ACTIVITIES, SEE "UNDERWRITING." 

                                       2
<PAGE>

                              PROSPECTUS SUMMARY

   The following summary is qualified in its entirety by the more detailed
information and financial statements and notes thereto included elsewhere in
this Prospectus. Prior to consummation of the Offering, a reclassification of
the Company's capital stock, pursuant to which holders of shares of class B
common stock, $.01 par value per share ("Class B Common Stock"), will receive
one share of Common Stock for        shares of Class B Common Stock (the
"Reclassification") will be implemented. Unless otherwise stated in this
Prospectus, references to the "Company" or "Duane Reade" shall mean Duane
Reade Inc. (formerly known as Duane Reade Holding Corp.), its consolidated
subsidiaries and their respective predecessors. The fiscal year of the Company
ends on the last Saturday in December. Fiscal years 1992 through 1996 each
consisted of 52 weeks.

                                  THE COMPANY

   Duane Reade is the largest drugstore chain in New York City, with 58 of its
67 stores located in Manhattan's high-traffic business and residential
districts. The Company operates almost twice as many stores in Manhattan as
its next largest competitor. Since opening its first store in 1960, the
Company has successfully executed a marketing and operating strategy tailored
to the unique characteristics of New York City, the largest and most densely
populated market in the United States. According to Drug Store News, Duane
Reade is the leading drugstore chain in the United States in terms of sales
per square foot, at $956 per square foot in 1996, which was more than two
times the national average for drugstore chains. For the fiscal year ended
December 28, 1996, the Company had sales of $381.5 million and EBITDA (as
defined herein) of $35.3 million, increases of 13.2% and 28.6%, respectively,
over the 1995 fiscal year. For the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997, the
Company had sales of $313.8 million and EBITDA of $29.7 million, increases of
11.6% and 24.9%, respectively, over the comparable 1996 period.

   The Company enjoys strong brand name recognition in New York City, which it
believes results from the Company's many locations in high-traffic areas of
Manhattan and the 30 million shopping bags with the distinctive Duane Reade
logo that the Company distributes annually. Independent surveys conducted in
1995 and 1996 indicated that nine out of ten people who work in Manhattan
recognize the Duane Reade name, and seven out of ten shopped at a Duane Reade
store in the past twelve months. The Company was also recently named "Regional
Drug Store Chain of the Year" for 1997 by Drug Store News.

   The Company has developed an operating strategy designed to capitalize on
the unique characteristics of the New York City market, which include
high-traffic volume, above industry average inventory shrink, complex
distribution logistics and high costs of occupancy, media advertising and
personnel. The key elements of the Company's operating strategy are its (i)
everyday low price format and broad product offering, (ii) low cost operating
structure supported by its high volume stores and low advertising and
distribution costs and (iii) ability to design and operate its stores in a
wide variety of sizes and layouts.

   The Company believes that its everyday low price format and broad product
offerings provide value and convenience for its customers and build customer
loyalty. The Company's everyday low price format results in prices that the
Company believes are, on average, approximately 10% lower than the prices
generally offered by its competitors.

   The Company is able to keep its operating costs relatively low due to its
high per store sales volume, low warehouse and distribution costs and low
advertising expenditures. The Company's high volume stores allow it to
effectively leverage occupancy costs, payroll and other store operating
expenses. The Company's two primary distribution facilities are located within
five miles of all but one of its 67 stores and, combined with the rapid
turnover of inventory in Duane Reade's stores, result in relatively low
warehouse and distribution costs. The Company's strong brand name recognition
in New York City and everyday low price format allow the Company to minimize
its use of costly media and print advertising and to rely instead on in-window
displays and other less expensive promotional activities.

                                       3
<PAGE>

   The Company has demonstrated its ability to successfully operate stores
using a wide variety of store configurations and sizes, which the Company
believes is necessary to succeed in the New York City market. For example, the
size of the Company's stores ranges from 2,600 to 12,300 square feet, and it
operates 29 bi-level stores. The Company believes that its flexibility in
configuring stores provides it with a competitive advantage in securing
locations for its new stores, as many of its competitors target more
standarized spaces for their stores, which are more difficult to find in New
York City. In addition, the Company's management team has extensive experience
and knowledge of the New York City real estate market, allowing it to
aggressively pursue attractive real estate opportunities.

   The Company was founded in 1960. In 1992, Bain Capital acquired the Company
from its founders and, in June 1997, investment funds affiliated with DLJ
Merchant Banking Partners II, L.P. ("DLJMBPII") acquired approximately 91.5%
of the outstanding capital stock of the Company from Bain Capital and certain
other selling securityholders (the "Recapitalization").

   In 1994 and 1995, the Company experienced rapid expansion, growing from 40
stores to 59 stores. However, as a result of liquidity constraints and the
need for improved inventory controls, the Company was forced to suspend its
store expansion program in late 1995. In early 1996, a strengthened management
team led by Anthony Cuti, the Company's new Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer, took several measures to improve operations, including improving
inventory controls and decreasing out-of-stock occurrences, creating a loss
prevention function to control inventory shrink and continuing to invest in
management information systems ("MIS"). In 1997, the Company resumed its store
expansion program, opening seven stores. During Mr. Cuti's tenure at the
Company, EBITDA has increased by 53.2% from $26.9 million for the 52 weeks
ended March 29, 1996 to $41.2 million for the 52 weeks ended September 27,
1997.

   The Company was incorporated in Delaware in 1992. The Company's principal
executive offices are located at 440 Ninth Avenue, New York, New York 10001,
and its phone number is (212) 273-5700.

                                 GROWTH STRATEGY

   The Company believes that, as a result of its successful operating history
and market position in New York City, it is well positioned to capitalize on
the growth opportunities in its market. The Company's strategy for continued
growth is to (i) open additional stores in Manhattan and the surrounding
boroughs, (ii) continue to capitalize on favorable pharmacy trends, (iii) make
opportunistic acquisitions of independent drugstores and pharmacy files and
(iv) continue to implement merchandising initiatives in non-pharmacy areas.

   OPEN ADDITIONAL STORES. The Company believes that the Manhattan drugstore
market remains underpenetrated by drugstore chains, with only 45% of the
estimated $1.3 billion in annual drugstore-related sales controlled by chains,
compared to approximately 74% controlled by chains nationally. This provides
significant opportunities for the Company to open additional stores in
Manhattan as well as in the densely populated areas of the surrounding
boroughs. Some of the Company's most successful stores have been opened in
areas new to the Company, such as the residential areas of the Upper East and
West sides of Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx and Queens. The Company believes
that its long-standing presence in, and knowledge of, the New York City real
estate market, combined with the use of a proprietary site selection model
that considers numerous demographic and traffic flow variables, have allowed
it to identify attractive store locations. Since 1993, all of the Company's
new stores have become profitable on an operating basis within the first full
year of operation. Over the next two years, the Company plans to open
approximately 30 to 40 stores, primarily in Manhattan.

   CONTINUE TO CAPITALIZE ON FAVORABLE PHARMACY TRENDS. Sales of prescription
and over-the-counter ("OTC") drugs have been growing rapidly throughout the
drugstore industry. The Company expects demographic trends, such as the aging
of the U.S. population, and industry changes, such as growth of managed care
organizations, insurance companies, employers and other third-party payors
(collectively, "Third-Party Plans"), to continue to drive increases in the
prescription and OTC drug businesses. Since 1994, the Company has focused on
increasing its pharmacy sales by entering into agreements to service
Third-Party Plans and by upgrading the appearance and service level of its
store pharmacies. These

                                4
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initiatives, designed to capitalize on industry trends, have resulted in the
Company's pharmacy sales growing at a compound annual growth rate of
approximately 30% since 1994. Although these initiatives have helped increase
the average number of prescriptions filled by Duane Reade per store per week
from 640 in 1994 to 860 during 1997, the Company's average remains well below
the industry chain store average of approximately 1,200, providing significant
opportunity for continued pharmacy growth. The Company believes that continued
pharmacy growth will increase overall customer traffic, thereby also
benefitting its non-pharmacy sales.

   MAKE OPPORTUNISTIC ACQUISITIONS OF INDEPENDENT DRUGSTORES AND PHARMACY
FILES. The Company believes that the growth of Third-Party Plans and the
continued penetration of chain drugstores such as Duane Reade has put
increasing pressure on the approximately 420 operators of independent
drugstores in Manhattan. When appropriate, the Company considers acquiring
small local chains or independent drugstores. The Company also pursues the
purchase of pharmacy files of independent drugstores when such purchases are
economically attractive to the Company. The pharmacy files of independent
pharmacists tend to have a higher proportion of prescriptions not covered by
Third-Party Plans, which generates incremental revenue and higher margins.
When appropriate, the Company retains the services of the pharmacist, whose
personal relationship with the customers generally maximizes the retention
rate of the purchased file. In 1997, the Company acquired one independent
drugstore and seven such pharmacy files and intends to aggressively pursue
additional purchases.

   CONTINUE TO IMPLEMENT MERCHANDISING INITIATIVES IN NON-PHARMACY AREAS.
Management has recently undertaken a number of merchandising initiatives,
including the expansion of certain high-margin categories such as greeting
cards, cosmetics, vitamins, photofinishing and photo supplies and an expanded
seasonal merchandising program. The Company also continues to focus on
category management, which it believes will improve gross margins and increase
non-pharmacy sales. For example, in 1997 the Company introduced one-hour
photofinishing service in three of its stores and intends to introduce
one-hour photofinishing service in approximately seven to ten additional
stores in 1998. The Company has also increased its emphasis on the sale of its
own private label products, which it believes provide a high-quality, lower
priced alternative to name brand products while generating higher gross profit
margins than name brand products. In addition, by the end of 1997, Duane Reade
will have installed Point of Sale ("POS") scanners in all of its stores and,
by the end of the first quarter of 1998, will have completed its
"planogramming" (space management system) initiative in all of its stores.
These systems and initiatives will allow the Company to better analyze sales
trends and merchandise its stores more effectively, which the Company believes
will ultimately increase its sales and profitability.

                                 REFINANCING PLAN

   The Offering is part of a plan to refinance all of the Company's existing
indebtedness (the "Refinancing Plan") in order to enhance the Company's
financial flexibility to pursue growth opportunities and implement capital
improvements. The successful consummation of the Refinancing Plan will reduce
the Company's overall indebtedness, simplify the Company's capital structure
and provide access to additional borrowings. The principal components of the
Refinancing Plan are: (i) the sale by the Company of        shares of Common 
Stock in the Common Stock Offering for estimated net proceeds of $92.0 
million; (ii) the execution of a new secured credit agreement (the "New 
Credit Agreement"), which will provide for borrowings of up to approximately 
$160.0 million; (iii) the issuance of the New Senior Subordinated Notes for 
estimated net proceeds of $72.5 million; (iv) the repayment of all 
outstanding borrowings under the Company's existing credit agreement (the 
"Existing Credit Agreement"), the outstanding principal amount of which was 
$81.5 million as of September 27, 1997; (v) the redemption of the Company's 
outstanding 15% Senior Subordinated Zero Coupon Notes due 2004 (the "Zero 
Coupon Notes") for $99.8 million (including a redemption premium of $7.0 
million); and (vi) the redemption of the Company's outstanding 12% Senior 
Notes due 2002 (the "Senior Notes") for $93.9 million (including a redemption 
premium of $4.0 million). See "Use of Proceeds." The consummation of the 
Offering will be conditional upon the other components of the Refinancing 
Plan.

                                       5
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                                 THE OFFERING

Securities Offered ............  $75.0 million aggregate principal amount of
                                    % Senior Subordinated Notes due 2005.

Maturity Date .................          , 2005.

Interest Payment Dates ........          and         , commencing       , 1998.

Mandatory Redemption ..........  The Company will not be required to make
                                 mandatory redemption of, or sinking fund
                                 payments with respect to, the New Senior
                                 Subordinated Notes except as described below
                                 under "--Change of Control" and in the case
                                 of certain Asset Sales (as defined).

Optional Redemption ...........  The New Senior Subordinated Notes will be
                                 redeemable, in whole or in part, at any time
                                 on or after       , 2002, in cash at the
                                 redemption prices set forth herein, plus
                                 accrued and unpaid interest, if any, thereon
                                 to the redemption date. In addition, at any
                                 time on or prior to      , 2001, the Company
                                 may, at its option, on any one or more
                                 occasions, redeem up to 40% of the aggregate
                                 principal amount of the New Senior
                                 Subordinated Notes originally issued at a
                                 redemption price equal to     % of the
                                 aggregate principal amount thereof, plus
                                 accrued and unpaid interest, if any, thereon
                                 to the redemption date, with the net
                                 proceeds from a public offering of Equity
                                 Interests (other than Disqualified Stock) of
                                 the Company; provided that at least 60% of
                                 the original aggregate principal amount of
                                 the New Senior Subordinated Notes will
                                 remain outstanding immediately following
                                 each such redemption.

Change of Control .............  Upon the occurrence of a Change of Control,
                                 each Holder of New Senior Subordinated Notes
                                 will have the right to require the Company
                                 to offer to repurchase such Holder's New
                                 Senior Subordinated Notes in cash at a price
                                 equal to 101% of the aggregate principal
                                 amount thereof, plus accrued and unpaid
                                 interest, if any, thereon to the date of
                                 repurchase. The New Credit Agreement will
                                 prohibit the Company from purchasing the New
                                 Senior Subordinated Notes (except in certain
                                 limited amounts) and will also provide that
                                 certain change of control events with
                                 respect to the Company will constitute a
                                 default thereunder. Any future credit
                                 agreements or other agreements relating to
                                 Senior Debt (as defined) to which the
                                 Company becomes a party may contain similar
                                 restrictions and provisions. In the event a
                                 Change of Control occurs at a time when the
                                 Company is prohibited from purchasing the
                                 New Senior Subordinated Notes, the Company
                                 could seek the consent of its lenders to the
                                 purchase of the New Senior Subordinated
                                 Notes or could attempt to refinance the
                                 borrowings that contain such prohibition. If
                                 the Company does not obtain such consent or
                                 repay such borrowings, the Company will
                                 remain prohibited from purchasing the New
                                 Senior Subordinated Notes by the relevant
                                 Senior Debt. In such case, the Company's
                                 failure to purchase the tendered New Senior
                                 Subordinated Notes would constitute an Event
                                 of Default under the indenture pursuant to
                                 which the New Senior Subordinated Notes will
                                 be issued (the

                                       6
<PAGE>

                                 "New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture"),
                                 which would, in turn, constitute a default
                                 under the New Credit Agreement and could
                                 constitute a default under other Senior Debt.
                                 In such circumstances, the subordination
                                 provisions in the New Senior Subordinated
                                 Note Indenture would likely restrict the
                                 payments to the Holders of the New Senior
                                 Subordinated Notes. Furthermore, no assurance
                                 can be given that the Company will have
                                 sufficient resources to satisfy its
                                 repurchase obligation with respect to the New
                                 Senior Subordinated Notes following a Change
                                 of Control. See "Description of New Senior
                                 Subordinated Notes."

Ranking .......................  The New Senior Subordinated Notes will be
                                 general unsecured obligations of the Company
                                 and will be subordinated in right of payment
                                 to all existing and future Senior Debt of
                                 the Company, including indebtedness pursuant
                                 to the New Credit Agreement. The New Senior
                                 Subordinated Notes will rank pari passu with
                                 any future senior subordinated indebtedness
                                 of the Company and will rank senior to all
                                 subordinated Indebtedness of the Company.
                                 The New Senior Subordinated Notes will be
                                 guaranteed, jointly and severally, on a
                                 senior subordinated basis by the Subsidiary
                                 Guarantors. The Subsidiary Guarantees will
                                 be subordinated in right of payment to all
                                 existing and future senior debt (including
                                 the guarantees under the New Credit
                                 Agreement) of the Subsidiary Guarantors. On
                                 a pro forma basis after giving effect to the
                                 Refinancing Plan and the application of the
                                 proceeds thereof, as of September 27, 1997,
                                 the Company would have had outstanding
                                 approximately $130.0 million of Senior Debt,
                                 and the Company and its subsidiaries would
                                 have had approximately $260.0 million of
                                 aggregate outstanding liabilities, including
                                 trade payables.

Subsidiary Guarantees .........  The New Senior Subordinated Notes will be
                                 guaranteed, jointly and severally, on a
                                 senior subordinated basis by each of the
                                 Subsidiary Guarantors. The Subsidiary
                                 Guarantees will be subordinated in right of
                                 payment to all existing and future Senior
                                 Debt of the Subsidiary Guarantors, including
                                 the New Credit Agreement. At September 27,
                                 1997, on a pro forma basis after giving
                                 effect to the Refinancing Plan, including
                                 consummation of the Offering and the Common
                                 Stock Offering and the application of
                                 proceeds thereof, the Subsidiary Guarantors 
                                 would have had $130.0 million of Senior Debt
                                 outstanding.

Certain Covenants .............  The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture
                                 will contain certain covenants that, among
                                 other things, limit the ability of the
                                 Company to: incur indebtedness and issue
                                 preferred stock, repurchase Capital Stock
                                 (as defined) and subordinated Indebtedness,
                                 engage in transactions with affiliates,
                                 engage in sale and leaseback transactions,
                                 incur or suffer to exist certain liens, pay
                                 dividends or other distributions, sell
                                 accounts receivable, make investments, sell
                                 assets and engage in certain mergers and
                                 consolidations.

Use of Proceeds ...............  The net proceeds from the Offering, together
                                 with borrowings under the New Credit
                                 Agreement and the net proceeds from the
                                 Common Stock Offering, will be used to
                                 complete the Refinancing Plan. See
                                 "Prospectus Summary--Refinancing Plan" and
                                 "Use of Proceeds."

                                       7
<PAGE>
                                SUMMARY HISTORICAL
                             FINANCIAL AND OPERATING DATA
              (In thousands, except percentages and store data)

   The following table sets forth summary consolidated historical financial
data for the fiscal years ended December 31, 1994, December 30, 1995 and
December 28, 1996 and for the 39 week periods ended September 28, 1996 and
September 27, 1997. This data should be read in conjunction with the
consolidated historical financial statements of the Company, together with the
notes thereto, included elsewhere in this Prospectus.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                       FISCAL YEAR                      39 WEEKS ENDED
                                            ---------------------------------  -------------------------------
                                                                                SEPTEMBER 28,   SEPTEMBER 27,
                                               1994        1995       1996          1996             1997
                                            ---------- ----------  ----------  --------------  ---------------
<S>                                         <C>        <C>         <C>         <C>             <C>
STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS DATA:
Net sales .................................  $281,103    $336,922   $381,466      $281,093         $313,796
Gross profit ..............................    71,425      77,095     92,961        65,296           77,383
Nonrecurring charges (1) ..................        --          --         --            --           10,887
Operating income ..........................    11,042      12,166     14,542        11,849           11,268
Net interest expense ......................    27,480      30,224     32,396        24,334           25,433
Net loss ..................................   (16,438)    (18,058)   (17,854)      (12,485)         (14,165)

OPERATING AND OTHER DATA:
EBITDA (3).................................  $ 31,188    $ 27,443   $ 35,300      $ 23,814         $ 29,747
EBITDA (3) as a percentage of net sales  ..      11.1%        8.2%       9.3%          8.5%             9.5%
Capital expenditures.......................     9,947       6,868      1,247           913            4,931
Number of stores at end of period  ........        51          59         60            60               65
Same store sales growth (4) ...............       1.6%       (3.5)%      8.3%          7.8%             7.9%
Pharmacy same store sales growth (4)  .....      14.2%        7.0%      25.5%         25.1%            25.4%
Average store size (square feet) at end of
 period ...................................     6,596       6,712      6,733         6,733            6,832
Sales per square foot......................  $    970    $    898   $    956      $    696         $    707
Pharmacy sales as a % of net sales  .......      17.6%       19.0%      21.8%         21.5%            24.8%
Third-party sales as a % of pharmacy
 sales.....................................      45.7%       58.2%      64.4%         63.3%            72.9%
PRO FORMA DATA:
Cash interest expense (net) (7)............                           18,617        12,129           12,179
Ratio of EBITDA to cash interest expense ..                              1.9x          2.0x             2.4x
Ratio of net debt to EBITDA (5)(6) ........                                                             4.6x
</TABLE>

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                 AS OF                  AS OF
                                           DECEMBER 28, 1996      SEPTEMBER 27, 1997
                                          ----------------- ---------------------------
                                                                               (AS
                                                               (ACTUAL)    ADJUSTED)(2)
<S>                                        <C>               <C>           <C>
BALANCE SHEET DATA:
Working capital ..........................      $  9,917       $ 29,849      $ 38,893
Total assets .............................       222,476        239,520       254,800
Total debt and capital lease obligations         245,657        262,649       207,187
Stockholders' deficiency .................       (59,396)       (73,561)       (5,159)
</TABLE>
                                                      (footnotes on next page)

                                       8

<PAGE>

(footnotes to Summary Historical Financial and Operating Data appearing on
the preceding page)
- ------------
(1)    During the first quarter of fiscal 1997, the Company considered a
       public offering of its common stock and took certain steps in
       connection with these plans. Such plans were abandoned upon
       consummation of the Recapitalization discussed in Note 10 of the Notes
       to Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) for the 39 weeks ended
       September 27, 1997. Costs and expenses incurred in connection with the
       abandoned public offering, the Recapitalization and the exchange offers
       referred to in Note 10 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial
       Statements (Unaudited) aggregated approximately $10.9 million.

(2)    Gives pro forma effect to (i) the Refinancing Plan, including the
       consummation of the Offering, the Common Stock Offering and the
       application of the net proceeds therefrom as set forth under "Use of
       Proceeds", (ii) a provision of     for compensation expense related 
       to previously issued stock options, as if such transactions had 
       occurred at September 27, 1997 and (iii) an extraordinary loss 
       of $26.5 million for the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997 relating 
       to the redemption of the Senior Notes and the Zero Coupon Notes and 
       the write-off of the unamortized deferred financing fees, as if all 
       such transactions had occurred at September 27, 1997. See "Use of 
       Proceeds" and "Capitalization."

(3)    As used herein, "EBITDA" means net income (loss) plus nonrecurring
       costs, interest, income taxes, depreciation, amortization and other
       non-cash items (primarily deferred rents). Management believes that
       EBITDA, as presented, represents a useful measure of assessing the
       performance of the Company's ongoing operating activities as it
       reflects the earnings trends of the Company without the impact of
       certain non-cash charges. Targets and positive trends in EBITDA are
       used as the performance measure for determining management's bonus
       compensation; EBITDA is also utilized by the Company's creditors in
       assessing debt covenant compliance. The Company understands that, while
       EBITDA is frequently used by security analysts in the evaluation of
       companies, it is not necessarily comparable to other similarly titled
       captions of other companies due to potential inconsistencies in the
       method of calculation. EBITDA is not intended as an alternative to cash
       flow from operating activities as a measure of liquidity, nor an
       alternative to net income as an indicator of the Company's operating
       performance nor any other measure of performance in conformity with
       generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP").

   A reconciliation of net loss to EBITDA for each period included above is
set forth below:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                    FISCAL YEAR                       39 WEEKS ENDED
                       ------------------------------------  -------------------------------
                                                              SEPTEMBER 28,   SEPTEMBER 27,
                           1994        1995         1996          1996             1997
                       ----------- -----------  -----------  --------------  ---------------
<S>                    <C>         <C>          <C>          <C>             <C>
Net loss .............   $(16,438)   $(18,058)    $(17,854)     $(12,485)        $(14,165)
Net interest expense       27,480      30,224       32,396        24,334           25,433
Amortization .........     18,238      11,579       16,217         8,514            3,826
Depreciation .........      1,184       1,929        3,015         2,295            2,584
Nonrecurring charges           --          --           --            --           10,887
Other non-cash item  .        724       1,769        1,526         1,156            1,182
                       ----------- -----------  ----------- ---------------  ---------------
EBITDA ...............   $ 31,188    $ 27,443     $ 35,300      $ 23,814         $ 29,747
                       =========== ===========  =========== ===============  ===============
</TABLE>

(4)    Same store sales figures include stores that have been in operation for
       at least 13 months.
(5)    Net debt represents total debt and capital lease obligations less
       cash, on a pro forma basis after giving effect to the Offering, the 
       Common Stock Offering and the application of the net proceeds therefrom.
(6)    For purposes of this ratio, EBITDA represents historical EBITDA for the
       twelve months ended September 27, 1997, which was approximately
       $41,233.
(7)    Cash interest expense (net) represents net interest expense less
       amortization of deferred financing costs and other non-cash interest
       charges for the year ended December 28, 1996 and the 39 week periods
       ended September 28, 1996 and September 27, 1997 on a pro forma basis
       giving effect to the Refinancing Plan, including the consummation of the
       Offering, the Common Stock Offering and the application of the net
       proceeds therefrom as set forth under "Use of Proceeds", as if such
       transactions had occurred at December 31, 1995.

                                9


<PAGE>

                                 RISK FACTORS 

   In addition to the other information contained in this Prospectus, 
prospective investors should carefully consider the following risk factors 
before making an investment in the New Senior Subordinated Notes offered 
hereby. 

RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH SUBSTANTIAL INDEBTEDNESS 

   After the Offering, the Company will have a substantial amount of 
outstanding indebtedness. As of September 27, 1997, on a pro forma basis 
giving effect to the Refinancing Plan, including the Offering and the 
application of the net proceeds therefrom, the consolidated indebtedness of 
the Company would have been approximately $207.2 million. Subject to certain 
limitations contained in its outstanding debt instruments, the Company or its 
subsidiaries may incur additional indebtedness to finance working capital, 
capital expenditures or acquisitions or for general corporate purposes. The 
Company's level of indebtedness could have important consequences to the 
holders of New Senior Subordinated Notes, including the following: (i) the 
Company's ability to obtain additional capital for acquisitions, capital 
expenditures, working capital or general corporate or other purposes may be 
limited and (ii) the Company's level of indebtedness may reduce the Company's 
flexibility to respond to changing business and economic conditions. 
Substantially all of the Company's indebtedness under the New Credit 
Agreement is expected to be subject to variable interest rates that fluctuate 
in accordance with changes in the market rate to be specified in the New 
Credit Agreement. Fluctuations in such interest rates may occur at any time 
in response to changing economic conditions and other factors beyond the 
Company's control, and there can be no assurance with respect to how long 
such rates will remain at their current levels. Although the Company expects 
to enter into hedging agreements to limit its exposure to interest rate 
fluctuations, a significant rise in interest rates could have a material 
adverse effect on the Company. See "Management's Discussion and Analysis of 
Financial Condition and Results of Operations--Liquidity and Capital 
Resources." 

   The Company's ability to pay principal of and interest on the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes and to service its remaining indebtedness will be 
dependent on its future performance, which will be affected by prevailing 
economic, financial, business, competitive, legislative, regulatory and other 
conditions, certain of which are beyond the Company's control. The Company 
believes that, based upon current levels of operations and anticipated 
growth, it should be able to meet its debt service obligations when due for 
the foreseeable future. If, however, the Company becomes unable to service 
its indebtedness, it will be forced to pursue one or more alternative 
strategies such as selling assets, restructuring or refinancing its 
indebtedness or seeking additional equity capital, which actions are 
restricted, to some extent, under the terms of the New Credit Agreement
and the New Senior Subordinated Notes. There can be no assurance that any of
these strategies could be effected on satisfactory terms, if at all. 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will contain certain covenants 
which, among other things, will restrict the ability of the Company and its 
subsidiaries to incur additional indebtedness and issue preferred stock, pay 
dividends or make other distributions, make certain restricted payments, 
create certain liens, sell assets, enter into certain transactions with 
affiliates, enter into certain mergers or consolidations or sell or issue 
capital stock of the Company's subsidiaries. In addition, the New Credit 
Agreement contains other and more restrictive covenants, including those 
requiring the Company to maintain specified financial ratios and satisfy 
certain tests relating to its financial condition, and prohibits the Company 
from prepaying its other indebtedness (including the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes). See "Description of New Senior Subordinated Notes" and "Description 
of Certain Indebtedness--Description of New Credit Agreement." The Company's 
ability to comply with the covenants in the New Credit Agreement and the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture may be affected by events beyond its 
control, including prevailing economic, financial, business, competitive, 
legislative, regulatory and other conditions. The breach of any such 
covenants or restrictions could result in a default under the New Credit 
Agreement and/or the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture. Upon the 
occurrence of an Event of Default under the New Credit Agreement, the lenders 
thereunder could elect to declare all amounts borrowed thereunder to be 
immediately due and payable, together with accrued and unpaid interest, and 
terminate the commitments of the lenders to make further extensions of credit 
under the 

                                      10
<PAGE>

New Credit Agreement. If the Company were unable to repay its indebtedness to 
its lenders under the New Credit Agreement, such lenders could proceed 
against any or all of the collateral securing the indebtedness under the New 
Credit Agreement, which collateral is expected to consist of substantially 
all of the assets of the Company and the capital stock and substantially all 
of the assets of its subsidiaries. See "Description of Certain 
Indebtedness--Description of New Credit Agreement" and "Description of New 
Senior Subordinated Notes." 

SUBORDINATION 

   The New Senior Subordinated Notes will be general unsecured obligations of 
the Company and will be subordinated in right of payment to all existing and 
future Senior Debt of the Company, including indebtedness under the New 
Credit Agreement. Furthermore, any payment with respect to a Subsidiary 
Guarantee also will be subordinated to the payment of Senior Debt of that 
Subsidiary Guarantor, including such Subsidiary Guarantor's obligations under 
the New Credit Agreement. As of September 27, 1997, on a pro forma basis 
after giving effect to the Refinancing Plan, including consummation of the 
Offering and the Common Stock Offering and the application of the net 
proceeds thereof, the Company would have had approximately $130.0 million of 
Senior Debt, all of which would have been secured borrowings under the New 
Credit Agreement. By reason of such subordination, in the event of the 
insolvency, liquidation, reorganization, dissolution or other winding-up of 
the Company or upon a default in payment with respect to, or the acceleration 
of, any Senior Debt, the holders of such Senior Debt and any other creditors 
who are holders of Senior Debt and creditors of subsidiaries, if any, must be 
paid in full before the holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes may be 
paid. If the Company incurs an additional pari passu debt, the holders of 
such debt would be entitled to share ratably with the holders of the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes in any proceeds distributed in connection with any 
insolvency, liquidation, reorganization, dissolution or other winding-up of 
the Company. This may have the effect of reducing the amount of proceeds paid 
to holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes. In addition, no cash 
payments may be made with respect to the New Senior Subordinated Notes during 
the continuance of a payment default with respect to Senior Debt and, under 
certain circumstances, no payments may be made with respect to the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes for a period of up to 179 days if a non-payment default 
exists with respect to Senior Debt. In addition, holders of indebtedness and 
other liabilities of the Company's subsidiaries will have claims that are 
effectively senior to the New Senior Subordinated Notes, except to the extent 
of the Subsidiary Guarantees. See "--Enforceability of Subsidiary Guarantees" 
and "Description of New Senior Subordinated Notes." 

HOLDING COMPANY STRUCTURE 

   The Company is a holding company and does not have any material operations 
or assets other than ownership of the capital stock of Daboco Inc. 
("Daboco"). Together, Daboco and its wholly-owned subsidiary, DRI I Inc. 
("DRI I"), together hold 100% of the partnership interests of Duane Reade 
("DR"). The Company is dependent on the cash flow of its subsidiaries and 
distributions from its subsidiaries in order to meet its debt service 
obligations. 

   Any right of the Company to participate in any distribution of the assets 
of any of its subsidiaries upon liquidation, reorganization or insolvency of 
any such subsidiary (and the consequent right of the Holders of the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes to participate in distribution of those assets) 
will be subject to the prior claims of such subsidiary's creditors. The 
obligations of DR under the New Credit Agreement will be secured by 
substantially all of the assets of DR, DRI I, Daboco and the Company. 

COMPETITION 

   The markets in which the Company operates are highly competitive. In the 
New York City area, the Company competes against national, regional and local 
drugstore chains, discount drugstores, supermarkets, combination food and 
drugstores, discount general merchandise stores, mass merchandisers, 
independent drugstores and local merchants. Major chain competitors in the 
New York City market include Rite-Aid, Genovese and CVS. Many of the 
Company's competitors are larger and have greater financial resources than 
the Company. In addition to competition from the foregoing, the Company's 

                               11           
<PAGE>

pharmacy departments also compete with hospitals, health maintenance 
organizations ("HMOs") and mail order prescription drug providers. The 
Company's drugstores compete, among other things, on the basis of convenience 
of location and store layout, product mix, selection, customer service and 
price. There can be no assurance that such competition will not adversely 
affect the Company's results of operations or financial condition. See 
"Business--Competition." 

NET LOSSES 

   The Company has experienced net losses for the prior four fiscal years and 
the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997. The net proceeds of the Offering will 
be used to reduce overall indebtedness of the Company and associated interest 
expense. See "Prospectus Summary--Refinancing Plan" and "Use of Proceeds." 
The Company's results of operations will continue to be affected by events 
and conditions both within and beyond its control, including the successful 
implementation of the Company's growth strategy, continued performance of 
existing stores, competition and economic, financial, business and other 
conditions. Therefore, there can be no assurance that the Company will not 
continue to incur net losses in the future. As of September 27, 1997, the 
Company's consolidated stockholders' deficiency was $73.6 million. On a pro 
forma basis giving effect to the Refinancing Plan, including the Offering, 
the Common Stock Offering and the application of the net proceeds therefrom, 
the Company would have had stockholders' deficiency of $5.2 million as of 
September 27, 1997. See "Description of New Senior Subordinated Notes." 

ECONOMIC CONDITIONS AND REGIONAL CONCENTRATION 

   Substantially all of the Company's stores are located in the New York City 
area. As a result, the Company is sensitive to economic and competitive 
conditions, the regulatory environment and the availability of labor in that 
area. The success of the Company's future operations will be substantially 
affected by its ability to compete effectively in the New York City area, and 
no prediction can be made as to economic conditions in this region. 

UNCERTAINTY OF LEASE RENEWALS 

   All of the Company's stores are leased, with the leases expiring at 
various dates from May 1998 to December 2022 (assuming renewal options are 
exercised). Leases for eight stores that generated 12.8% of the Company's net 
sales for the 39 week period ended September 27, 1997 are scheduled to expire 
before the end of 2000. Although the Company has historically been successful 
in renewing most of its store leases when they have expired, there can be no 
assurance that the Company will continue to be able to do so on acceptable 
terms or at all. If the Company is unable to renew the leases for the 
Company's store locations as they expire, or find other favorable locations 
at acceptable lease rates, there can be no assurance that such failures will 
not have a material adverse effect on the Company's financial condition and 
results of operations. See "Business--Properties; Leases." 

RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH FUTURE GROWTH 

   The Company is experiencing a period of rapid expansion, which the Company 
believes will continue for the foreseeable future. The operating complexity 
of the Company's business, as well as the responsibilities of management 
personnel, have increased as a result of this expansion. The Company's 
ability to manage such growth effectively will require it to continue to 
expand and improve its operating and financial systems and to expand, train 
and manage its employee base. In addition, as the Company opens new stores, 
there can be no assurance that a sufficient number of qualified personnel 
will be available to manage such expanded operations or that such operations 
will be successfully integrated into the Company. The Company's inability to 
manage its expansion effectively, including the hiring of additional 
personnel, could have a material adverse effect on its business and results 
of operations. The Company's expansion prospects are also dependent on a 
number of other factors, including, among other things, economic conditions, 
competition, consumer preferences, financing and working capital needs, the 
ability of the Company to negotiate store leases on favorable terms and the 
availability of additional warehouse space and new store locations. There can 
be no assurance that the Company will be able to effectively realize its 
plans for future expansion. See "Business." 

                               12           
<PAGE>

RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH REGULATORY AND OTHER CHANGES IN THE HEALTH CARE 
INDUSTRY 

   Pharmacy sales accounted for approximately 22% of the Company's total 
sales for 1996 and 25% of the Company's total sales for the 39 week period 
ended September 27, 1997. Pharmacy sales to Third-Party Plans accounted for 
approximately 64% of the Company's total pharmacy sales for 1996 and 
approximately 73% of the Company's total pharmacy sales for the 39 week 
period ended September 27, 1997. The efforts of Third-Party Plans to contain 
costs have placed downward pressures on gross profit margins from sales of 
prescription drugs. However, management believes that the penetration of 
Third-Party Plans in the New York City market will continue, and the 
resulting increase in volume should help to mitigate the decrease in gross 
profit margins. See "Business--The Drugstore Industry." 

   The Company's revenues from prescription drug sales may also be affected 
by health care reform initiatives of federal and state governments, including 
proposals designed to significantly reduce spending on Medicare, Medicaid and 
other government programs, changes in programs providing for reimbursement 
for the cost of prescription drugs by Third-Party Plans and regulatory 
changes relating to the approval process for prescription drugs. Such 
initiatives could lead to the enactment of federal and state regulations that 
may adversely impact the Company's prescription drug sales and, accordingly, 
its results of operations. 

REGULATORY MATTERS 

   The Company's business is subject to various federal and state 
regulations. For example, pursuant to the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 
of 1990 ("OBRA") and comparable state regulations, the Company's pharmacists 
are required to offer counseling, without additional charge, to their 
customers about medication, dosage, delivery systems, common side effects and 
other information deemed significant by the pharmacists and may have a duty 
to warn customers regarding any potential adverse effects of a prescription 
drug if the warning could reduce or negate such effects. The Company is also 
subject to federal, state and local licensing and registration regulations 
with respect to, among other things, its pharmacy operations. The Company 
believes that it has satisfied all of its licensing and registration 
requirements and continues to actively monitor its compliance with such 
requirements. However, violations of any such regulations could result in 
various penalties, including suspension or revocation of the Company's 
licenses or registrations or monetary fines, which could adversely effect the 
Company's operations. Additionally, the Company is subject to federal Drug 
Enforcement Agency ("DEA") regulations relative to its pharmacy operations 
including purchasing, storing and dispensing of controlled substances. 

   The Company is also subject to laws governing its relationship with 
employees, including minimum wage requirements, overtime and working 
conditions. Increases in the federal minimum wage rate, employee benefit 
costs or other costs associated with employees could adversely affect the 
Company's results of operations. 

DEPENDENCE ON KEY PERSONNEL 

   The success of the Company depends to a large extent on its executive 
management team. Although the Company has entered into employment agreements 
with each of the Company's executive officers, it is possible that members of 
executive management may leave the Company, and such departures could have a 
negative impact on the business of the Company. The Company does not maintain 
key-man life insurance on any of its executive officers. See "Management." 

CONTINUED INFLUENCE OF PRINCIPAL STOCKHOLDERS 

   Upon consummation of the Offering, investment funds affiliated with 
DLJMPBII, an affiliate of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Securities Corporation 
("DLJ"), the Underwriter for the Offering, and certain of its affiliates will 
beneficially own an aggregate of approximately   % of the Company's 
outstanding Common Stock. In addition, two of the Company's four directors 
are Managing Directors of DLJ Merchant Banking II, Inc. ("DLJMB"), a general 
partner of DLJMBPII, and one director is a Managing Director of DLJ. In 
connection with the consummation of the Offering and the Common Stock 

                               13           
<PAGE>

Offering, the Company expects to add two independent directors to the Board 
of Directors. See "Management" and "Principal Stockholders." Under Delaware 
law and the Company's Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, 
owners of a majority of the Company's outstanding Common Stock are able to 
elect all of the Company's directors and approve significant corporate 
transactions without the approval or consent of the other shareholders. As a 
result, DLJMBPII will continue to have the ability (either alone or together 
with a small percentage of other shareholders) to elect all of the Company's 
directors and to control the vote on all matters submitted to a vote of the 
holders of the Common Stock, including any going private transaction, merger, 
consolidation or sale of all or substantially all of the Company's assets. 
The Company's Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides that 
any action that can be taken by a meeting of the shareholders may be taken by 
written consent in lieu of a meeting. 

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS 

   As of September 27, 1997, approximately 1,800 of the Company's 
approximately 2,000 employees were represented by various labor unions and 
were covered by collective bargaining agreements. The Company's distribution 
facility employees are represented by the International Brotherhood of 
Teamsters, Chauffeurs and Warehousemen and Helpers of America, Local 815, and 
all store employees are represented by the Allied Trade Council. The 
Company's three-year contracts with these two unions expire on August 31, 
1999 and August 31, 1998, respectively. The Company has not experienced any 
material business interruption as a result of labor disputes within the past 
15 years, and the Company considers its employee relations to be good. 
However, there can be no assurance that, upon the expiration of any of the 
Company's collective bargaining agreements, the Company will be able to 
negotiate new collective bargaining agreements on terms favorable to the 
Company or that the Company's business operations will not be interrupted as 
a result of labor disputes or difficulties or delays in the process of 
renegotiating its collective bargaining agreements. In such events, the 
Company's results of operations could be materially adversely affected. See 
"Business--Employees." 

POSSIBLE INABILITY TO REPURCHASE NEW SENIOR SUBORDINATED NOTES UPON CHANGE OF 
CONTROL 

   The New Credit Agreement will prohibit the Company from purchasing the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes (except in certain limited amounts) and will also 
provide that certain change of control events with respect to the Company 
will constitute a default thereunder. Any future credit agreements or other 
agreements relating to Senior Debt to which the Company becomes a party may 
contain similar restrictions and provisions. In the event a Change of Control 
occurs at a time when the Company is prohibited from purchasing the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes, the Company could seek the consent of its lenders 
to the purchase of the New Senior Subordinated Notes or could attempt to 
refinance the borrowings that contain such prohibition. If the Company does 
not obtain such consent or repay such borrowings, the Company will remain 
prohibited from purchasing the New Senior Subordinated Notes by the relevant 
Senior Debt. In such case, the Company's failure to purchase the tendered New 
Senior Subordinated Notes would constitute an event of default under the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture which would, in turn, constitute a default 
under the New Credit Agreement and could constitute a default under other 
Senior Debt. In such circumstances, the subordination provisions in the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture would likely restrict payments to the 
holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes. Furthermore, no assurance can 
be given that the Company will have sufficient resources to satisfy its 
repurchase obligation with respect to the New Senior Subordinated Notes 
following a Change of Control. 

FRAUDULENT TRANSFER CONSIDERATIONS 

   The incurrence by the Company of indebtedness such as the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes to effect the Refinancing Plan may be subject to review 
under relevant state and federal fraudulent conveyance laws if a bankruptcy 
case or lawsuit is commenced by or on behalf of unpaid creditors of the 
Company. The Company believes that the indebtedness represented by the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes is being incurred for proper purposes and in good 
faith and that, based on forecasts, asset valuations 

                               14           
<PAGE>

and other financial information, the Company, after giving effect to the 
Refinancing Plan, including the consummation of the Offering and the Common 
Stock Offering, will be solvent, will have sufficient capital for carrying on 
its business and will be able to pay its debts as they mature. 
Notwithstanding the Company's belief, however, if a court of competent 
jurisdiction in a suit by an unpaid creditor or representative of creditors 
(such as a trustee in bankruptcy or debtor-in-possession) were to find that, 
at the time of the issuance of the New Senior Subordinated Notes, the Company 
was insolvent, was rendered insolvent by reason of such incurrence, was 
engaged in a business or transaction for which its remaining assets 
constituted unreasonably small capital, intended to incur, or believed that 
it would incur debts beyond its ability to pay such debts as they mature, or 
intended to hinder, delay or defraud its creditors, and that the indebtedness 
was incurred for less than reasonably equivalent value, then such court 
could, among other things: (i) void all or a portion of the Company's 
obligations to the holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes, the effect 
of which would be that the holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes may 
not be repaid in full or at all, and/or (ii) subordinate the Company's 
obligations to the holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes to other 
existing and future indebtedness of the Company, the effect of which would be 
to entitle such other creditors to be paid in full before any payment could 
be made on the New Senior Subordinated Notes. 

ENFORCEABILITY OF SUBSIDIARY GUARANTEES 

   The Company's obligations under the New Senior Subordinated Notes will be 
guaranteed, jointly and severally, on a senior subordinated basis by each of 
the Subsidiary Guarantors. The Company believes that the Subsidiary 
Guarantees are being incurred for proper purposes and in good faith and that, 
based on forecasts, asset valuations and other financial information, the 
Subsidiary Guarantors, after giving effect to the Refinancing Plan, including 
the consummation of the Offering and the Common Stock Offering, will be 
solvent, will have sufficient capital for carrying on their respective 
businesses and will be able to pay their debts as they mature. 
Notwithstanding the Company's belief however, if a court of competent 
jurisdiction in a suit by an unpaid creditor or representative of creditors 
(such as a trustee in bankruptcy or debtor-in-possession) were to find that, 
at the time of incurrence of a Subsidiary Guarantee, a Subsidiary Guarantor 
was insolvent, was rendered insolvent by reason of such issuance, was engaged 
in a business or transaction for which its remaining assets constituted 
unreasonably small capital, intended to incur, or believed that it would 
incur, debts beyond its ability to pay such debts as they matured, or 
intended to hinder, delay or defraud its creditors, and that the indebtedness 
was incurred for less than reasonably equivalent value, then such court 
could, among other things: (i) void all or a portion of such Subsidiary 
Guarantor's obligations to the holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes, 
the effect of which would be that the holders of the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes may not be repaid in full or at all, and/or (ii) subordinate such 
Subsidiary Guarantor's obligations to the holders of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes to other existing and future indebtedness of such 
Subsidiary Guarantor, the effect of which would be to entitle such other 
creditors to be paid in full before any payment could be made on the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes. Among other things, a legal challenge of a 
Subsidiary Guarantee on fraudulent conveyance grounds may focus on the 
benefits, if any, realized by the Subsidiary Guarantor as a result of the 
issuance by the Company of the New Senior Subordinated Notes. 

ABSENCE OF PUBLIC MARKET 

   The New Senior Notes are a new security for which no public market exists. 
The New Senior Subordinated Notes will not be listed on a securities 
exchange. There can be no assurance that an active public market will develop 
or be sustained upon completion of the Offering or at what prices holders of 
the New Senior Subordinated Notes would be able to sell such securities, if 
at all. In addition, prevailing interest rate levels, market fluctuations and 
general economic and political conditions may adversely affect the liquidity 
and the market price of the New Senior Subordinated Notes, regardless of the 
Company's financial and operating performance. The market for "high yield" 
securities, such as the New Senior Subordinated Notes, is volatile and 
unpredictable, which may have an adverse effect on the liquidity of, and 
prices for, such securities. The Company has been advised by the Underwriter 
that it currently intends to make a market in the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes after consummation of the Offering as permitted by applicable laws and 
regulations; however, the Underwriter is not obligated to do 

                                      15
<PAGE>

so and may discontinue doing so without notice at any time. Accordingly, no 
assurance can be given that a liquid trading market of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes will develop or be sustained. In addition, because the 
Underwriter may be deemed to be an affiliate of the Company, the Underwriter 
will be required to deliver a current "market-maker" prospectus and otherwise 
to comply with the registration requirements of the Securities Act in 
connection with any secondary market sale of the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes, which may affect its ability to continue market-making activities. The 
Underwriter's ability to engage in market-making transactions will therefore 
be subject to the availability of a current "market-maker" prospectus. For so 
long as any of the New Senior Subordinated Notes are outstanding and, in the 
reasonable judgment of the Underwriter and its counsel, the Underwriter or 
any of its affiliates is required to deliver a prospectus in connection with 
the sale of the New Senior Subordinated Notes, the Company has agreed to make 
a "market-maker" prospectus available to the Underwriter to permit it to 
engage in market-making transactions. 

                                      16
<PAGE>
                               USE OF PROCEEDS 

   The net proceeds from the Offering (after deducting general offering 
expenses) are estimated to be approximately $72.5 million. The Company 
intends to use such net proceeds, together with net proceeds from the Common 
Stock Offering of approximately $92.0 million and borrowings under the New 
Credit Agreement of approximately $130.0 million, to complete the Refinancing 
Plan, which is expected to consist of: (i) the redemption of all of the Zero 
Coupon Notes for $99.8 million (including a redemption premium of $7.0 
million), (ii) the redemption of all of the Senior Notes for $93.9 million 
(including a redemption premium of $4.0 million), (iii) the repayment of all 
outstanding term loan indebtedness under the Existing Credit Agreement, the 
outstanding principal amount of which was $65.5 million as of September 27, 
1997, (iv) the repayment of all outstanding revolving indebtedness under the 
Existing Credit Agreement, the outstanding principal amount of which was 
$16.0 million as of September 27, 1997, and (v) the payment of fees and 
expenses incurred in connection with the Refinancing Plan. The Company plans 
to use the proceeds of the Offering, the Common Stock Offering and a portion 
of the proceeds from the New Credit Agreement to fund the redemption of the 
Zero Coupon Notes and the Senior Notes. Accordingly, the proceeds from the 
Offering and the Common Stock Offering will be placed in escrow pending such 
redemptions, which the Company currently expects to occur approximately 30 
days after the closing of the Offering. 

   The term loan indebtedness under the Existing Credit Agreement has a 
maturity date of June 2002 and currently bears interest at an annual rate of 
LIBOR plus 3.0%, which, as of September 30, 1997, equaled approximately 
8.625%. The revolving loan indebtedness under the Existing Credit Agreement 
has a maturity date of June 2001 and currently bears interest at an annual 
rate of LIBOR plus 2.5%, which, as of September 30, 1997, equaled 
approximately 8.125%, and provides for a commitment fee ranging from 0.375% 
to 0.5% per annum on the unused portion of the facility, depending on the 
Company's ratio of consolidated debt to EBITDA (as defined in the Existing 
Credit Agreement). The Zero Coupon Notes have a maturity date of September 
2004 and accrete at a fixed rate of 15% per annum compounded semiannually, 
with cash interest payments commencing in March 2000 at a fixed rate of 15% 
per annum. The Senior Notes have a maturity date of September 2002 and bear 
interest at a fixed rate of 12% per annum. 

                                      17
<PAGE>

                                CAPITALIZATION 

   The following table sets forth the total capitalization of the Company as 
of September 27, 1997 and the pro forma capitalization as adjusted to give 
effect to the Refinancing Plan (assuming consummation of the redemption of 
the Senior Notes and the Zero Coupon Notes), including the sale by the 
Company of the New Senior Subordinated Notes offered hereby. See "Use of 
Proceeds." This table should be read in conjunction with the consolidated 
financial statements of the Company, including the notes thereto, appearing 
elsewhere in this Prospectus. 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                  SEPTEMBER 27, 1997 
                                                              -------------------------- 
                                                                 ACTUAL   AS ADJUSTED(1) 
                                                              ----------  -------------- 
                                                                (DOLLARS IN THOUSANDS) 
<S>                                                           <C>         <C>
Cash and cash equivalents ........................              $    218     $  16,742
                                                                ========     =========== 
Current debt: 
  Current portion of term loan facility  .........              $    660     $      -- 
  Current portion of New Credit Agreement  .......                    --         5,800 
  Current portion of capital lease obligations  ..                 1,510         1,510 
                                                                --------     ----------- 
    Total current debt ...........................                 2,170         7,310 
                                                                --------     ----------- 
Long-term debt: 
  Revolving credit facility ......................                16,000            -- 
  Term loan facility .............................                64,815            -- 
  New Credit Agreement-revolving credit facility                      --            -- 
  New Credit Agreement-term loan facility  .......                    --       124,200 
  Senior Notes(2) ................................                89,893            -- 
  Zero Coupon Notes(3) ...........................                89,094            -- 
  New Senior Subordinated Notes...................                    --        75,000 
  Capital lease obligations ......................                   677           677 
                                                                --------     ----------- 
    Total long-term debt .........................               260,479       199,877 
                                                                --------     ----------- 
Stockholders' equity (deficiency): 
  Common Stock and additional paid-in capital  ...                24,665       116,665 
  Preferred Stock.................................                    --            -- 
  Accumulated deficit ............................               (98,226)     (121,824) 
                                                              ----------  -------------- 
    Total stockholders' equity (deficiency)  .....               (73,561)       (5,159) 
                                                              ----------  -------------- 
Total capitalization .............................              $189,088     $ 202,028 
                                                              ==========  ============== 
</TABLE>

- ------------ 
(1)    Gives pro forma effect to the Refinancing Plan, including the 
       consummation of the Offering the Common Stock Offering and the 
       application of the net proceeds therefrom as set forth under "Use of 
       Proceeds," as if all such transactions had occurred at September 27, 
       1997. 
(2)    Pursuant to the terms of the Indenture relating to the Senior Notes, 
       the Company has the right to call the Senior Notes at a price equal to 
       104.5% of the principal amount thereof (a premium of approximately $4.0 
       million). Concurrently with closing of the Offering and the Common 
       Stock Offering, the Company will call the Senior Notes (the "Senior 
       Notes Redemption") and currently expects that the Senior Notes 
       Redemption will occur approximately 30 days after the closing of the 
       Offering. 
(3)    Pursuant to the terms of the Indenture relating to the Zero Coupon 
       Notes, the Company has the right to call the Zero Coupon Notes at a 
       price equal to 107.5% of the accreted value thereof (a premium of 
       approximately $7.0 million). Concurrently with the closing of the 
       Offering and the Common Stock Offering, the Company will call the Zero 
       Coupon Notes (the "Zero Coupon Notes Redemption") and currently expects 
       that the Zero Coupon Notes Redemption will occur approximately 30 days 
       after the closing of the Offering. 

                               18           
<PAGE>

                SELECTED CONSOLIDATED HISTORICAL AND PRO FORMA 
                         FINANCIAL AND OPERATING DATA 
     (In thousands, except per share amounts, percentages and store data) 

   The data set forth below as of December 31, 1992 and for the period 
September 26, 1992 through December 31, 1992, and as of January 1, 1994, 
December 31, 1994, December 30, 1995, December 28, 1996 and for each of the 
52 week periods then ended was derived from the consolidated financial 
statements of the Company. As used below, the term "Predecessor" refers to 
the operations of Duane Reade prior to the acquisition thereof by Bain 
Capital in September 1992. The basis of accounting as of September 25, 1992 
and for the period January 1, 1992 through September 25, 1992 reflects the 
historical basis of accounting of the Predecessor prior to the acquisition 
thereof by Bain Capital and such data was derived from the consolidated 
financial statements of the Predecessor. The data presented below for the 39 
weeks ended September 28, 1996 and September 27, 1997 and as of September 27, 
1997 have been derived from the Company's unaudited consolidated financial 
statements and, in the opinion of the Company's management, reflect and 
include all adjustments (consisting only of normal recurring adjustments) 
necessary for a fair presentation of such results. The results of operations 
for the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997 are not necessarily indicative of 
the results that may be expected for a full fiscal year. This information 
should be read in conjunction with the historical consolidated financial 
statements of the Company, including the notes thereto, included elsewhere in 
this Prospectus. 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                         PREDECESSOR 
                                        ------------- 
                                            PERIOD 
                                          JANUARY 1 

                                              TO 
                                        SEPTEMBER 25, 
                                             1992 
<S>                                        <C>
STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS DATA: 
Net sales .............................    $167,634 
Cost of sales .........................     124,637 
                                        ------------- 
Gross profit ..........................      42,997 
Selling, general and administrative 
 expenses .............................      22,636 
Amortization ..........................           0 
Depreciation ..........................         723 
Store pre-opening expenses ............          -- 
Nonrecurring charges (1) ..............          -- 
                                        ------------- 
Operating income (loss) ...............      19,638 
Net interest expense ..................       3,298 
                                        ------------- 
Income (loss) before income tax  ......      16,340 
Provision for taxes ...................         620 
                                        ------------- 
Net income (loss) .....................    $ 15,720 
                                        ============= 
Earnings (loss) per common share  ..... 
Ratio of earnings to fixed charges 
 (2)...................................        3.41 
Pro forma net interest expense......... 
Pro forma loss before extraordinary 
 items (3)............................. 
Pro forma loss before extraordinary 
 items per common share(3)............. 
Pro forma weighted average common 
 shares outstanding ................... 
Pro forma ratio of earnings to fixed 
 charges (4) .......................... 
OPERATING AND OTHER DATA: 
EBITDA (5) ............................    $ 20,380 
EBITDA as a percentage of sales  ......        12.2% 
Number of stores at end of period  ....          37 
Same store sales growth (6) ...........          -- 
Pharmacy same store sales 
 growth (6)(8)......................... 
Average store size (square feet)  .....          -- 
Sales per square foot .................          -- 
Pharmacy sales as a % of net sales 
 (8)...................................          -- 
Third-party sales as a % of pharmacy 
 sales (9) ............................ 
Capital expenditures ..................    $    114 
BALANCE SHEET DATA (AT END OF PERIOD): 
Working capital .......................    $ 13,943 
Total assets ..........................     264,355 
Total debt and capital lease 
 obligations ..........................     221,471 
Stockholders' equity (deficiency)  ....     (35,622) 
</TABLE>



<PAGE>

                    (RESTUBBED TABLE CONTINUED FROM ABOVE) 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                              COMPANY 
                                        --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
                                           PERIOD                                                      39 WEEKS ENDED 
                                        SEPTEMBER 26                                                --------------------
                                             TO                      FISCAL YEAR 
                                        DECEMBER 31,  ---------------------------------------  SEPTEMBER 28,   SEPTEMBER 27,
                                            1992        1993       1994      1995       1996       1996            1997 
<S>                                     <C>          <C>        <C>       <C>        <C>       <C>            <C>
STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS DATA: 
Net sales .............................    $60,785    $241,474   $281,103  $336,922   $381,466    $281,093       $313,796 
Cost of sales .........................     45,560     181,566    209,678   259,827    288,505     215,797        236,413 
                                        ------------ ---------  --------- ---------  --------- -------------  ------------- 
Gross profit ..........................     15,225      59,908     71,425    77,095     92,961      65,296         77,383 
Selling, general and administrative 
 expenses .............................      8,019      29,666     39,741    50,326     59,048      42,499         48,218 
Amortization ..........................      7,344      27,432     18,238    11,579     16,217       8,514          3,826 
Depreciation ..........................        166         729      1,184     1,929      3,015       2,295          2,584 
Store pre-opening expenses ............         --         300      1,220     1,095        139         139            600 
Nonrecurring charges (1) ..............         --          --         --        --         --          --         10,887 
                                        ------------ ---------  --------- ---------  --------- -------------  ------------- 
Operating income (loss) ...............       (304)      1,781     11,042    12,166     14,542      11,849         11,268 
Net interest expense ..................      6,989      26,199     27,480    30,224     32,396      24,334         25,433 
                                        ------------ ---------  --------- ---------  --------- -------------  ------------- 
Income (loss) before income tax  ......     (7,293)    (24,418)   (16,438)  (18,058)   (17,854)    (12,485)       (14,165) 
Provision for taxes ...................         --          --         --        --         --          --             -- 
                                        ------------ ---------  --------- ---------  --------- -------------  ------------- 
Net income (loss) .....................    $(7,293)   $(24,418)  $(16,438) $(18,058)  $(17,854)   $(12,485)      $(14,165) 
                                        ============ =========  ========= =========  ========= =============  ============= 
Earnings (loss) per common share  .....    $  (.09)   $   (.29)  $   (.19) $   (.21)  $   (.21)   $   (.15)      $   (.17) 
                                        ============ =========  ========= =========  ========= =============  ============= 
Ratio of earnings to fixed charges 
 (2)...................................         --          --         --        --         --          --             -- 
Pro forma net interest expense.........                                               $ 19,806                   $ 14,773 
Pro forma loss before extraordinary 
 items (3).............................                                                 (5,264)                    (3,505) 
Pro forma loss before extraordinary 
 items per common share(3)............. 
Pro forma weighted average common 
 shares outstanding ...................                                                                              
Pro forma ratio of earnings to fixed 
 charges (4) ..........................                                                     --                       --
OPERATING AND OTHER DATA:  
EBITDA (5) ............................   $  7,206    $ 29,975   $ 31,188  $ 27,443   $ 35,300    $ 23,814       $ 29,747 
EBITDA as a percentage of sales  ......       11.9%       12.4%      11.1%      8.2%       9.3%        8.5%           9.5% 
Number of stores at end of period  ....         37          40         51        59         60          60             65 
Same store sales growth (6) ...........        2.4%(7)     3.3%       1.6%     (3.5)%      8.3%        7.8%           7.9% 
Pharmacy same store sales 
 growth (6)(8).........................         --          --       14.2%      7.0%      25.5%       25.1%          25.4% 
Average store size (square feet)  .....    6,166(7)      6,172      6,596     6,712      6,733       6,733          6,832 
Sales per square foot .................   $1,001(7)   $  1,022   $    970  $    898   $    956    $    696       $    707 
Pharmacy sales as a % of net sales 
 (8)...................................         --        16.6%      17.6%     19.0%      21.8%       21.5%          24.8% 
Third-party sales as a % of pharmacy 
 sales (9) ............................                              45.7%     58.2%      64.4%       63.3%          72.9% 
Capital expenditures ..................   $    960    $  1,838   $  9,947  $  6,868   $  1,247    $    913       $  4,931 
BALANCE SHEET DATA (AT END OF PERIOD): 
Working capital .......................   $ 13,722    $ 14,285   $ 20,152  $ 13,699   $  9,917    $  8,220       $ 29,849 
Total assets ..........................    260,674     234,430    229,699   235,860    222,476     226,060        239,520 
Total debt and capital lease 
 obligations ..........................    221,815     223,422    228,764   244,104    245,657     247,570        262,649 
Stockholders' equity (deficiency)  ....     16,236      (6,757)   (23,170)  (41,196)   (59,396)    (54,027)       (73,561) 
</TABLE>

                               19           
<PAGE>
- ------------ 
(1)   During the first quarter of fiscal 1997, the Company considered a 
      public offering of its common stock and took certain steps in 
      connection with these plans. Such plans were abandoned upon 
      consummation of the Recapitalization discussed in Note 10 of the Notes 
      to Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) for the 39 weeks ended 
      September 27, 1997. Costs and expenses incurred in connection with the 
      abandoned public offering, the Recapitalization and the exchange offers 
      referred to in Note 10 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial 
      Statements (Unaudited) aggregated approximately $10.9 million. 

(2)   The ratio of earnings to fixed charges is computed by dividing (i) 
      income (loss) before interest expense, other fixed charges and 
      extraordinary items by (ii) fixed charges, including capitalized 
      interest, interest expense, amortization of deferred financing costs 
      and the portion of rent expense which represents interest (assumed to
      be one-third). For the period September 26, 1992 to December 31, 1992,
      fiscal years 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996 and the 39 weeks ended September 28,
      1996 and September 27, 1997, earnings were insufficient to cover fixed 
      charges by $7,293, $24,418, $16,630, $18,905, $17,854, $12,485, and
      $14,165, respectively. 

(3)   Gives pro forma effect to (i) the Refinancing Plan, including the 
      consummation of the Offering and the Common Stock Offering and the 
      application of the net proceeds therefrom as set forth under "Use of 
      Proceeds" and (ii) a provision of       for compensation expense 
      related to previously issued stock options, as if all such transactions 
      had occurred at December 31, 1995. Does not reflect an extraordinary 
      loss of $23.9 million for fiscal year 1996 relating to the redemption of
      the Senior Notes and the Zero Coupon Notes and the write-off of the
      unamortized deferred financing fees. See "Use of Proceeds" and 
      "Capitalization." 

(4)   On a pro forma basis, after giving effect for the Offering, earnings 
      for fiscal year 1996 and the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997 would 
      have been insufficient to cover fixed charges by $5,264 and $3,505, 
      respectively. Included in the loss before extraordinary items for 
      the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997 was a nonrecurring charge of 
      $10,887 as disclosed in Note 11 to the Company's consolidated financial
      statements. If such charge had not been incurred, earnings would have 
      been insufficient to cover fixed charges by $3,278. On a pro forma basis,
      after giving effect to the Offering, the ratio of earnings to fixed 
      charges would have been 1.4.

(5)   As used herein, "EBITDA" means net income (loss) plus nonrecurring 
      charges, interest, income taxes, depreciation, amortization and other 
      non-cash items (primarily deferred rents). Management believes that 
      EBITDA, as presented, represents a useful measure of assessing the 
      performance of the Company's ongoing operating activities as it 
      reflects the earnings trends of the Company without the impact of 
      certain non-cash charges. Targets and positive trends in EBITDA are 
      used as the performance measure for determining management's bonus 
      compensation; EBITDA is also utilized by the Company's creditors in 
      assessing debt covenant compliance. The Company understands that, while 
      EBITDA is frequently used by security analysts in the evaluation of 
      companies, it is not necessarily comparable to other similarly titled 
      captions of other companies due to potential inconsistencies in the 
      method of calculation. EBITDA is not intended as an alternative to cash 
      flow from operating activities as a measure of liquidity, nor an 
      alternative to net income as an indicator of the Company's operating 
      performance nor any other measure of performance in conformity with 
      GAAP. 

      A reconciliation of net income (loss) to EBITDA for each period 
      included above is set forth below: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                      
                         
                                      
                          JAN. 1     SEPT. 26                  FISCAL YEAR                         39 WEEKS ENDED
   ----------               TO          TO    -----------------------------------------------  ---------------------- 
                        SEPT. 25,    DEC. 31,                                                    SEPT. 28,    SEPT. 27, 
                           1992        1992         1993         1994       1995        1996         1996        1997 
<S>                    <C>         <C>         <C>         <C>          <C>         <C>          <C>         <C>
Net income (loss) ....   $15,720     $(7,293)    $(24,418)   $(16,438)    $(18,058)   $(17,854)    $(12,485)   $(14,165) 
Net interest expense       3,298       6,989       26,199      27,480       30,224      32,396       24,334      25,433 
Amortization .........         0       7,344       27,432      18,238       11,579      16,217        8,514       3,826 
Depreciation .........       723         166          729       1,184        1,929       3,015        2,295       2,584 
Nonrecurring charges          --          --           --          --           --          --           --      10,887 
Other non-cash items         639          --           33         724        1,769       1,526        1,156       1,182 
                       ----------- ----------  ----------- -----------  ----------- -----------  ----------- ----------- 
EBITDA ...............   $20,380     $ 7,206     $ 29,975    $ 31,188     $ 27,443    $ 35,300     $ 23,814    $ 29,747 
                       =========== ==========  =========== ===========  =========== ===========  =========== =========== 
</TABLE>

(6)    Same store sales figures include stores that have been in operation for 
       at least 13 months. 
(7)    For the year ended December 31, 1992. 
(8)    Prior to 1993, the Company did not separately track pharmacy sales. 
(9)    Prior to fiscal year 1994, the Company's pharmacy system did not 
       separately track third-party sales. 

                               20           
<PAGE>
                   MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF 
                FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS 

   The following should be read in connection with the consolidated financial 
statements of the Company and the notes thereto included elsewhere in this 
Prospectus. 

GENERAL 

   The Company generates revenues primarily through sales of OTC drugs and 
prescription pharmaceutical products, health and beauty aids, food and 
beverage items, tobacco products, cosmetics, housewares, hosiery, greeting 
cards, photofinishing, photo supplies and seasonal merchandise. Health and 
beauty products, including OTC drugs, represent the largest of the Company's 
product categories. The Company's primary costs and expenses consist of (i) 
inventory costs, (ii) labor expenses and (iii) occupancy costs. 

   In 1994 and 1995, the Company experienced rapid expansion, growing from 40 
stores to 59 stores. However, as a result of liquidity constraints and the 
need for improved inventory controls, the Company was forced to suspend its 
store expansion program in late 1995. In early 1996, a strengthened 
management team led by Anthony Cuti, the Company's new Chairman and Chief 
Executive Officer, took several measures to improve operations such as 
decreasing out-of-stock occurrences, creating a loss prevention function to 
control inventory shrink and continuing to invest in MIS. 

   In 1997, the Company resumed its store expansion program, opening seven 
stores in 1997. Generally a new Duane Reade store requires an investment of 
approximately $1.1 million in capital expenditures and working capital. Since 
1993, all of the Company's new stores have become profitable on an operating 
basis within the first full year of operation. Over the next two years, the 
Company plans to open approximately 30 to 40 stores, primarily in Manhattan. 

   Over the past two years, Third-Party Plans, including managed care 
providers and insurance companies, have comprised an increasing percentage of 
the Company's pharmacy business as the health care industry shifts to managed 
care. While sales to customers covered by Third-Party Plans result in lower 
gross profit rates due to competitive pricing, the Company believes that such 
lower rates are offset by increased volume of pharmacy sales and the 
opportunity to leverage fixed expenses. 

   The Company was founded in 1960. In 1992, Bain Capital acquired the 
Company from its founders and, in June 1997, investment funds affiliated with 
DLJMBPII acquired approximately 91.5% of the outstanding capital stock of the 
Company from Bain Capital and certain other selling securityholders. 

   The Company conducts its business exclusively through its wholly owned 
subsidiary, Daboco and Daboco's wholly owned subsidiary, DRI I. Together, 
Daboco and DRI I hold 100% of the partnership interests of DR. The Company 
has no operations of its own, and its primary asset is the common stock of 
Daboco. 

   The Company includes stores that have been in operation for at least 13 
months for purposes of calculating comparable store sales figures. 

                               21           
<PAGE>

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS 

   The following sets forth the results of operations as a percentage of 
sales for the periods indicated. 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                   39 WEEKS ENDED 
                                                         -------------------------------- 
                                     FISCAL YEAR           SEPTEMBER 28,   SEPTEMBER 27, 
                             ---------------------------- 
                               1994      1995     1996         1996             1997 
<S>                          <C>      <C>       <C>      <C>              <C>
Net sales ..................   100.0%   100.0%    100.0%       100.0%          100.0% 
Cost of sales ..............    74.6     77.1      75.6         76.8            75.3 
                             -------- --------  -------- ---------------  --------------- 
Gross profit ...............    25.4     22.9      24.4         23.2            24.7 
                             -------- --------  -------- ---------------  --------------- 
Selling, general and 
 administrative expenses  ..    14.1     14.9      15.5         15.1            15.4 
Amortization ...............     6.5      3.5       4.3          3.0             1.2 
Depreciation ...............     0.4      0.6       0.8          0.8             0.8 
Store pre-opening expenses       0.4      0.3       0.0          0.1             0.2 
Nonrecurring charges .......     --       --        --           --              3.5 
                             -------- --------  -------- ---------------  --------------- 
Operating income ...........     4.0      3.6       3.8          4.2             3.6 
Net interest expense .......     9.8      9.0       8.5          8.6             8.1 
                             -------- --------  -------- ---------------  --------------- 
Net loss ...................    (5.8)%   (5.4)%    (4.7)%       (4.4)%          (4.5)% 
                             ======== ========  ======== ===============  =============== 
</TABLE>

 39 WEEKS ENDED SEPTEMBER 27, 1997 COMPARED TO 39 WEEKS ENDED SEPTEMBER 28, 
1996 

   Net sales in the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997 were $313.8 million, an 
increase of 11.6% over net sales of $281.1 million for the 39 weeks ended 
September 28, 1996. The increase was attributable to increased comparable 
store sales of 7.9% and the inclusion of one new store opened during the 39 
weeks ended September 28, 1996 for the entire 1997 period and five new stores 
opened in 1997. 

   Cost of sales as a percentage of net sales decreased to 75.3% for the 39 
weeks ended September 27, 1997 from 76.8% for the 39 weeks ended September 
28, 1996, resulting in an increase in gross profit margin to 24.7% for the 
1997 period from 23.2% during the same period in 1996. The increase in gross 
margin resulted from a number of factors including (i) increased contribution 
from the sale of higher margin merchandise such as cosmetics, vitamins, 
general merchandise, generic drugs and private label products, (ii) higher 
promotional allowances received from vendors and (iii) lower occupancy costs. 

   Selling, general and administrative expenses represented 15.4% and 15.1% 
of net sales in the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997 and September 28, 1996, 
respectively. The percentage increase in 1997 compared to 1996 resulted 
principally from higher selling and administrative expenses including (i) 
higher store salaries as a percentage of net sales (principally from new 
stores) and (ii) operating costs related to the Company's management 
information systems department, partially offset by elimination of management 
fees as a result of the Recapitalization. 

   Amortization of goodwill and other intangibles in the 39 weeks ended 
September 27, 1997 and September 28, 1996 was $3.8 million and $8.5 million, 
respectively. The decrease in amortization is principally a result of the 
completion in 1996 of amortization of covenants not to compete. 

   Depreciation was $2.6 million and $2.3 million in the 39 weeks ended 
September 27, 1997 and September 28, 1996, respectively. 

   Store pre-opening expenses increased from $0.1 million in the 39 weeks 
ended September 28, 1996 to $0.6 million in the 39 weeks ended September 27, 
1997 due to the opening of five new store locations in 1997 compared to one 
in 1996. 

   Net interest expense was $25.4 million in the 39 weeks ended September 27, 
1997 compared to $24.3 million in the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996. The 
increase in interest expense was principally due to (i) higher non-cash 
accretion of the Zero Coupon Notes, (ii) interest related to financing of 
third party accounts receivable and (iii) increased interest on borrowings 
under the revolving credit facility, 

                               22           
<PAGE>

partially offset by (a) reduced interest on term loan borrowings caused by 
the decrease in average balance from $72.8 million for the 39 weeks ended 
September 28, 1996 to $66.5 million for the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997 
and a decrease in the average interest rate from 9.1% for the 39 weeks ended 
September 28, 1996 to 8.8% for the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997 and (b) 
reduced interest on capital lease obligations. 

   The net loss for the Company increased by $1.7 million from $12.5 million 
in the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996 to $14.2 million in the 39 weeks 
ended September 27, 1997 primarily as a result of nonrecurring charges (see 
Note 11 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)) and 
increases in selling, general and administrative expenses and interest 
expense, partially offset by increased sales and gross profit margin and 
lower amortization of intangibles. The Company's EBITDA improved by $5.9 
million or 24.9% to $29.7 million in the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997 
compared to $23.8 million in the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996. EBITDA as 
a percentage of sales increased to 9.5% in the 39 weeks ended September 27, 
1997 from 8.5% in the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996. 

 FISCAL 1996 COMPARED TO FISCAL 1995 

   Net sales in 1996 were $381.5 million, an increase of 13.2% over 1995 net 
sales of $336.9 million. The increase was due to increased comparable store 
sales of 8.3% and the inclusion of eight stores opened during 1995 for the 
entire 1996 period and of one store opened in 1996. The increase in 
comparable store sales was primarily attributable to increased pharmacy 
sales, which increased to 21.8% of total sales in 1996 compared to 19.0% of 
total sales in 1995. 

   Cost of sales as a percentage of net sales decreased to 75.6% for 1996 
from 77.1% for 1995, resulting in an increase in gross profit margin to 24.4% 
for 1996 from 22.9% for 1995. The increase in gross margin resulted from a 
number of factors including (i) lower inventory shrink losses, (ii) increased 
contributions from the sale of generic drugs and private label products, 
(iii) less promotional activity and (iv) lower rent-to-sales ratios in stores 
opened during 1995 and 1994. The increases were partially offset by lower 
gross margins resulting from sales to customers covered by Third-Party Plans. 

   Selling, general and administrative expenses were $59.0 million or 15.5% 
of net sales and $50.3 million or 14.9% of net sales in 1996 and 1995, 
respectively. The percentage increase in 1996 compared to 1995 resulted 
principally from higher administrative expenses, including (i) operating 
costs related to the Company's management information systems department, 
(ii) administrative salaries and one time executive search and severance 
expenses and (iii) professional and consulting fees principally for the 
warehouse and loss prevention areas. The increases were partially offset by 
lower store operating expenses as a percentage of net sales primarily due to 
a higher volume of pharmacy sales, which allows the Company to leverage other 
fixed store operating expenses. 

   Amortization of goodwill and other intangibles in 1995 and 1996 was $11.6 
million and $16.2 million, respectively. The increase in amortization was 
caused by an increase in the amortization of covenants not to compete from 
$8.1 million in 1995 to $11.4 million in 1996 and amortization of systems 
installation and integration costs in an amount of $1.4 million in 1996. The 
increase in amortization of covenants not to compete was caused by the 
write-off of the balance of such intangibles in 1996 resulting from the 
termination of the related agreements. Amortization of systems installation 
and integration costs began in 1996. 

   The increase in depreciation from $1.9 million in 1995 to $3.0 million in 
1996 resulted principally from (i) depreciation of data processing equipment 
which began in 1996 and (ii) a full year's depreciation in 1996 of assets of 
eight stores that were opened in 1995. 

   Store pre-opening expenses decreased from $1.1 million in 1995 to $0.1 
million in 1996 due to the opening of one new store location in 1996 compared 
to eight in 1995. 

   Net interest expense increased 7.2% to $32.4 million in 1996 from $30.2 
million in 1995. The increase in interest expense was principally due to the 
higher non-cash accretion of the Zero Coupon Notes offset, in part, by 
reduced interest on term loan borrowings resulting from the decrease in 
average outstanding balance from $75.1 million to $72.0 million and a 
decrease in the average interest rate from 9.5% to 9.1%. 

                               23           
<PAGE>

   The net loss for the Company decreased by $0.2 million or 1.1% from $18.1 
million in 1995 to $17.9 million in 1996 primarily as a result of increased 
sales and gross profit margin offset, in part, by increases in selling, 
general and administrative expenses and amortization of intangibles. The 
Company's EBITDA increased by $7.9 million or 28.6% to $35.3 million in 1996 
compared to $27.4 million in 1995. EBITDA as a percentage of sales increased 
to 9.3% in 1996 from 8.1% in 1995. 

 FISCAL 1995 COMPARED TO FISCAL 1994 

   Net sales in 1995 were $336.9 million, an increase of 19.9% over 1994 net 
sales of $281.1 million. The increase was primarily due to the inclusion of 
11 new stores opened during 1994 for the entire 1995 period and of eight 
stores opened during 1995, partially offset by a decrease in comparable store 
sales of 3.5%. 

   Cost of sales as a percentage of net sales increased to 77.1% for 1995 
from 74.6% for 1994. The increase in cost of sales resulted from a number of 
factors, including: (i) increased inventory losses arising from inventory 
shrink and from difficulties encountered in implementing new warehousing and 
merchandising systems, (ii) delays in implementation of normal price 
increases, (iii) increased promotional activity, primarily in the last 
quarter of 1995, and (iv) increased occupancy expense as a percentage of 
sales in 1995 as compared with 1994. These changes were partially offset by a 
decline in amortization of certain acquisition costs, which amortization was 
completed in the third quarter of 1994. 

   Selling, general and administrative expenses for 1995 increased to $50.3 
million from $39.7 million for 1994, representing 14.9% and 14.1% of sales in 
1995 and 1994, respectively. Such percentage increase in 1995 resulted 
principally from additional costs from operating new stores and the 
implementation of new MIS. 

   Amortization of goodwill and other intangibles decreased from $18.2 
million in 1994 to $11.6 million in 1995. This decrease was primarily 
attributable to a decrease in amortization of covenants not to compete from 
$13.0 million in 1994 to $8.1 million in 1995. The decrease in amortization 
of covenants not to compete in 1995 as compared to 1994 is a result of the 
double declining balance method of amortization for such intangibles. 
Amortization of customer files in connection with the acquisition of the 
Company by Bain Capital in September 1992, which amounted to $1.7 million in 
1994, was completed in the third quarter of 1994. 

   Depreciation charges in 1995 and 1994 were $1.9 million and $1.2 million, 
respectively. The increase in 1995 resulted principally from (i) depreciation 
in 1995 of assets of eight new store locations opened and (ii) a full year's 
depreciation in 1995 of assets of 11 store locations that were opened in 1994 
as compared to one-half year's depreciation of such assets in 1994. 

   Store pre-opening expenses of $1.1 million and $1.2 million in 1995 and 
1994, respectively, relate principally to eight new store locations opened in 
1995 and 11 new store locations opened in 1994. 

   Net interest expense increased from $27.5 million in 1994 to $30.2 million 
in 1995. This increase was principally due to an increase in the non-cash 
accretion of the Zero Coupon Notes of $1.3 million and higher interest on 
term loan borrowings resulting from a higher average interest rate of 9.5% 
for 1995 as compared to 7.8% for 1994. 

   The net loss for the Company increased by $1.6 million or 9.8% from $16.4 
million in 1994 to $18.1 million in 1995 primarily as a result of a decrease 
in gross profit and an increase in selling, general and administrative 
expenses offset, in part, by a decrease in amortization expense. The 
Company's EBITDA decreased by $3.7 million or 12.0% to $27.4 million in 1995 
compared to $31.2 million in 1994. EBITDA as a percentage of sales declined 
to 8.1% in 1995 from 11.1% in 1994. 

LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES 

   On September 30, 1997, the Company entered into the Existing Credit 
Agreement, which provides for, among other things, $65.5 million of term 
loans and up to $30.0 million of revolving loans. As of October 31, 1997, 
outstanding balances thereunder totaled $91.5 million. The Company utilizes 
cash flow from operations, together with borrowings under the revolving 
portion of the Existing Credit Agreement, to fund working capital needs, 
investing activities (consisting primarily of capital expenditures) and 

                               24           
<PAGE>

financing activities (normal debt service requirements, interest payments and 
repayment of term and revolving loans outstanding). Concurrently with the 
consummation of the Refinancing Plan, the Company expects to refinance and 
replace the Existing Credit Agreement with the New Credit Agreement. 

   Working capital was $9.9 million and $13.7 million as of December 28, 1996 
and December 30, 1995, respectively, and $29.8 million on September 27, 1997. 
The Company's capital requirements primarily result from opening and stocking 
new stores and from the continuing development of new MIS. The Company's 
ability to open stores in 1996 was limited to a certain degree by liquidity 
considerations. The Company believes that there are significant opportunities 
to open additional stores, and currently plans to open 30 to 40 stores in the 
next two years. The Company expects to spend approximately $16 million in 
1998 on capital expenditures primarily for new and replacement stores. 
Working capital is also required to support inventory for the Company's 
existing stores. Historically, the Company has been able to lease its store 
locations. 

   The net proceeds received by the Company from the Offering, together with 
the net proceeds received by the Company from the Common Stock Offering and 
borrowings under the New Credit Agreement, will be used to complete the 
Refinancing Plan. See "Use of Proceeds." The Refinancing Plan is designed to 
enhance the Company's financial flexibility and enable it to pursue growth 
opportunities and implement capital improvements. The Company expects that 
the Refinancing Plan will reduce the Company's overall level of indebtedness, 
simplify the Company's capital structure and provide it with access to 
additional borrowings. See "Prospectus Summary--Refinancing Plan." 

   Following the implementation of the Refinancing Plan, the Company believes 
that, based on current levels of operations and anticipated growth, cash flow 
from operations, together with other available sources of funds, including 
borrowings under the New Credit Agreement, will be adequate for the 
foreseeable future to make required payments of principal and interest on the 
Company's indebtedness (including the New Senior Subordinated Notes), to fund 
anticipated capital expenditures and working capital requirements and to 
comply with the terms of its debt agreements. The ability of the Company to 
meet its debt service obligations and reduce its total debt will be dependent 
upon the future performance of the Company and its subsidiaries which, in 
turn, will be subject to general economic, financial, business, competitive, 
legislative, regulatory and other conditions, certain of which are beyond the 
Company's control. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Company's 
operating results, cash flow and capital resources will be sufficient for 
payment of its indebtedness in the future. The Company expects that 
substantially all of its borrowings under the New Credit Agreement will bear 
interest at floating rates; therefore, the Company's financial condition will 
be affected by the changes in prevailing interest rates. The Company expects 
to enter into interest rate protection agreements to minimize the impact from 
a rise in interest rates. See "Risk Factors--Risks Associated with 
Substantial Indebtedness" and "Description of Certain Indebtedness." 

TAX BENEFITS FROM NET OPERATING LOSSES 

   At September 27, 1997, the Company had net operating loss carryforwards 
("NOLs") of approximately $71 million, which are due to expire in the years 
2007 through 2012. These NOLs may be used to offset future taxable income 
through 2012 and thereby reduce or eliminate the Company's federal income 
taxes otherwise payable. The Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the 
"Code"), imposes significant limitations on the utilization of NOLs in the 
event of an "ownership change," as defined in section 382 of the Code (the 
"Section 382 Limitation"). The Section 382 Limitation is an annual limitation 
on the amount of pre-ownership change NOLs that a corporation may use to 
offset its post-ownership change income. The Section 382 Limitation is 
calculated by multiplying the value of a corporation's stock immediately 
before an ownership change by the long-term tax-exempt rate (as published by 
the Internal Revenue Service). Generally, an ownership change occurs with 
respect to a corporation if the aggregate increase in the percentage of stock 
ownership (by value) of that corporation by one or more 5% shareholders 
(including certain groups of shareholders who in the aggregate own at least 
5% of that corporation's stock) exceeds 50 percentage points over a 
three-year testing period. The Recapitalization caused the Company to 
experience an ownership change. As a result, the Company currently is subject 
to an annual Section 382 Limitation of approximately $5 million on the amount 
of NOLs generated prior 

                               25           
<PAGE>

to the Recapitalization that the Company may utilize to offset future taxable 
income. In addition, the Company believes that it will generate approximately 
$42 million of NOLs in connection with the Refinancing Plan. Such NOLs will 
not be subject to the Section 382 Limitation and may be utilized to offset 
future taxable income. However, there can be no assurance that any NOLs will 
be able to be utilized by the Company to offset future taxable income or that 
such NOLs will not become subject to limitation due to future ownership 
changes. The Company does not believe that the Common Stock Offering will 
result in an ownership change. 

YEAR 2000 COMPLIANCE 

   The Company has several computer software systems which will require 
modification or upgrading to accomodate the year 2000 and thereafter. The 
Company believes that all systems can be changed by the end of 1999 and does 
not expect the cost of the changes to be material to the Company's financial 
condition or results of operations. 

SEASONALITY 

   In general, sales of drugstore items such as prescription drugs, OTC drugs 
and health and beauty care products exhibit limited seasonality in the 
aggregate, but do vary by product category. Quarterly results are primarily 
affected by the timing of new store openings and the sale of seasonal 
products. In view of the Company's recent expansion of seasonal 
merchandising, the Company expects slightly greater revenue sensitivity 
relating to seasonality in the future. 

INFLATION 

   The Company believes that inflation has not had a material impact on 
results of operations for the Company during the three years ended December 
28, 1996 and the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997. 

RECENTLY ISSUED ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS 

   In February 1997, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued SFAS No. 
128, "Earnings per Share," which requires the presentation of basic and 
diluted earnings per share in a company's financial statements for reporting 
periods ending subsequent to December 15, 1997. Early adoption of SFAS No. 
128 is not permitted. The adoption of SFAS No. 128 is not expected to have a 
material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements. 

   As of September 27, 1997, there were outstanding options to purchase an 
aggregate of 13,558,210.7 shares of Common Stock, which shares are not 
included in the calculation of earnings per share for the 39 weeks ended 
September 27, 1997 and would not be included in such calculation under the 
guidance prescribed by SFAS No. 128 because of the anti-dilutive nature of 
these instruments. 

                               26           
<PAGE>

BUSINESS 

THE DRUGSTORE INDUSTRY 

   The U.S. drugstore industry generated approximately $91 billion of retail 
sales in 1996 according to Drug Store News. The industry has experienced 
strong and steady growth, having expanded at a 6.2% compound annual rate over 
the ten years through 1996. The industry is expected to continue to grow as 
the aging of the population drives long-term demand growth for prescription 
drugs. The Company believes that prescription drug use generally rises with 
age. In addition to these positive demographic trends, the shift to 
increasing use of Third-Party Plans is increasing overall prescription drug 
usage. Third-Party Plans tend to favor lower cost drug therapies over 
alternative treatment methods such as surgery or in-hospital treatment. 
Additionally, by reducing the out-of-pocket expense to the consumer and by 
improving patients' compliance for prescription drug use, Third-Party Plans 
have helped increase unit growth in prescription drugs. 

   In recent years, the drugstore industry has experienced significant 
consolidation, as national chains have gained market share from independent 
operators. According to Drug Store News, the number of drugstores has fallen 
from approximately 54,000 in 1990 to approximately 40,000 in 1996. The share 
of industry sales represented by independent drugstores (i.e., operators of 
less than four stores) has fallen from 35% in 1991 to 24% in 1996. Over the 
last ten years, sales at chain drugstores such as Duane Reade have grown at a 
compound annual rate of 8.4% compared to the industry average of 6.2%. 

   The increased role of Third-Party Plans has contributed significantly to 
industry consolidation. According to IMS America, pharmacy business 
attributable to Third-Party Plans as a percentage of total pharmacy sales has 
risen to 67% in 1996 from 45% in 1985. Third-Party Plans typically require 
drugstores to enter into contracts with third party payors (such as insurance 
plans, HMOs, preferred-provider organizations ("PPOs") and other managed care 
providers) to provide prescription drugs at specified rates of reimbursement 
for their membership. Although such Third-Party Plans typically result in 
lower gross margins compared to cash purchases, management believes that the 
lower gross margins are offset by the increased volume of pharmacy sales 
generated by such Third-Party Plans. Drugstore chains such as the Company, 
which have high penetration within their markets and are able to handle the 
payment processing of such Third-Party Plans, are better able to service the 
customers of the Third-Party Plans and are therefore gaining market share in 
the sale of prescription drugs from independent drugstores and small chains. 

   Third-Party Plans typically seek to form alliances with drugstore chains 
in order to benefit from the chains' multiple locations and to take advantage 
of on-line management information systems that facilitate claims processing. 
Management believes that penetration of Third-Party Plans in Manhattan has 
historically lagged behind the penetration of such Third-Party Plans in the 
rest of the United States because until 1994, neither Duane Reade nor most of 
Manhattan's independent drugstores aggressively pursued alliances with 
Third-Party Plans. The Company believes that its extensive network of 
conveniently located stores, strong local market position, pricing policies 
and reputation for high quality health care products and services provide 
Duane Reade with a competitive advantage in attracting business from 
individual customers as well as Third-Party Plans. While management believes 
that Third-Party Plans have grown significantly in Manhattan since 1994, it 
still remains relatively less penetrated than the rest of the country. The 
Company believes that as Third-Party Plans continue to penetrate the 
Manhattan market, the number of independent drugstores will decline due to 
competitive pressures. 

GENERAL 

   Duane Reade is the largest drugstore chain in New York City, with 58 of 
its 67 stores located in Manhattan's high-traffic business and residential 
districts. The Company operates almost twice as many stores in Manhattan as 
its next largest competitor. Since opening its first store in 1960, the 
Company has successfully executed a marketing and operating strategy tailored 
to the unique characteristics of New York City, the largest and most densely 
populated market in the United States. According to Drug Store News, Duane 
Reade is the leading drugstore chain in the United States in terms of sales 
per square foot, 

                               27           
<PAGE>
at $956 per square foot in 1996, which was more than two times the national 
average for drugstore chains. For the fiscal year ended December 28, 1996, 
the Company had sales of $381.5 million and EBITDA of $35.3 million, 
increases of 13.2% and 28.6%, respectively, over the 1995 fiscal year. For 
the 39 weeks ended September 27, 1997, the Company had sales of $313.8 
million and EBITDA of $29.7 million, increases of 11.6% and 24.9%, 
respectively, over the comparable 1996 period. 

   The Company enjoys strong brand name recognition in New York City, which 
it believes results from the Company's many locations in high-traffic areas 
of Manhattan and the 30 million shopping bags with the distinctive Duane 
Reade logo that the Company distributes annually. Independent surveys 
conducted in 1995 and 1996 indicated that nine out of ten people who work in 
Manhattan recognize the Duane Reade name, and seven out of ten shopped at a 
Duane Reade store in the past twelve months. The Company was also recently 
named "Regional Drug Store Chain of the Year" for 1997 by Drug Store News. 

   The Company has developed an operating strategy designed to capitalize on 
the unique characteristics of the New York City market, which include 
high-traffic volume, above industry average inventory shrink, complex 
distribution logistics and high costs of occupancy, media advertising and 
personnel. The key elements of the Company's operating strategy are its (i) 
everyday low price format and broad product offering, (ii) low cost operating 
structure supported by its high volume stores and low advertising and 
distribution costs and (iii) ability to design and operate its stores in a 
wide variety of sizes and layouts. 

   The Company believes that its everyday low price format and broad product 
offerings provide value and convenience for its customers and build customer 
loyalty. The Company's everyday low price format results in prices that the 
Company believes are, on average, approximately 10% lower than the prices 
generally offered by its competitors. 

   The Company is able to keep its operating costs relatively low due to its 
high per store sales volume, low warehouse and distribution costs and low 
advertising expenditures. The Company's high volume stores allow it to 
effectively leverage occupancy costs, payroll and other store operating 
expenses. The Company's two primary distribution facilities are located 
within five miles of all but one of its 67 stores and, combined with the 
rapid turnover of inventory in Duane Reade's stores, result in relatively low 
warehouse and distribution costs. The Company's strong brand name recognition 
in New York City and everyday low price format allow the Company to minimize 
its use of costly media and print advertising and to rely instead on 
in-window displays and other less expensive promotional activities. 

   The Company has demonstrated its ability to successfully operate stores 
using a wide variety of store configurations and sizes, which the Company 
believes is necessary to succeed in the New York City market. For example, 
the size of the Company's stores ranges from 2,600 to 12,300 square feet, and 
it operates 29 bi-level stores. The Company believes that its flexibility in 
configuring stores provides it with a competitive advantage in securing 
locations for its new stores, as many of its competitors target more 
standarized spaces for their stores, which are more difficult to find in New 
York City. In addition, the Company's management team has extensive 
experience and knowledge of the New York City real estate market, allowing it 
to aggressively pursue attractive real estate opportunities. 

   The Company was founded in 1960. In 1992, Bain Capital acquired the 
Company from its founders and, in June 1997, investment funds affiliated with 
DLJMBPII acquired approximately 91.5% of the outstanding capital stock of the 
Company from Bain Capital and certain other selling securityholders. 

   In 1994 and 1995 the Company experienced rapid expansion, growing from 40 
stores to 59 stores. However, as a result of liquidity constraints and the 
need for improved inventory controls, the Company was forced to suspend its 
store expansion program in late 1995. In early 1996, a strengthened 
management team led by Anthony Cuti, the Company's new Chairman and Chief 
Executive Officer, took several measures to improve operations, including 
improving inventory controls and decreasing out-of-stock occurrences, 
creating a loss prevention function to control inventory shrink and 
continuing to investing in MIS. In 1997, the Company resumed its store 
expansion program, opening seven stores in 1997. During Mr. Cuti's tenure at 
the Company, EBITDA has increased by 53.2% from $26.9 million for the 52 
weeks ended March 29, 1996 to $41.2 million for the 52 weeks ended September 
27, 1997. 

                               28           
<PAGE>

GROWTH STRATEGY 

   The Company believes that as a result of its successful operating history 
and market position in New York City, it is well positioned to capitalize on 
the growth opportunities in its market. The Company's strategy for continued 
growth is to (i) open additional stores in Manhattan and the surrounding 
boroughs, (ii) continue to capitalize on favorable pharmacy trends, (iii) 
make opportunistic acquisitions of independent drugstores and pharmacy files 
and (iv) continue to implement merchandising initiatives in non-pharmacy 
areas. 

   Open Additional Stores. The Company believes that the Manhattan drugstore 
market remains underpenetrated by drugstore chains, with only 45% of the 
estimated $1.3 billion in annual drugstore-related sales controlled by 
regional or national chains, compared to approximately 74% controlled by 
chains nationally. This provides significant opportunities for the Company to 
open additional stores in Manhattan as well as in the densely populated areas 
of the surrounding boroughs. Some of the Company's most successful stores 
have been opened in areas new to the Company, such as the residential areas 
of the Upper East and West sides of Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx and 
Queens. The Company believes that its long-standing presence in, and 
knowledge of, the New York City real estate market, combined with the use of 
a proprietary site selection model that considers numerous demographic and 
traffic flow variables, have allowed it to identify attractive store 
locations. Since 1993, all of the Company's new stores have become profitable 
on an operating basis within the first full year of operation. Over the next 
two years, the Company plans to open approximately 30 to 40 stores, primarily 
in Manhattan. 

   Continue to Capitalize on Favorable Pharmacy Trends. Sales of prescription 
and OTC drugs have been growing rapidly throughout the drugstore industry. 
The Company expects demographic trends, such as the aging of the U.S. 
population, and industry changes, such as growth of Third-Party Plans, to 
continue to drive increases in the prescription and OTC drug businesses. 
Since 1994, the Company has focused on increasing its pharmacy sales by 
entering into agreements to service Third-Party Plans and by upgrading the 
appearance and service level of its store pharmacies. These initiatives, 
designed to capitalize on industry trends, have resulted in the Company's 
pharmacy sales growing at a compound annual growth rate of approximately 30% 
since 1994. Although these initiatives have helped increase the average 
number of prescriptions filled by Duane Reade per store per week from 640 in 
1994 to 860 during 1997, the Company's average remains well below the 
industry chain store average of approximately 1,200, providing significant 
opportunity for continued pharmacy growth. The Company believes that 
continued pharmacy growth will increase overall customer traffic, thereby 
also benefitting its non-pharmacy sales. 

   Make Opportunistic Acquisitions of Independent Drugstores and Pharmacy 
Files. The Company believes that the growth of Third-Party Plans and the 
continued penetration of chain drugstores such as Duane Reade has put 
increasing pressure on the approximately 420 operators of independent 
drugstores in Manhattan. When appropriate, the Company considers acquiring 
small local chains or independent drugstores. The Company also pursues the 
purchase of pharmacy files of independent drugstores when such purchases are 
economically attractive to the Company. The pharmacy files of independent 
pharmacists tend to have a higher proportion of prescriptions not covered by 
Third-Party Plans, which generates incremental revenue and higher margins. 
When appropriate, the Company retains the services of the pharmacist, whose 
personal relationship with the customers generally maximizes the retention 
rate of the purchased file. In 1997, the Company acquired one independent 
drugstore and seven such pharmacy files and intends to aggressively pursue 
additional purchases. 

   Continue to Implement Merchandising Initiatives in Non-Pharmacy 
Areas. Management has recently undertaken a number of merchandising 
initiatives, including the expansion of certain high-margin categories such 
as greeting cards, cosmetics, vitamins, photofinishing and photo supplies and 
an expanded seasonal merchandising program. The Company also continues to 
focus on category management, which it believes will improve gross margins 
and increase non-pharmacy sales. For example, in 1997 the Company introduced 
one-hour photofinishing service in three of its stores and intends to 
introduce one-hour photofinishing service in approximately seven to ten 
additional stores in 1998. The Company has also increased its emphasis on the 
sale of its own private label products, which it believes provide a 
high-quality, lower priced alternative to name brand products while 
generating higher gross profit margins 

                               29           
<PAGE>

than name brand products. In addition, by the end of 1997, Duane Reade will 
have installed POS scanners in all of its stores and, by the end of the first 
quarter of 1998, will have completed its planogramming initiative in all of 
its stores. These systems and initiatives will allow the Company to better 
analyze sales trends and merchandise its stores more effectively, which the 
Company believes will ultimately increase its sales and profitability. 

COMPANY OPERATIONS 

   Merchandising. Duane Reade's overall merchandising strategy is to provide 
the broadest selection of branded and private label drugstore products 
available in Manhattan and to sell them at everyday low prices. To further 
enhance customer service and loyalty, the Company attempts to maintain a 
consistent in-stock position in all merchandise categories. In addition to 
prescription and OTC drugs, the Company offers health and beauty aids, food 
and beverage items, tobacco products, cosmetics, housewares, hosiery, 
greeting cards, photofinishing, photo supplies, seasonal merchandise and 
other products. Health and beauty care products, including OTC drugs, 
represent the largest of the Company's product categories. Duane Reade 
drugstores offer a wide variety of brand name and private label products, 
including oral, skin and hair products, bath supplies, vitamins and 
nutritional supplements, feminine hygiene products, family planning products 
and baby care products. Popular brands of health and beauty aids are given 
ample shelf space, and large sizes are offered, which the Company believes 
appeals to the value consciousness of many Manhattan consumers. Convenience 
items such as candy, snacks and seasonal goods are positioned near the check 
out registers to provide optimum convenience and stimulate impulse purchases 
for the customers while allowing the store employees to monitor those product 
categories that are particularly susceptible to inventory shrink. 

   In addition to the wide array of name brand products offered in its 
stores, the Company offers its own private label products. Private label 
products provide customers with high-quality, lower priced alternatives to 
name brand products while generating higher gross profit margins than name 
brand products. These offerings also enhance Duane Reade's reputation as a 
value-oriented store. The Company currently offers approximately 400 private 
label products. In 1996, these private label products accounted for 
approximately 4.6% of non-pharmacy sales. The Company believes that its 
strong brand image, reputation for quality and reliability in the New York 
City market, and its economies of scale in purchasing allow it to 
aggressively promote private label goods. 

   The Company has recently made efforts to increase the sales of certain 
high-margin items, such as cosmetics, greeting cards and photofinishing. In 
1996, the Company completed the remodeling of the cosmetics sections in 19 
stores, which resulted in an approximately 23% increase in cosmetic sales in 
those stores with no increase in linear footage. In the greeting cards 
category, the Company increased seasonal selection and reformatted the card 
section in many of its stores, resulting in a 26% increase in greeting card 
sales in 1996 compared to 1995. Other merchandising initiatives completed 
during 1996 include an expanded selection of seasonal merchandise, vitamins, 
nutrition products and baby accessories, particularly in stores located in 
residential areas. The Company believes there are additional opportunities to 
continue to refine and improve the merchandise mix in its stores. 

   The Company also offers same-day photofinishing services in all of its 
stores and has recently introduced one-hour photofinishing in three stores. 
In 1998, the Company expects to introduce one-hour photofinishing in seven to 
ten additional stores. Management believes that photofinishing services 
contribute significantly to sales of other merchandise categories because of 
customer traffic increases that result from the customer visiting a store 
twice, in order to drop off film and pick up the processed photos. 

   Pharmacy. The Company believes that its pharmacy business will continue to 
contribute significantly to the Company's growth. Management also believes 
that a larger and stronger pharmacy business will enhance customer loyalty 
and generate incremental customer traffic which is expected to increase sales 
of Duane Reade's wide variety of OTC drugs and other non-pharmacy 
merchandise. Duane Reade significantly grew its prescription drug sales in 
1996 as reflected by its same-store pharmacy sales increase of 25.5% during 
1996 and an increase of 25.4% for the 39 week period ended September 27, 
1997. Sales of prescription and OTC drugs represented approximately 35% of 
total sales in 1996 as compared with 33% of total sales in 1995 and 
approximately 38% of total sales for the 39 week period ended 

                               30           
<PAGE>

September 27, 1997. Although the average number of prescriptions filled by 
Duane Reade per store per week has increased from 640 in 1994 to 860 during 
1997, the Company's average remains well below the industry chain store 
average of approximately 1,200, providing significant opportunity for 
continued pharmacy growth. The Company believes continued pharmacy growth 
will also increase overall customer traffic and benefit its non-pharmacy 
sales. 

   The Company generally locates the pharmacy at the rear of the store in 
order to maximize the pharmacy customer's exposure to other categories of 
merchandise in the front of the store. Each pharmacy is staffed with a 
registered pharmacist and a drug clerk at all times to ensure quick and high 
quality service. Each store carries a complete line of both branded and 
generic prescription drugs. In 1996, the Company began a program to upgrade 
the quality of its pharmacy service. The Company believes that this 
initiative has contributed to its strong growth in pharmacy sales and should 
continue to benefit the Company as customer loyalty builds in response to 
improved service levels. 

   In addition to customer service initiatives in its pharmacy business, the 
Company has remodeled or redesigned 16 of its pharmacies since the beginning 
of 1996. This remodeling has redesigned the pharmacy counter area to allow 
pharmacists and customers to have more direct contact and provide a 
consultation and waiting area for customers. By improving the store layout 
and accessibility of the pharmacist and pharmacy area, the stores that have 
been remodeled have achieved strong growth in their pharmacy business. All 
stores opened since 1995 have the new pharmacy counter area design. The 
Company currently operates 24 such stores. The Company has also launched 
pharmacy marketing initiatives, such as home delivery and prescription-by-fax 
services, which it believes have contributed to the increased sales and 
customer loyalty of the pharmacy business. 

   The Company believes that its extensive network of conveniently located 
stores, strong local market position, pricing policies and reputation for 
high quality health care products and services provide it with a competitive 
advantage in attracting pharmacy business from individual customers as well 
as Third-Party Plans. The percentage of the Company's total prescription drug 
sales attributable to Third-Party Plans increased to approximately 64% in 
1996 from approximately 58% in 1995, and to approximately 73% for the 39 week 
period ended September 27, 1997. Although gross margins on sales to 
Third-Party Plans are generally lower than other prescription drug sales 
because of the highly competitive nature of pricing for this business and the 
purchasing power of Third-Party Plans, management believes that the lower 
gross profit margins are offset by the higher volume of pharmacy sales to 
Third-Party Plan customers allowing the Company to leverage other fixed store 
operating expenses. In addition, the Company believes that Third-Party Plans 
generate additional general merchandise sales by increasing customer traffic 
in the stores. As of September 27, 1997, the Company had contracts with over 
100 Third-Party Plans, including every major Third-Party Plan in the 
Company's market areas. 

   Another important component of the Company's pharmacy growth strategy is 
the continued acquisition of prescription files from independent pharmacies 
in market areas currently served by existing Company stores. In 1997, the 
Company purchased the prescription files of eight independent pharmacies for 
an aggregate total of $830,000, which generated approximately $7 million in 
revenues on an annualized basis. Independent pharmacists tend to have a 
higher proportion of customers that are not Third Party Plans, which provide 
the Company with incremental revenue and higher margin contribution. When 
appropriate, the Company will retain the services of the pharmacist, whose 
personal relationship with the customers generally maximizes the retention 
rate of the purchased file. Since 1995, the Company has experienced an 
estimated 80% customer retention rate with respect to prescription files 
acquired. Presently, there are approximately 420 independent pharmacies in 
Manhattan, and the Company believes that these stores will provide additional 
acquisition opportunities in the future. 

   The Company's pharmacies employ computer systems that link all of the 
Company's pharmacies and enable them to provide customers with a broad range 
of services. The Company's pharmacy computer network profiles customer 
medical and other relevant information, supplies customers with information 
concerning their drug purchases for income tax and insurance purposes and 
prepares prescription labels and receipts. The computer network also 
expedites transactions with Third-Party Plans by electronically transmitting 
prescription information directly to the Third-Party Plan and providing 
on-line adjudication, 

                               31           
<PAGE>

which confirms at the time of sale customer eligibility, prescription 
coverage and pricing and co-payment requirements and automatically bills the 
respective plan. On-line adjudication reduces losses from rejected claims and 
eliminates a portion of the Company's paperwork for billing and collection of 
receivables and costs associated therewith. 

   Store Operations. The majority of the Company's stores are located in the 
business and residential areas of Manhattan, the most densely populated area 
in the United States. The Company's operations have been tailored to handle 
high-volume customer traffic. During 1996, an average Duane Reade store 
served approximately 2,500 customers per weekday, and 700 customers during 
each of the peak lunch and commuting periods of the day. Some of the 
Company's stores may operate up to 25 registers during peak demand periods. 

   Duane Reade stores range in size from 2,600 to 12,300 square feet, with an 
average of 6,800 square feet. The Company's stores are designed to facilitate 
customer movement and to minimize inventory shrink. The Company believes that 
its wide, straight aisles and well-stocked shelves allow customers to find 
merchandise easily and allow the store's employees (managers, security 
guards, cashiers and stock clerks) to effectively monitor customer behavior. 
The Company attempts to group merchandise logically in order to enable 
customers to locate items quickly and to stimulate impulse purchases. 

   In 1996, the Company began planogramming its stores by using a 
computerized space management system to design each store's layout and 
product displays. The system seeks to maximize productivity per square foot 
of selling space, maintain consistency in merchandising and reduce inventory 
levels. To date,     stores have been designed by the system. Management 
believes that the Company's remaining stores will be planogrammed by the end 
of the first quarter of 1998. As a result, the Company believes that it has 
yet to realize the full benefits from this system. 

   The Company establishes each store's hours of operations in an attempt to 
best serve customer traffic patterns and purchase habits and to optimize 
store labor productivity. Stores in Manhattan's business districts are 
generally open five days a week. In residential and appropriate 
business/shopping districts, stores are open six or seven days a week with a 
heavy emphasis on convenient, early morning and late evening openings. In 
1997, the Company had seven stores which were open 24 hours a day, 365 days a 
year. The Company intends to continue to identify stores in which extended 
operating hours would improve customer service and convenience and contribute 
to the Company's profitability. Each store is supervised by one store manager 
and one or more assistant store managers. Stores are supplied by deliveries 
from the Company's warehouses in Queens an average of three times a week, 
allowing the stores to maintain a high in-stock position, maximize store 
selling space and minimize inventory required to be held on hand. 

   The Company attempts to mitigate inventory shrink through (i) the 
employment of full time security guards in each store, (ii) the use of a 
state-of-the-art Electronic Article Surveillance ("EAS") system that detects 
unremoved EAS tags on valuable or easily concealed merchandise and (iii) 
merchandise delivery and stocking during non-peak hours. Additionally, all 
store and warehouse employees are trained to monitor inventory shrink, and 
the Company uses outside consulting services to monitor employee behavior. 
Recently, the Company hired a full-time team of loss prevention professionals 
and established an anonymous call-in line to allow employees to report 
instances of theft. The Company also instituted ongoing audits of warehouse 
picking and receiving and an anonymous reward line for the reporting of 
theft. The Company believes that these programs will allow it to continue to 
reduce inventory shrink. 

   Purchasing and Distribution. The Company purchases approximately 82% of 
its merchandise directly from manufacturers. The Company distributes 
approximately 84% of its merchandise through the Company's warehouses and 
receives direct-to-store deliveries for approximately 16% of its purchases. 
Direct-to-store deliveries are made for pharmaceuticals, greeting cards, 
photofinishing, convenience foods and beverages. The Company purchases from 
over 1,000 vendors. The Company believes that there are ample sources of 
supply for the merchandise currently sold in its stores. The Company manages 
its purchasing through a combination of forward buying, national buying and 
vendor discount ("deal") buying in ways in which it believes maximizes its 
buying power. For example, the Company uses a computerized forecasting and 
investment program that is designed to determine optimal forward buying 

                               32           
<PAGE>

quantities before an announced or anticipated price increase has been 
implemented. By forward buying, the Company stocks up on regularly carried 
items when manufacturers temporarily reduce the cost of goods or when a price 
increase has been announced or is anticipated. 

   The Company operates two warehouses, which are located within five miles 
of all but one of its stores. The Company's primary warehouse contains 
approximately 150,000 square feet devoted to inventory. The Company believes 
that the close proximity of the warehouses to the stores allows the Company 
to supply the stores frequently, thereby minimizing inventory and maximizing 
distribution economies. The Company also owns a fleet of trucks and vans, 
which it uses for all deliveries from the warehouses to the stores. 

ADVERTISING AND PROMOTION 

   The Company regularly promotes key items at reduced retail prices during 
four-week promotional periods. Store windows and in-store signs are utilized 
to communicate savings and value to shoppers. Additionally, over 30 million 
bags with the highly recognizable Duane Reade logo are used by its customers 
each year, helping to promote the Company's name throughout New York City. 
The Company also utilizes full color circulars to announce new stores and 
heavily circulates them in local areas to attract customers. Typically, a new 
store sells one to two times its regular volume during a grand opening 
promotion, which generally lasts two to three weeks. The Company generally 
does not rely heavily on the use of print or broadcast media to promote its 
stores. Rather, because of its many high-traffic locations, the Company 
typically relies on in-window displays as its primary method of advertising. 
In 1997, the Company began using radio advertising. The radio advertising 
focuses on the Company's pharmacy business, highlighting services enhanced by 
the modern pharmacy computer system, pharmacist accessibility and enhanced 
convenience. 

PROPERTIES; LEASES 

   As of November 25, 1997, the Company is operating stores in the following 
locations: 

                 <TABLE>
                 <CAPTION>
                  LOCATION             TOTAL 
                 <S>                 <C>
                 Manhattan, NY .....     58 
                 Brooklyn, NY ......      4 
                 Bronx, NY .........      2 
                 Queens, NY ........      2 
                 Newark, NJ ........      1 
                                     --------- 
                   Total ...........     67 
                 </TABLE>
                 
   Store leases are generally for 15 year terms. The average year of 
expiration for all the Company's leases is 2006. Lease rates are generally 
subject only to increases based on inflation, real estate tax increases or 
maintenance cost increases. The following table sets forth the lease 
expiration dates of the Company's leased stores over each of the next five 
years and thereafter. Of the stores with leases expiring in the next five 
years, four have renewal options. 

                 <TABLE>                                  
                 <CAPTION>
                                       NUMBER OF 
                 YEAR               LEASES EXPIRING 
                 <S>                <C>
                 1997 ...........           0 
                 1998 ...........           3 
                 1999 ...........           1 
                 2000 ...........           4 
                 2001 ...........           0 
                 Thereafter .....          59 
                 </TABLE>
                 
   The Company owns a distribution facility and related land in Long Island 
City, New York. The building contains approximately 150,000 square feet of 
space, all of which is used for warehousing and distribution. The Company 
also leases a 50,000 square foot distribution facility in Maspeth, New York, 
which is only one mile from the Long Island City facility. The Company leases 
space for its corporate headquarters, which is located in Manhattan. 

                               33           
<PAGE>

MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS 

   The Company currently has modern pharmacy and inventory management 
information systems. In 1996, the Company completed the installation of a 
host-based, modern pharmacy information system. The pharmacy information 
system (PDX) has reduced the processing time for prescriptions from 50 
seconds to seven seconds, and the inventory management information systems 
(JDA merchandising and E3 replenishment) have allowed the Company to increase 
inventory turns in the warehouses from 11 to 13 per year. In early 1997, the 
Company began the process of installing POS systems in its stores. The 
Company believes that these systems will better allow the Company to control 
pricing, inventory and shrink, while maximizing the benefits derived from the 
other parts of its systems installation program. POS will also provide sales 
analysis that will enable the Company to improve labor scheduling, and will 
help optimize planogram design by allowing detailed analysis of 
stock-keeping-unit ("SKU") sales. The Company expects POS systems 
installation to be completed by the end of 1997. Additionally, the Company 
has upgraded its financial reporting systems and installed local and wide 
area networks to facilitate the transfer of data between systems and from the 
stores to headquarters. 

COMPETITION 

   The Company's stores compete on the basis of, among other things, 
convenience of location and store layout, product mix, selection, customer 
service and price. The New York City drugstore market is highly fragmented 
due to the complexities and costs of doing business in the most densely 
populated area of the country. The diverse labor pool, local customer needs 
and complex real estate market in New York City all favor regional chains and 
independent drugstores that are familiar with the market. Duane Reade's store 
format is designed to meet all of these requirements and has proven 
successful in both the business and residential neighborhoods of Manhattan. 

   Because of the difficulties of operating in a densely populated area, the 
New York City drugstore market remains under-penetrated by national chains as 
compared to the rest of the country. According to industry sources, in 1996, 
nationwide, approximately 74% of the drugstore market was controlled by 
chains, while in Manhattan that number was approximately 45%. 

   Duane Reade believes that it has significant competitive advantages over 
the approximately 420 independent drugstores in New York City, including 
purchasing economies of scale, centrally located warehouses that minimize 
store inventory and maximize selling space, a full line of in stock, brand 
name merchandise and a convenient store format. Major chain competitors in 
the New York City market include Rite-Aid, Genovese and CVS. See "Risk 
Factors--Competition." 

GOVERNMENT REGULATION 

   Duane Reade's stores and its distribution facilities are registered with 
the federal DEA and are subject to various state and local licensing 
requirements. Each of Duane Reade's pharmacies and pharmacists located in New 
York are licensed by the State of New York. The pharmacy and pharmacists 
employed at Duane Reade's store in Newark, New Jersey are licensed by the 
State of New Jersey. In addition, Duane Reade has been granted cigarette tax 
stamping licenses from the State of New York and from the City of New York, 
which permit Duane Reade to buy cigarettes directly from the manufacturers 
and stamp the cigarettes themselves. Duane Reade's stores possess cigarette 
tax retail dealers licenses issued by the State of New York, the City of New 
York and the State of New Jersey. 

EMPLOYEES 

   As of September 27, 1997, Duane Reade had approximately 2,000 employees, 
almost all of whom were full-time. Approximately 1,800 of the Company's 2,000 
employees are represented by unions. Non-union employees include employees at 
corporate headquarters and store management. The Company's distribution 
facility employees are represented by the International Brotherhood of 
Teamsters, Chauffeurs and Warehousemen and Helpers of America, Local 815, and 
all store employees are represented by the Allied Trade Council. Duane 
Reade's three year contracts with these two unions expire on August 31, 1999 
and August 31, 1998, respectively. Duane Reade believes that its relations 
with its employees are good. 

                               34           
<PAGE>

TRADEMARKS 

   The name "Duane Reade" and the "DR" logo are registered trademarks. The 
Company believes that it has developed strong brand awareness within the New 
York City area. As a result, the Company regards the Duane Reade logo as a 
valuable asset. 

LEGAL PROCEEDINGS 

   The Company is a party to certain legal actions arising in the ordinary 
course of business. Based on information presently available to the Company, 
the Company believes that it has adequate legal defenses or insurance 
coverage for these actions and that the ultimate outcome of these actions 
will not have a material adverse effect on the Company. 

                               35           
<PAGE>

                                  MANAGEMENT 

DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE OFFICERS 

   The following table sets forth the directors and executive officers of the 
Company: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
         NAME          AGE                       POSITION 
<S>                     <C> <C>
Anthony J. Cuti  ....   51  Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President 
William Tennant  ....   50  Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer 
Gary Charboneau  ....   53  Senior Vice President--Sales and Merchandising 
Jerry M. Ray ........   49  Senior Vice President--Store Operations 
Nicole S. Arnaboldi     39  Director 
David L. Jaffe.......   39  Director 
Andrew J. Nathanson .   39  Director 
</TABLE>

   Two additional directors will be elected by the Board of Directors (the 
"Board") following the completion of the Offering. 

   ANTHONY J. CUTI has been Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the 
Company since April 1996. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Cuti served as 
President and as a member of the Board of Directors of Supermarkets General 
and Pathmark from 1993 to 1996 and, prior to being named President of 
Supermarkets General and Pathmark, Mr. Cuti was Executive Vice President and 
Chief Financial Officer of Supermarkets General. From 1984 to 1990, he was 
the Chief Financial Officer of the Bristol-Myers International Group of the 
Bristol-Myers Company and prior to that was employed by the Revlon 
Corporation. 

   WILLIAM TENNANT has been Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer 
of the Company since February 1997. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Tennant 
was Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Tops Appliance City, 
a consumer electronics retailer, from 1993 to 1996. From 1986 to 1993, Mr. 
Tennant served as Vice President and Controller for the Great Atlantic & 
Pacific Tea Company. 

   GARY CHARBONEAU has been Senior Vice President in charge of Sales and 
Merchandising of the Company since February 1993. Prior to joining the 
Company, Mr. Charboneau held various positions at CVS, a retail drugstore 
chain, from 1978 to February 1993, most recently as Executive Vice President. 

   JERRY M. RAY has been Senior Vice President in charge of Store Operations 
since July 1996 and served as Vice President of Pharmacy Operations from 
April 1995 to June 1996. From 1991 to 1994, Mr. Ray served as President and 
CEO of Begley Drugstores, Inc. 

   NICOLE S. ARNABOLDI has been a Director of the Company since June 1997. 
Ms. Arnaboldi is a Managing Director of DLJMB. She joined the DLJ Merchant 
Banking Group in March 1993 after six years with The Sprout Group, DLJ's 
venture capital affiliate. 

   DAVID L. JAFFE has been a Director of the Company since June 1997. Mr. 
Jaffe is a Managing Director of DLJMB. Mr. Jaffe joined DLJ Merchant Banking 
in 1984 and became a Managing Director in 1995. He currently sits on the 
Board of Directors of each of EZ Buy and EZ Sell Recycler Corporation, OHA 
Financial, Inc., OSF, Inc., Terra Nova Group, Pharmaceutical Fine Chemicals 
SA and Brand Scaffold Services, Inc. 

   ANDREW J. NATHANSON has been a Director of the Company since June 1997. 
Mr. Nathanson is a Managing Director of DLJ. Mr. Nathanson joined DLJ in 1989 
from Drexel Burnham Lambert, and has been a Managing Director of DLJ since 
1991. Mr. Nathanson also serves on the Board of Directors of Specialty Foods, 
Inc. 

   Directors of the Company are currently elected annually by its 
stockholders to serve during the ensuing year or until their respective 
successors are elected and qualified. Executive officers of the Company are 
elected by the Board of Directors to serve until their respective successors 
are elected and qualified. 

                               36           
<PAGE>

COMMITTEES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS 

   Prior to the Offering, the Board of the Company had no formal committees. 
In connection with the completion of the Offering, the Board will establish 
two committees: (i) an Audit Committee and (ii) a Compensation Committee. 

   The Audit Committee will make recommendations to the Board regarding the 
independent auditors, approve the scope of the annual audit activities of the 
independent auditors and review audit results. It is expected that a majority 
of the directors comprising the Audit Committee will be directors not 
otherwise affiliated with the Company or its principal stockholders. 

   The duties of the Compensation Committee will be to provide a general 
review of the Company's compensation and benefit plans to ensure that they 
meet corporate objectives. In addition, the Compensation Committee will 
review management's recommendations on (i) compensation of all officers of 
the Company and (ii) adopting and changing major Company compensation 
policies and practices, and report its recommendations to the entire Board 
for approval and authorization. The Compensation Committee will administer 
the Company's stock plans. The Board may also establish other committees to 
assist in the discharge of its responsibilities. 

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION 

                          SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE 

   The following table summarizes the principal components of compensation of 
the Chief Executive Officer and the other four highest compensated executive 
officers of the Company (the "Named Executive Officers") for the year ended 
December 28, 1996. The compensation set forth below fully reflects 
compensation for services performed on behalf of the Company and its 
subsidiaries. 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                                   LONG-TERM 
                                                 ANNUAL COMPENSATION             COMPENSATION 
                                      ----------------------------------------- -------------- 
                                                                                  SECURITIES 
NAME AND                      FISCAL                              OTHER ANNUAL    UNDERLYING      ALL OTHER 
PRINCIPAL POSITION             YEAR       SALARY        BONUS     COMPENSATION    OPTIONS (#)    COMPENSATION 
<S>                           <C>     <C>             <C>         <C>             <C>            <C>
Anthony J. Cuti............    1996      $228,846(1)  $340,000         $          3,035,037.6         $ 
 Chief Executive Officer                                               --                             -- 
Gary Charboneau............    1996       220,000      120,000         --           283,500.0         -- 
 Senior Vice 
 President--Sales  and 
 Merchandising 
Jerry M. Ray...............    1996       167,308      100,000         --           283,500.0         -- 
 Senior Vice 
 President--Store 
  Operations 
Barry Weston(2)............    1996       290,000      217,000         --         2,187,599.4         -- 
Hyman Needleman............    1996       140,000       28,000         --                  --         -- 
 Vice President--Finance 
</TABLE>

- ------------ 
(1)    Reflects Mr. Cuti's salary for the partial year from April 15, 1996 
       when he joined the Company through December 28, 1996. 
(2)    Mr. Weston, the Company's former Chief Executive Officer, resigned from 
       the Company effective as of February 28, 1997. Mr. Weston's 1996 bonus 
       is attributable to both 1995 and 1996. In connection with Mr. Weston's 
       severance from the Company and the Recapitalization, Mr. Weston 
       received approximately $1.6 million from DLJMB and all of his 
       unexercised options were effectively cancelled. 

                               37           
<PAGE>
                      OPTION GRANTS IN LAST FISCAL YEAR 

   The following table discloses options granted during 1996 to the Named 
Executive Officers. 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                                POTENTIAL REALIZABLE   
                                         INDIVIDUAL GRANTS                           VALUE AT         
                     --------------------------------------------------------- ASSUMED RATES OF STOCK  
                       NUMBER OF      % OF TOTAL                                        PRICE          
                       SECURITIES      OPTIONS                                    APPRECIATION FOR     
                       UNDERLYING     GRANTED TO    EXERCISE OR                    OPTION TERM(2)      
                        OPTIONS      EMPLOYEES IN    BASE PRICE    EXPIRATION  ------------------------
NAME                   GRANTED(1)    FISCAL YEAR     PER SHARE        DATE         5%         10% 
<S>                  <C>             <C>            <C>             <C>         <C>         <C>
Anthony J. Cuti 
 (3)................  3,035,037.6        51.0%         $0.07        3/25/06     $134,890    $341,509 
Gary Charboneau 
 (4)................    283,500.0         4.8           0.07        4/12/06       12,600      31,900 
Jerry M. Ray (4) ...    283,500.0         4.8           0.07        4/12/06       12,600      31,900 
Barry Weston (5) ...  2,187,599.4        36.7           0.07        3/26/06       97,227     246,153 
Hyman Needleman 
 (4)................           --          --             --             --           --          -- 
</TABLE>

- ------------ 
(1)    All of such options vest in five equal installments on each anniversary 
       of the grant date. 
(2)    Amounts reflect certain assumed rates of appreciation for the term of 
       the option as set forth in the executive compensation disclosure rules 
       of the Securities and Exchange Commission and are not intended to 
       forecast future appreciation of the Common Stock. Actual gains, if any, 
       on stock option exercises depend on future performance of the Company's 
       stock and overall market conditions. At an annual rate of appreciation 
       of 5% per year for the option term, the price of the Common Stock would 
       be approximately $0.115 per share as of the expiration date. At an 
       annual rate of appreciation of 10% per year for the option term, the 
       price of the Common Stock would be approximately $0.183 per share as of 
       the expiration date. 
(3)    All of such options were granted under separate agreements with the 
       Company. 
(4)    All of such options were granted under the Company's 1992 Plan (as 
       defined below). The options granted under such plan are subject to 
       repurchase provisions upon termination of employment. See "--Stock 
       Options." 
(5)    All such options were granted under separate agreements with the 
       Company. In connection with Mr. Weston's severance from the Company and 
       the Recapitalization, Mr. Weston received approximately $1.6 million 
       from DLJMB and all of his unexercised options were effectively 
       cancelled. 

                               38           
<PAGE>
                        FISCAL YEAR END OPTION VALUES 

   The following table summarizes the number and value of all unexercised 
options held by the Named Executive Officers at the end of 1996. There were 
no options exercised in the Company's last fiscal year. 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                    NUMBER OF                                
                                                    SECURITIES                               
                                                    UNDERLYING        VALUE OF UNEXERCISED   
                    SHARES                         UNEXERCISED        IN-THE-MONEY OPTIONS   
                 ACQUIRED ON                        OPTIONS AT         AT FISCAL YEAR END    
NAME               EXERCISE   VALUE REALIZED     FISCAL YEAR END             ($)(1)          
                 ----------- --------------  ----------------------- ---------------------   
                                                   EXERCISABLE/           EXERCISABLE/       
                                                  UNEXERCISABLE           UNEXERCISABLE      
<S>              <C>         <C>             <C>                     <C>                                                           
ANTHONY J. CUTI.      --            --            0/3,035,037.6                0/0          
GARY CHARBONEAU.      --            --         109,714.5/356,643.0             0/0          
JERRY M. RAY ...      --            --          18,285.8/356,643.0             0/0          
BARRY WESTON ...      --            --        437,497.2/1,750,102.2            0/0           
HYMAN NEEDLEMAN.      --            --          54,857.3/36,571.5              0/0 
</TABLE>
          
(1) Assumes t he fair market value of the Common Stock as of December 28,
    1996 is equal to $0.07 per share.
                
COMPENSATION OF DIRECTORS 

   Directors of the Company who are employees of the Company, DLJ or DLJMB or 
their respective subsidiaries are not compensated for serving as directors. 
Presently, the Company does not have directors who are not employees of the 
Company, DLJ or DLJMB ("Non-Employee Directors"). However, the Company plans 
to compensate future Non-Employee Directors for serving in such capacity and 
for serving on committees of the Board of Directors, and reimburse 
Non-Employee Directors for out-of-pocket expenses incurred in such capacity. 

COMPENSATION COMMITTEE INTERLOCKS AND INSIDER PARTICIPATION 

   Prior to the Offering, the Company did not have a compensation committee. 
Instead, compensation decisions regarding the Company's executive officers 
were made by the Board. Each executive officer of the Company has an 
employment agreement with the Company that establishes his annual 
compensation. See "--Employment Agreements." 

EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENTS 

   Effective June 18, 1997, the Company entered into an employment agreement 
with Anthony J. Cuti (the "Cuti Employment Agreement"). Pursuant to the Cuti 
Employment Agreement, Mr. Cuti serves as Chairman, President and Chief 
Executive Officer of the Company. The Cuti Employment Agreement provides for 
(i) a base salary of $425,000 per year, which will increase to $500,000 in 
1998 and $550,000 in 1999 if certain EBITDA targets (as defined in the Cuti 
Employment Agreement) are met and will increase every 18 months commencing 
July 1, 2001 by not less than the percentage increase in a designated 
consumer price index for such 18-month period, (ii) an annual incentive bonus 
of up to 200% of base salary based on certain EBITDA targets and (iii) 
participation in all benefit plans generally available to executive officers. 

   Pursuant to the Cuti Employment Agreement and the Equity Plan described 
below, on June 18, 1997, Mr. Cuti was granted non-qualified stock options to 
purchase an aggregate of 4,134,240 shares of Common Stock at an exercise 
price of $1.00 per share. Subject to Mr. Cuti's continued employment with the 
Company, the options generally will become 100% vested on the eighth 
anniversary of the date of grant, but may vest sooner based on the Company's 
achievement of certain specified financial targets. Furthermore, the vesting 
of options will accelerate upon the occurrence of a Sale of the Company (as 
defined in the Cuti Employment Agreement) on or prior to December 30, 2001, 
based on the Company's achievement of specified financial targets prior to 
the date of any such Sale of the Company. 

                               39           
<PAGE>
   The Cuti Employment Agreement provides that following the Offering, Mr. 
Cuti may generally only transfer up to 10% of his shares of Common Stock in 
each calendar year while he is an employee of the Company, except pursuant to 
certain rights and obligations (i) to transfer ("put") his shares to the 
Company upon termination of employment and (ii) to transfer shares in 
connection with certain transfers of Common Stock by DLJMBPII. The Cuti 
Employment Agreement also provides that Mr. Cuti will be given the 
opportunity to invest additional amounts in stock of the Company in the event 
that DLJMBPII invests new equity in the Company or creates an intrument that 
may be dilutive to Mr. Cuti's equity position relative to DLJMBPII. 

   Mr. Cuti's initial term of employment is for three years and, unless 
terminated by notice of non-renewal by either the Company or Mr. Cuti, will 
continue thereafter for successive one-year periods. Pursuant to the Cuti 
Employment Agreement, if the Company terminates Mr. Cuti without "cause" (as 
defined in the Cuti Employment Agreement) or by notice of non-renewal or Mr. 
Cuti resigns with "good reason" (as defined in the Cuti Employment 
Agreement), Mr. Cuti will be entitled to continued base salary and incentive 
bonus payments (at the rate of two times base salary and bonus for the year 
prior to termination, which can be increased to three times base salary and 
bonus upon the occurrence of certain events, including a Sale of the Company) 
and employee benefits for a two year period, which, under certain 
circumstances, including Mr. Cuti's termination of employment prior to June 
18, 2003 and within one year following a Sale of the Company, may be extended 
by one year. Additionally, the vesting of Mr. Cuti's options may accelerate 
upon such a termination of employment, based on the Company's financial 
performance prior to such termination and whether a Sale of the Company has 
occurred. The Cuti Employment Agreement also contains certain non-compete, 
non-solicitation and confidentiality provisions. See also "Certain 
Relationships and Related Transactions--Cuti Loan Agreement." 

   The Company has also entered into agreements with Messrs. Charboneau, 
Needleman and Ray and certain other executives that provide for their initial 
base salary as well as annual incentive bonuses based on certain EBITDA 
targets. Each of Messrs. Charboneau, Needleman and Ray are entitled to 
severance payments equalling 12 months of their respective salaries if they 
are terminated without "cause" (as defined in the agreements). 

   The Company's agreement with Mr. Tennant provides for payment of an annual 
base salary of $175,000 per year as well as for payment of annual incentive 
bonuses based upon achievement of certain financial targets. Mr. Tennant's 
agreement also provides for the grant of stock options to acquire an 
aggregate of 567,000 shares of Common Stock at an exercise price of $0.882 
per share and for 12 months of salary continuation in the event Mr. Tennant 
is terminated without cause. 

SUPPLEMENTAL EXECUTIVE RETIREMENT PLAN 

   The Company has established the Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan 
("SERP"), an unfunded retirement plan that provides a lump sum benefit equal 
to the actuarial present value of a life annuity commencing at the later of 
age 65 or termination of employment for any reason other than cause. The SERP 
benefit is calculated as a percentage of a participant's Final Average 
Earnings (defined as the average base salary and bonus for the five years 
which produce the greatest amount multiplied by his years of services with 
the Company). Currently, Mr. Cuti is the only SERP participant. Mr. Cuti's 
estimated SERP benefit, based on his 1996 includable compensation, is 
estimated to be $    , $    , $    , $     and $     based on 15, 20, 25, 30 
and 35 years of service respectively. Pursuant to the Cuti Employment 
Agreement, the Company is required to set aside funds in a "rabbi trust" to 
pay Mr. Cuti's SERP benefit in specified circumstances, including a Sale of 
the Company, termination without cause and resignation for "good reason" (as 
defined). Furthermore, in the event of his termination without "cause" (as 
defined) or by reason of the Company's non-renewal, his resignation for good 
reason, or his death or disability, Mr. Cuti's SERP benefit will be 
calculated on the basis of 20 years of employment regardless of his actual 
number of years of employment with the Company. 

                               40           
<PAGE>

STOCK OPTIONS 

   1992 STOCK OPTION PLAN. The Company's Board of Directors adopted and the 
Company's stockholders approved the 1992 Stock Option Plan (the "1992 Plan") 
in September 1992. Under the 1992 Plan, the Board of Directors may grant to 
executive and other key employees of the Company nonqualified stock options 
to purchase up to an aggregate of 4,252,500 shares of Common Stock of the 
Company at exercise prices and terms specified by the Board of Directors. 

   At September 27, 1997, there were outstanding nonqualified stock options 
issued under the 1992 Plan to purchase up to an aggregate of 2,345,041.1 
shares of Common Stock of the Company at exercise prices ranging from $0.07 
to $4.91 per share. The 1992 Plan will be frozen as to the future grants 
following the Offering. All options issued under the 1992 Plan are 100% 
vested. 

   1997 EQUITY PARTICIPATION PLAN. As of June 18, 1997, the Board and 
stockholders of the Company approved the 1997 Equity Participation Plan (the 
"Equity Plan"). The Equity Plan will be administered by the Board. The Board 
is authorized under the Equity Plan to select the individuals to whom awards 
will be made (the "Participants") and determine the terms and conditions of 
the awards under the Equity Plan. The Equity Plan provides that the Board may 
grant or issue stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock, 
deferred stock, dividend equivalents, performance awards, stock payments, and 
other stock related benefits, or any combination thereof, to any eligible 
employee or consultant. Each such award will be set forth in a separate 
agreement with the person receiving the award and will indicate the type, 
terms and conditions of the award. An aggregate of 9 million shares of Common 
Stock of the Company have been reserved for issuance under the Equity Plan, 
subject to certain adjustments reflecting changes in the Company's 
capitalization. The Equity Plan provides that no Participant may receive 
awards relating to more than 4 million shares of Common Stock per year. 

   SECTION 162(M) LIMITATION. In general, under Section 162(m) of the Code 
("Section 162(m)"), income tax deductions of publicly-held corporations may 
be limited to the extent total compensation (including base salary, annual 
bonus, stock option exercises and non-qualified benefits paid) for certain 
executive officers exceeds $1 million (less the amount of any "excess 
parachute payments" as defined in Section 280G of the Code) in any one year. 
Under a Section 162(m) transition rule for compensation plans of corporations 
which are privately held and which become publicly held in an initial public 
offering, the Equity Plan will not be subject to Section 162(m) until the 
"Transition Date" which is defined as the earliest of (i) the material 
modification of the Equity Plan; (ii) the issuance of all Common Stock and 
other compensation that has been allocated under the Equity Plan; and (iii) 
the first meeting of stockholders at which directors are to be elected that 
occurs after December 31, 2001. After the Transition Date, rights and awards 
granted under the Equity Plan will not qualify as "performance-based 
compensation" for purposes of Section 162(m) unless such rights and awards 
are granted by an independent compensation committee, and such awards are 
granted or vest upon pre-established objective performance goals, the 
material terms of which are disclosed to and approved by the stockholders of 
the Company. The transition rule will also apply to base salary and bonus 
payments made pursuant to employment agreements in effect at the time of the 
Offering. 

   The Board generally will have the power and authority to amend the Equity 
Plan at any time without approval of the Company's stockholders, subject to 
applicable federal securities and tax law limitations (including rules and 
regulations of the New York Stock Exchange). 

                               41           
<PAGE>

                CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS 

DLJMB RELATIONSHIPS 

   In connection with the Recapitalization, DLJMBPII and certain of its 
affiliates (the "DLJ Entities") purchased an aggregate of 78,125,299 shares 
of Common Stock, certain members of management retained an aggregate of 
2,371,475.971 shares of Common Stock and certain other stockholders retained 
an aggregate of 4,908,749.505 shares of Common Stock. The aggregate purchase 
price for the shares acquired by the DLJ Entities was $79 million or $1.01 
per share. Each of these shareholders other than members of management signed 
the Stockholders and Registration Rights Agreement. See "--Stockholders and 
Registration Rights Agreement." Mr. Jaffe and Ms. Arnaboldi, directors of the 
Company, are Managing Directors of DLJMB, and Mr. Nathanson, also a director 
of the Company, is a Managing Director of DLJ. 

   On September 30, 1997, the Company entered into the Existing Credit 
Agreement in which DLJ Capital Funding, Inc., an affiliate of DLJMBPII, acted 
as the arranger and syndication agent. In connection with the Existing Credit 
Agreement, DLJ Capital Funding, Inc. received a customary funding fee. 

   DLJ (the Underwriter and an affiliate of DLJMBPII) acted as financial 
advisor to the Company in connection with the structuring of the 
Recapitalization and received customary fees for such services and 
reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses. The Company agreed to indemnify DLJ 
in connection with its acting as financial advisor. In addition, DLJ will 
receive the underwriting compensation set forth on the cover page of this 
Prospectus. DLJ is also serving as lead underwriter in connection with the 
Common Stock Offering and will receive its pro rata portion of the 
underwriting compensation payable in connection therewith. 

CUTI LOAN AGREEMENT 

   Pursuant to the terms of the Cuti Employment Agreement and a Secured Loan 
Agreement and related agreements among Mr. Cuti, the Company and DLJ (the 
"Loan Documents"), on November 20, 1997, Mr. Cuti borrowed $1 million from 
DLJ (the "Loan"). The Loan is secured by Mr. Cuti's pledge to DLJ of his 
options granted under the Equity Plan and his option to purchase 4,134,240 
shares of Common Stock, and all Common Stock and other proceeds payable upon 
exercise or other disposition thereof (the "Pledged Security"). The Loan is 
subject to interest at the Federal Mid-Term Rate as in effect from time to 
time and is generally payable in five equal installments commencing within 30 
days after Mr. Cuti has the ability to receive cash in exchange for any of 
the Pledged Security. In addition, the Company may apply any amounts to which 
Mr. Cuti is entitled upon termination of employment to repayment of the Loan. 
The Cuti Employment Agreement and the Loan Documents further provide that in 
the event of termination of Mr. Cuti's employment by reason of termination by 
the Company without cause or the Company's non-renewal or his resignation 
with good reason, the Company will reimburse Mr. Cuti for all interest 
accrued as of the date of such termination if the Company has achieved 
certain specified financial targets for the year prior to termination and the 
year of such termination. The Loan Documents permit DLJ to assign the Loan to 
certain of its affiliates, including the Company, and the Company is 
obligated pursuant to the Cuti Employment Agreement to assume the Loan from 
DLJ as soon as practicable after the Company and DLJ agree that the Company 
may do so. 

OTHER RELATIONSHIPS 

   The Company incurred aggregate fees owing to Credit Suisse First Boston 
for financial services rendered from March 1995 through the consummation of 
the Recapitalization in the aggregate amount of $3.6 million, of which $1.4 
million was paid upon consummation of the Recapitalization and the remaining 
$2.2 million will become payable upon consummation of the Common Stock 
Offering. 

STOCKHOLDERS AND REGISTRATION RIGHTS AGREEMENT 

   In connection with the Recapitalization, certain of the shareholders of 
the Company (the "Initial Shareholders") entered into a Stockholders and 
Registration Rights Agreement, pursuant to which the 

                               42           
<PAGE>

Company has granted the Initial Shareholders the right to cause the Company 
to register shares of Common Stock (the "registrable securities") under the 
Securities Act. Upon consummation of the Common Stock Offering, 85,405,524.5 
outstanding shares of Common Stock will constitute registrable securities and 
therefore will be eligible for registration pursuant to the Stockholders and 
Registration Agreement. Under the terms of the Stockholders and Registration 
Agreement, at any time after the one year anniversary date of the Common 
Stock Offering, (i) the holders of at least a majority of the registrable 
securities held by the DLJ Entities can require the Company, subject to 
certain limitations, to file a registration statement under the Securities 
Act covering all or part of the registrable securities held by the DLJ 
Entities and (ii) the remaining Initial Shareholders can require the Company, 
subject to certain limitations, to file a registration statement covering all 
or part of the registrable securities held by such Initial Shareholders 
(each, a "demand registration"). The Company is obligated to pay all 
registration expenses (other than underwriting discounts and commissions and 
subject to certain limitations) incurred in connection with the demand 
registrations. In addition, the Stockholders and Registration Rights 
Agreement provides the Initial Shareholders with "piggyback" registration 
rights, subject to certain limitations, whenever the Company files a 
registration statement on a registration form that can be used to register 
securities held by such Initial Shareholders. 

                               43           
<PAGE>

                            PRINCIPAL STOCKHOLDERS

   The following table sets forth certain information with respect to the 
beneficial ownership (as defined by the regulations of the Securities and 
Exchange Commission) of the Company's Common Stock (which constitutes the 
only class of voting capital stock of the Company) by (i) each person known 
to the Company to be the beneficial owner of 5% or more of the Common Stock, 
(ii) each director, (iii) each Named Executive Officer and (iv) all executive 
officers and directors as a group, based on data as of November 15, 1997. 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                             SHARES BENEFICIALLY OWNED(1) 
                                                    ---------------------------------------------- 
                                                                      % OF CLASS     % OF CLASS 
                                                                       PRIOR TO         AFTER 
                                                                     COMMON STOCK   COMMON STOCK 
NAME                                                    SHARES         OFFERING       OFFERING 
- --------------------------------------------------  -------------- --------------  -------------- 
<S>                                                 <C>            <C>             <C>           
DLJ Merchant Banking Partners II, L.P. and related 
 investors(2) .....................................  78,125,299.0       91.48% 
Anthony Cuti.......................................   3,035,037.6         3.4% 
David Jaffe(3) ....................................            --          --            -- 
Nicole S. Arnaboldi(3).............................            --          --            -- 
Andrew J. Nathanson(3) ............................            --          --            -- 
Gary Charboneau ...................................   2,160,268.4         2.5% 
Jerry M. Ray ......................................     713,711.3         *              * 
Hyman Needleman ...................................     176,124.4         *              * 
Barry Weston.......................................            --          --            -- 
All executive officers and directors as a group 
 (11 persons)(3) ..................................   6,793,891.7         7.9% 
</TABLE>

- ------------ 
*      Less than one percent 
(1)    For purposes of this table, a person or group is deemed to have 
       "beneficial ownership" of any shares that such person has the right to 
       acquire within 60 days after the date of this Prospectus. For purposes 
       of calculating the percentage of outstanding shares held by each person 
       named above, any shares that such person has the right to acquire 
       within 60 days after the date of this Prospectus are deemed to be 
       outstanding, but not for the purpose of calculating the percentage 
       ownership of any other person. 

(2)    Consists of 78,125,299 shares held directly by the following related 
       investors, each of whom is affiliated with DLJ: DLJ Merchant Banking 
       Partners II, L.P. ("DLJMBPII"), 49,213,098 shares; DLJ Merchant Banking 
       Partners II-A, L.P. ("DLJMBIIA"), 1,959,894 shares; DLJ Offshore 
       Partners II, C.V. ("DLJOPII"), 2,420,043 shares; DLJ Diversified 
       Partners, L.P. ("DLJDP"), 2,877,221 shares; DLJ Diversified Partners-A, 
       L.P. ("DLJDPA"), 1,068,502 shares; DLJMB Funding II, Inc. ("DLJMBFII"), 
       8,737,538 shares; DLJ Millennium Partners, L.P. ("Millennium"), 795,721 
       shares; DLJ Millennium-A, L.P. ("Millennium-A"), 155,198 shares; DLJ 
       EAB Partners, L.P. ("DLJEAB"), 220,960 shares; UK Investment Plan 1997 
       Partners ("UK Investment"), 1,302,088 shares; and DLJ First ESC L.P. 
       ("DLJ ESC"), 9,375,036 shares. See "Certain Relationships and Related 
       Transactions--DLJMB Relationships." The address of each of DLJMBPII, 
       DLJMBIIA, DLJDP, DLJMBFII, Millennium, Millennium-A, DLJEAB, and DLJ 
       ESC is 277 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10172. The address of 
       DLJOPII is c/o John B. Gorsiraweg, 14 Willemstad, Curacao, Netherlands 
       Antilles. The address of UK Investment is 2121 Avenue of the Stars, Fox 
       Plaza, Suite 3000, Los Angeles, California 90067. As a general partner 
       of each of DLJMBPII, DLJMBIIA, DLJOPII, DLJDP, DLJDPA, DLJEAB, 
       Millennium and Millennium-A, DLJMB may be deemed to beneficially own 
       indirectly all of the shares held directly by DLJMBPII, DLJMBIIA, 
       DLJOPII, DLJDP, DLJDPA, DLJEAB, Millennium and Millennium-A, and as the 
       parent of each of DLJMB, DLJMBFII and DLJ LBO Plans Management 
       Corporation (the general partner of DLJ ESC and UK Investment), 
       Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Inc., the parent of DLJ ("DLJ Inc.") may 
       be deemed to beneficially own indirectly all of the shares held by 
       DLJMBPII, DLJMBIIA, DLJOPII, DLJDP, DLJDPA, DLJEAB, Millennium, 
       Millennium-A, DLJMBFII, DLJ ESC and UK Investment. The address of DLJ 
       Merchant Banking, Inc. is 277 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10172. 

(3)    Mr. Jaffe and Ms. Arnaboldi are each Managing Partners of DLJMB, and 
       Mr. Nathanson is a Managing Director of DLJ. Share data shown for such 
       individuals excludes shares shown as held by DLJ Merchant Banking 
       Partners II, L.P. and related investors, as to which such individuals 
       disclaim beneficial ownership. 

                               44           
<PAGE>



                 DESCRIPTION OF NEW SENIOR SUBORDINATED NOTES 

GENERAL 

   The New Senior Subordinated Notes will be issued pursuant to an indenture 
(the "New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture") among the Company, the 
Subsidiary Guarantors and          , as trustee (the "Trustee"). The terms of 
the New Senior Subordinated Notes include those stated in the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture and those made part of the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture by reference to the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, 
as amended (the "Trust Indenture Act"). The New Senior Subordinated Notes are 
subject to all such terms, and prospective investors are referred to the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture and the Trust Indenture Act for a 
statement thereof. The following summary of certain provisions of the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture does not purport to be complete. A copy of 
the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture has been filed as an exhibit to 
the Registration Statement of which this Prospectus forms a part. The 
definitions of certain terms used in this Description of New Senior 
Subordinated Notes are set forth below under "--Certain Definitions." 

   The New Senior Subordinated Notes will be general unsecured obligations of 
the Company and will be subordinated in right of payment to all current and 
future Senior Debt. In addition, the New Senior Subordinated Notes will be 
effectively subordinated to indebtedness of the Company's Subsidiaries. See 
"Risk Factors--Holding Company Structure." At September 27, 1997, on a pro 
forma basis giving effect to the Offering, the Common Stock Offering and the 
consummation of the Refinancing Plan, the Company would have had (i) an 
aggregate of $130.0 million of Senior Debt outstanding and the Company and 
its Subsidiaries would have had approximately $260.0 million of outstanding 
liabilities, including trade payables. The New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture will permit the incurrence of additional Senior Debt in the future, 
subject to certain conditions. 

PRINCIPAL, MATURITY AND INTEREST 

   The New Senior Subordinated Notes will be limited in aggregate principal 
amount to $75 million, and will mature on          , 2005. Interest on the 
New Senior Subordinated Notes will accrue at the rate of    % per annum and 
will be payable semi-annually in arrears on            and            (each, 
an "Interest Payment Date"), commencing on          , 1998, to holders of 
record on the immediately preceding          and          , respectively. 
Interest on the New Senior Subordinated Notes will accrue from the most 
recent date to which interest has been paid or, if no interest has been paid, 
from the date of original issuance. Interest will be computed on the basis of 
a 360-day year comprised of twelve 30-day months. Principal of, and interest 
and premium (if any) on, the New Senior Subordinated Notes will be payable at 
the office or agency of the Company maintained for such purpose or, at the 
option of the Company, payment may be made by check mailed to holders of the 
New Senior Subordinated Notes at their respective addresses set forth in the 
register of holders; provided, however, that all payments with respect to New 
Senior Subordinated Notes the holders of which have given wire transfer 
instructions to the Company will be required to be made by wire transfer of 
immediately available funds to the accounts specified by the holders thereof. 
Until otherwise designated by the Company, the Company's office or agency 
will be the office of the Trustee maintained for such purpose. The New Senior 
Subordinated Notes will be issued in denominations of $1,000 and integral 
multiples thereof. 

SUBORDINATION 

   The payment of principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes will be subordinated in right of payment, as set 
forth in the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture, to the prior payment in 
full of all Senior Debt, whether outstanding on the date of the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture or thereafter incurred. 

   Upon any distribution to creditors of the Company in a liquidation or 
dissolution of the Company or in a bankruptcy, reorganization, insolvency, 
receivership or similar proceeding relating to the Company or its property, 
an assignment for the benefit of creditors or any marshalling of the 
Company's assets and 

                               45           
<PAGE>

liabilities, the holders of Senior Debt will be entitled to receive payment 
in full in cash or cash equivalents of all Obligations due in respect of such 
Senior Debt (including interest after the commencement of any such proceeding 
at the rate specified in the applicable Senior Debt) before the holders of 
New Senior Subordinated Notes will be entitled to receive any payment with 
respect to Obligations due in respect of the New Senior Subordinated Notes 
and, until all Obligations with respect to Senior Debt are paid in full, any 
distribution to which the holders of New Senior Subordinated Notes would be 
entitled shall be made to the holders of Senior Debt (except that holders of 
New Senior Subordinated Notes may receive Permitted Junior Securities and 
payments made from the trust described under "--Legal Defeasance and Covenant 
Defeasance"). 

   The Company also may not make any payment upon or in respect of the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes (except in Permitted Junior Securities or from the 
trust descried under "--Legal Defeasance and Covenant Defeasance") if (i) a 
default in the payment of the principal of or premium if any, or interest on, 
or commitment fees relating to, any Designated Senior Debt occurs and is 
continuing beyond any applicable period of grace or (ii) any other default 
occurs and is continuing with respect to any Designated Senior Debt that 
permits holders of the Designated Senior Debt as to which such default 
relates to accelerate its maturity and the Trustee receives a written notice 
of such default (a "Payment Blockage Notice") from the Company or the holders 
of such Designated Senior Debt (or its representative). Payments on the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes may and shall be resumed (a) in the case of a 
payment default, upon the date on which such default is cured or waived and 
(b) in case of a nonpayment default, the earlier of the date on which such 
nonpayment default is cured or waived or 179 days after the date on which the 
applicable Payment Blockage Notice is received, unless the maturity of any 
Designated Senior Debt has been accelerated. No new period of payment 
blockage may be commenced unless and until 360 days have elapsed since the 
effectiveness of the immediately prior Payment Blockage Notice. No nonpayment 
default that existed or was continuing on the date of delivery of any Payment 
Blockage Notice to the Trustee shall be, or be made, the basis for a 
subsequent Payment Blockage Notice unless such default shall have been cured 
or waived for a period of not less than 90 days. 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will further require that the 
Company promptly notify holders of Senior Debt if payment of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes is accelerated because of an Event of Default. 

   As a result of the subordination provisions described above, in the event 
of a liquidation or insolvency, holders of New Senior Subordinated Notes may 
recover less ratably than creditors of the Company who are holders of Senior 
Debt. As of September 27, 1997, after giving pro forma effect to the 
Offering, the Common Stock Offering and consummation of the Refinancing Plan, 
the Company would have had approximately $130.0 million of Senior Debt 
outstanding. The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will limit, subject 
to certain conditions, the amount of additional Indebtedness, including 
Senior Debt, that the Company and its Subsidiaries can incur. See "Certain 
Covenants--Incurrence of Indebtedness and Issuance of Preferred Stock." 

SUBSIDIARY GUARANTEES 

   The Company's payment obligations under the New Senior Subordinated Notes 
will be jointly and severally guaranteed (the "Subsidiary Guarantees") by all 
of the Company's present and future Subsidiaries (the "Subsidiary 
Guarantors"). The Subsidiary Guarantee of each Subsidiary Guarantor will be 
subordinated to the prior payment in full of all Senior Debt and any amounts 
for which such Subsidiary Guarantor will be liable under guarantees issued 
from time to time with respect to Senior Debt. The obligations of each 
Subsidiary Guarantor under its Subsidiary Guarantee will be limited to the 
maximum amount that may be paid thereunder without resulting in such 
Subsidiary Guarantee being deemed to constitute a fraudulent conveyance or a 
fraudulent transfer under applicable law. See "Risk Factors--Fraudulent 
Transfer Considerations." 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that no Subsidiary 
Guarantor may consolidate with or merge with or into (whether or not such 
Subsidiary Guarantor is the surviving Person), or sell all or substantially 
all of its assets to, another corporation, Person or entity, whether or not 
affiliated with such Subsidiary Guarantor unless (a) subject to the 
provisions of the following paragraph, 

                               46           
<PAGE>

the Person formed by or surviving any such consolidation or merger (if other 
than such Subsidiary Guarantor) assumes all of the obligations of such 
Subsidiary Guarantor, pursuant to a supplemental indenture in form and 
substance reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee, under the Subsidiary 
Guarantee of such Subsidiary Guarantor and the New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture; (b) immediately after giving effect to such transaction, no 
Default or Event of Default exists; (c) such Subsidiary Guarantor, or any 
Person formed by or surviving any such consolidation or merger, would have 
Consolidated Net Worth (immediately after giving effect to such transaction), 
equal to or greater than the Consolidated Net Worth of the Subsidiary 
Guarantor immediately preceding the transaction; and (d) the Company would be 
permitted, immediately after giving effect to such transaction, to incur at 
least $1.00 of additional Indebtedness pursuant to the Fixed Charge Coverage 
Ratio test set forth in the covenant described under the caption "Certain 
Covenants--Incurrence of Indebtedness and Issuance of Preferred Stock." 
Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this paragraph, the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture will not prohibit the merger of two of the 
Subsidiary Guarantors or the merger of a Subsidiary Guarantor into the 
Company. 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that, in the event 
of a sale or other disposition of all of the equity interests of any 
Subsidiary Guarantor (including by way of merger or consolidation) or all or 
substantially all of the assets of such Subsidiary Guarantor, then such 
Subsidiary Guarantor (in the event of a sale or other disposition of all of 
the capital stock of such Subsidiary Guarantor) or the corporation acquiring 
the property (in the event of a sale or other disposition of all or 
substantially all of the assets of such Subsidiary Guarantor) will be 
released and relieved of any obligations under its Subsidiary Guarantee; 
provided that the Net Proceeds of such sale or other disposition are applied 
in accordance with the applicable provisions of the New Senior Subordinated 
Note Indenture. See "--Repurchase at Option of Holders--Asset Sales." 

OPTIONAL REDEMPTION 

   The New Senior Subordinated Notes will not be redeemable at the Company's 
option prior to          , 2002. Thereafter, the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes will be subject to redemption at any time at the option of the Company, 
in whole or in part, upon not less than 30 or more than 60 days notice, at 
the redemption prices (expressed as percentages of principal amount) set 
forth below, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, thereon to the 
applicable redemption date, if redeemed during the 12-month period beginning 
on          of the years indicated below: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
 YEAR                  PERCENTAGE 
- --------------------  ------------ 
<S>                   <C>
2002 ................           % 
2003 and thereafter      100.000% 
</TABLE>

   Notwithstanding the foregoing, on or prior to          , 2001, the Company 
may redeem up to 40% in aggregate principal amount of New Senior Subordinated 
Notes at a redemption price of     % of the principal amount thereof, plus 
accrued and unpaid interest thereon to the redemption date, with the net 
proceeds of a public offering of Equity Interests (other than Disqualified 
Stock) of the Company; provided that at least 60% in aggregate principal 
amount of the New Senior Subordinated Notes originally issued under the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture remain outstanding immediately after the 
occurrence of such redemption; and provided, further, that such redemption 
shall occur within 90 days of the date of the closing of such public 
offering. 

SELECTION AND NOTICE 

   If less than all of the New Senior Subordinated Notes are to be redeemed 
at any time, selection of New Senior Subordinated Notes for redemption will 
be made by the Trustee in compliance with the requirements of the principal 
national securities exchange, if any, on which the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes are listed, or, if the New Senior Subordinated Notes are not so listed, 
on a pro rata basis, by lot or by such method as the Trustee shall deem fair 
and appropriate; provided, however, that no New Senior Subordinated Note 
shall be redeemed in a principal amount that is less than $1,000. Notices of 
redemption 

                               47           
<PAGE>

shall be mailed by first class mail at least 30 but not more than 60 days 
before the redemption date to each holder of New Senior Subordinated Notes to 
be redeemed at its registered address. Notices of redemption may not be 
conditional. If any New Senior Subordinated Note is to be redeemed in part 
only, the notice of redemption that relates to such New Senior Subordinated 
Note shall state the portion of the principal amount thereof to be redeemed 
and a new note in principal amount equal to the unredeemed portion of the 
original New Senior Subordinated Note shall be issued in the name of the 
holder thereof upon cancellation of the original New Senior Subordinated 
Note. New Senior Subordinated Notes called for redemption become due on the 
date fixed for redemption. On and after the redemption date, interest ceases 
to accrue on New Senior Subordinated Notes or portions of them called for 
redemption. 

MANDATORY REDEMPTION 

   Except as set forth below under "--Repurchase at the Option of Holders," 
the Company is not required to make any mandatory redemption of, or sinking 
fund payments with respect to, the New Senior Subordinated Notes. 

REPURCHASE AT THE OPTION OF HOLDERS 

 Change of Control 

   Upon the occurrence of a Change of Control, the Company will be required 
to make an offer (a "Change of Control Offer") to repurchase all or any part 
(equal to $1,000 or an integral multiple thereof) of each holder's New Senior 
Subordinated Notes at an offer price in cash equal to 101% of the aggregate 
principal amount thereof, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, thereon 
to the date of repurchase (the "Change of Control Payment"). Within 10 days 
following a Change of Control, the Company will mail a notice to each holder 
of New Senior Subordinated Notes describing the transaction that constitutes 
the Change of Control and offering to repurchase New Senior Subordinated 
Notes on the date specified in such notice, which date shall be no earlier 
than 30 days and no later than 60 days from the date such notice is mailed 
(the "Change of Control Payment Date"), pursuant to the procedures required 
by the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture and described in such notice. 
The Company will comply with the requirements of Rule 14e-1 under the 
Exchange Act and any other securities laws and regulations thereunder to the 
extent such laws and regulations are applicable in connection with the 
repurchase of New Senior Subordinated Notes as a result of a Change of 
Control. 

   On or before the Change of Control Payment Date, the Company will, to the 
extent lawful, (a) accept for payment all New Senior Subordinated Notes or 
portions thereof properly tendered pursuant to the Change of Control Offer, 
(b) deposit with the Paying Agent an amount equal to the Change of Control 
Payment in respect of all New Senior Subordinated Notes or portions thereof 
so tendered and (c) deliver or cause to be delivered to the Trustee the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes so accepted together with an officer's certificate 
stating the aggregate principal amount of New Senior Subordinated Notes or 
portions thereof being purchased by the Company. The Paying Agent will 
promptly mail to each holder of New Senior Subordinated Notes so tendered the 
Change of Control Payment for such New Senior Subordinated Notes, and the 
Trustee will promptly authenticate and mail (or cause to be transferred by 
book entry) to each holder a new note equal in principal amount to any 
unpurchased portion of the New Senior Subordinated Notes surrendered, if any; 
provided, however, that each such new note will be in a principal amount of 
$1,000 or an integral multiple thereof. The Company will publicly announce 
the results of the Change of Control Offer on or as soon as practicable after 
the Change of Control Payment Date. 

   Except as described above with respect to a Change of Control, the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture does not contain provisions that permit 
the holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes to require that the Company 
repurchase or redeem the New Senior Subordinated Notes in the event of a 
takeover, recapitalization or similar transaction. In addition, the Company 
could enter into certain transactions, including acquisitions, refinancings 
or other recapitalizations, that could affect the Company's capital structure 
or the value of the New Senior Subordinated Notes, but that would not 
constitute a Change of Control. The New Credit Agreement will prohibit the 
Company from purchasing the New 

                               48           
<PAGE>

Senior Subordinated Notes (except in certain limited amounts) and will also 
provide that certain change of control events with respect to the Company 
will constitute a default thereunder. Any future credit agreements or other 
agreements relating to Senior Debt to which the Company becomes a party may 
contain similar restrictions and provisions. In the event a Change of Control 
occurs at a time when the Company is prohibited from purchasing the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes, the Company could seek the consent of its lenders 
to the purchase of the New Senior Subordinated Notes or could attempt to 
refinance the borrowings that contain such prohibition. If the Company does 
not obtain such consent or repay such borrowings, the Company will remain 
prohibited from purchasing the New Senior Subordinated Notes by the relevant 
Senior Debt. In such case, the Company's failure to purchase the tendered New 
Senior Subordinated Notes would constitute an event of default under the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture which would, in turn, constitute a default 
under the New Credit Agreement and could constitute a default under other 
Senior Debt. In such circumstances, the subordination provisions in the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture would likely restrict payments to the 
holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes. Furthermore, no assurance can 
be given that the Company will have sufficient resources to satisfy its 
repurchase obligation with respect to the New Senior Subordinated Notes 
following a Change of Control. In addition, the Company's ability to 
repurchase New Senior Subordinated Notes following a Change of Control may 
also be limited by the Company's then existing financial resources. 

   The Company will not be required to make a Change of Control Offer 
following a Change of Control if a third party makes the Change of Control 
Offer in the manner, at the times and otherwise in compliance with the 
requirements set forth in the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture 
applicable to a Change of Control Offer made by the Company and purchases all 
New Senior Subordinated Notes validly tendered and not withdrawn under such 
Change of Control Offer. 

   A "Change of Control" will be deemed to have occurred upon the occurrence 
of any of the following: (a) the sale, lease, transfer, conveyance or other 
disposition (other than by way of merger or consolidation), in one or a 
series of related transactions, of all or substantially all of the assets of 
the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, to any "person" or 
"group" (as such terms are used in Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act) other 
than the Principals, (b) the adoption of a plan relating to the liquidation 
or dissolution of the Company, (c) the consummation of any transaction 
(including, without limitation, any merger or consolidation) the result of 
which is that any "person" or "group" (as such terms are used in Section 
13(d) of the Exchange Act) other than the Principals becomes the "beneficial 
owner" (as such term is defined in Rule 13d-3 and Rule 13d-5 under the 
Exchange Act), directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, of 
more than 50% of the voting power of the outstanding voting stock of the 
Company, or (d) the first day on which more than a majority of the members of 
the Board of Directors of the Company are not Continuing Directors. 

   The definition of Change of Control includes a phrase relating to the 
sale, lease, transfer, conveyance or other disposition of "all or 
substantially all" of the assets of the Company and its Subsidiaries taken as 
a whole. Although there is a developing body of case law interpreting the 
phrase "substantially all," there is no precise established definition of the 
phrase under applicable law. Accordingly, the ability of a holder of New 
Senior Subordinated Notes to require the Company to repurchase such New 
Senior Subordinated Notes as a result of a sale, lease transfer, conveyance 
or other disposition of less than all of the assets of the Company and its 
Subsidiaries taken as a whole to another Person or group may be uncertain. 

   "Continuing Directors" means, as of any date of determination, any member 
of the Board of Directors of the Company who (a) was a member of the Board of 
Directors of the Company on the date of original issuance of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes or (b) was nominated for election to the Board of 
Directors of the Company with the approval of, or whose election to the Board 
of Directors of the Company was ratified by, at least a majority of the 
Continuing Directors who were members of the Board of Directors of the 
Company at the time of such nomination or election. 

 Asset Sales 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that the Company 
will not, and will not permit any of its Subsidiaries to, consummate an Asset 
Sale unless (a) the Company or such Subsidiary, 

                               49           
<PAGE>

as the case may be, receives consideration at the time of such Asset Sale at 
least equal to the fair market value (evidenced by a resolution of the Board 
of Directors of the Company set forth in an officer's certificate delivered 
to the Trustee) of the assets or Equity Interests issued or sold or otherwise 
disposed of and (b) at least 80% of the consideration therefor received by 
the Company or such Subsidiary is in the form of cash; provided, however, 
that the amount of (i) any liabilities (as shown on the Company's or such 
Subsidiary's most recent balance sheet) of the Company or such Subsidiary 
(other than contingent liabilities and liabilities that are by their terms 
subordinated to the New Senior Subordinated Notes or any guarantee thereof) 
that are assumed by the transferee of any such assets pursuant to a customary 
novation agreement that releases the Company or such Subsidiary from further 
liability and (ii) any securities, notes or other obligations received by the 
Company or such Subsidiary from such transferee that are immediately 
converted by the Company or such Subsidiary into cash (to the extent of the 
cash received) shall be deemed to be cash for purposes of this provision; 
provided further, that the 80% limitation referred to in clause (b) will not 
apply to any Asset Sale in which the cash portion of the consideration 
received therefrom, determined in accordance with the foregoing proviso, is 
equal to or greater than what the after-tax proceeds would have been had such 
Asset Sale complied with the aforementioned 80% limitation. 

   Within 180 days after the receipt of any Net Proceeds from an Asset Sale, 
the Company or any such Subsidiary shall apply such Net Proceeds at its 
option, to (a) repay Designated Senior Debt (and to correspondingly reduce 
commitments with respect thereto in the case of revolving borrowings) or (b) 
the acquisition of a controlling interest in another business, the making of 
a capital expenditure or the acquisition of other long-term assets, in each 
case, in the same line of business as the business of the Company and its 
Subsidiaries were engaged on the date of the New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture, and in accordance with the terms of the New Senior Subordinated 
Note Indenture. Pending the final application of any such Net Proceeds, the 
Company may temporarily reduce Designated Senior Debt or otherwise invest 
such Net Proceeds in any manner that is not prohibited by the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture. Any Net Proceeds from Asset Sales that are not 
applied or invested as provided in the first sentence of this paragraph will 
be deemed to constitute "Excess Proceeds." When the aggregate amount of 
Excess Proceeds exceeds $    million, the Company will be required to make an 
offer to all holders of New Senior Subordinated Notes (an "Asset Sale Offer") 
to purchase the maximum principal amount of New Senior Subordinated Notes 
that may be purchased out of the Excess Proceeds at an offer price in cash in 
an amount equal to 100% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and 
unpaid interest thereon to the date of purchase, in accordance with the 
procedures set forth in the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture. To the 
extent that the aggregate principal amount of New Senior Subordinated Notes 
tendered pursuant to an Asset Sale Offer is less than the Excess Proceeds, 
the Company may use any remaining Excess Proceeds for general corporate 
purposes. If the aggregate principal amount of New Senior Subordinated Notes 
surrendered by holders thereof exceeds the amount of Excess Proceeds, the 
Trustee shall select the New Senior Subordinated Notes to be purchased as set 
forth under "--Selection and Notice." Upon completion of such offer to 
purchase, the amount of Excess Proceeds shall be reset at zero. 

CERTAIN COVENANTS 

 Restricted Payments 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that the Company 
will not, and will not permit any of its Subsidiaries to, directly or 
indirectly, (a) declare or pay any dividend or make any other payment or 
distribution on account of the Company's or any of its Subsidiaries' Equity 
Interests (other than dividends or distributions payable in Equity Interests 
(other than Disqualified Stock) of the Company or dividends or distributions 
payable to the Company or any Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Company); (b) 
purchase, redeem or otherwise acquire or retire for value any Equity 
Interests of the Company (other than any such Equity Interests owned by the 
Company or any Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Company); (c) make any payment 
on or with respect to, or purchase, redeem, defease or otherwise acquire or 
retire for value, any Indebtedness that is subordinated to the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes, except a payment of interest or principal at Stated 
Maturity; or (d) make any Restricted Investment (all 

                               50           
<PAGE>

such payments and other actions set forth in clauses (a) through (d) above 
being collectively referred to as "Restricted Payments"), unless, at the time 
of and after giving effect to such Restricted Payment: 

     (i) no Default or Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing 
    or would occur as a consequence thereof; 

     (ii) the Company would, at the time of such Restricted Payment and after 
    giving pro forma effect thereto as if such Restricted Payment had been 
    made at the beginning of the applicable four-quarter period, have been 
    permitted to incur at least $1.00 of additional Indebtedness pursuant to 
    the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio test set forth in the first paragraph of 
    the covenant described under the caption "--Incurrence of Indebtedness and 
    Issuance of Preferred Stock"; and 

     (iii) such Restricted Payment, together with the aggregate amount of all 
    other Restricted Payments made by the Company and its Subsidiaries after 
    the date of the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture, is less than the 
    sum of (A) 50% of the Consolidated Net Income of the Company for the 
    period (taken as one accounting period) after the date of the New Senior 
    Subordinated Note Indenture to the end of the Company's most recently 
    ended fiscal quarter for which internal financial statements are available 
    at the time of such Restricted Payment (or, if such Consolidated Net 
    Income for such period is a deficit, less 100% of such deficit); plus (B) 
    100% of the aggregate net cash proceeds received by the Company from the 
    issue or sale since the date of the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture 
    of Equity Interests of the Company (other than Disqualified Stock) or of 
    Disqualified Stock or debt securities of the Company to the extent that 
    have been converted into such Equity Interests (other than any such Equity 
    Interests, Disqualified Stock or convertible debt securities sold to a 
    Subsidiary of the Company and other than Disqualified Stock or convertible 
    debt securities that have been converted into Disqualified Stock); plus 
    (C) $    million. 

   The foregoing provisions will not prohibit (a) the payment of any dividend 
within 60 days after the date of declaration thereof, if at said date of 
declaration such payment would have complied with the provisions of the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture; (b) the redemption, repurchase, 
retirement, defeasance or other acquisition of any subordinated Indebtedness 
or Equity Interests of the Company in exchange for, or out of the net cash 
proceeds of the substantially concurrent sale (other than to a Subsidiary of 
the Company) of, other Equity Interests of the Company (other than any 
Disqualified Stock); provided that the amount of any such net cash proceeds 
that are utilized for any such redemption, repurchase, retirement, defeasance 
or other acquisition shall be excluded from clause (iii) (B) of the preceding 
paragraph; (c) the defeasance, redemption, repurchase, retirement or other 
acquisition of subordinated Indebtedness with the net cash proceeds from an 
incurrence of, or in exchange for, Permitted Refinancing Indebtedness; (d) 
the repurchase, redemption or other acquisition or retirement for value of 
any Equity Interests of the Company or any Subsidiary of the Company held by 
any member of the Company's management pursuant to any management equity 
subscription agreement or stock option agreement in effect as of the date of 
the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture; provided, however, that (i) the 
aggregate price paid for all such repurchased, redeemed, acquired or retired 
Equity Interests shall not exceed $    in any twelve-month period plus the 
aggregate cash proceeds received by the Company during such twelve-month 
period from any reissuance of Equity Interests by the Company to members of 
management of the Company and its Subsidiaries and (ii) no Default or Event 
of Default shall have occurred and be continuing immediately after such 
transaction; and (e) payments and transactions in connection with the 
Refinancing Plan, the New Credit Agreement (including commitment, syndication 
and arrangement fees payable thereunder), the Offering and the Common Stock 
Offering (including underwriting discounts and commissions in connection 
therewith) and the application of the proceeds thereof, and the payment of 
the fees and expenses with respect thereto. 

   The amount of all Restricted Payments (other than cash) shall be the fair 
market value on the date of the Restricted Payment of the asset(s) or 
securities proposed to be transferred or issued by the Company or such 
Subsidiary, as the case may be, pursuant to the Restricted Payment. The fair 
market value of any non-cash Restricted Payment shall be determined by the 
Board of Directors of the Company whose resolution with respect thereto shall 
be delivered to the Trustee. Not later than the date of making any Restricted 
Payment, the Company shall deliver to the Trustee an officer's certificate 
stating that such Restricted Payment is permitted and setting forth the basis 
upon which the calculations required by the covenant described in this 
section were computed. 

                               51           
<PAGE>

  Incurrence of Indebtedness and Issuance of Preferred Stock 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that the Company 
will not, and will not permit any of its Subsidiaries to, directly or 
indirectly, create, incur, issue, assume, guarantee or otherwise become 
directly or indirectly liable, contingently or otherwise, with respect to 
(collectively, "incur") any Indebtedness (including Acquired Indebtedness) 
and that the Company will not permit any of its Subsidiaries to issue any 
shares of preferred stock; provided, however, that the Company may incur 
Indebtedness if the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio for the Company's most 
recently ended four full fiscal quarters for which internal financial 
statements are available immediately preceding the date on which such 
additional Indebtedness is incurred would have been at least    to 
determined on a consolidated pro forma basis (including a pro forma 
application of the net proceeds therefrom), as if the additional Indebtedness 
had been incurred at the beginning of such four-quarter period. 

   Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company and, to the extent set forth 
below, its Subsidiaries may incur the following: 

     (a) Indebtedness of the Company under the New Senior Subordinated Notes 
    and the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture and Indebtedness of 
    Subsidiaries under the Subsidiary Guarantees; 

     (b) Indebtedness under the New Credit Agreement in an aggregate principal 
    amount not to exceed $    million outstanding at any time; 

     (c) Existing Indebtedness; 

     (d) Capital Expenditure Indebtedness, Capitalized Lease Obligations and 
    purchase money Indebtedness of the Company and its Subsidiaries in an 
    aggregate principal amount not to exceed $    million at any time 
    outstanding; 

     (e) (i) Hedging Obligations of the Company and its Subsidiaries covering 
    Indebtedness of the Company or such Subsidiary (which Indebtedness is 
    otherwise permitted to be incurred under this covenant) to the extent the 
    notional principal amount of any such Hedging Obligation does not exceed 
    the principal amount of the Indebtedness to which such Hedging Obligation 
    relates; or (ii) repurchase agreements, reverse repurchase agreements or 
    similar agreements relating to marketable direct obligations issued or 
    unconditionally guaranteed by the United States Government or issued by 
    any agency thereof and backed by the full faith and credit of the United 
    States, in each case maturing within one year from the date of 
    acquisition; provided that the terms of such agreements comply with the 
    guidelines set forth in Federal Financial Agreements of Depository 
    Institutions with Securities and Others (or any successor guidelines), as 
    adopted by the Comptroller of the Currency; 

     (f) Indebtedness of the Company representing guarantees of Indebtedness 
    incurred by one of its Subsidiaries pursuant to, and in compliance with, 
    another provision of this covenant; 

     (g) the incurrence by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries of 
    intercompany Indebtedness between or among the Company and any of its 
    Wholly Owned Subsidiaries; provided, however, that (i) if the Company is 
    the obligor on such Indebtedness, such Indebtedness is expressly 
    subordinated to the prior payment in full in cash of all obligations with 
    respect to the New Senior Subordinated Notes and (ii) (A) any subsequent 
    issuance or transfer of Equity Interests that results in any such 
    Indebtedness being held by a Person other than the Company or a Wholly 
    Owned Subsidiary and (B) any sale or other transfer of any such 
    Indebtedness to a Person that is not either the Company or a Wholly Owned 
    Subsidiary shall be deemed, in each case, to constitute an incurrence of 
    such Indebtedness by the Company or such Subsidiary, as the case may be; 

     (h) any Permitted Refinancing Indebtedness representing a replacement, 
    renewal, refinancing or extension of Indebtedness permitted under the 
    first paragraph and clause (c) of this covenant; and 

     (i) additional Indebtedness of the Company and its Subsidiaries in an 
    aggregate principal amount not to exceed $    million at any time 
    outstanding. 

                               52           
<PAGE>
 
  Liens 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that the Company 
will not, and will not permit any of its Subsidiaries to, directly or 
indirectly, create, incur, assume or suffer to exist any Lien on any asset 
now owned or hereafter acquired, or any income or profits therefrom or assign 
or convey any right to receive income therefrom, other than Permitted Liens. 

   Dividend and Other Payment Restrictions Affecting Subsidiaries 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that the Company 
will not, and will not permit any of its Subsidiaries to, directly or 
indirectly, create or otherwise cause or suffer to exist or become effective 
any encumbrance or restriction on the ability of any Subsidiary to (a)(i) pay 
dividends or make any other distributions to the Company or any of its 
Subsidiaries on its Capital Stock or with respect to any other interest or 
participation in, or measured by, its profits, or (ii) pay any Indebtedness 
owed to the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, (b) make loans or advances to 
the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or (c) transfer any of its properties 
or assets to the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, except for such 
encumbrances or restrictions existing under or by reason of (i) Existing 
Indebtedness as in effect on the date of the New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture, (ii) the New Credit Agreement as in effect on the date of the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture and any refinancings, amendments, 
restatements, renewals or replacements thereof, provided, however, that the 
agreements governing such refinancings, amendments, restatements, renewals or 
replacements contain restrictions that are not more restrictive, taken as a 
whole, than those contained in the New Credit Agreement as in effect on the 
date of the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture, (iii) the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture, the New Senior Subordinated Notes and the 
Subsidiary Guarantees, (iv) applicable law, (v) any instrument governing 
Indebtedness or Capital Stock of a Person acquired by the Company or any of 
its Subsidiaries as in effect at the time of such acquisition (except to the 
extent such Indebtedness was incurred in connection with or in contemplation 
of such acquisition), which encumbrance or restriction is not applicable to 
any Person, or the properties or assets of any Person, other than the Person, 
or the property or assets of the Person, so acquired, provided that, in the 
case of Indebtedness, such Indebtedness was permitted by the terms of the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture to be incurred, (vi) by reason of 
customary non-assignment provisions in leases entered into in the ordinary 
course of business and consistent with past practices, (vii) purchase money 
obligations for property acquired in the ordinary course of business that 
impose restrictions of the nature described in clause (c) above on the 
property so acquired, (viii) customary provisions in bona fide contracts for 
the sale of property or assets, or (ix) Permitted Refinancing Indebtedness, 
provided that the restrictions contained in the agreements governing such 
Permitted Refinancing Indebtedness are not more restrictive, taken as a 
whole, than those contained in the agreements governing the Indebtedness 
being refinanced. 

  Merger, Consolidation or Sale of Assets 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that the Company 
may not consolidate or merge with or into (whether or not the Company is the 
surviving corporation), or sell, assign, transfer, lease, convey or otherwise 
dispose of all or substantially all of its properties or assets in one or 
more related transactions, to another corporation, Person or entity unless 
(a) the Company is the surviving corporation or the entity or the Person 
formed by or surviving any such consolidation or merger (if other than the 
Company) or to which such sale, assignment, transfer, lease, conveyance or 
other disposition shall have been made is a corporation organized or existing 
under the laws of the United States, any state thereof or the District of 
Columbia, (b) the entity or Person formed by or surviving any such 
consolidation or merger (if other than the Company) or the entity or Person 
to which such sale, assignment, transfer, lease, conveyance or other 
disposition shall have been made assumes all the obligations of the Company 
under the New Senior Subordinated Notes and the New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture pursuant to a supplemental indenture in a form reasonably 
satisfactory to the Trustee, (c) immediately after such transaction no 
Default or Event of Default exists, and (d) except in the case of a merger of 
the Company with or into a Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Company, the 
Company or the entity or Person formed by or surviving any such consolidation 
or merger (if other than the Company), or to which such sale, 

                               53           
<PAGE>

assignment, transfer, lease, conveyance or other disposition shall have been 
made (A) will have Consolidated Net Worth immediately after the transaction 
equal to or greater than the Consolidated Net Worth of the Company 
immediately preceding the transaction and (B) will, at the time of such 
transaction and after giving pro forma effect thereto as if such transaction 
had occurred at the beginning of the applicable four-quarter period, be 
permitted to incur at least $1.00 of additional Indebtedness pursuant to the 
Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio test set forth in the first paragraph of the 
covenant described above under the caption "--Incurrence of Indebtedness and 
Issuance of Preferred Stock." 

  Transactions with Affiliates 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that the Company 
will not, and will not permit any of its Subsidiaries to, make any payment 
to, or sell, lease, transfer or otherwise dispose of any of its properties or 
assets to, or purchase any property or assets from, or enter into or make or 
amend any transaction, contract, agreement, understanding, loan, advance or 
guarantee with, or for the benefit of, any Affiliate of the Company (each of 
the foregoing, an "Affiliate Transaction"), unless (a) such Affiliate 
Transaction is on terms that are no less favorable to the Company or the 
relevant Subsidiary than those that would have been obtained in a comparable 
transaction by the Company or such Subsidiary with an unrelated Person, and 
(b) the Company delivers to the Trustee (i) with respect to any Affiliate 
Transaction or series of related Affiliate Transactions involving aggregate 
consideration in excess of $1.0 million, either (A) a resolution of the Board 
of Directors of the Company set forth in an officer's certificate certifying 
that such Affiliate Transaction complies with clause (a) above and that such 
Affiliate Transaction has been approved by a majority of the disinterested 
members of the Board of Directors of the Company and (ii) with respect to any 
Affiliate Transaction or series of related Affiliate Transactions involving 
aggregate consideration in excess of $5.0 million, an opinion as to the 
fairness to the Company of such Affiliate Transaction from a financial point 
of view issued by an accounting, appraisal or investment banking firm of 
national standing; provided, however, that the following shall be deemed not 
to be Affiliate Transactions: (i) customary directors' fees, indemnification 
or similar arrangements or any employment agreement or other compensation 
plan or arrangement entered into by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries in 
the ordinary course of business (including ordinary course loans to employees 
not to exceed $    in any twelve month period and $    to any one employee) 
and consistent with the past practice of the Company or such Subsidiary; (ii) 
transactions between or among the Company and/or its Wholly Owned 
Subsidiaries; (iii) transactions permitted by the provisions of the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture described above under the caption 
"Restricted Payments"; and (iv) payments and transactions in connection with 
the Refinancing Plan, the New Credit Agreement (including commitment, 
syndication and arrangement fees payable thereunder), the Offering and the 
Common Stock Offering (including underwriting discounts and commissions in 
connection therewith) and the application of the proceeds thereof, and the 
payment of the fees and expenses with respect thereto. 

  Sale and Leaseback Transactions 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that the Company 
will not, and will not permit any of its Subsidiaries to, enter into any sale 
and leaseback transaction; provided, however, that the Company may enter into 
a sale and leaseback transaction if (a) the Company could have (i) incurred 
Indebtedness in an amount equal to the Attributable Indebtedness relating to 
such sale and leaseback transaction pursuant to the Fixed Charge Coverage 
Ratio test set forth in the first paragraph of the covenant described under 
the heading "--Incurrence of Indebtedness and Issuance of Preferred Stock" 
and (ii) incurred a Lien to secure such Indebtedness pursuant to the covenant 
described above under the heading "--Liens," (b) the gross cash proceeds of 
such sale and leaseback transaction are at least equal to the fair market 
value (as determined in good faith by the Board of Directors of the Company 
and set forth in an officer's certificate delivered to the Trustee) of the 
property that is the subject of such sale and leaseback transaction and (c) 
the transfer of assets in such sale and leaseback transaction is permitted 
by, and the Company applies the proceeds of such transaction in compliance 
with, the covenant described under the heading "Repurchase at the Option of 
Holders--Asset Sales." 

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<PAGE>

  Issuances and Sales of Capital Stock of Subsidiaries 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that the Company 
(a) will not permit any Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Company to issue any 
of its Equity Interests to any Person other than to the Company or a Wholly 
Owned Subsidiary of the Company, and (b) will not, and will not permit any 
Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Company to, transfer, convey, sell, lease or 
otherwise dispose of any Capital Stock of any Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the 
Company to any Person (other than the Company or any Wholly Owned Subsidiary 
of the Company) unless (i) such transfer, conveyance, sale, lease or other 
disposition is of all of the Capital Stock of such Wholly Owned Subsidiary 
and (ii) the Net Proceeds from such transfer, conveyance, sale, lease or 
other disposition are applied in accordance with the covenant described under 
the caption "--Repurchase at the Option of Holders--Asset Sales"; provided 
that this clause (b) shall not apply to any pledge of Capital Stock of any 
Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Company securing Indebtedness under the New 
Credit Agreement. 

  Additional Subsidiary Guarantees 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that if the 
Company or any of its Subsidiaries shall, after the date of the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture, acquire or create another Subsidiary, then such 
newly acquired, created or designated Subsidiary shall execute a Subsidiary 
Guarantee and deliver an opinion of counsel in accordance with the terms of 
the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture. 

  No Senior Subordinated Debt 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that the Company 
will not incur, create, issue, assume, guarantee or otherwise become liable 
for any Indebtedness that is subordinate or junior in right of payment to any 
Senior Debt and senior in any respect in right of payment to the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes. 

  Reports 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that, whether or 
not the Company is required to do so by the rules and regulations of the 
Commission, the Company will file with the Commission (unless the Commission 
will not accept such a filing) and, within 15 days of filing, or attempting 
to file, the same with the Commission, furnish to the holders of the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes (a) all quarterly and annual financial and other 
information with respect to the Company and its Subsidiaries that would be 
required to be contained in a filing with the Commission on Forms 10-Q and 
10-K if the Company were required to file such forms, including a 
"Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of 
Operations" and, with respect to the annual information only, a report 
thereon by the Company's certified independent accountants, and (b) all 
current reports that would be required to be filed with the Commission on 
Form 8-K if the Company were required to file such reports. 

EVENTS OF DEFAULT AND REMEDIES 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture will provide that each of the 
following constitutes an Event of Default: (a) default for 30 days in the 
payment when due of interest on the New Senior Subordinated Notes (whether or 
not prohibited by the subordination provisions of the New Senior Subordinated 
Note Indenture); (b) default in payment when due of the principal of or 
premium (if any) on the New Senior Subordinated Notes (whether or not 
prohibited by the subordination provisions of the New Senior Subordinated 
Note Indenture); (c) failure by the Company to comply with the provisions 
described under the captions "--Repurchase at the Option of Holders--Change 
of Control," "--Repurchase at the Option of Holders--Asset Sales," "--Certain 
Covenants--Restricted Payments," "--Certain Covenants--Incurrence of 
Indebtedness and Issuance of Preferred Stock" or "--Certain 
Covenants--Merger, Consolidation or Sale of Assets;" (d) failure by the 
Company for 60 days after notice to comply with any of its other agreements 
in the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture or the New 

                               55           
<PAGE>
Senior Subordinated Notes; (e) default under any mortgage, indenture or 
instrument under which there may be issued or by which there may be secured 
or evidenced any Indebtedness for money borrowed by the Company or any of its 
Subsidiaries (or the payment of which is guaranteed by the Company or any of 
its Subsidiaries), whether such Indebtedness or guarantee now exists or is 
created after the date of the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture, which 
default (i) is caused by a failure to pay principal of or premium (if any) or 
interest on such Indebtedness prior to the expiration of any grace period 
provided in such Indebtedness (a "Payment Default") or (ii) results in the 
acceleration of such Indebtedness prior to its express maturity and, in each 
case, the principal amount of any such Indebtedness, together with the 
principal amount of any other such Indebtedness under which there has been a 
Payment Default or the maturity of which has been so accelerated, aggregates 
$    million or more; (f) failure by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries 
to pay final judgments aggregating in excess of $    million, which judgments 
are not paid, discharged or stayed for a period of 60 days; (g) failure by 
any Subsidiary Guarantor to perform any covenant set forth in its Subsidiary 
Guarantee, or the repudiation by any Subsidiary Guarantor of its obligations 
under its Subsidiary Guarantee or the unenforceability of any Subsidiary 
Guarantee against a Subsidiary Guarantor for any reason, unless, in each such 
case, such Subsidiary Guarantor and its Subsidiaries have no Indebtedness 
outstanding at such time or at any time thereafter; and (h) certain events of 
bankruptcy or insolvency with respect to the Company or any of its 
Subsidiaries. 

   If any Event of Default occurs and is continuing, the Trustee or the 
holders of at least 25% in principal amount of the then outstanding New 
Senior Subordinated Notes may declare all the New Senior Subordinated Notes 
to be due and payable immediately; provided, that so long as any Indebtedness 
permitted to be incurred pursuant to the New Credit Agreement shall be 
outstanding, such acceleration shall not be effective until the earlier of 
(a) any acceleration of any such Indebtedness under the New Credit Agreement 
and (b) five business days after receipt by the Company of written notice of 
such acceleration. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in the case of an Event of 
Default arising from certain events of bankruptcy or insolvency with respect 
to the Company, any Significant Subsidiary or any group of Subsidiaries that, 
taken together, would constitute a Significant Subsidiary, all outstanding 
New Senior Subordinated Notes will become due and payable without further 
action or notice. Holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes may not 
enforce the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture or the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes except as provided in the New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture. In the event of a declaration of acceleration of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes because an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing 
as a result of the acceleration of any Indebtedness described in clause (e) 
of the preceding paragraph, the declaration of acceleration of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes shall be automatically annulled if the holders of any 
Indebtedness described in clause (e) have rescinded the declaration of 
acceleration in respect of such Indebtedness within 30 days of the date of 
such declaration and if (i) the annulment of the acceleration of the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes would not conflict with any judgment or decree of a 
court of competent jurisdiction, and (ii) all existing Events of Defaults, 
except nonpayment of principal or interest on the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes that became due solely because of the acceleration of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes, have been cured or waived. 

   Subject to certain limitations, holders of a majority in principal amount 
of the then outstanding New Senior Subordinated Notes may direct the Trustee 
in its exercise of any trust or power. The Trustee may withhold from holders 
of the New Senior Subordinated Notes notice of any continuing Default or 
Event of Default (except a Default or Event of Default relating to the 
payment of principal or interest) if it determines that withholding notice is 
in their interest. 

   In the case of any Event of Default occurring by reason of any willful 
action (or inaction) taken (or not taken) by or on behalf of the Company with 
the intention of avoiding payment of the premium that the Company would have 
had to pay if the Company then had elected to redeem the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes pursuant to the optional redemption provisions of the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture, an equivalent premium shall also become 
and be immediately due and payable to the extent permitted by law upon the 
acceleration of the New Senior Subordinated Notes. If an Event of Default 
occurs prior to          , 2002 by reason of any willful action (or inaction) 
taken (or not taken) by or on behalf of the Company with the intention of 
avoiding the prohibition on redemption of the New 

                               56           
<PAGE>

Senior Subordinated Notes prior to such date, then the premium specified in 
the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture shall also become immediately due 
and payable to the extent permitted by law upon the acceleration of the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes. 

   The holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes then outstanding by notice to the Trustee may on behalf of 
the holders of all of the New Senior Subordinated Notes waive any existing 
Default or Event of Default and its consequences under the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture except a continuing Default or Event of Default 
in the payment of the principal of or interest on the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes. 

   The Company is required to deliver to the Trustee annually a statement 
regarding compliance with the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture, and the 
Company is required upon becoming aware of any Default or Event of Default, 
to deliver to the Trustee a statement specifying such Default or Event of 
Default. 

NO PERSONAL LIABILITY OF DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES AND STOCKHOLDERS 

   No director, officer, employee, incorporator or stockholder of the 
Company, as such, shall have any liability for any obligations of the Company 
under the New Senior Subordinated Notes or the New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture or for any claim based on, in respect of, or by reason of, such 
obligations or their creation. Each holder of New Senior Subordinated Notes 
by accepting a New Senior Subordinated Note waives and releases all such 
liability. The waiver and release are part of the consideration for issuance 
of the New Senior Subordinated Notes. Such waiver may not be effective to 
waive liabilities under the federal securities laws and it is the view of the 
Commission that such a waiver is against public policy. 

LEGAL DEFEASANCE AND COVENANT DEFEASANCE 

   The Company may, at its option and at any time, elect to have all of its 
obligations discharged with respect to the outstanding New Senior 
Subordinated Notes ("Legal Defeasance") except for (a) the rights of holders 
of outstanding New Senior Subordinated Notes to receive payments in respect 
of the principal of and premium (if any) and interest on such New Senior 
Subordinated Notes when such payments are due from the trust referred to 
below, (b) the Company's obligations with respect to the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes concerning issuing temporary New Senior Subordinated 
Notes, registration of New Senior Subordinated Notes, mutilated, destroyed, 
lost or stolen New Senior Subordinated Notes and the maintenance of an office 
or agency for payment and money for security payments held in trust, (c) the 
rights, powers, trusts, duties and immunities of the Trustee, and the 
Company's obligations in connection therewith and (d) the Legal Defeasance 
provisions of the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture. In addition, the 
Company may, at its option and at any time, elect to have the obligations of 
the Company released with respect to certain covenants that are described in 
the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture ("Covenant Defeasance") and 
thereafter any omission to comply with such obligations shall not constitute 
a Default or Event of Default with respect to the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes. In the event Covenant Defeasance occurs, certain events (not including 
non-payment, bankruptcy, receivership, rehabilitation and insolvency events) 
described under "--Events of Default and Remedies" will no longer constitute 
an Event of Default with respect to the New Senior Subordinated Notes. 

   In order to exercise either Legal Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance, (i) 
the Company must irrevocably deposit with the Trustee, in trust, for the 
benefit of the holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes, cash in U.S. 
dollars, non-callable Government Securities, or a combination thereof, in 
such amounts as will be sufficient, in the opinion of a nationally recognized 
firm of independent public accountants, to pay the principal of and premium 
(if any) and interest on the outstanding New Senior Subordinated Notes on the 
stated maturity or on the applicable redemption date, as the case may be, and 
the Company must specify whether the New Senior Subordinated Notes are being 
defeased to maturity or to a particular redemption date, (ii) in the case of 
Legal Defeasance, the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an opinion 
of counsel in the United States reasonably acceptable to the Trustee 
confirming that (A) the Company has received from, or there has been 
published by, the Internal Revenue Service 

                               57           
<PAGE>

a ruling or (B) since the date of the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture, 
there has been a change in the applicable federal income tax law, in either 
case to the effect that, and based thereon such opinion of counsel shall 
confirm that, the holders of the outstanding New Senior Subordinated Notes 
will not recognize income, gain or loss for federal income tax purposes as a 
result of such Legal Defeasance and will be subject to federal income tax on 
the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have been 
the case if such Legal Defeasance had not occurred, (iii) in the case of 
Covenant Defeasance, the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an 
opinion of counsel in the United States reasonably acceptable to the Trustee 
confirming that the holders of the outstanding New Senior Subordinated Notes 
will not recognize income, gain or loss for federal income tax purposes as a 
result of such Covenant Defeasance and will be subject to federal income tax 
on the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have 
been the case if such Covenant Defeasance had not occurred, (iv) no Default 
or Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing on the date of such 
deposit (other than a Default or Event of Default resulting from the 
borrowing of funds to be applied to such deposit), (v) such Legal Defeasance 
or Covenant Defeasance will not result in a breach or violation of, or 
constitute a default under, any material agreement or instrument (other than 
the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture) to which the Company or any of 
its Subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of its 
Subsidiaries is bound, (vi) the Company must have delivered to the Trustee an 
opinion of counsel to the effect that the trust funds will not be subject to 
the effect of any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization or 
similar laws affecting creditors' rights generally, (vii) the Company must 
deliver to the Trustee an officer's certificate stating that the deposit was 
not made by the Company with the intent of preferring the holders of New 
Senior Subordinated Notes over the other creditors of the Company with the 
intent of defeating, hindering, delaying or defrauding creditors of the 
Company or others and (viii) the Company must deliver to the Trustee an 
officer's certificate and an opinion of counsel, each stating that all 
conditions precedent provided for relating to the Legal Defeasance or the 
Covenant Defeasance have been complied with. 

TRANSFER AND EXCHANGE 

   A holder of New Senior Subordinated Notes may transfer or exchange New 
Senior Subordinated Notes in accordance with the New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture. The registrar and the Trustee may require a holder, among other 
things, to furnish appropriate endorsements and transfer documents and the 
Company may require a holder to pay any taxes and fees required by law or 
permitted by the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture. The Company is not 
required to transfer or exchange any New Senior Subordinated Note selected 
for redemption. Also, the Company is not required to transfer or exchange any 
Note for a period of 15 days before a selection of New Senior Subordinated 
Notes to be redeemed. 

   The registered holder of a New Senior Subordinated Note will be treated as 
the owner of it for all purposes. 

AMENDMENT, SUPPLEMENT AND WAIVER 

   Except as provided below, the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture or 
the New Senior Subordinated Notes may be amended or supplemented with the 
consent of the holders of at least a majority in principal amount of the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes then outstanding (including, without limitation, 
consents obtained in connection with a purchase of, or tender offer or 
exchange offer for, New Senior Subordinated Notes), and any existing default 
or compliance with any provision of the New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture or the New Senior Subordinated Notes may be waived with the consent 
of the holders of a majority in principal amount of the then outstanding New 
Senior Subordinated Notes (including consents obtained in connection with a 
tender offer or exchange offer for New Senior Subordinated Notes). 

   Without the consent of each holder affected, an amendment or waiver may 
not (with respect to any New Senior Subordinated Notes held by a 
non-consenting holder): (a) reduce the principal amount of New Senior 
Subordinated Notes whose holders must consent to an amendment, supplement or 
waiver, (b) reduce the principal of or change the fixed maturity of any New 
Senior Subordinated Note or alter the 

                               58           
<PAGE>

provisions with respect to the redemption of the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes (including as described under the caption "--Repurchase at the Option 
of Holders"), (c) reduce the rate of or change the time for payment of 
interest on any New Senior Subordinated Note, (d) waive a Default or Event of 
Default in the payment of principal of or premium (if any) or interest on the 
New Senior Subordinated Notes (except a rescission of acceleration of the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes by the holders of at least a majority in aggregate 
principal amount of the New Senior Subordinated Notes and a waiver of the 
payment default that resulted from such acceleration), (e) make any New 
Senior Subordinated Note payable in money other than that stated in the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes, (f) make any change in the provisions of the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture relating to waivers of past Defaults or 
the rights of holders of New Senior Subordinated Notes to receive payments of 
principal of and premium (if any) and interest on the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes, (g) waive a redemption payment with respect to any New Senior 
Subordinated Note (including a payment as described under the caption 
"--Repurchase at the Option of Holders"), or (h) make any change in the 
foregoing amendment and waiver provisions. In addition, any amendment to the 
provisions of Article 10 of the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture (which 
relate to subordination) will require the consent of the holders of at least 
75% in aggregate principal amount of the New Senior Subordinated Notes then 
outstanding if such amendment would adversely affect the rights of holders of 
New Senior Subordinated Notes. 

   Notwithstanding the foregoing, without the consent of any holder of New 
Senior Subordinated Notes, the Company and the Trustee may amend or 
supplement the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture or the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes to cure any ambiguity, defect or inconsistency, to provide 
for uncertificated New Senior Subordinated Notes in addition to or in place 
of certificated New Senior Subordinated Notes, to provide for the assumption 
of the Company's obligations to holders of New Senior Subordinated Notes in 
the case of a merger or consolidation, to make any change that would provide 
any additional rights or benefits to the holders of New Senior Subordinated 
Notes or that does not adversely affect the legal rights under the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture of any such holder, or to comply with 
requirements of the Commission in order to effect or maintain the 
qualification of the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture under the Trust 
Indenture Act. 

CONCERNING THE TRUSTEE 

   The New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture contains certain limitations on 
the rights of the Trustee, should it become a creditor of the Company, to 
obtain payment of claims in certain cases, or to realize on certain property 
received in respect of any such claim as security or otherwise. The Trustee 
will be permitted to engage in other transactions; however, if it acquires 
any conflicting interest it must eliminate such conflict within 90 days and 
apply to the Commission for permission to continue or resign. 

   The holders of a majority in principal amount of the then outstanding New 
Senior Subordinated Notes will have the right to direct the time, method and 
place of conducting any proceeding for exercising any remedy available to the 
Trustee, subject to certain exceptions. The Indenture provides that in case 
an Event of Default shall occur (which shall not be cured), the Trustee will 
be required, in the exercise of its power to use the degree of care of a 
prudent man in the conduct of his own affairs. Subject to such provisions, 
the Trustee will be under no obligation to exercise any of its rights or 
powers under the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture at the request of any 
holder of New Senior Subordinated Notes, unless such holder shall have 
offered to the Trustee security and indemnity satisfactory to it against any 
loss, liability or expense. 

BOOK ENTRY, DELIVERY AND FORM 

   Upon issuance, all New Senior Subordinated Notes will be represented by 
one or more global securities ("Global Notes"). Each such Global Note will be 
deposited with, or on behalf of, The Depository Trust Company, as depositary 
(the "Depositary"), and registered in the name of the Depositary or a nominee 
thereof. Unless and until it is exchanged in whole or in part for New Senior 
Subordinated Notes in definitive form, no Global Note may be transferred 
except as a whole by the Depositary to a nominee of such Depositary or by a 
nominee of such Depositary to such Depositary or to another nominee of such 
Depositary or by such Depositary or any such nominee to a successor of such 
Depositary or a nominee of such successor. 

                               59           
<PAGE>

   The Depositary has advised the Company as follows: the Depositary is a 
limited-purpose trust company organized under the Banking Law of the State of 
New York, a member of the Federal Reserve System, a "clearing corporation" 
within the meaning of the New York Uniform Commercial Code, and a "clearing 
agency" registered pursuant to the provisions of Section 17A of the Exchange 
Act. The Depositary was created to hold securities of its participants 
("Participants") and to facilitate the clearance and settlement of securities 
transactions among its Participants in such securities through electronic 
book-entry changes in accounts of the Participants, thereby eliminating the 
need for physical movement of securities certificates. The Depositary's 
Participants include securities brokers and dealers (including the 
Underwriter), banks, trust companies, clearing corporations, and certain 
other organizations. The Depositary is owned by a number of Participants and 
by the New York Stock Exchange, Inc., the American Stock Exchange, Inc. and 
the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. Access to the 
Depositary's book-entry system is also available to others, such as banks, 
brokers, dealers and trust companies that clear through or maintain a 
custodial relationship with a Participant, either directly or indirectly 
("Indirect Participants"). 

   Purchases of New Senior Subordinated Notes represented by Global Notes 
must be made by or through Participants, which will receive a credit on the 
records of the Depositary. The ownership interest of each actual purchaser of 
a New Senior Subordinated Note (the "Beneficial Owner") is in turn to be 
recorded on the Participants' or Indirect Participants' records. Beneficial 
Owners will not receive written confirmation from the Depositary of their 
purchase, but Beneficial Owners are expected to receive written confirmations 
providing details of the transaction, as well as periodic statements of their 
holdings, from the Participant or Indirect Participant through which the 
Beneficial Owner entered into the transaction. Ownership of beneficial 
interests in Global Notes will be shown on, and the transfer of such 
ownership interests will be effected only through, records maintained by the 
Depositary (with respect to interests of Participants) and on the records of 
Participants (with respect to interests of Persons held through 
Participants). The laws of some states may require that certain purchasers of 
securities take physical delivery of such securities in definitive form. Such 
limits and such laws may impair the ability to own, transfer or pledge 
beneficial interests in Global Notes. 

   So long as the Depositary, or its nominee, is the registered owner of a 
Global Note, the Depositary or its nominee, as the case may be, will be 
considered the sole owner or holder of the New Senior Subordinated Notes 
represented by such Global Note for all purposes under the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture. Except as provided below, Beneficial Owners of a 
Global Note will not be entitled to have the New Senior Subordinated Notes 
represented by such Global Note registered in their names, will not receive 
or be entitled to receive physical delivery of the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes in definitive form and will not be considered the owners or holders 
thereof under the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture. Accordingly, each 
Person owning a beneficial interest in a Global Note must rely on the 
procedures of the Depositary and, if such Person is not a Participant, on the 
procedures of the Participant through which such Person owns its interest, to 
exercise any rights of a holder under the New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture. The Company understands that under existing industry practices in 
the event that the Company requests any action of holders of New Senior 
Subordinated Notes or an owner of a beneficial interest in a Global Note 
desires to give or take any action which the holder of a New Senior 
Subordinated Note is entitled to give or take under the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture, the Depositary would authorize the Participants 
holding the relevant beneficial interests to give or take such action, and 
such Participants would authorize Beneficial Owners owning through such 
Participants to give or take such action or would otherwise act upon the 
instructions of Beneficial Owners. Conveyance of notices and other 
communications by the Depositary to Participants, by Participants to Indirect 
Participants, and by Participants and Indirect Participants to Beneficial 
Owners will be governed by arrangements among them, subject to any statutory 
or regulatory requirements as may be in effect from time to time. 

   Payment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on New Senior 
Subordinated Notes registered in the name of the Depositary or its nominee 
will be made to the Depositary or its nominee, as the case may be, as the 
holder of the Global Note or Global Notes representing such New Senior 
Subordinated Notes. None of the Company, the Trustee or any other agent of 
the Company or agent of 

                               60           
<PAGE>

the Trustee will have any responsibility or liability for any aspect of the 
records relating to or payments made on account of beneficial ownership 
interests or for supervising or reviewing any records relating to such 
beneficial ownership interests. The Company expects that the Depositary, upon 
receipt of any payment of principal, premium, if any, or interest in respect 
of a Global Note will credit the accounts of the Participants with payment in 
amounts proportionate to their respective holdings in principal amount of 
beneficial interest in such Global Note as shown on the records of the 
Depositary. The Company also expects that payments by Participants to 
Beneficial Owners will be governed by standing customer instructions and 
customary practices, as is now the case with securities held for the accounts 
of customers in bearer form or registered in "street name," and will be the 
responsibility of such Participants. 

   If (a) the Depositary is at any time unwilling, unable or ineligible to 
continue as Depositary and a successor depositary is not appointed by the 
Company within 60 days after the Company is so informed in writing or becomes 
aware of the same, (b) an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing and 
the holders of more than    % in aggregate principal amount of New Senior 
Subordinated Notes outstanding advise the Trustee that the continuation of a 
book-entry system through the Depository is no longer required or (c) the 
Company otherwise determines not to have the New Senior Subordinated Notes 
represented by Global Notes, the Global Notes will be exchanged for New 
Senior Subordinated Notes in definitive form of like tenor and of an equal 
aggregate principal amount, in denominations of $1,000 and integral multiples 
thereof. Such definitive New Senior Subordinated Notes shall be registered in 
such name or names as the Depositary shall instruct the Trustee. It is 
expected that such instructions may be based upon directions received by the 
Depositary from Participants with respect to ownership of beneficial 
interests in Global Notes. 

CERTAIN DEFINITIONS 

   Set forth below are certain defined terms used in the New Senior 
Subordinated Note Indenture. Reference is made to the New Senior Subordinated 
Note Indenture for a full disclosure of all such terms, as well as any other 
capitalized terms used herein for which no definition is provided. 

   "Acquired Indebtedness" means, with respect to any specified Person, (i) 
Indebtedness of any other Person existing at the time such other Person is 
merged with or into or became a Subsidiary of such specified Person, 
including, without limitation, Indebtedness incurred in connection with, or 
in contemplation of, such other Person merging with or into or becoming a 
Subsidiary of such specified Person, and (ii) Indebtedness secured by a Lien 
encumbering an asset acquired by such specified Person at the time such asset 
is acquired by such specified Person. 

   "Affiliate" of any specified Person means any other Person which, directly 
or indirectly, controls, is controlled by or is under or indirect common 
control with, such specified Person. For the purposes of this definition, 
"control" when used with respect to any Person means the power to direct the 
management and policies of such Person, directly or indirectly, whether 
through the ownership of voting securities, by contract or otherwise; 
provided that beneficial ownership of 10% or more of the voting securities of 
a Person shall be deemed to be control, and the terms "controlling" and 
"controlled" have meanings correlative to the foregoing. 

   "Asset Sale" means (a) the sale, lease, conveyance, disposition or other 
transfer (a "disposition") of any properties, assets or rights (including, 
without limitation, a sale and leaseback transaction or (b) the issuance, 
sale or transfer by the Company of Equity Interests of a Subsidiary), and in 
the case of either clause (a) or (b), whether in a single transaction or a 
series of related transactions for Net Proceeds in excess of $1.0 million; 
provided, however, that the following transactions will be deemed not to be 
Asset Sales: (i) sales of inventory in the ordinary course of business; (ii) 
a disposition of assets by the Company to a Wholly Owned Subsidiary or by a 
Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Company to the Company or to another Wholly 
Owned Subsidiary of the Company; (iii) a disposition of Equity Interests by a 
Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Company to the Company or to another Wholly 
Owned Subsidiary of the Company; and (iv) a Permitted Investment or 
Restricted Payment that is permitted by the New Senior Subordinated Note 
Indenture. 

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   "Attributable Indebtedness" in respect of a sale and leaseback transaction 
means, at the time of determination, the present value (discounted at the 
rate of interest implicit in such transaction, determined in accordance with 
GAAP) of the obligation of the lessee for net rental payments during the 
remaining term of the lease included in such sale and leaseback transaction 
(including any period for which such lease has been extended or may, at the 
option of the lessor, be extended). 

   "Capital Expenditure Indebtedness" means Indebtedness incurred by any 
Person to finance the purchase or construction of any property or assets 
acquired or constructed by such Person which have a useful life of more than 
one year so long as (a) the purchase or construction price for such property 
or assets is included in "addition to property, plant or equipment" in 
accordance with GAAP, (b) the acquisition or construction of such property or 
assets is not part of any acquisition of a Person or line of business and (c) 
such Indebtedness is incurred within 90 days of the acquisition or completion 
of construction of such property or assets. 

   "Capital Lease Obligation" means, at the time any determination thereof is 
to be made, the amount of the liability in respect of a capital lease that 
would at such time be required to be capitalized on a balance sheet in 
accordance with GAAP. 

   "Capital Stock" means (a) in the case of a corporation, corporate stock, 
(b) in the case of an association or business entity, any and all shares, 
interests, participations, rights or other equivalents (however designated) 
of corporate stock, (c) in the case of a partnership or limited liability 
company, partnership or membership interests (whether general or limited), 
and (d) any other interest or participation that confers on a person the 
right to receive a share of the profits and losses of, or distributions of 
assets of, the issuing Person. 

   "Cash Equivalents" means (a) United States dollars, (b) securities issued 
or directly and fully guaranteed or insured by the United States government 
or any agency or instrumentality thereof having maturities of not more than 
six months from the date of acquisition, (c) certificates of deposit and 
eurodollar time deposits with maturities of six months or less from the date 
of acquisition, bankers' acceptances with maturities not exceeding six months 
and overnight bank deposits, in each case with any domestic commercial bank 
having capital and surplus in excess of $500.0 million, (d) repurchase 
obligations with a term of not more than seven days for underlying securities 
of the types described in clauses (b) and (c) above entered into with any 
financial institution meeting the qualifications specified in clause (c) 
above, and (e) commercial paper having the highest rating obtainable from 
Moody's Investors Service, Inc. or Standard & Poor's Rating Service and in 
each case maturing within six months after the date of acquisition. 

   "Consolidated Cash Flow" means, with respect to any Person for any period, 
the Consolidated Net Income of such Person for such period plus (a) an amount 
equal to any extraordinary loss plus any net loss realized in connection with 
an Asset Sale (to the extent such losses were deducted in computing such 
Consolidated Net Income), plus (b) provision for taxes based on income or 
profits of such Person and its Subsidiaries for such period, to the extent 
that such provision for taxes was included in computing such Consolidated Net 
Income, plus (c) consolidated interest expense of such Person and its 
Subsidiaries for such period, whether paid or accrued and whether or not 
capitalized (including, without limitation, amortization of debt issuance 
costs and original issue discount, non-cash interest payments, the interest 
component of any deferred payment obligations, the interest component of all 
payments associated with Capital Lease Obligations, commissions, discounts 
and other fees and charges incurred in respect of letter of credit or 
bankers' acceptance financings, and net payments (if any) pursuant to Hedging 
Obligations), to the extent that any such expense was deducted in computing 
such Consolidated Net Income, plus (d) depreciation, amortization (including 
amortization of goodwill and other intangibles but excluding amortization of 
prepaid cash expenses that were paid in a prior period) and other non-cash 
expenses (excluding any such non-cash expense to the extent that it 
represents an accrual of or reserve for cash expenses in any future period or 
amortization of a prepaid cash expense that was paid in a prior period) of 
such Person and its Subsidiaries for such period to the extent that such 
depreciation, amortization and other non-cash expenses were deducted in 
computing such Consolidated Net Income. 

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   "Consolidated Net Income" means, with respect to any Person for any 
period, the aggregate of the Net Income of such Person and its Subsidiaries 
for such period, on a consolidated basis, determined in accordance with GAAP; 
provided that (a) the Net Income (but not loss) of any Person that is not a 
Subsidiary or that is accounted for by the equity method of accounting shall 
be included only to the extent of the amount of dividends or distributions 
paid in cash to the referent Person or a Wholly Owned Subsidiary thereof, (b) 
the Net Income of any Subsidiary shall be excluded to the extent that the 
declaration or payment of dividends or similar distributions by that 
Subsidiary of that Net Income is not at the date of determination permitted 
without any prior governmental approval (that has not been obtained) or, 
directly or indirectly, by operation of the terms of its charter or any 
agreement, instrument, judgment, decree, order, statute, rule or governmental 
regulation applicable to that Subsidiary or its stockholders, (c) the Net 
Income of any Person acquired in a pooling of interests transaction for any 
period prior to the date of such acquisition shall be excluded, and (d) the 
cumulative effect of a change in accounting principles shall be excluded. 

   "Consolidated Net Worth" means, with respect to any Person as of any date, 
the sum of (a) the consolidated equity of the common stockholders of such 
Person and its consolidated Subsidiaries as of such date plus (b) the 
respective amounts reported on such Person's balance sheet as of such date 
with respect to any series of preferred stock (other than Disqualified Stock) 
that by its terms is not entitled to the payment of dividends unless such 
dividends may be declared and paid only out of net earnings in respect of the 
year of such declaration and payment, but only to the extent of any cash 
received by such Person upon issuance of such preferred stock, less (i) all 
write-ups (other than write-ups resulting from foreign currency translations 
and write-ups of tangible assets of a going concern business made within 12 
months after the acquisition of such business) subsequent to the date of the 
New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture in the book value of any asset owned 
by such Person or a consolidated Subsidiary of such Person, (ii) all 
investments as of such date in unconsolidated Subsidiaries and in Persons 
that are not Subsidiaries and (iii) all unamortized debt discount and expense 
and unamortized deferred charges as of such date, in each case determined in 
accordance with GAAP. 

   "Default" means any event that is or with the passage of time or the 
giving of notice or both would be an Event of Default. 

   "Designated Senior Debt" means, with respect to any Person, (i) any 
Indebtedness of such Person outstanding under the New Credit Agreement and 
(ii) in the event no Indebtedness is outstanding under the New Credit 
Agreement, any other Senior Debt of such Person permitted under the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture the principal amount of which is $25 
million or more and that has been designated by such Person as "Designated 
Senior Debt." 

   "Disqualified Stock" means any Capital Stock that, by its terms (or by the 
terms of any security into which it is convertible or for which it is 
exchangeable), or upon the happening of any event, matures or is mandatorily 
redeemable, pursuant to a sinking fund obligation or otherwise, or redeemable 
at the option of the holder thereof, in whole or in part, on or prior to the 
date that is 91 days after the date on which the New Senior Subordinated 
Notes mature. 

   "DLJMB" means DLJ Merchant Banking Partners II, L.P. and its Affiliates. 

   "Equity Interests" means Capital Stock and all warrants, options or other 
rights to acquire Capital Stock (but excluding any debt security that is 
convertible into, or exchangeable for, Capital Stock). 

   "Existing Indebtedness" means Indebtedness of the Company and its 
Subsidiaries (other than Indebtedness under the New Credit Agreement) in 
existence on the date of the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture, until 
such amounts are repaid. 

   "Fixed Charges" means, with respect to any Person for any period, the sum 
of (a) consolidated interest expense of such Person and its Subsidiaries for 
such period, whether paid or accrued (including, without limitation, 
amortization of debt issuance costs and original issue discount, non-cash 
interest payments, the interest component of any deferred payment 
obligations, the interest component of all payments associated with Capital 
Lease Obligations and net payments (if any) pursuant to Hedging Obligations), 
and (b) commissions, discounts and other fees and charges incurred with 
respect to letters 

                               63           
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of credit and bankers' acceptances financing, and (c) any interest expense on 
Indebtedness of another Person that is guaranteed by such Person or secured 
by a Lien on assets of such Person and (d) the product of (i) all dividend 
payments on any series of preferred stock of such Person (other than 
dividends payable solely in Equity Interests that are not Disqualified 
Stock), times (ii) a fraction, the numerator or of which is one and the 
denominator of which is one minus the then current combined federal, state 
and local statutory tax rate of such Person, expressed as decimal, in each 
case, on a consolidated basis and in accordance with GAAP. 

   "Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio" means with respect to any Person for any 
period, the ratio of the Consolidated Cash Flow of such Person and its 
Subsidiaries for such period (exclusive of amounts attributable to 
discontinued operations, as determined in accordance with GAAP, or operations 
and businesses disposed of prior to the Calculation Date (as defined below)) 
to the Fixed Charges of such Person for such period (exclusive of amounts 
attributable to discontinued operations, as determined in accordance with 
GAAP, or operations and businesses disposed of prior to the Calculation Date, 
but only to the extent that the obligations giving rise to such Fixed Charges 
would no longer be obligations contributing to such Person's Fixed Charges 
subsequent to the Calculation Date). In the event that the Company or any of 
its Subsidiaries incurs, assumes, guarantees or redeems any Indebtedness 
(other than revolving credit borrowings) or issues preferred stock subsequent 
to the commencement of the period for which the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio 
is being calculated but prior to the date on which the event for which the 
calculation of the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio is made (the "Calculation 
Date"), then the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio shall be calculated giving pro 
forma effect to such incurrence, assumption, guarantee or redemption of 
Indebtedness, or such issuance or redemption of preferred stock, as if the 
same had occurred at the beginning of the applicable four-quarter reference 
period. For purposes of making the computation referred to above, 
acquisitions that have been made by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, 
including all mergers and consolidations, during the four-quarter reference 
period or subsequent to such reference period and on or prior to the 
Calculation Date shall be calculated on a pro forma basis assuming that all 
such acquisitions, mergers and consolidations had occurred on the first day 
of the four-quarter reference period. 

   "GAAP" means generally accepted accounting principles set forth in the 
opinions and pronouncements of the Accounting Principles Board of the 
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and statements and 
pronouncements of the Financial Accounting Standards Board or in such other 
statements by such other entity as have been approved by a significant 
segment of the accounting profession, which are applicable as of the date of 
determination. 

   "guarantee" means a guarantee (other than by endorsement of negotiable 
instruments for collection in the ordinary course of business), direct or 
indirect, in any manner (including, without limitation, letters of credit and 
reimbursement agreements in respect thereof), of all or any part of any 
Indebtedness. 

   "Hedging Obligations" means, with respect to any Person, the obligations 
of such Person under interest rate swap agreements, interest rate cap 
agreements, interest rate collar agreements and other agreements or 
arrangements designed to protect such Person against fluctuations in interest 
rates. 

   "Indebtedness" means, with respect to any Person, any indebtedness of such 
Person, whether or not contingent, in respect of borrowed money or evidenced 
by bonds, notes, debentures or similar instruments or letters of credit (or 
reimbursement agreements in respect thereof) or banker's acceptances or 
representing Capital Lease Obligations or the balance deferred and unpaid of 
the purchase price of any property or representing any Hedging Obligations, 
except any such balance that constitutes an accrued expense or trade payable, 
if and to the extent any of the foregoing indebtedness (other than letters of 
credit and Hedging Obligations) would appear as a liability upon a balance 
sheet of such Person prepared in accordance with GAAP, as well as 
Indebtedness of others secured by a Lien on any asset of such Person (whether 
or not such Indebtedness is assumed by such Person) and, to the extent not 
otherwise included, the guarantee by such Person of any Indebtedness of any 
other Person. The amount of any Indebtedness outstanding as of any date shall 
be (a) the accreted value thereof (together with any interest thereon that is 
more than 30 days past due), in the case of any Indebtedness that does not 
require current payments of interest and (b) the principal amount thereof, in 
the case of any other Indebtedness. 

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   "Investments" means, with respect to any Person, all investments by such 
Person in other Persons (including Affiliates) in the forms of direct or 
indirect loans (including guarantees by the referent Person of, and Liens on 
any assets of the referent Person securing, Indebtedness or other obligations 
of other Persons), advances or capital contributions (excluding commission, 
travel and similar advances to officers and employees made in the ordinary 
course of business), purchases or other acquisitions for consideration of 
Indebtedness, Equity Interests or other securities, together with all items 
that are or would be classified as investments on a balance sheet prepared in 
accordance with GAAP. If the Company or any Subsidiary of the Company sells 
or otherwise disposes of any Equity Interests of any direct or indirect 
Subsidiary of the Company such that, after giving effect to any such sale or 
disposition, such Person is no longer a Subsidiary of the Company, the 
Company shall be deemed to have made an Investment on the date of any such 
sale or disposition equal to the fair market value of the Equity Interests of 
such Subsidiary not sold or disposed of in an amount determined as provided 
in the final paragraph of the covenant described above under the caption 
"--Certain Covenants--Restricted Payments." 

   "Lien" means, with respect to any asset, any mortgage, lien, pledge, 
charge, security interest or encumbrance of any kind in respect of such 
asset, whether or not filed, recorded or otherwise perfected under applicable 
law (including any conditional sale or other title retention agreement, any 
lease in the nature thereof, any option or other agreement to sell or give a 
security interest in and any filing of or agreement to give any financing 
statement under the Uniform Commercial Code (or equivalent statutes) of any 
jurisdiction). 

   "Net Income" means, with respect to any Person, the net income (loss) of 
such Person, determined in accordance with GAAP and before any reduction in 
respect of preferred stock dividends, excluding, however, (a) any gain (but 
not loss), together with any related provision for taxes on such gain (but 
not loss), realized in connection with (i) any Asset Sale (including, without 
limitation, dispositions pursuant to sale and leaseback transactions) or (ii) 
the disposition of any securities by such Person or any of its Subsidiaries 
or the extinguishment of any Indebtedness of such Person or any of its 
Subsidiaries, and (b) any extraordinary or nonrecurring gain (but not loss), 
together with any related provision for taxes on such extraordinary or 
nonrecurring gain (but not loss). 

   "Net Proceeds" means the aggregate cash proceeds received by the Company 
or any of its Subsidiaries in respect of any Asset Sale (including, without 
limitation, any cash received upon the sale or other disposition of any 
non-cash consideration received in any Asset Sale), net of (without 
duplication) (a) the direct costs relating to such Asset Sale (including, 
without limitation, legal, accounting and investment banking fees, sales 
commissions, recording fees, title transfer fees, and appraiser fees) and any 
relocation expenses incurred as a result thereof, (b) taxes paid or estimated 
to be payable as a result thereof (after taking into account any available 
tax credits or deductions and any tax sharing arrangements), (c) amounts 
required to be applied to the repayment of Indebtedness (other than revolving 
credit Indebtedness incurred pursuant to the New Credit Agreement) secured by 
a Lien on the asset or assets that were the subject of such Asset Sale, and 
(d) any reserve established in accordance with GAAP or any amount placed in 
escrow, in either case for adjustment in respect of the sale price of such 
asset or assets, until such time as such reserve is reversed or such escrow 
arrangement is terminated, in which case Net Proceeds shall include only the 
amount of the reserve so reversed or the amount returned to the Company or 
its Subsidiaries from such escrow arrangement, as the case may be. 

   "New Credit Agreement" means the New Credit Agreement, including any 
related notes, guarantees, collateral and security documents, instruments and 
agreements executed in connection therewith, and in each case as amended, 
modified, renewed, refunded, replaced or refinanced from time to time, 
subject to the terms thereof and of the Senior Subordinated Note Indenture. 

   "Obligations" means any principal, interest, premium, penalties, fees, 
indemnification, reimbursements, damages and other liabilities payable under 
the documentation governing any Indebtedness. 

   "Permitted Investments" means (a) any Investment in the Company or in a 
Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Company, (b) any Investment in Cash 
Equivalents, (c) any Investment by the Company or any Subsidiary of the 
Company in a Person that is engaged in the same or a similar line of business 
as the Company and its Subsidiaries were engaged in on the date of the New 
Senior Subordinated Note 

                               65           
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Indenture if as a result of such Investment (i) such Person becomes a Wholly 
Owned Subsidiary of the Company and a Subsidiary Guarantor or (ii) such 
Person is merged, consolidated or amalgamated with or into, or transfers or 
conveys substantially all of its assets to, or is liquidated into, the 
Company or a Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Company, (d) any Investment made 
as a result of the receipt of non-cash consideration from an Asset Sale that 
was made pursuant to and in compliance with the covenant described above 
under the caption "--Repurchase at the Option of Holders--Asset Sales," (e) 
any Investment acquired solely in exchange for Equity Interests (other than 
Disqualified Stock) of the Company, and (f) other Investments in any Person 
that is engaged in the same or a similar line of business as the Company and 
its Subsidiaries were engaged in on the date of the New Senior Subordinated 
Note Indenture which Investment has a fair market value (as determined by a 
resolution of the Board of Directors of the Company and set forth in an 
officer's certificate delivered to the Trustee), when taken together with all 
other Investments made pursuant to this clause (f) that are at the time 
outstanding, not to exceed $    million. 

   "Permitted Junior Securities" means Equity Interests in the Company or a 
Subsidiary Guarantor or debt securities of the Company or a Subsidiary 
Guarantor that are subordinated to all Senior Debt (and any debt securities 
issued in exchange for Senior Debt) to substantially the same extent as, or 
to a greater extent than, the New Senior Subordinated Notes are subordinated 
to Senior Debt. 

   "Permitted Liens" means (a) Liens securing the Company's obligations under 
the New Credit Agreement; (b) Liens in favor of the Company and its 
Subsidiaries; (c) Liens on property of a Person existing at the time such 
Person is merged into or consolidated with the Company or any Subsidiary of 
the Company, provided that such Liens were in existence prior to the 
contemplation of such merger or consolidation and do not extend to any assets 
other than those of the Person merged into or consolidated with the Company 
or any of its Subsidiaries; (d) Liens on property existing at the time of 
acquisition thereof by the Company or any Subsidiary of the Company, provided 
that such Liens were in existence prior to the contemplation of such 
acquisition; (e) Liens to secure the performance of statutory obligations, 
surety or appeal bonds, performance bonds, insurance obligations, operating 
leases or other obligations of a like nature incurred in the ordinary course 
of business; (f) Liens for taxes, assessments or governmental charges or 
claims that are not yet delinquent or that are being contested in good faith 
by appropriate proceedings promptly instituted and diligently concluded, 
provided that any reserve or other appropriate provision as shall be required 
in conformity with GAAP shall have been made therefor; (g) Liens incurred in 
the ordinary course of business of the Company or any Subsidiary of the 
Company with respect to obligations that do not exceed $   million at any one 
time outstanding and that (1) are not incurred in connection with the 
borrowing of money or the obtaining of advances or credit (other than trade 
credit in the ordinary course of business) and (2) do not in the aggregate 
materially detract from the value of the property or materially impair the 
use thereof in the operation of business by the Company or such Subsidiary; 
(h) Liens existing on the date of the New Senior Subordinated Note Indenture; 
(i) statutory Liens of landlords and carriers', warehousemen's mechanics', 
suppliers', materialmen's, repairmen's, or other like Liens arising in the 
ordinary course of business and with respect to amounts not yet delinquent or 
being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings, if a reserve or 
other appropriate provision, if any, as shall be required in conformity with 
GAAP shall have been made therefor; (j) easements, rights-of-way, 
restrictions and other similar encumbrances incurred in the ordinary course 
of business which, in the aggregate, are not substantial in amount, and which 
do not in any case materially detract from the value of the property subject 
thereto or interfere with the ordinary conduct of the businesses of the 
Company and its Subsidiaries taken as a whole; (k) Liens securing Permitted 
Refinancing Indebtedness, provided that the Company was permitted to incur 
such Liens with respect to the Indebtedness so refinanced; and (l) Liens to 
secure Indebtedness (including Capital Lease Obligations) permitted by clause 
(d) of the second paragraph of the covenant described under the caption 
"--Certain Covenants--Incurrence of Indebtedness and Issuance of Preferred 
Stock" covering only the assets acquired with such Indebtedness. 

   "Permitted Refinancing Indebtedness" means any Indebtedness of the Company 
or any of its Subsidiaries issued in exchange for, or the net proceeds of 
which are used to extend, refinance, renew, replace, defease or refund other 
Indebtedness of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries; provided that (a) 

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the principal amount (or accreted value, if applicable) of such Permitted 
Refinancing Indebtedness does not exceed the principal amount of (or accreted 
value, if applicable), plus premium, if any, and accrued interest on, the 
Indebtedness so extended, refinanced, renewed, replaced, defeased or refunded 
(plus the amount of reasonable expenses incurred in connection therewith), 
(b) such Permitted Refinancing Indebtedness has a final maturity date no 
earlier than the final maturity date of, and has a Weighted Average Life to 
Maturity equal to or greater than the Weighted Average Life to Maturity of, 
the Indebtedness being extended, refinanced, renewed, replaced, defeased or 
refunded, (c) if the Indebtedness being extended, refinanced, renewed, 
replaced, defeased or refunded is subordinated in right of payment to the New 
Senior Subordinated Notes, such Permitted Refinancing Indebtedness is 
subordinated in right of payment to the New Senior Subordinated Notes on 
terms at least as favorable, taken as a whole, to the holders of New Senior 
Subordinated Notes as those contained in the documentation governing the 
Indebtedness being extended, refinanced, renewed, replaced, defeased or 
refunded, and (d) such Indebtedness is incurred either by the Company or by 
the Subsidiary who is the obligor on the Indebtedness being extended, 
refinanced, renewed, replaced, defeased or refunded. 

   "Principals" means DLJMB. 

   "Restricted Investment" means an Investment other than a Permitted 
Investment. 

   "Senior Debt" means, with respect to any Person, (a) all Obligations of 
such Person outstanding under the New Credit Agreement and all Hedging 
Obligations payable to a lender under the New Credit Agreement or any of its 
Affiliates, including, without limitation, interest accruing subsequent to 
the filing of, or which would have accrued but for the filing of, a petition 
for bankruptcy, whether or not such interest is an allowable claim in such 
bankruptcy proceeding, (b) any other Indebtedness of such Person unless the 
instrument under which such Indebtedness is incurred expressly provides that 
it is subordinated in right of payment to any other Senior Debt of such 
Person, and (c) all Obligations with respect to the foregoing. 
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the foregoing, Senior Debt will 
not include (i) any liability for federal, state, local or other taxes, (ii) 
any Indebtedness of such person to any of its Subsidiaries, (iii) any trade 
payables or (iv) any Indebtedness that is incurred in violation of the New 
Senior Subordinated Note Indenture. 

   "Significant Subsidiary" means any Subsidiary that would be a "significant 
subsidiary" as defined in Article 1, Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X, promulgated 
pursuant to the Securities Act, as such Regulation is in effect on the date 
hereof. 

   "Stated Maturity" means, with respect to any installment of interest or 
principal on any series of Indebtedness, the date on which such payment of 
interest or principal was scheduled to be paid in the original documentation 
governing such Indebtedness, and shall not include any contingent obligations 
to repay, redeem or repurchase any such interest or principal prior to the 
date originally scheduled for the payment thereof. 

   "Subsidiary" means, with respect to any Person, (a) any corporation, 
association or other business entity of which more than 50% of the total 
voting power of shares of Capital Stock entitled (without regard to the 
occurrence of any contingency) to vote in the election of directors, managers 
or trustees thereof is at the time owned or controlled, directly or 
indirectly, by such Person or one or more of the other Subsidiaries of that 
Person (or a combination thereof) and (b) any partnership (i) the sole 
general partner or the managing general partner of which is such Person or a 
Subsidiary of such Person or (ii) the only general partners of which are such 
Person or of one or more Subsidiaries of such Person (or any combination 
thereof). 

   "Weighted Average Life to Maturity" means, when applied to any 
Indebtedness at any date, the number of years obtained by dividing (a) the 
sum of the products obtained by multiplying (i) the amount of each then 
remaining installment, sinking fund, serial maturity or other required 
payments of principal, including payment at final maturity, in respect 
thereof, by (ii) the number of years (calculated to the nearest one-twelfth) 
that will elapse between such date and the making of such payment, by (b) the 
then outstanding principal amount of such Indebtedness. 

   "Wholly Owned Subsidiary" of any Person means a Subsidiary of such Person 
all of the outstanding Capital Stock or other ownership interests of which 
(other than directors' qualifying shares) shall at the time be owned by such 
Person or by one or more Wholly Owned Subsidiaries of such Person. 

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DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN INDEBTEDNESS 

DESCRIPTION OF NEW CREDIT AGREEMENT 

   In connection with the Refinancing Plan, the Company will enter into the 
New Credit Agreement pursuant to which DLJ Capital Funding, Inc., an 
affiliate of DLJ, will act as a manager and syndication agent, and a 
financial institution to be determined will act as administrative agent. The 
New Credit Agreement is expected to provide for total lending commitments of 
up to $160.0 million. The New Credit Agreement will be comprised of (i) a 
Revolving Credit Facility and (ii) Term Loan Facilities. Borrowings under the 
New Credit Agreement, together with the proceeds of the Offering, will be 
used to repay the Company's existing indebtedness as described under "Use of 
Proceeds." The proceeds of loans under the New Credit Agreement may also be 
used to fund the Company's working capital needs, capital expenditures and 
other general corporate purposes, including the issuance of letters of 
credit. 

   Borrowings under the New Credit Agreement will bear interest annually, at 
the Company's option, at the rate of either (i) LIBOR plus a spread or (ii) 
the Base Rate (defined as, generally, the higher of the Federal Funds Rate, 
as published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, plus 0.5%, or the 
administrative agent's prime lending rate) plus a spread. In addition, the 
Company must pay a fee on the face amount of each letter of credit 
outstanding at a rate equal to the LIBOR margin. 

   It is expected that borrowings under the New Credit Agreement will be 
guaranteed by, and secured by a pledge of all of the capital stock and assets 
of, the Company's subsidiaries. 

   The New Credit Agreement will contain various covenants that limit or 
restrict, among other things, subject to certain exceptions, the incurrence 
of indebtedness, the creation of liens, transactions with affiliates, 
restricted payments, investments and acquisitions, mergers, consolidations, 
dissolutions, asset sales, dividends, distributions, and certain other 
transactions and business activities by the Company. 

                               68           
<PAGE>

                                 UNDERWRITING

   Subject to the terms and conditions contained in the Underwriting 
Agreement (the "Underwriting Agreement") between the Company and DLJ (the 
"Underwriter"), the Underwriter has agreed to purchase from the Company, and 
the Company has agreed to sell to the Underwriter, all of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes offered hereby. 

   The Underwriting Agreement provides that the obligations of the 
Underwriter thereunder are subject to certain conditions precedent. The 
Underwriting Agreement also provides that the Company will indemnify the 
Underwriter against certain liabilities and expenses, including liabilities 
under the Securities Act. The nature of the Underwriter's obligation is such 
that it is required to purchase all of the New Senior Subordinated Notes if 
any New Senior Subordinated Notes are purchased by the Underwriter. 

   The Underwriter has advised the Company that it proposes initially to 
offer the New Senior Subordinated Notes, in part, directly to the public at 
the public offering price set forth on the cover of this Prospectus and in 
part to selected dealers at such price less a concession not in excess of 
   % of the aggregate principal amount at stated maturity of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes. The Underwriter may allow, and such dealers may reallow, 
a discount not in excess of     % of the aggregate principal amount at stated 
maturity of the New Senior Subordinated Notes to certain other dealers. After 
the initial public offering of the New Senior Subordinated Notes, the 
offering price and the other selling terms may be changed by the Underwriter. 

   The New Senior Subordinated Notes are a new security for which no public 
market exists. The New Senior Subordinated Notes will not be listed on any 
securities exchange. There can be no assurance that an active public market 
will develop or be sustained upon completion of the Offering or at what 
prices holders of the New Senior Subordinated Notes would be able to sell 
such securities, if at all. In addition, prevailing interest rate levels, 
market fluctuations and general economic and political conditions may 
adversely affect the liquidity and the market price of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes, regardless of the Company's financial and operating 
performance. The market for "high yield" securities, such as the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes, is volatile and unpredictable, which may have an adverse 
effect on the liquidity of, and prices for, such securities. The Company has 
been advised by the Underwriter that it currently intends to make a market in 
the New Senior Subordinated Notes after consummation of the Offering as 
permitted by applicable laws and regulations; however, the Underwriter is not 
obligated to do so and may discontinue doing so without notice at any time. 
Accordingly, no assurance can be given that a liquid trading market of the 
New Senior Subordinated Notes will develop or be sustained. In addition, 
because the Underwriter may be deemed to be an affiliate of the Company, the 
Underwriter will be required to deliver a current "market-maker" prospectus 
and otherwise to comply with the registration requirements of the Securities 
Act in connection with any secondary market sale of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes, which may affect its ability to continue market-making 
activities. The Underwriter's ability to engage in market-making transactions 
will therefore be subject to the availability of a current "market-maker" 
prospectus. For so long as any of the New Senior Subordinated Notes are 
outstanding and, in the reasonable judgment of the Underwriter and its 
counsel, the Underwriter or any of its affiliates (as defined in the rules 
and regulations under the Securities Act) is required to deliver a prospectus 
in connection with sales of the New Senior Subordinated Notes, the Company 
has agreed to make a "market-maker" prospectus available to the Underwriter 
to permit it to engage in market-making transactions. 

   The Underwriter has informed the Company that it does not intend to 
confirm sales of the New Senior Subordinated Notes to any accounts over which 
it exercises discretionary authority. 

   In connection with the Offering, the Underwriter may engage in 
transactions that stabilize, maintain or otherwise affect the price of the 
New Senior Subordinated Notes. Specifically, the Underwriter may overallot 
the Offering, creating a syndicate short position. The Underwriter may bid 
for and purchase the New Senior Subordinated Notes in the open market to 
cover syndicate short positions. In addition, the Underwriter may bid for and 
purchase the New Senior Subordinated Notes in the open market to stabilize 

                               69           
<PAGE>

the price of the New Senior Subordinated Notes. These activities may 
stabilize or maintain the market price for the New Senior Subordinated Notes 
above independent market levels. The Underwriter is not required to engage in 
these activities, and may discontinue these activities at any time. 

   Under Rule 2720 of the Conduct Rules of the NASD ("Rule 2720"), the 
Company is considered an affiliate of DLJ. This Offering is being conducted 
in accordance with Rule 2720, which provides that, among other things, when 
an NASD member participates in the underwriting of an affiliate's debt 
securities, the yield at which such securities are to be distributed to the 
public must not be lower than that recommended by a "qualified independent 
underwriter" meeting certain standards ("QIU"). In accordance with this 
requirement, Goldman, Sachs & Co. has assumed the responsibilities of acting 
as QIU and will recommend a public offering price for the Common Stock in 
compliance with the requirements of Rule 2720. The yield of the New Senior 
Subordinated Notes when sold will be no lower than that recommended by the 
QIU. In connection with the Offering, Goldman, Sachs & Co. is performing due 
diligence investigations and reviewing and participating in the preparation 
of this Prospectus and the Registration Statement of which this Prospectus 
forms a part. As compensation for the services of Goldman, Sachs & Co. as 
QIU, the Company will agree to pay Goldman, Sachs & Co. customary QIU fees. 

   The Underwriter is also acting as one of the underwriters in connection 
with the Common Stock Offering and will receive customary discounts and 
commissions in connection therewith. DLJ Capital Funding, Inc. is one of the 
lenders under the Existing Credit Agreement. The proceeds of the Offering, 
together with the proceeds from the Common Stock Offering and the New Credit 
Agreement, are being used to effect the Refinancing Plan, including the 
repayment of the Existing Credit Agreement. DLJ Capital Funding, Inc., an 
affiliate of the Underwriter, is expected to act as syndication agent and be 
a lender under the New Credit Agreement. From time to time, the Underwriter 
provides investment banking services to the Company, for which it receives 
customary compensation. See "Certain Relationships and Related Transactions." 

                                LEGAL MATTERS 

   The validity of the New Senior Subordinated Notes being offered hereby and 
certain other legal matters relating to the Offering will be passed upon for 
the Company by Latham & Watkins, New York, New York. Latham & Watkins also 
represented DLJMBPII in connection with the Recapitalization. Certain legal 
matters relating to the Offering will be passed upon for the Underwriter by 
Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, New York, New York. 

                                   EXPERTS 

   The consolidated financial statements of the Company as of December 30, 
1995 and December 28, 1996 and for each of the three years ended December 28, 
1996 included in this Prospectus have been so included in reliance on the 
report of Price Waterhouse LLP, independent accountants, given on the 
authority of said firm as experts in auditing and accounting. 

                            ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

   The Company has filed the Registration Statement on Form S-1 with respect 
to the New Senior Subordinated Notes being offered hereby with the Commission 
under the Securities Act. This Prospectus, which constitutes a part of the 
Registration Statement, does not contain all the information set forth in the 
Registration Statement, certain items of which are omitted in accordance with 
the rules and regulations of the Commission. Statements contained in this 
Prospectus concerning the provisions of documents filed with the Registration 
Statement as exhibits are necessarily summaries of such documents, and each 
such statement is qualified in its entirety by reference to the copy of the 
applicable document filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement. The 
Registration Statement may be inspected and copied at the public reference 
facilities maintained by the Commission at 450 Fifth Street, N.W., Room 1024, 
Washington, D.C. 20549; at its Chicago Regional Office, Citicorp Center, 500 
West Madison Street, Suite 1400, Chicago, Illinois 60661-2511; and at its New 
York Regional Office, Seven World Trade Center, Suite 

                               70           
<PAGE>

1300, New York, New York 10048. Copies of such material can be obtained from 
the public reference section of the Commission, 450 Fifth Street, N.W., 
Washington, D.C. 20549, at prescribed rates. The Commission also maintains a 
website on the Internet at http://www.sec.gov that contains reports, proxy 
statements and other information with respect to companies that file 
documents electronically with the Commission. For further information 
pertaining to the Company and the New Senior Subordinated Notes being offered 
hereby, reference is made to the Registration Statement, including the 
exhibits thereto and the financial statements, notes and schedules filed as a 
part thereof. 

                               71           
<PAGE>
                        INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                                            PAGE 
                                                                                          -------- 
<S>                                                                                       <C>
Report of Independent Accountants .......................................................    F-2 
Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 30, 1995 and December 28, 1996  ..............    F-3 
Consolidated Statements of Operations for each of the 52 weeks ended December 31, 1994, 
 December 30, 1995 and December 28, 1996.................................................    F-4 
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity (Deficiency) for each of the 52 weeks 
 ended December 31, 1994, December 30, 1995 and December 28, 1996........................    F-5 
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for each of the 52 weeks ended December 31, 1994, 
 December 30, 1995 and December 28, 1996.................................................    F-6 
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements ..............................................    F-7 
Consolidated Balance Sheet as of September 27, 1997 (Unaudited)..........................   F-16 
Consolidated Statements of Operations for each of the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996 
 and September 27, 1997 (Unaudited)......................................................   F-17 
Consolidated Statement of Stockholders' Equity (Deficiency) for the 39 weeks ended 
 September 27, 1997 (Unaudited)..........................................................   F-18 
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996 and 
 September 27, 1997 (Unaudited)..........................................................   F-19 
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) ..................................   F-20 
</TABLE>

                               F-1           
<PAGE>
                      REPORT OF INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS 

To the Board of Directors and 
Stockholders of Duane Reade Holding Corp. 

In our opinion, the accompanying consolidated balance sheets and the related 
consolidated statements of operations, stockholders' equity/(deficiency) and 
cash flows present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position 
of Duane Reade Holding Corp. ("Holdings") and its subsidiaries at December 
30, 1995 and December 28, 1996 and the results of their operations and their 
cash flows for each of the 52 week periods ended December 31, 1994, December 
30, 1995 and December 28, 1996 in conformity with generally accepted 
accounting principles. These financial statements are the responsibility of 
Holdings' management; our responsibility is to express an opinion on these 
financial statements based on our audits. We conducted our audits of these 
statements in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards which 
require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance 
about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An 
audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts 
and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing the accounting 
principles used and significant estimates made by management and evaluating 
the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audits 
provide a reasonable basis for the opinion expressed above. 

Price Waterhouse LLP 
New York, New York 
February 18, 1997, except as to Note 12, which is as of June 18, 1997 

                               F-2           
<PAGE>

                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
                         CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS 
                     (IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT SHARE AMOUNTS) 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                          DECEMBER 30,    DECEMBER 28, 
                                                                              1995            1996 
                                                                         -------------- -------------- 
<S>                                                                      <C>            <C>
ASSETS 
Current assets 
 Cash...................................................................    $  2,133        $    216 
 Government securities .................................................          44              -- 
 Receivables ...........................................................       5,740           7,171 
 Inventories ...........................................................      43,147          47,914 
 Prepaid expenses ......................................................       1,355           1,165 
                                                                         -------------- -------------- 
 TOTAL CURRENT ASSETS ..................................................      52,419          56,466 
Property and equipment, net ............................................      24,832          23,065 
Goodwill, net of accumulated amortization of $11,306 and $14,785  ......     127,848         124,369 
Covenants not to compete, net of accumulated amortization of $48,660 
 and $60,000 ...........................................................      11,340              -- 
Other assets ...........................................................      19,421          18,576 
                                                                         -------------- -------------- 
  TOTAL ASSETS .........................................................    $235,860        $222,476 
                                                                         ============== ============== 
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' DEFICIENCY 
Current liabilities 
 Accounts payable.......................................................    $ 20,427        $ 20,015 
 Accrued interest ......................................................       3,797           3,873 
 Other accrued expenses ................................................       6,102           8,157 
 Current portion of long-term debt .....................................       5,625          12,000 
 Current portion of capital lease obligations ..........................       2,769           2,504 
                                                                         -------------- -------------- 
  TOTAL CURRENT LIABILITIES ............................................      38,720          46,549 
Senior debt, less current portion ......................................     163,475         149,975 
Subordinated zero coupon debt, net of unamortized discount of $55,148 
 and $43,899 ...........................................................      68,232          79,481 
Capital lease obligations, less current portion ........................       4,003           1,697 
Other non-current liabilities ..........................................       2,626           4,170 
                                                                         -------------- -------------- 
  TOTAL LIABILITIES ....................................................     277,056         281,872 
                                                                         -------------- -------------- 
Commitments and Contingencies (Note 8) 
Stockholders' deficiency 
 Common stock, Class P, $0.01 par; authorized 185,000 shares; issued 
 and  outstanding 127,941.3 and 126,274.7 shares .......................           1               1 
 Common stock, Class P-1, non-voting, $0.01 par; authorized 15,000 
  shares; issued and outstanding 11,111.1 shares .......................          --              -- 
 Common stock, $0.01 par; authorized 1,650,000 shares; issued and 
  outstanding 1,151,470.5 and 1,136,470.5 shares .......................          12              11 
 Common stock, Class A, non-voting, $0.01 par; authorized 150,000 
  shares; issued and outstanding 100,000 shares ........................           1               1 
 Paid-in-capital .......................................................      24,997          24,652 
 Accumulated deficit ...................................................     (66,207)        (84,061) 
                                                                         -------------- -------------- 
  TOTAL STOCKHOLDERS' DEFICIENCY .......................................     (41,196)        (59,396) 
                                                                         -------------- -------------- 
  TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' DEFICIENCY .......................    $235,860        $222,476 
                                                                         ============== ============== 
</TABLE>

  The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements. 

                               F-3           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
                    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS 
                   (IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT PER SHARE AMOUNTS) 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                           FOR THE 52 WEEKS ENDED 
                                               ---------------------------------------------- 
                                                DECEMBER 31,    DECEMBER 30,   DECEMBER 28, 
                                                    1994            1995           1996 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
<S>                                            <C>            <C>             <C>
Net sales ....................................    $281,103        $336,922       $381,466 
Cost of sales ................................     209,678         259,827        288,505 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
Gross profit .................................      71,425          77,095         92,961 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
Selling, general and administrative expenses        39,741          50,326         59,048 
Amortization .................................      18,238          11,579         16,217 
Depreciation .................................       1,184           1,929          3,015 
Store pre-opening expenses ...................       1,220           1,095            139 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
                                                    60,383          64,929         78,419 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
Operating income .............................      11,042          12,166         14,542 
Interest expense, net ........................      27,480          30,224         32,396 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
Loss before income taxes .....................     (16,438)        (18,058)       (17,854) 
Income taxes .................................          --              --             -- 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
 NET LOSS.....................................    $(16,438)       $(18,058)      $(17,854) 
                                               ============== ==============  ============== 
 NET LOSS PER COMMON SHARE....................    $   (.19)       $   (.21)      $   (.21) 
                                               ============== ==============  ============== 
 WEIGHTED AVERAGE COMMON SHARES 
  OUTSTANDING.................................      84,598          84,739         84,118 
                                               ============== ==============  ============== 
</TABLE>

  The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements. 

                               F-4           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
         CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIENCY) 
                     (IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT SHARE AMOUNTS) 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                        COMMON STOCK 
                             ------------------------------------------------------------------ 
                                    CLASS P             CLASS P-1             COMMON STOCK 
                             --------------------- -------------------- ----------------------- 
                                SHARES     AMOUNT    SHARES     AMOUNT      SHARES      AMOUNT 
                             ----------- --------  ---------- --------  ------------- -------- 
<S>                          <C>         <C>       <C>        <C>       <C>           <C>
Balance , January 1, 1994  .  127,524.5     $ 1     11,111.1     $--     1,147,720.5     $11 
Sale of common stock to 
 executives ................      138.9      --           --      --         1,250.0      -- 
Net loss ...................         --      --           --      --              --      -- 
                             ----------- --------  ---------- --------  ------------- -------- 
Balance, December 31, 1994    127,663.4       1     11,111.1      --     1,148,970.5      11 
Sale of common stock to 
 executives ................      555.6      --           --      --         5,000.0       1 
Repurchase of common stock       (277.7)     --           --      --        (2,500.0)     -- 
Net loss ...................         --      --           --      --              --      -- 
                             ----------- --------  ---------- --------  ------------- -------- 
Balance, December 30, 1995    127,941.3       1     11,111.1      --     1,151,470.5      12 
Repurchase of common stock     (1,666.6)     --           --      --       (15,000.0)     (1) 
Net loss ...................         --      --           --      --              --      -- 
                             ----------- --------  ---------- --------  ------------- -------- 
Balance, December 28, 1996    126,274.7     $ 1     11,111.1     $--     1,136,470.5     $11 
                             =========== ========  ========== ========  ============= ======== 
</TABLE>

                    (RESTUBBED TABLE CONTINUED FROM ABOVE) 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                   CLASS A       
                             -------------------  PAID-IN    ACCUMULATED           
                               SHARES    AMOUNT   CAPITAL      DEFICIT       TOTAL 
                             --------- --------  ---------   ------------   ---------
<S>                          <C>       <C>       <C>       <C>            <C>
Balance , January 1, 1994  .  100,000     $ 1     $24,941     $(31,711)    $ (6,757) 
Sale of common stock to 
 executives ................       --      --          25           --           25 
Net loss ...................       --      --          --      (16,438)     (16,438) 
                             --------- --------  --------- -------------  ---------- 
Balance, December 31, 1994    100,000       1      24,966      (48,149)     (23,170) 
Sale of common stock to 
 executives ................       --      --          99           --          100 
Repurchase of common stock         --      --         (68)          --          (68) 
Net loss ...................       --      --          --      (18,058)     (18,058) 
                             --------- --------  --------- -------------  ---------- 
Balance, December 30, 1995    100,000       1      24,997      (66,207)     (41,196) 
Repurchase of common stock         --      --        (345)          --         (346) 
Net loss ...................       --      --          --      (17,854)     (17,854) 
                             --------- --------  --------- -------------  ---------- 
Balance, December 28, 1996    100,000     $ 1     $24,652     $(84,061)    $(59,396) 
                             ========= ========  ========= =============  ========== 
</TABLE>

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements. 

                               F-5           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
                    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS 
                                (IN THOUSANDS) 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                           FOR THE 52 WEEKS ENDED 
                                               ---------------------------------------------- 
                                                DECEMBER 31,    DECEMBER 30,   DECEMBER 28, 
                                                    1994            1995           1996 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
<S>                                            <C>            <C>             <C>
Cash flows from operating activities: 
 Net loss.....................................    $(16,438)       $(18,058)      $(17,854) 
 Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net 
  cash provided by operating activities  ..... 
   Depreciation and amortization of property 
    and equipment ............................       1,184           1,929          3,015 
   Amortization of goodwill and other 
    intangibles ..............................      20,646          13,940         18,897 
   Accretion of principal of zero coupon debt        8,282           9,628         11,249 
   Other .....................................         724           1,769          1,526 
  Changes in operating assets and liabilities 
   Receivables ...............................        (225)         (1,962)        (1,431) 
   Inventories ...............................      (4,838)         (6,745)        (4,767) 
   Accounts payable ..........................       5,716           7,382           (412) 
   Prepaid and accrued expenses ..............        (110)           (658)         2,321 
  Increase in other assets (liabilities)--net          356            (491)            51 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
  NET CASH PROVIDED BY OPERATING ACTIVITIES  .      15,297           6,734         12,595 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
Cash flows from investing activities: 
 Capital expenditures ........................      (9,947)         (6,868)        (1,247) 
 Systems development costs ...................      (2,425)         (6,268)        (2,566) 
 Sale of government securities--net  .........       1,134             382             44 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
  NET CASH USED IN INVESTING ACTIVITIES  .....     (11,238)        (12,754)        (3,769) 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
Cash flows from financing activities: 
 Financing costs .............................          --            (885)          (952) 
 Repayments of term loan .....................      (8,000)        (15,000)        (5,625) 
 Proceeds from issuance of long-term debt  ...          --          15,000             -- 
 Net (repayments) borrowings--Revolving 
  credit .....................................          --           4,000         (1,500) 
 Proceeds from issuance of stock .............          --              25             -- 
 Repurchase of stock .........................          --             (68)           (95) 
 Capital lease financing .....................       5,492           4,329            274 
 Repayments of capital lease obligations  ....        (432)         (2,617)        (2,845) 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
  NET CASH (USED IN) PROVIDED BY FINANCING 
   ACTIVITIES ................................      (2,940)          4,784        (10,743) 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
 Net increase (decrease) in cash .............       1,119          (1,236)        (1,917) 
 Cash at beginning of year ...................       2,250           3,369          2,133 
                                               -------------- --------------  -------------- 
 Cash at end of year..........................    $  3,369        $  2,133       $    216 
                                               ============== ==============  ============== 
 Supplementary disclosures of cash flow 
  information ................................ 
  Cash paid for interest......................    $ 16,969        $ 18,298       $ 18,391 
                                               ============== ==============  ============== 
</TABLE>

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements. 

                               F-6           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
                  NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 

1. ORGANIZATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES 

   Duane Reade Holding Corp. ("Holdings") was formed on June 16, 1992 for the 
purpose of acquiring Daboco, Inc. ("Daboco"). The acquisition took place on 
September 25, 1992. Daboco and Duane Reade Inc. ("DR Inc."), a subsidiary of 
Daboco, are general partners in Duane Reade, which operates a chain of retail 
drug stores (60 at December 28, 1996) in the New York City area. 

   Significant accounting policies followed in the preparation of the 
consolidated financial statements are as follows: 

   PRINCIPLES OF CONSOLIDATION: The consolidated financial statements include 
the accounts of Holdings, Daboco, DR Inc. and Duane Reade (collectively, the 
"Company"). All intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated. 
Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform with the 
current presentation. 

   REPORTING YEAR: The fiscal year for the Company is the 52/53 week 
reporting period ending on the last Saturday in December. 

   RECEIVABLES: Receivables consist primarily of amounts due from various 
insurance companies and governmental agencies under third party payment plans 
for prescription sales and amounts due from vendors, a majority of which 
relate to promotional programs. 

   INVENTORIES AND COST OF SALES: Substantially all inventories are stated on 
the last-in, first-out retail dollar value method (LIFO). If current cost had 
been used, inventories at December 30, 1995 and December 28, 1996 would not 
be materially different from the amounts reflected on the accompanying 
balance sheets. Cost of sales includes distribution and occupancy costs. 

   PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT: Property and equipment are stated at cost. 
Depreciation and amortization are provided using the straight-line method 
over estimated useful lives of assets as follows: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
<S>                                     <C>
 Buildings and improvements ............30 years 
Furniture, fixtures and equipment  .... 5-10 years 
Leasehold improvements ................ Life of lease or, if shorter, asset 
Property under capital leases.......... 7 years 

</TABLE>

   OTHER ASSETS: Deferred financing costs arose in connection with borrowings 
under the Term Loan and with the issuance of the Senior Notes and the Zero 
Coupon Notes and are amortized using the straight-line method, the results of 
which are not materially different from the interest method, over the term of 
the respective debt issue. 

   Systems development costs, consisting principally of costs relating to the 
new management information systems, are amortized using the straight-line 
method commencing in 1996 over a period of seven years. 

   INTANGIBLE ASSETS: In September 1992, Holdings and Duane Reade entered 
into agreements with certain former members of management of Duane Reade, 
former shareholders of Daboco and shareholders of former partners of Duane 
Reade (collectively, the "Group") precluding such persons from competing with 
the operations of Duane Reade for a period of five years. The covenants not 
to compete were recorded at acquisition cost and were being amortized over 
the period of benefit using an accelerated method. During the first quarter 
of 1997, Holdings and Duane Reade entered into agreements in which the 
Company received consideration from the Group to terminate the non-compete 
agreements. In accordance with APB Opinion No. 17, Intangible Assets, the 
remaining carrying value of the non-compete agreements of $4.86 million as of 
December 28, 1996 was written off and has been included 

                               F-7           
<PAGE>

                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
           NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS--(CONTINUED) 

in the accompanying consolidated statement of operations as amortization 
expense. Goodwill is amortized on the straight-line method over 40 years. The 
carrying value of goodwill is periodically reviewed by the Company based on 
the expected future undiscounted operating cash flows and operating income. 

   PRE-OPENING EXPENSES: Store pre-opening costs, other than capital 
expenditures, are expensed when incurred. 

   INCOME TAXES:  Income taxes are accounted for under the liability method 
prescribed by Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 109. 

   In February 1997, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued 
Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 128, Earnings per Share ("FAS 
128") which requires the presentation of basic and diluted earnings per share 
in a company's financial statements for reporting periods ending subsequent 
to December 15, 1997. Early adoption of FAS 128 is not permitted. The 
adoption of FAS 128 is not expected to have material impact on the Company's 
consolidated financial statements. 

   ACCOUNTING ESTIMATES: The preparation of financial statements in 
conformity with generally accepted accounting principles requires management 
to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets 
and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the 
date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues, costs 
and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from 
those estimates. 

   NET LOSS PER COMMON SHARE:  Net loss per common share is based on the 
weighted average shares outstanding during each period (84,597,845 for the 52 
weeks ended December 31, 1994, 84,739,038 for the 52 weeks ended December 30, 
1995 and 84,117,959 for the 52 weeks ended December 28, 1996). Outstanding 
share amounts have been restated to give effect to the recapitalization 
described in Note 12. 

2. PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT 

   Property and equipment are summarized as follows (in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                  DECEMBER 30,    DECEMBER 28, 
                                                      1995            1996 
                                                 -------------- -------------- 
<S>                                              <C>            <C>
Land............................................     $   489        $   489 
Buildings and building improvements ............       4,514          4,523 
Furniture, fixtures and equipment ..............       6,261          6,881 
Leasehold improvements .........................      12,684         13,134 
Property under capital leases ..................       4,894          5,063 
                                                 -------------- -------------- 
                                                      28,842         30,090 
Less--Accumulated depreciation and amortization        4,010          7,025 
                                                 -------------- -------------- 
                                                     $24,832        $23,065 
                                                 ============== ============== 
</TABLE>

                               F-8           
<PAGE>

                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
           NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS--(CONTINUED) 

 3. OTHER ASSETS 

   Other assets are summarized as follows (in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                      DECEMBER 30,    DECEMBER 28, 
                                                                          1995            1996 
                                                                     -------------- -------------- 
<S>                                                                  <C>            <C>
Deferred financing costs (net of accumulated amortization of $7,737 
 and $10,417).......................................................     $ 9,539        $ 7,811 
Systems and integration costs (net of accumulated amortization of 
 $0 and $1,461) ....................................................       8,693          9,798 
Other ..............................................................       1,189            967 
                                                                     -------------- -------------- 
                                                                         $19,421        $18,576 
                                                                     ============== ============== 
</TABLE>

4. DEBT 

   Long-term debt consists of the following (in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                               DECEMBER 30,    DECEMBER 28, 
                                                   1995            1996 
                                              -------------- -------------- 
<S>                                           <C>            <C>
Senior debt 
 Term loan facility (A)......................    $ 75,100        $ 69,475 
 Notes payable bank--revolving credit (A)  ..       4,000           2,500 
 12% Senior Notes due September 15, 2002 (B)       90,000          90,000 
Subordinated debt 
 15% Senior Subordinated Zero Coupon Notes 
  due September 15, 2004 (C) ................      68,232          79,481 
                                              -------------- -------------- 
                                                  237,332         241,456 
 Less--Current portion ......................       5,625          12,000 
                                              -------------- -------------- 
                                                 $231,707        $229,456 
                                              ============== ============== 

</TABLE>

(A) Outstanding balances under a Credit Agreement dated as of September 24, 
1992, as amended, with a syndicate of lending institutions bear interest at 
floating rates, which at December 28, 1996 averaged 9.0%. In addition to the 
term loans, the Credit Agreement provides for a revolving credit facility of 
$10.0 million (less amounts of letters of credit issued under the Credit 
Agreement) which may be used for general corporate purposes and which expires 
on September 30, 1998. As of December 28, 1996, the borrowings outstanding 
under the revolving credit facility were $2.5 million (classified as a 
noncurrent liability) and $0.2 million in letters of credit had been issued, 
leaving $7.3 million available for borrowing. 

   On March 23, 1995, the Credit Agreement, which provided an A Term loan and 
a B Term loan, was amended providing the Company with a new Term loan (the "C 
Term Loan") of $15.0 million and increasing the Company's existing capital 
expenditure limits for its store expansion program. 

   The proceeds of such borrowing were used to prepay all amounts due under 
the A Term Loan due during 1995 ($13.0 million) and a portion ($2.0 million) 
of the payment due under the A Term Loan on March 31, 1996. 

   In 1996, the Credit Agreement was further amended providing for the 
postponement of $2.5 million of principal payments due during 1997 until 1998 
and $10.0 million of principal payments due during 1998 until 1999. 

                               F-9           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
           NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS--(CONTINUED) 

    At December 28, 1996, the aggregate principal amount of the term loan 
matures during the fiscal year as follows (in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
<S>      <C>
1997 ...  $12,000 
1998 ...   17,625 
1999 ...   25,150 
2000 ...   14,700 
2001 ...       -- 
         --------- 
          $69,475 
         ========= 

</TABLE>

   Subject to certain conditions, voluntary prepayments of the Term Loan are 
permitted without premium or penalty. Mandatory prepayments are required with 
respect to asset sales, permitted issuance of debt or equity and 75% of 
excess cash flows, as defined in the Credit Agreement, as amended. For the 52 
weeks ended December 31, 1994, December 30, 1995 and December 28, 1996, there 
were no voluntary or mandatory prepayments. 

   Obligations under the Credit Agreement are secured by a pledge of all of 
Duane Reade's tangible and intangible assets and are guaranteed by its 
partners, Daboco and DR Inc., which have pledged 100% of their partnership 
interests in support of such guarantees. The guarantees are joint and several 
and full and unconditional. The Credit Agreement contains restrictions on 
indebtedness, asset sales, dividends and other distributions, capital 
expenditures, transactions with affiliates and other unrelated business 
activities. Financial performance covenants include interest coverage, 
leverage ratio, minimum earnings and working capital levels. In 1996, the 
Company obtained an Amendment revising certain covenant requirements and 
limiting capital expenditures. At December 28, 1996, the Company is in 
compliance with all of the covenants in the Credit Agreement. 

   (B) On September 25, 1992, Duane Reade issued $90,000,000 aggregate 
principal amount of 12% Senior Notes due September 15, 2002, at face value. 
Interest is payable at 12% semiannually. The Senior Notes are guaranteed by 
Daboco and DR Inc. All of Daboco's assets are pledged to secure indebtedness 
under the Credit Agreement discussed in (A) above. As a result, such 
indebtedness will have claim on those assets that is prior to the claim of 
holders of the Senior Notes. To the extent that the amount of senior 
indebtedness exceeds the value of the collateral securing such indebtedness, 
the Senior Notes will rank pari passu with the Term Loans. 

   Duane Reade is required to make a sinking fund payment on September 15, 
2001 sufficient to retire 50% of the aggregate principal amount of Senior 
Notes originally issued. The Senior Notes are subject to redemption at the 
option of the issuer at 104.5% of par, plus accrued interest, at the end of 
1997, declining to par, plus accrued interest, at the end of 2000. In the 
event of a change in control, Duane Reade shall be obligated to make an offer 
to purchase all outstanding Senior Notes at a repurchase price of 101% of the 
principal amount. 

   (C) On September 25, 1992, Holdings issued $123,380,000 aggregate 
principal amount of 15% Senior Subordinated Zero Coupon Notes due September 
15, 2004 (the "Zero Coupon Notes"), net of an $81,909,000 discount. The 
discount accretes through the Final Accretion Date of September 15, 1999. 
Thereafter, cash interest is payable at 15% semi-annually through maturity. 
Interest expense is determined using the effective interest method, which 
applies a constant yield to carrying value over the life of the Zero Coupon 
Notes. 

   The Credit Agreement and the Senior Note Indenture referred to in (A) and 
(B) above provide for subordination of Holdings' debt to partnership debt. 

   The notes are redeemable at the option of the issuer, in whole or in part, 
at 107.50% of Accreted Value (as defined in the Zero Coupon Note Indenture), 
plus accrued interest, at the end of 1997 declining to par, plus accrued 
interest, at the end of 2002. In the event of a change in control, Holdings 
shall be 

                              F-10           
<PAGE>

                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
           NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS--(CONTINUED) 

obligated to make an offer to purchase all outstanding Zero Coupon Notes at a 
repurchase price of 101% of Accreted Value (as defined in the Indenture) or 
principal amount, as applicable. The Accreted Value of the Zero Coupon Notes 
was $83,443,000 at December 28, 1996. 

   Purchasers of the Zero Coupon Notes received 15% of the fully diluted 
common stock of Holdings, with registration rights, for aggregate 
consideration of $3,529,000 (Note 10). 

   The Indentures governing the Zero Coupon Notes and the Senior Notes 
include certain restrictive covenants. Subject to certain exceptions, the 
Indentures restrict transactions with affiliates, the incurrence of 
additional indebtedness, the payment of dividends, the creation of liens, 
certain asset sales, mergers and consolidations and certain other payments. 

   The Company's debt is thinly traded in the market place. Accordingly, 
management is unable to determine fair market values for such debt at 
December 28, 1996. 

   The Zero Coupon Notes and the Senior Notes were issued pursuant to 
Registration Rights Agreements under which Holdings and Duane Reade 
consummated registered exchange offers pursuant to which Holdings and Duane 
Reade exchanged the Zero Coupon Notes and the Senior Notes, respectively, for 
identical notes which have been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, 
as amended. Since 1994, the Company has not been required to follow the 
periodic reporting requirements of the SEC. 

5. CAPITAL LEASE OBLIGATIONS 

   During 1994, the Company commenced installation of new management 
information systems. Capital requirements for hardware, software and 
integration costs for the new systems were provided principally by capital 
lease financing. 

   As of December 28, 1996, the present value of capital lease obligations 
was $4.2 million (of which $2.5 million is payable during the next twelve 
months). Such obligations are payable in monthly installments over three to 
five year periods and bear interest at an average rate of 12.2%. 

                              F-11           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
           NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS--(CONTINUED) 

 6. INCOME TAXES 

   Deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the difference 
between book and tax bases of the respective assets and liabilities at 
December 30, 1995 and December 28, 1996 using a 44.7% combined federal, state 
and local tax rate in each year and are comprised of (in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                   DECEMBER 30,    DECEMBER 28, 
                                       1995            1996 
                                  -------------- -------------- 
<S>                               <C>            <C>
Inventories......................    $ (3,238)       $ (3,501) 
                                  -------------- -------------- 
Gross deferred tax liabilities  .      (3,238)         (3,501) 
                                  -------------- -------------- 
Property and equipment ..........         719             955 
Covenants not to compete ........       4,318           1,851 
Targeted jobs credit ............         268             268 
Zero Coupon debt discount  ......       9,885          14,041 
Other ...........................       1,492           2,335 
Net operating loss carryforward        49,217          50,072 
                                  -------------- -------------- 
Gross deferred tax assets  ......      65,899          69,522 
                                  -------------- -------------- 
Net deferred tax assets .........      62,661          66,021 
Valuation allowance .............     (62,661)        (66,021) 
                                  -------------- -------------- 
                                     $     --        $     -- 
                                  ============== ============== 

</TABLE>

   The Company deducted for income tax purposes for the period September 25 
to December 31, 1992 approximately $88 million of payments made to former 
partners of Duane Reade (the "Retirement Payments"). Approximately $38.5 
million of the valuation allowance relates to these Retirement Payments. The 
Retirement Payments and other current tax deductions resulted in a net 
operating loss of approximately $112.0 million which may be available to 
offset future taxable income of the Company through 2011. Due to the nature 
of the Retirement Payments, future reductions in that portion of the 
valuation allowance related to the Retirement Payments will be credited to 
goodwill. Further, certain income tax law provisions may limit the use of the 
available net operating loss carryforwards in the event of a significant 
change in ownership interest. 

                              F-12           
<PAGE>

                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
           NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS--(CONTINUED) 

    The provision for income taxes for the 52 weeks ended December 31, 1994, 
December 30, 1995 and December 28, 1996 differs from the amounts of income 
tax determined by applying the applicable U.S. statutory federal income tax 
rate to pretax loss as a result of the following (dollars in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                  52 WEEKS ENDED        52 WEEKS ENDED         52 WEEKS ENDED 
                                 DECEMBER 31, 1994     DECEMBER 30, 1995     DECEMBER 28, 1996 
                               --------------------- --------------------- --------------------- 
<S>                            <C>         <C>       <C>         <C>       <C>         <C>
Pretax accounting loss .......   $(16,438)   100.0%    $(18,058)   100.0%    $(17,854)   100.0% 
                               =========== ========  =========== ========  =========== ======== 
Statutory rate ...............     (5,753)   (35.0)      (6,320)   (35.0)      (6,249)   (35.0) 
State and local taxes, net of 
 federal tax .................     (1,105)    (6.7)      (1,233)    (6.8)      (1,201)    (6.7) 
Goodwill amortization ........      1,218      7.4        1,218      6.7        1,218      6.8 
Net operating losses not 
 utilized ....................      5,213     31.7        5,828     32.3        5,534     31.0 
Nondeductible interest 
 expense .....................        504      3.1          585      3.2          684      3.8 
Other ........................        (77)    (0.5)         (78)    (0.4)          14      0.1 
                               ----------- --------  ----------- --------  ----------- -------- 
Effective tax rate ...........   $     --       --%    $     --       --%    $     --       --% 
                               =========== ========  =========== ========  =========== ======== 
</TABLE>

7. STORE PRE-OPENING EXPENSES 

   Duane Reade opened eleven new store locations during the 52 weeks ended 
December 31, 1994, eight new store locations during the 52 weeks ended 
December 30, 1995 and one new store location during the 52 weeks ended 
December 28, 1996. 

8. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES 

LEASES 

   Duane Reade leases most store facilities under operating lease agreements 
expiring on various dates through the year 2014. In addition to minimum 
rentals, certain leases provide for annual increases based upon real estate 
tax increases, maintenance cost increases and inflation. Rent expense for the 
52 weeks ended December 31, 1994, December 30, 1995 and December 28, 1996 was 
$17,373,000, $22,703,000 and $24,420,000, respectively. 

   Minimum annual rentals at December 28, 1996 (including obligations under a 
new store lease entered into but not opened as of December 28, 1996) are as 
follows (in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
<S>                     <C>
1997 ..................  $ 23,213 
1998 ..................    22,879 
1999 ..................    22,940 
2000 ..................    22,070 
2001 ..................    21,739 
Remaining lease terms     126,837 
                        ---------- 
Total .................  $239,678 
                        ========== 

</TABLE>

LITIGATION 

   The Company from time to time is involved in routine legal matters 
incidental to its business. In the opinion of management, the ultimate 
resolution of such matters will not have a material adverse effect on the 
Company's financial position, results of operations or liquidity. 

                              F-13           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
           NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS--(CONTINUED) 

 MANAGEMENT AGREEMENTS 

   Pursuant to the terms of various employment and related agreements, the 
Company and various executives entered into agreements pursuant to which (i) 
executives' salary and bonuses were established and (ii) executives purchased 
shares of Holdings' Class P common stock at a price of $162.00 per share and 
shares of Holdings' common stock at a price of $2.00 per share, each 
representing original cost. In the event of employment termination, all of 
the stock may be repurchased by Holdings. As a result of the recapitalization 
(Note 12), all outstanding shares were converted into Class B common stock. 
As of December 28, 1996, an aggregate 4,065,386.9 shares of Class B common 
stock are held by employees and former employees. 

9. EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS 

   On October 12, 1992, the Board of Directors of Holdings adopted the 1992 
Stock Option Plan of Duane Reade Holding Corp. (the "Plan"). Under the Plan, 
a committee designated by the Board of Directors of Holdings to administer 
the Plan (the "Committee") may grant, to executive and other key employees of 
the Company, nonqualified stock options to purchase up to an aggregate of 
4,252,500 (adjusted for recapitalization--see Note 12) shares of common stock 
of Holdings at an exercise price fixed by the Committee. The options are 
exercisable at such time or times as the Committee determines at or 
subsequent to grant. The term of the options set by the Committee shall not 
exceed 10 years. 

   As permitted, the Company applies Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 
25 and related Interpretations in accounting for its stock-based compensation 
plan. Had compensation cost for the Company's stock-based compensation plan 
been determined based on the fair value at the grant dates for awards under 
the Plan, consistent with the alternative method of Statement of Financial 
Accounting Standards No. 123, Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation, the 
effect on the Company's net loss for the 52 weeks ended December 30, 1995 and 
December 28, 1996 would have been less than $100,000. 

   At December 28, 1996, there were outstanding nonqualified stock options to 
purchase up to an aggregate of 6,830,578.1 (adjusted for recapitization--see 
Note 12) shares of common stock (including options granted outside the Plan). 
Options outstanding at each price level vest over five years at 20% each year 
that the executive is employed. At December 28, 1996, there were 850,962.1 
vested share options. 

   Changes in options outstanding during 1995 and 1996 are summarized as 
follows (adjusted for recapitalization--see Note 12): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                     52 WEEKS ENDED DECEMBER 28, 
                                   52 WEEKS ENDED DECEMBER 30, 1995              1996 
                                   -------------------------------- ------------------------------ 
                                       OPTIONS       OPTION PRICE      OPTIONS      OPTION PRICE 
                                   --------------- ---------------  ------------- --------------- 
<S>                                <C>             <C>              <C>           <C>
Options outstanding, beginning of 
 year ............................    3,062,863.1    $0.07 to 4.91   1,335,781.1    $0.07 to 4.91 
Options granted ..................      284,350.5    $0.07 to 4.91   5,951,940.8    $0.07 to 4.91 
Options canceled .................   (2,011,432.5)   $0.07 to 4.91    (457,143.8)   $0.07 to 4.91 
                                   --------------- ---------------  ------------- --------------- 
Options outstanding, end of year      1,335,781.1    $0.07 to 4.91   6,830,578.1    $0.07 to 4.91 
                                   =============== ===============  ============= =============== 

</TABLE>

   The Company maintains an employee savings plan pursuant to Section 401(k) 
(the "401(k) Plan") of the Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") which covers 
substantially all non union employees, excluding in 1996 all key employees as 
defined by IRC. Eligible participating employees may contribute up to 10% of 
their pretax salaries, subject to certain IRC limitations. The 401(k) Plan, 
as amended, provides for employer matching provisions at the discretion of 
the Company (to a maximum of 1% of pretax salaries) and has a feature under 
which the Company may contribute additional amounts for all eligible 
employees. The Company's policy is to fund such costs under the 401(k) Plan 
as accrued. For the 52 weeks ended December 31, 1994 and December 30, 1995, 
employer contributions to the 401(k) Plan were $158,000 and $166,000, 
respectively. There were no employer contributions for the 52 weeks ended 
December 28, 1996. 

                              F-14           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
           NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS--(CONTINUED) 

    Duane Reade is under contract with local unions to contribute to 
multi-employer pension and welfare benefit plans for certain of its 
employees. For the 52 weeks ended December 31, 1994, December 30, 1995 and 
December 28, 1996, contributions to such plans were $3,899,000, $5,200,000 
and $5,783,000, respectively. 

10. STOCKHOLDERS' DEFICIENCY 

   In September 1992, pursuant to the terms of the Purchase Agreement 
governing the Zero Coupon Notes (Note 4), purchasers of such notes received 
15% of the fully diluted common stock of the Company for aggregate cash 
consideration of $3,529,000. 

   Distributions made by the Company to the holders of its common stock, 
which are restricted by the terms of the Indentures described in Note 4, 
shall be made in the following order: 

     Class P voting and Class P-1 non-voting common stockholders are entitled 
    to the aggregate unpaid amount of approximately $19,210,000 accruing on 
    the outstanding shares at an annual rate of 15%, compounded quarterly. 
    Such holders are then entitled to the aggregate unreturned original cost 
    ($162 per share) of the outstanding shares. 

     Common stockholders (together as a group, voting and Class A non-voting) 
    shall then receive an amount equal to the aggregate unreturned original 
    cost ($2 per share) of outstanding shares. 

     Final distribution of any remaining portion shall be made to all classes 
    of outstanding common stock. 

   In the event of a public offering of stock or a change of control, and 
with a written request to the Company, each holder of Class A non-voting 
common stock or Class P-1 non-voting common stock is entitled to convert its 
stock, on a one-for-one basis, into voting common stock or Class P common 
stock, respectively. 

   As a result of the recapitalization discussed in Note 12, all outstanding 
classes of the Company's common stock were converted into a newly designated 
class of common stock. 

11. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS 

   In 1992, the Company and its then principal stockholder entered into a 
Professional Services Agreement whereby consulting, advisory, financial and 
other services were provided at the Company's request, for a five year term. 
During each of the 52 weeks ended December 31, 1994, December 30, 1995 and 
December 28, 1996, such fees aggregated approximately $1,000,000. 

12.  SUBSEQUENT EVENT 

   During June 1997, the Company entered into a recapitalization agreement 
(the "Agreement") with its stockholders ("Stockholders") and certain 
investors ("Investors"). The Agreement provided for (i) the purchase by the 
Investors from the Stockholders of substantially all their stock holdings in 
the Company, (ii) a conversion of all of the outstanding shares of the 
Company into a newly authorized class of Class B common stock and (iii) the 
creation of a new authorized class of preferred stock which will carry the 
rights and preferences granted by the Company's Board of Directors when 
issued. 

   Shares were converted as follows: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                        APPROXIMATE 
             PRIOR CLASS              CONVERSION RATE 
- ------------------------------------  --------------- 
<S>                                   <C>
Common and Common Class A ...........       28/1 
Common Class P and Common Class P-1        355/1 
</TABLE>

   Certain share and all per share amounts have been adjusted to reflect such 
recapitalization. 

                              F-15           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
                    CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET (UNAUDITED) 
                     (IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT SHARE AMOUNTS) 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                             SEPTEMBER 27, 
                                                                                  1997 
                                                                            --------------- 
<S>                                                                         <C>
ASSETS 
Current assets ............................................................ 
 Cash .....................................................................     $    218 
 Receivables ..............................................................        9,084 
 Inventories ..............................................................       65,872 
 Prepaid expenses .........................................................        1,371 
                                                                            --------------- 
   TOTAL CURRENT ASSETS ...................................................       76,545 
Property and equipment, net ...............................................       24,918 
Goodwill, net of accumulated amortization of $17,397 ......................      121,757 
Other assets, net .........................................................       16,300 
                                                                            --------------- 
   TOTAL ASSETS ...........................................................     $239,520 
                                                                            =============== 
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' DEFICIENCY 
Current liabilities 
 Accounts payable .........................................................     $ 30,710 
 Accrued interest .........................................................          623 
 Other accrued expenses ...................................................       13,193 
 Current portion of senior debt ...........................................          660 
 Current portion of capital lease obligations .............................        1,510 
                                                                            --------------- 
   TOTAL CURRENT LIABILITIES ..............................................       46,696 
Senior debt, less current portion .........................................      170,708 
Subordinated zero coupon debt, net of unamortized discount of $34,277  ....       89,094 
Capital lease obligations, less current portion ...........................          677 
Other non-current liabilities .............................................        5,906 
                                                                            --------------- 
   TOTAL LIABILITIES ......................................................      313,081 
                                                                            --------------- 
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (NOTE 8) 
Stockholders' Deficiency 
 Preferred stock, $0.01 par; authorized 50,000,000 shares; none issued or 
  outstanding..............................................................           -- 
 Common stock, Class B, $0.01 par; authorized 110,000,000 shares; issued 
  and outstanding 85,405,524.5 shares .....................................          854 
 Paid-in-capital ..........................................................       23,811 
 Accumulated deficit ......................................................      (98,226) 
                                                                            --------------- 
   TOTAL STOCKHOLDERS' DEFICIENCY .........................................      (73,561) 
                                                                            --------------- 
   TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' DEFICIENCY .........................     $239,520 
                                                                            =============== 
</TABLE>

  The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements. 

                              F-16           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
              CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (UNAUDITED) 
                   (IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT PER SHARE AMOUNTS) 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                    FOR THE 39 WEEKS ENDED 
                                               -------------------------------- 
                                                SEPTEMBER 28,    SEPTEMBER 27, 
                                                     1996            1997 
                                               --------------- --------------- 
<S>                                            <C>             <C>
Net Sales.....................................     $281,093        $313,796 
Cost of sales ................................      215,797         236,413 
                                               --------------- --------------- 
Gross profit .................................       65,296          77,383 
                                               --------------- --------------- 
Selling, general and administrative expenses         42,499          48,218 
Amortization .................................        8,514           3,826 
Depreciation .................................        2,295           2,584 
Store pre-opening expenses ...................          139             600 
Nonrecurring charges .........................           --          10,887 
                                               --------------- --------------- 
                                                     53,447          66,115 
                                               --------------- --------------- 
Operating income .............................       11,849          11,268 
Interest expense, net ........................       24,334          25,433 
                                               --------------- --------------- 
Loss before income taxes .....................      (12,485)        (14,165) 
Income taxes .................................           --              -- 
                                               --------------- --------------- 
   NET LOSS ..................................     $(12,485)       $(14,165) 
                                               =============== =============== 
   NET LOSS PER COMMON SHARE .................     $   (.15)       $   (.17) 
                                               =============== =============== 
   WEIGHTED AVERAGE COMMON SHARES 
    OUTSTANDING...............................       84,231          84,321 
                                               =============== =============== 
</TABLE>

  The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements. 

                              F-17           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
   CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIENCY) (UNAUDITED) 
                     (IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT SHARE AMOUNTS) 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                                         COMMON STOCK
                                             ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
                             PREFERRED STOCK         CLASS P         CLASS P-1           COMMON STOCK           CLASS A           
                             --------------- ------------------- ------------------  ---------------------  -----------------     
                              SHARES  AMOUNT    SHARES    AMOUNT   SHARES     AMOUNT      SHARES     AMOUNT    SHARES   AMOUNT    
                              ------ ------  ----------- ------  ----------  ------   ------------- ------   ---------  ------    
<S>                           <C>    <C>     <C>         <C>     <C>         <C>      <C>           <C>      <C>        <C>       
Balance, December 28, 1996  .   --      --     126,274.7   $ 1     11,111.1    $--      1,136,470.5   $ 11     100,000    $ 1     
Issuance of common stock  ...   --      --            --    --           --     --         57,375.1      1          --     --     
Conversion of common stock  .   --      --    (126,274,7)   (1)   (11,111.1 )   --     (1,193,845.6)   (12)   (100,000)    (1)    
Net Loss ....................   --      --            --    --           --     --               --     --          --     --     
                              ------ ------  ----------- ------  ----------  ------   ------------- ------   ---------  ------   
Balance, September 27, 1997     --      --            --   $--           --    $--               --   $ --          --    $--     
                              ====== ======  =========== ======  ==========  ======   ============= ======   =========  ======    
</TABLE>





                    (RESTUBBED TABLE CONTINUED FROM ABOVE)
<TABLE>                      
<CAPTION>                    
                                     COMMON STOCK            
                              ------------------------                                                              
                                        CLASS B                                             
                                   -------------------  PAID-IN     ACCUMULATED            
                                     SHARES      AMOUNT  CAPITAL      DEFICIT      TOTAL    
                                  ------------  ------- ---------    ---------  ----------  
<S>                              <C>           <C>     <C>          <C>         <C>         
BALANCE, DECEMBER 28, 1996  .     --            $ --    $24,652       $(84,061)   $(59,396) 
ISSUANCE OF COMMON STOCK  ...     --    --        (1)        --            --               
CONVERSION OF COMMON STOCK  .   85,405,524.5     854       (840)            --        --    
NET LOSS ....................     --    --        --    (14,165)      (14,165)              
                                -----------   ------     -------     ----------- ---------  
BALANCE, SEPTEMBER 27, 1997     85,405,524.5    $854     $23,811     $(98,226)    $(73,561) 
                                ============  ======    =======      =========== =========  
</TABLE>


  The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements. 

                              F-18           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
              CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (UNAUDITED) 
                                (IN THOUSANDS) 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                          FOR THE 39 WEEKS ENDED 
                                                                     -------------------------------- 
                                                                      SEPTEMBER 28,    SEPTEMBER 27, 
                                                                           1996            1997 
                                                                     --------------- --------------- 
<S>                                                                  <C>             <C>
Cash flows from operating activities: 
 Net loss ..........................................................     $(12,485)       $(14,165) 
 Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by/(used 
 in)  operating activities ......................................... 
   Depreciation and amortization of property and equipment  ........        2,295           2,584 
   Amortization of goodwill and other intangibles ..................       10,505           5,803 
   Accretion of principal of zero coupon debt ......................        8,437           9,622 
   Other............................................................        1,156           1,182 
   Changes in operating assets and liabilities: 
    Receivables ....................................................         (385)         (1,913) 
    Inventories ....................................................       (1,844)        (17,958) 
    Accounts payable ...............................................        1,546          10,695 
    Interest payable ...............................................       (2,620)         (3,250) 
    Prepaid and accrued expenses and other .........................           51           4,197 
                                                                     --------------- --------------- 
   NET CASH PROVIDED BY/(USED IN) OPERATING ACTIVITIES  ............        6,656          (3,203) 
                                                                     --------------- --------------- 
Cash flows from investing activities: 
  Proceeds from sale of capital assets .............................           --           1,075 
  Capital expenditures .............................................         (913)         (4,931) 
  Systems development costs ........................................       (2,068)             -- 
  Sale of government securities ....................................           44              -- 
                                                                     --------------- --------------- 
   NET CASH USED IN INVESTING ACTIVITIES ...........................       (2,937)         (3,856) 
                                                                     --------------- --------------- 
Cash flows from financing activities: 
  Deferred financing costs .........................................         (542)           (309) 
  Repayments of senior debt ........................................       (4,625)         (6,107) 
  Repayments of subordinated debt ..................................           --              (9) 
  Proceeds from bank debt, revolving credit--net ...................        1,500          15,500 
  Capital lease financing ..........................................          274              -- 
  Repayment of capital lease obligations ...........................       (2,120)         (2,014) 
  Repurchase of stock ..............................................          (96)             -- 
                                                                     --------------- --------------- 
   NET CASH (USED IN)/PROVIDED BY FINANCING ACTIVITIES .............       (5,609)          7,061 
                                                                     --------------- --------------- 
Net (decrease)/increase in cash ....................................       (1,890)              2 
Cash at beginning of period ........................................        2,133             216 
                                                                     --------------- --------------- 
Cash at end of period...............................................     $    243        $    218 
                                                                     =============== =============== 
Supplementary disclosure of cash flow information: 
  Cash paid for interest ...........................................     $ 16,526        $ 16,541 
                                                                     =============== =============== 
</TABLE>

  The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements. 

                              F-19           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
            NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (UNAUDITED) 

1. BASIS OF CONSOLIDATION 

   The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Holdings, 
Daboco, DR Inc. and Duane Reade (collectively, the "Company"). All 
intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated. 

   The interim financial data is unaudited; however, in the opinion of the 
Company, the interim data includes all adjustments, consisting only of normal 
recurring adjustments, necessary for a fair statement of the results for the 
interim periods. The results of operations for any interim period should not 
necessarily be considered indicative of the results of operations for a full 
year. 

   The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements should be 
read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes 
thereto for the 52 weeks ended December 28, 1996 included elsewhere in this 
prospectus. 

   RECEIVABLES: Receivables consist primarily of amounts due from vendors, a 
majority of which relate to promotional programs. Receivables also arise as a 
result of third party payment plans from the sale of prescription drugs; 
commencing in May 1997, substantially all such receivables are sold without 
recourse to a funding entity. The discount on the sale of such third party 
receivables amounted to approximately $381,000 during the 39 weeks ended 
September 27, 1997 and is included in interest expense. 

   INTANGIBLE ASSETS: Goodwill is amortized on the straight-line method over 
40 years. The carrying value of goodwill is periodically reviewed by the 
Company based on the expected future undiscounted operating cash flows and 
operating income. 

   In September 1992, Holdings and Duane Reade entered into agreements with 
certain former members of management of Duane Reade, former shareholders of 
Daboco and shareholders of former partners of Duane Reade (collectively, the 
"Group") precluding such persons from competing with the operations of Duane 
Reade for a period of five years. The covenants not to compete were recorded 
at acquisition cost and were being amortized over the period of benefit using 
an accelerated method. During the first quarter of 1997, Holdings and Duane 
Reade entered into agreements with the Group in which the Company received 
consideration from the Group to terminate the non-compete agreements. In 
accordance with APB Opinion No. 17, Intangible Assets, the remaining carrying 
value of the non-compete agreements of $4.86 million as of December 28, 1996 
was written off during the fourth quarter of 1996 and charged to amortization 
expense. 

   NET LOSS PER COMMON SHARE: Net loss per common share is based on the 
weighted average shares outstanding during each period: 84,230,883 and 
84,321,299 for the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996 and September 27, 1997, 
respectively (as adjusted for the recapitalization described in Note 10). 

   In February 1997, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued 
Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 128, Earnings per Share ("FAS 
128") which requires the presentation of basic and diluted earnings per share 
in a company's financial statements for reporting periods ending subsequent 
to December 15, 1997. Early adoption of FAS 128 is not permitted. The 
adoption of FAS 128 is not expected to have material impact on the Company's 
consolidated financial statements. 

                              F-20           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
     NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (UNAUDITED)--(CONTINUED) 

 2. PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT 

   Property and equipment are summarized as follows (in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                 SEPTEMBER 27, 1997 
                                                 ------------------ 
<S>                                              <C>
Land............................................       $   312 
Buildings and building improvements ............         4,286 
Furniture, fixtures and equipment ..............         9,468 
Leasehold improvements .........................        15,303 
Property under capital leases ..................         5,102 
                                                 ------------------ 
                                                        34,471 
Less--Accumulated depreciation and amortization         (9,553) 
                                                 ------------------ 
                                                       $24,918 
                                                 ================== 
</TABLE>

3. OTHER ASSETS 

   Other assets are summarized as follows (in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                               SEPTEMBER 27, 1997 
                                                               ------------------ 
<S>                                                            <C>
Deferred financing costs (net of accumulated amortization of 
 $11,585).....................................................       $ 6,144 
Systems and integration costs (net of accumulated 
 amortization of $2,653) .....................................         8,364 
Other ........................................................         1,792 
                                                               ------------------ 
                                                                     $16,300 
                                                               ================== 
</TABLE>

4. DEBT 

   Long-term debt consists of the following (in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                               SEPTEMBER 27, 1997 
                                               ------------------ 
<S>                                            <C>
Senior debt 
 Term loan facility (A).......................      $ 65,475 
 Notes payable bank--revolving credit (A)  ...        16,000 
 12% Senior Notes due September 15, 2002 (B)          89,893 
Subordinated debt 
 15% Senior Subordinated Zero Coupon Notes 
  due September 15, 2004 (C) .................        89,094 
                                               ------------------ 
                                                     260,462 
Less--Current portion ........................           660 
                                               ------------------ 
                                                    $259,802 
                                               ================== 
</TABLE>

   (A) Outstanding balances under a Credit Agreement dated as of September 
24, 1992, as amended, with a syndicate of lending institutions bear interest 
at floating rates, which at September 27, 1997 averaged 10.5%. In addition to 
the term loan, the Credit Agreement provides for a revolving credit facility 
of $20.0 million (less amounts of letters of credit issued under the Credit 
Agreement) which may be used for general corporate purposes and which expires 
on September 30, 1998. As of September 27, 1997, the borrowings outstanding 
under the revolving credit facility were $16.0 million (classified as a 
noncurrent liability) and $0.3 million in letters of credit had been issued. 

                              F-21           
<PAGE>

                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
     NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (UNAUDITED)--(CONTINUED) 

    Subject to certain conditions, voluntary prepayments of the Term Loan are 
permitted without premium or penalty. Mandatory prepayments are required with 
respect to asset sales, permitted issuance of debt or equity and 75% of 
excess cash flows, as defined in the Credit Agreement, as amended. For the 39 
weeks ended September 27, 1997, there were no voluntary or mandatory 
prepayments. 

   Obligations under the Credit Agreement are secured by a pledge of all of 
Duane Reade's tangible and intangible assets and are guaranteed by its 
partners, Daboco and DR Inc., which have pledged 100% of their partnership 
interests in support of such guarantees. The guarantees are joint and several 
and full and unconditional. The Credit Agreement contains restrictions on 
indebtedness, asset sales, dividends and other distributions, capital 
expenditures, transactions with affiliates and other unrelated business 
activities. Financial performance covenants include interest coverage, 
leverage ratio, minimum earnings and working capital levels. At September 27, 
1997, the Company is in compliance with all of the covenants in the Credit 
Agreement. See Note 13. 

   (B) On September 25, 1992, Duane Reade issued $90,000,000 aggregate 
principal amount of 12% Senior Notes due September 15, 2002 (the "Senior 
Notes"), at face value. Interest is payable at 12% semiannually. The Senior 
Notes are guaranteed by Daboco and DR Inc. All of Daboco's assets are pledged 
to secure indebtedness under the Credit Agreement discussed in (A) above. As 
a result, such indebtedness will have claim on those assets that is prior to 
the claim of holders of the Senior Notes. To the extent that the amount of 
senior indebtedness exceeds the value of the collateral securing such 
indebtedness, the Senior Notes will rank pari passu with the Term Loans. 

   Duane Reade is required to make a sinking fund payment on September 15, 
2001 sufficient to retire 50% of the aggregate principal amount of Senior 
Notes originally issued. The Senior Notes are subject to redemption at the 
option of the issuer at 104.5% of par, plus accrued interest, at the end of 
1997, declining to par, plus accrued interest, at the end of 2000. In the 
event of a change in control, Duane Reade shall be obligated to make an offer 
to purchase all outstanding Senior Notes at a repurchase price of 101% of the 
principal amount. A change of control did occur in June 1997 (see Note 10). 

   (C) On September 25, 1992, Holdings issued $123,380,000 aggregate 
principal amount of 15% Senior Subordinated Zero Coupon Notes due September 
15, 2004 (the "Zero Coupon Notes"), net of an $81,909,000 discount. The 
discount accretes through the Final Accretion Date of September 15, 1999. 
Thereafter, cash interest is payable at 15% semi-annually through maturity. 
Interest expense is determined using the effective interest method, which 
applies a constant yield to carrying value over the life of the Zero Coupon 
Notes. 

   The Credit Agreement and the Senior Note Indenture referred to in (A) and 
(B) above provide for subordination of Holdings' debt to partnership debt. 

   The notes are redeemable at the option of the issuer, in whole or in part, 
at 107.50% of Accreted Value (as defined in the Zero Coupon Note Indenture), 
plus accrued interest, at the end of 1997 declining to par, plus accrued 
interest, at the end of 2002. In the event of a change in control, Holdings 
shall be obligated to make an offer to purchase all outstanding Zero Coupon 
Notes at a repurchase price of 101% of Accreted Value (as defined in the 
Indenture) or principal amount, as applicable. A change of control did occur 
in June 1997 (see Note 10). The Accreted Value of the Zero Coupon Notes was 
$92,840,000 at September 27, 1997. 

   Purchasers of the Zero Coupon Notes received 15% of the fully diluted 
common stock of Holdings, with registration rights, for aggregate 
consideration of $3,529,000. 

   The Indentures governing the Zero Coupon Notes and the Senior Notes 
include certain restrictive covenants. Subject to certain exceptions, the 
Indentures restrict transactions with affiliates, the incurrence of 
additional indebtedness, the payment of dividends, the creation of liens, 
certain asset sales, mergers and consolidations and certain other payments. 

                              F-22           
<PAGE>

                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
     NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (UNAUDITED)--(CONTINUED) 

    The Company's debt is thinly traded in the market place. Accordingly, 
management is unable to determine fair market values for such debt at 
September 27, 1997. 

   The Zero Coupon Notes and the Senior Notes were issued pursuant to 
Registration Rights Agreements under which Holdings and Duane Reade 
consummated registered exchange offers pursuant to which Holdings and Duane 
Reade exchanged the Zero Coupon Notes and the Senior Notes, respectively, for 
identical notes which have been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, 
as amended. 

5. CAPITAL LEASE OBLIGATIONS 

   As of September 27, 1997, the present value of capital lease obligations 
was $2.2 million (of which $1.5 million is payable during the next twelve 
months). Such obligations are payable in monthly installments over three to 
five year periods and bear interest at an average rate of 12.2%. 

6. INCOME TAXES 

   Deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the difference 
between book and tax bases of the respective assets and liabilities at 
September 27, 1997 using a 44.7% combined federal, state and local tax rate 
and are comprised of (in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                  SEPTEMBER 27, 1997 
                                  ------------------ 
<S>                               <C>
Inventories .....................      $ (3,382) 
                                  ------------------ 
Gross deferred tax liabilities  .        (3,382) 
                                  ------------------ 
Property and equipment ..........           734 
Deferred rent ...................         2,398 
Targeted jobs credit ............           284 
Zero Coupon debt discount  ......        17,580 
Net operating loss 
 carryforwards...................        31,791 
Other ...........................           352 
                                  ------------------ 
Gross deferred tax assets  ......        53,139 
                                  ------------------ 
Net deferred tax assets .........        49,757 
Valuation allowance..............       (49,757) 
                                  ------------------ 
                                       $     -- 
                                  ================== 
</TABLE>

   The Company deducted for income tax purposes for the period September 25 
to December 31, 1992 approximately $88 million of payments made to former 
partners of Duane Reade (the "Retirement Payments"). Approximately $21 
million of the valuation allowance relates to these Retirement Payments. The 
Retirement Payments and other current tax deductions resulted in a net 
operating loss of approximately $71 million which may be available to offset 
future taxable income of the Company through 2012. Due to the nature of the 
Retirement Payments, future reductions in that portion of the valuation 
allowance related to the Retirement Payments will be credited to goodwill. 
Further, due to the change in ownership arising as a result of the 
recapitalization (see Note 10), certain income tax law provisions apply that 
limit the ability of the Company to utilize the available net operating loss 
carryforwards. It is estimated that the annual limitation will be $5.1 
million. 

                              F-23           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
     NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (UNAUDITED)--(CONTINUED) 

    The provision for income taxes for the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996 
and September 27, 1997 differs from the amounts of income tax determined by 
applying the applicable U.S. statutory federal income tax rate to pretax loss 
as a result of the following (dollars in thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                39 WEEKS ENDED         39 WEEKS ENDED 
                                              SEPTEMBER 28, 1996     SEPTEMBER 27, 1997 
                                            ---------------------- ---------------------- 
<S>                                         <C>         <C>        <C>         <C>
Pretax accounting loss ....................   $(12,485)      100%    $(14,165)      100% 
                                            =========== =========  =========== ========= 
Statutory rate.............................   $ (4,370)    (35.0)%   $ (4,958)    (35.0)% 
State and local taxes, net of federal tax         (837)     (6.7)        (262)     (1.8) 
Goodwill amortization .....................        914       7.3          914       6.5 
Net operating losses not utilized  ........      3,870      31.0        1,207       8.5 
Nondeductible recapitalization costs  .....         --        --        2,485      17.5 
Nondeductible interest expense ............        513       4.1          596       4.2 
Other .....................................        (90)     (0.7)          18       0.1 
                                            ----------- ---------  ----------- --------- 
Effective tax rate.........................   $     --        --%    $     --        --% 
                                            =========== =========  =========== ========= 
</TABLE>

7. STORE PRE-OPENING EXPENSES 

   Duane Reade opened one new store location during the 39 weeks ended 
September 28, 1996 and five new stores during the 39 weeks ended September 
27, 1997. 

8. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES 

LEASES 

   Duane Reade leases all of its store facilities under operating lease 
agreements expiring on various dates through the year 2014. In addition to 
minimum rentals, certain leases provide for annual increases based upon real 
estate tax increases, maintenance cost increases and inflation. Rent expense 
for the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996 and September 27, 1997 was 
$18,248,000 and $19,572,000, respectively. 

   Minimum annual rentals at September 27, 1997 are as follows (in 
thousands): 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
<S>                                 <C>
 13 weeks ending December 27, 1997   $  6,074 
1998...............................    27,518 
1999 ..............................    27,069 
2000 ..............................    26,274 
2001 ..............................    25,959 
2002 ..............................    25,404 
Remaining lease terms .............   135,497 
                                    --------- 
Total..............................  $273,795 
                                    ========= 
</TABLE>

LITIGATION 

   The Company from time to time is involved in routine legal matters 
incidental to its business. In the opinion of management, the ultimate 
resolution of such matters will not have a material adverse effect on the 
Company's financial position, results of operations or liquidity. 

MANAGEMENT AGREEMENTS 

   Pursuant to the terms of various employment and related agreements, the 
Company and various executives entered into agreements pursuant to which (i) 
executives' salary and bonuses were established 

                              F-24           
<PAGE>

                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
     NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (UNAUDITED)--(CONTINUED) 

and (ii) executives purchased shares of Holdings' previously issued Class P 
common stock at a price of $162.00 per share and shares of Holdings' common 
stock at a price of $2.00 per share, each representing original cost. In the 
event of employment termination, all of the stock may be repurchased by 
Holdings. As a result of the recapitalization (see Note 10), all shares were 
converted into Class B common stock. As of September 27, 1997, an aggregate 
of 4,065,386.9 shares of common stock are held by employees and former 
employees. 

COMMITMENTS 

   At September 27, 1997, the Company had a commitment of approximately $4.0 
million in connection with the acquisition and installation of a point of 
sale scanning system. The Company intends to finance substantially all of 
such acquisition and installation costs through capital lease financing. 

9. EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS 

   On October 12, 1992, the Company adopted the 1992 Stock Option Plan of 
Duane Reade Holding Corp. (the "Plan"). Under the Plan, a committee 
designated by the Board of Directors to administer the Plan (the "Committee") 
may grant, to executive and other key employees of the Company, nonqualified 
stock options to purchase up to an aggregate of 4,252,500 (adjusted for the 
recapitalization--See Note 10) shares of common stock of the Company at an 
exercise price fixed by the Committee. The options are exercisable at such 
time or times as the Committee determines at or subsequent to grant. The term 
of the options set by the Committee shall not exceed 10 years. 

   At September 27, 1997, there were outstanding nonqualified stock options 
to purchase up to an aggregate of 5,380,078.7 shares of common stock 
(including options granted outside the Plan), all of which are vested. 

   During the second quarter of 1997, the Company adopted an Equity 
Participation Plan under which options for a total of 9,000,000 shares of 
common stock of the Company may be granted if the Company meets specific 
performance targets. At September 27, 1997, options for 8,178,132 shares have 
been granted to employees. 

   As permitted, the Company applies Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 
25 and related Interpretations in accounting for its stock-based compensation 
plan. Had compensation cost for the Company's stock-based compensation plan 
been determined based on the fair value at the grant dates for awards under 
the Plan, consistent with the alternative method of Statement of Financial 
Accounting Standards No. 123, Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation, the 
effect on the Company's net loss for the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996 
and September 27, 1997 would have been less than $100,000 and $200,000, 
respectively. 

   Changes in options outstanding during the 39 weeks ended September 27, 
1997 are summarized as follows: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                NUMBER 
                                              OF OPTIONS     OPTION PRICE 
                                           --------------- --------------- 
<S>                                        <C>             <C>
Options outstanding, beginning of period      6,830,578.1    $0.07 to 4.91 
Options granted ..........................    8,915,232      $0.07 to 4.91 
Options canceled..........................   (2,187,599.4)   $0.07 to 4.91 
                                           --------------- --------------- 
Options outstanding, end of period .......   13,558,210.7    $0.07 to 4.91 
                                           =============== =============== 
</TABLE>

   The Company maintains an employee savings plan pursuant to Section 401(k) 
(the "401(k) Plan") of the Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") which covers 
substantially all non-union employees other than key employees as defined by 
IRC. Eligible participating employees may contribute up to 10% of their 
pretax 

                              F-25           
<PAGE>

                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
     NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (UNAUDITED)--(CONTINUED) 

salaries, subject to certain IRC limitations. The 401(k) Plan, as amended, 
provides for employer matching provisions at the discretion of the Company 
(to a maximum of 1% of pretax salaries) and has a feature under which the 
Company may contribute additional amounts for all eligible employees. The 
Company's policy is to fund such costs under the 401(k) Plan as accrued. 
There were no employer contributions for the 39 weeks ended September 28, 
1996 and September 27, 1997. 

   Duane Reade is under contract with local unions to contribute to 
multi-employer pension and welfare benefit plans for certain of its 
employees. For the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996 and September 27, 1997, 
contributions to such plans were $4,121,000 and $4,844,000, respectively. 

10. RECAPITALIZATION 

   During June 1997, the Company entered into a recapitalization agreement 
(the "Agreement") with its stockholders ("Stockholders") and certain 
investors ("Investors"). The Agreement provided for (i) the purchase by 
Investors from the Stockholders of substantially all their stock holdings in 
the Company, (ii) a conversion of all of the outstanding shares of the 
Company into a newly authorized class of Class B Common stock and (iii) the 
creation of a new authorized class of preferred stock which will carry the 
rights and preferences granted by the Company's Board of Directors when 
issued. 

   Shares were converted as follows: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                        APPROXIMATE 
             PRIOR CLASS              CONVERSION RATE 
- ------------------------------------  --------------- 
<S>                                   <C>
Common and Common Class A ...........       28/1 
Common Class P and Common Class P-1        355/1 
</TABLE>

   In addition, because of the change in control, the Company was obligated 
to and made offers to repurchase all outstanding Senior Notes and Zero Coupon 
Notes at 101% of the principal amount or accreted value thereof, 
respectively. Such offers expired on September 12, 1997. The Company 
repurchased an aggregate of $107,000 principal amount of Senior Notes and 
$9,000 of Zero Coupon Notes pursuant to the offers. 

   These financial statements do not reflect any adjustments as a result of 
the June 1997 change in control. 

11. NONRECURRING CHARGES 

   During the first quarter of 1997, the Company considered a public offering 
of its common stock and took certain steps in connection with these plans. 
Such plans were abandoned upon consummation of the transaction discussed in 
Note 10. 

   Costs and expenses incurred in connection with the abandoned public 
offering and the recapitalization and the exchange offers referred to in Note 
10 aggregated approximately $10.9 million, including approximately $4.7 
million to an affiliate of the Investors and approximately $0.6 million to an 
affiliate of the Stockholders, and are included in other accrued expenses as 
of September 27, 1997. 

12. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS 

   In 1992, the Company and the then principal stockholder of the Company 
(who has subsequently sold most of its shares--see Note 10) entered into a 
professional services agreement whereby consulting, advisory, financial and 
other services were provided at the Company's request, for a five year term. 
During the 39 weeks ended September 28, 1996, such fees aggregated 
approximately $742,000. See Note 11. 

   In addition, the Investors paid an executive approximately $0.8 million 
for advisory services rendered and a former executive approximately $1.6 
million for the repurchase and cancellation of exercisable stock options. The 
accompanying financial statements do not reflect such payments. 

                              F-26           
<PAGE>
                  DUANE READE HOLDING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
     NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (UNAUDITED)--(CONTINUED) 

 13. SUBSEQUENT EVENT--REFINANCING OF BANK DEBT 

   On September 30, 1997, the Company entered into a credit agreement with an 
affiliate of the Investors and various financial institutions providing for a 
term loan of $65,475,000 and a revolving credit facility of $30,000,000. 
Proceeds of the term loan were used to repay outstanding term loans 
($63,475,000) and revolving loans ($2,000,000) pursuant to the Credit 
Agreement discussed in Note 4. 

   The term loan is payable in quarterly installments of $165,000 from 
December 1997 through March 2001, $31,000,000 in June 2001, quarterly 
installments of $165,000 from September 2001 through March 2002 and 
$31,000,000 in June 2002. Outstanding term and revolving loans at September 
27, 1997 have been classified in accordance with such repayment terms. 

   Costs incurred in connection with the refinancing aggregated approximately 
$2.7 million (including a funding fee of $2.4 million to an affiliate of the 
Investors) and will be amortized over the term of the new credit agreement. 
Unamortized deferred financing costs of approximately $1.8 million at 
September 27, 1997 relating to the prior credit agreement will be charged to 
earnings in the fourth quarter of 1997. 

                              F-27           
<PAGE>

   NO DEALER, SALESPERSON OR ANY OTHER PERSON HAS BEEN AUTHORIZED TO GIVE ANY 
INFORMATION OR TO MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS OTHER THAN THOSE CONTAINED IN THIS 
PROSPECTUS IN CONNECTION WITH THE OFFERING COVERED BY THIS PROSPECTUS, AND, 
IF GIVEN OR MADE, SUCH INFORMATION OR REPRESENTATIONS MUST NOT BE RELIED UPON 
AS HAVING BEEN AUTHORIZED BY THE COMPANY OR THE UNDERWRITERS. THIS PROSPECTUS 
DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER TO SELL, OR THE SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY, 
THE NEW SENIOR SUBORDINATED NOTES IN ANY JURISDICTION WHERE, OR TO ANY PERSON 
TO WHOM, IT IS UNLAWFUL TO MAKE SUCH OFFER OR SOLICITATION. NEITHER THE 
DELIVERY OF THIS PROSPECTUS NOR ANY SALE MADE HEREUNDER SHALL, UNDER ANY 
CIRCUMSTANCES, CREATE ANY IMPLICATION THAT THERE HAS NOT BEEN ANY CHANGE IN 
THE FACTS SET FORTH IN THIS PROSPECTUS OR IN THE AFFAIRS OF THE COMPANY SINCE 
THE DATE HEREOF. 

                              TABLE OF CONTENTS 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                PAGE 
                                              -------- 
<S>                                           <C>
Prospectus Summary ..........................      3 
Risk Factors ................................     10 
Use of Proceeds .............................     17 
Capitalization ..............................     18 
Selected Consolidated Historical and Pro 
 Forma Financial and Operating Data .........     19 
Management's Discussion and Analysis of 
 Financial Condition and Results of 
 Operations .................................     21 
Business ....................................     27 
Management ..................................     36 
Certain Relationship and Related 
 Transactions ...............................     42 
Principal Stockholders ......................     44 
Description of New Senior Subordinated 
 Notes.......................................     45 
Description of Certain Indebtedness  ........     68 
Underwriting ................................     69 
Legal Matters ...............................     70 
Experts .....................................     70 
Additional Information ......................     70 
Index to Financial Statements................    F-1 
</TABLE>

   UNTIL       , 1998 (25 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF THIS PROSPECTUS), ALL 
DEALERS EFFECTING TRANSACTIONS IN THE REGISTERED SECURITIES, WHETHER OR NOT 
PARTICIPATING IN THIS DISTRIBUTION, MAY BE REQUIRED TO DELIVER A PROSPECTUS. 
THIS IS IN ADDITION TO THE OBLIGATION OF DEALERS TO DELIVER A PROSPECTUS WHEN 
ACTING AS UNDERWRITERS AND WITH RESPECT TO THEIR UNSOLD ALLOTMENTS OR 
SUBSCRIPTIONS. 

                                 $75,000,000 

                                    [LOGO] 

                               DUANE READE INC. 
                              % SENIOR SUBORDINATED 
                                NOTES DUE 2008 

                                  PROSPECTUS 

                         DONALDSON, LUFKIN & JENRETTE 
                             SECURITIES CORPORATION 

                                      , 1998

                                        
<PAGE>

               PART II--INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS 

ITEM 13. OTHER EXPENSES OF ISSUANCE AND DISTRIBUTION. 

   The following is a statement of estimated expenses of the issuance and 
distribution of the securities being registered other than underwriting 
compensation: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
<S>                                                           <C>
SEC registration fee ........................................   $22,125 
NASD filing fee .............................................        -- 
                                                              ----------- 
New York Stock Exchange original listing fee ................      * 
Blue sky fees and expenses (including attorneys' fees and 
 expenses) ..................................................      * 
Printing and engraving expenses .............................      * 
Transfer agent's fees and expenses ..........................      * 
Accounting fees and expenses ................................      * 
Legal fees and expenses .....................................      * 
Miscellaneous expenses ......................................      * 
                                                              ----------- 
                                                                $       








 
Total........................................................      * 
                                                              =========== 

</TABLE>

- ------------ 
*      To be provided by amendment. 

All amounts are estimated except for the SEC registration fee and the NASD 
filing fee. 

ITEM 14. INDEMNIFICATION OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS. 

   The Company is incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware. 
Section 145 of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware ("Section 
145") provides that a Delaware corporation may indemnify any person who is, 
or is threatened to be made, a party to any threatened, pending or completed 
action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or 
investigative (other than an action by or in the right of such corporation), 
by reason of the fact that such person was an officer, director, employee or 
agent of such corporation, or is or was serving at the request of such 
corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation 
or enterprise. The indemnity may include expenses (including attorneys' 
fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and 
reasonably incurred by such person in connection with such action, suit or 
proceeding, provided such person acted in good faith and in a manner he 
reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the corporation's best 
interests and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no 
reasonable cause to believe that his conduct was illegal. A Delaware 
corporation may indemnify any person who is, or is threatened to be made, a 
party to any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by or in the 
right of the corporation by reason of the fact that such person was a 
director, officer, employee or agent of such corporation, or is or was 
serving at the request of such corporation as a director, officer, employee 
or agent of another corporation or enterprise. The indemnity may include 
expenses (including attorneys' fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such 
person in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit, 
provided such person acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably 
believed to be in or not opposed to the corporation's best interests except 
that no indemnification is permitted without judicial approval if the officer 
or director is adjudged to be liable to the corporation. Where an officer or 
director is successful on the merits or otherwise in the defense of any 
action referred to above, the corporation must indemnify him against the 
expenses which such officer or director has actually and reasonably incurred. 

   The Company's Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides 
for the indemnification of directors and officers of the Company to the 
fullest extent permitted by Section 145. 

   In that regard, the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation 
provides that the Company shall indemnify any person who was or is a party or 
is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed 
action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or 
investigative 

                                     II-1
<PAGE>

(other than an action by or in the right of the corporation) by reason of the 
fact that he is or was a director or officer of the Company, or is or was 
serving at the request of the Company as a director, officer or member of 
another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, 
against expenses (including attorneys' fees), judgments, fines and amounts 
paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection with 
such action, suit or proceeding if he acted in good faith and in a manner he 
reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the 
Company, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no 
reasonable cause to believe his conduct was unlawful. Indemnification in 
connection with an action or suit by or in the right of the Company to 
procure a judgment in its favor is limited to payment of settlement of such 
an action or suit except that no such indemnification may be made in respect 
of any claim, issue or matter as to which such person shall have been 
adjudged to be liable for negligence or misconduct in the performance of his 
duty to the indemnifying corporation unless and only to the extent that the 
Court of Chancery of Delaware or the court in which such action or suit was 
brought shall determine that, despite the adjudication of liability but in 
consideration of all the circumstances of the case, such person is fairly and 
reasonably entitled to indemnity for such expenses which the court shall deem 
proper. 

ITEM 15. RECENT SALES OF UNREGISTERED SECURITIES. 

   Set forth in chronological order is information regarding all securities 
sold and employee stock options granted by the Company since November 1994. 
Further included is the consideration, if any, received by the Company for 
such securities, and information relating to the section of the Securities 
Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), and the rules of the 
Securities and Exchange Commission under which exemption from registration 
was claimed. All awards of options did not involve any sale under the 
Securities Act. No sale of securities involved the use of an underwriter, and 
no commissions were paid in connection with the sales of any securities. 

     (1) On April 10, 1995, the Company issued 5,000 shares of the Company's 
    common stock (the "Common Stock") and 555.556 shares of the Company's 
    Class P common stock (the "Class P Stock") to Jerry M. Ray for $100,000, 
    pursuant to the exemption contained in Section 4(2) of the Securities Act. 

     (2) On June 9, 1997, the Company issued 9,639 shares of Common Stock to 
    Bankers Trust New York Corporation for 9,639 shares of the Company's Class 
    A common stock (the "Class A Stock"), pursuant to the exemption contained 
    in Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act. 

     (3) On June 18, 1997, in connection with the Recapitalization, the 
    Company issued to all holders of its then outstanding capital stock (the 
    "Retired Common Stock") shares of its newly authorized Class B Common 
    Stock in exchange for such Retired Common Stock. For each share of Common 
    Stock and Class A Stock, a stockholder received approximately 28 shares of 
    Class B Common Stock, and for each share of Class P Stock and the 
    Company's Class P-1 common stock (the "Class P-1 Stock"), a holder 
    received approximately 355 shares of Class B Common Stock. In total, the 
    Company issued an aggregate of 85,405,524.5 shares of Class B Common Stock 
    to its stockholders for an aggregate of 1,136,470.5 shares of Common 
    Stock, 100,000 shares of Class A Stock, 126,274.7 shares of Class P Stock 
    and 11,111.1 shares of Class P-1 Stock. Section3(a)(9) of the Securities 
    Act was relied upon for exemption of such issuance from registration. Set 
    forth in the table below are (i) each of the shareholders of the Company, 
    (ii) the number of shares of Retired Common Stock such shareholder 
    exchanged and (iii) the number of shares of Class B Common Stock that the 
    Company issued to such shareholder. 

                               II-2           
<PAGE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                     SHARES OF RETIRED COMMON STOCK EXCHANGED            
                                         ----------------------------------------------------------------   SHARES OF CLASS B  
SHAREHOLDERS                              CLASS A STOCK    CLASS P STOCK  CLASS P-1 STOCK   COMMON STOCK   COMMON STOCK ISSUED
- ---------------------------------------  --------------- ---------------  --------------- --------------  --------------------
<S>                                      <C>             <C>              <C>             <C>                <C>
DLJ Merchant Banking Partners II, L.P.        90,361           122,386        11,111.1          943,960         78,125,299 
BCIP Associates.........................                     2,239.503                        3,173.428        153,455.511 
BCIP Trust Associates, L.P..............                       111.614                        1,047.855         32,870.714 
Tyler Capital Fund, L.P. ...............                    33,021.798                       31,072.102      1,817,035.190 
Tyler International, L.P.-II............                     1,979.812                        1,862.888        108,938.062 
Tyler Massachusetts, L.P. ..............                     6,765.861                        6,366.439        372,295.187 
Jeffrey C. Hammes.......................                       104.161                           98.039          5,733.130 
Karl E. Lutz............................                       325.528                          306.372         17,916.030 
Pearlman Family Partners................                       390.653                          367,647         21,499.238 
Thomas Stemberg ........................                                                         82.700          2,344.151 
The Marion Trust........................                                                      1,686.800         47,820.735 
Bankers Trust New York Corporation  ....                                                          9,639        273,261.344 
Sigler & Co. ...........................                                                          2,551         72,333.917 
Muico, Inc..............................                                                          6,426        182,174.320 
Roton, Inc. ............................                                                          1,890         53,580.538 
USL Capital Corporation.................                                                          1,890         53,580.538 
Bruce L. Weitz..........................                     2,777.775                           25,000      1,693,910.900 
Gary Charboneau.........................                     2,777.775                           25,000      1,693,910.900 
Mike Cirilli............................                       138.889                            1,250         84,695.634 
Frank DeMarco...........................                       138.889                            1,250         84,695.634 
Karen Durham............................                       138.889                            1,250         84,695.634 
Hyman Needleman.........................                       138.889                            1,250         84,695.634 
Jerry M. Ray............................                       555.556                            5,000        338,782.535 
</TABLE>

ITEM 16. EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES. 

(a) Exhibits: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
    NUMBER    DESCRIPTION 
- ------------  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
<S>           <C>                                                                                        
      1.1*    Form of Underwriting Agreement. 
      3.1(i)* Form of Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the Company. 
      3.1(ii)*Form of Amended and Restated Bylaws of the Company. 
      3.2(i)* Certificate of Incorporation of Daboco, Inc.
      3.2(ii)*By-laws of Daboco, Inc.
      3.3(i)* Certificate of Incorporation of DRI I Inc.
      3.3(ii)*By-laws of DRI I Inc.
      3.4*    Second Amended and Restated Partnership Agreement of Duane Reade.
      4.1*    Form of Indenture. 
      5.1*    Opinion of Latham & Watkins 
     10.1     Form of Duane Reade Holding Corp. 1997 Stock Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to 
              Exhibit 10.1 to the Company's Form S-1 Registration Statement (File No. 333-41239), the 
              "Common Stock S-1"). 
     10.2     Duane Reade Holding Corp. 1992 Stock Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 
              10.2 to the Common Stock S-1). 
     10.3     Employment Agreement, dated as of October 27, 1997, between the Company and Anthony J. 
              Cuti (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Common Stock S-1). 
     10.4     Employment Agreement, dated as of February 22, 1993, as amended, between the Company and 
              Gary Charboneau (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Common Stock S-1). 
     10.5     Employment Agreement, dated as of April 10, 1995, as amended, between Duane Reade and 
              Jerry M. Ray (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to the Common Stock S-1). 
     10.6     Employment Letter Agreement, dated as of October 9, 1996, between Duane Reade and Joseph 
              Lacko (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.6 to the Common Stock S-1). 

                               II-3           
<PAGE>

    NUMBER    DESCRIPTION 
- ------------  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
     10.7     Employment Letter Agreement, dated as of February 12, 1997, between the Company and 
              William Tennant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.7 to the Common Stock S-1). 
     10.8     Agreement, dated as of November 22, 1996, between Duane Reade and Drug, Chemical, 
              Cosmetic, Plastics and Affiliated Industries Warehouse Employees Local 815 (incorporated 
              by reference to Exhibit 10.8 to the Common Stock S-1). 
     10.9     Agreement, dated July 16, 1992, as amended, between Duane Reade and Allied Trades Council 
              (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.9 to the Common Stock S-1). 
    10.10     Agreement, dated February 4, 1997, as amended, between Duane Reade and The Pharmacy Fund, 
              Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.10 to the Common Stock S-1). 
    10.11     Indenture, dated as of September 15, 1992, between Duane Reade Holding Corp. and The 
              Connecticut National Bank, as trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.11 to the 
              Common Stock S-1). 
    10.12     Indenture, dated as of September 15, 1992, among Duane Reade, Daboco Inc., Duane Reade 
              Inc. and The Connecticut National Bank, as trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 
              10.12 to the Common Stock S-1). 
    10.13     Stockholders and Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of June 18, 1997, among the 
              Company, DLJMB Funding II, Inc., DLJ Merchant Banking Partners II, L.P., DLJ Diversified 
              Partners, L.P., DLJ First ESC L.L.C., DLJ Offshore Partners, II, C.V., DLJ EAB Partners, 
              L.P., UK Investment Plan 1997 Partners, Bankers Trust New York Corporation, Conac & Co., 
              Muico & Co., Roton & Co., Putnam High Yield Trust, PaineWebber Managed Investment Trust 
              on behalf of PaineWebber High Income Fund, USL Capital Corporation, Pearlman Family 
              Partners, The Marion Trust, Bruce L. Weitz, BCIP Associates, BCIP Trust Associates, L.P., 
              Tyler Capital Fund L.P., Tyler International, L.P.-II, and Tyler Massachusetts, L.P. 
              (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.13 to the Common Stock S-1). 
    10.14     Credit Agreement, dated as of September 30, 1997, among Duane Reade, Duane Reade Holding 
              Corp., Daboco Inc., Duane Reade Inc., various financial institutions, as Lenders, DLJ 
              Capital Funding, Inc., as Syndication Agent, Fleet National Bank, as Administrative 
              Agent, and Credit Lyonnais New York Branch, as Documentation Agent (incorporated by 
              reference to Exhibit 10.14 to the Common Stock S-1). 
    10.15     Partnership Security Agreement, dated as of September 30, 1997, among Daboco Inc., Duane 
              Reade Inc. and Fleet National Bank, as Administrative Agent (incorporated by reference to 
              Exhibit 10.14 to the Common Stock S-1). 
    10.16     Borrower Security Agreement, dated as of September 30, 1997, between Duane Reade and 
              Fleet National Bank, as Administrative Agent (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.15 
              to the Common Stock S-1). 
    10.17     Parent Pledge Agreement, dated as of September 30, 1997, among Duane Reade Holding Corp., 
              Daboco Inc. and Fleet National Bank, as Administrative Agent (incorporated by reference 
              to Exhibit 10.17 to the Common Stock S-1). 
    10.18     New Credit Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.18 to the Common Stock 
              S-1). 
    10.19     Underwriting Agreement among the Company, DLJ, Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Salomon Brothers 
              Inc relating to the Common Stock Offering (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 1.1 to 
              the Common Stock S-1). 
     12.1     Statement re: Computation of Ratios. 
     21.1*    Subsidiaries of the Company. 
     23.1**   Consent of Price Waterhouse LLP. 
     23.2*    Consent of Latham & Watkins (included in Exhibit 5.1). 

                                     II-4
<PAGE>

    NUMBER    DESCRIPTION 
- ------------  -----------------------------------------------------------------
     24.1**   Powers of Attorney (included in signature page). 
     25.1*    Statement of Eligibility of Trustee. 
     27.1**   Financial Data Schedule. 
</TABLE>

- ------------ 
*  To be filed by amendment. 
** Filed herewith.

(b) Financial Statement Schedules: 

Schedules for which provision is made in the applicable accounting 
regulations of the Commission are either not required under the related 
instructions, are inapplicable or not material, or the information called for 
thereby is otherwise included in the financial statements and therefore has 
been omitted. 

ITEM 17. UNDERTAKINGS. 

   The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes to provide to the 
underwriters at the closing specified in the underwriting agreement 
certificates in such denominations and registered in such names as required 
by the underwriters to permit prompt delivery to each purchaser. 

   Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities 
Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons 
of the registrant pursuant to the provisions described in Item 14, or 
otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the 
Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the 
Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for 
indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the 
registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling 
person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or 
proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in 
connection with the securities being registered, the registrant will, unless 
in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling 
precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether 
such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Act 
and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue. 

   The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that: 

   (1) For purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 
1933, the information omitted from the form of prospectus filed as part of 
this registration statement in reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in a 
form of prospectus filed by the registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(1) or (4) 
or 497(h) under the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of this 
registration statement as of the time it was declared effective. 

   (2) For the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act 
of 1933, each post-effective amendment that contains a form of prospectus 
shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities 
offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be 
deemed tobe the initial bona fide offering thereof. 

                               II-5           
<PAGE>

                                  SIGNATURES 

   Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant 
has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the 
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of New York, State of New 
York on December 23, 1997. 
                                          DUANE READE INC. 
                                          By: /s/ Anthony J. Cuti 
                                              ------------------------------- 
                                          Name: Anthony J. Cuti 
                                          Title: President and Chief 
                                          Executive Officer 

                              POWER OF ATTORNEY 

   KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears 
below constitutes and appoints Anthony J. Cuti and William Tennant and each 
of them, his true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, with full power of 
substitution and resubstitution, for him and in his name, place and stead, in 
any and all capacities (including his capacity as a director and/or officer 
of Duane Reade Inc.), to sign any or all amendments (including post-effective 
amendments) to this registration statement and any subsequent registration 
statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, and 
to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in 
connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting 
unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and 
authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and 
necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully to all intents and 
purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming 
all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents or any of them, or their or his 
substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue 
hereof. 

   Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this 
Registration Statement and Power of Attorney have been signed on December 23, 
1997, by the following persons in the capacities indicated with respect to 
Duane Reade Inc.: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
          SIGNATURE                              CAPACITY 
- ---------------------------  ------------------------------------------------ 
<S>                          <C>                                              
/s/ Anthony J. Cuti 
- --------------------------- Chairman, President, Chief Executive Officer and
    Anthony J. Cuti            Director (principal executive officer )

/s/ William J. Tennant 
- --------------------------- Chief Financial Officer
    William J. Tennant        (principal accounting and financial officer) 

/s/ Nicole S. Arnaboldi 
 --------------------------- Director
    Nicole S. Arnaboldi       

/s/ David L. Jaffe 
 --------------------------- Director 
    David L. Jaffe                 

/s/ Andrew J. Nathanson 
 --------------------------- Director 
    Andrew J. Nathanson          
</TABLE>

                               II-6           

<PAGE>

                                  SIGNATURES 

   Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant 
has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the 
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of New York, State of New 
York on December 23, 1997. 
                                          DRI I INC. 

                                          By: /s/ Anthony J. Cuti 
                                              ------------------------------- 
                                          Name:  Anthony J. Cuti 
                                          Title: President and Chief 
                                                 Executive Officer 

                              POWER OF ATTORNEY 

   KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears 
below constitutes and appoints Anthony J. Cuti and William Tennant and each 
of them, his true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, with full power of 
substitution and resubstitution, for him and in his name, place and stead, in 
any and all capacities (including his capacity as a director and/or officer 
of DRI I Inc.), to sign any or all amendments (including post-effective 
amendments) to this registration statement and any subsequent registration 
statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, and 
to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in 
connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting 
unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and 
authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and 
necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully to all intents and 
purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming 
all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents or any of them, or their or his 
substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue 
hereof. 

   Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this 
Registration Statement and Power of Attorney have been signed on December 23, 
1997, by the following persons in the capacities indicated with respect to 
DRI I Inc.: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
          SIGNATURE                                CAPACITY   
- ---------------------------    ---------------------------------------------

<S>                           <C>
/s/ Anthony J. Cuti 
- ----------------------------  President and Chief Executive Officer and 
Anthony J. Cuti                Director (principal executive officer) 

/s/ William J. Tennant 
- ----------------------------  Vice President 
William J. Tennant             (principal accounting and financial officer) 

/s/ Nicole S. Arnaboldi 
- ---------------------------- 
Nicole S. Arnaboldi           Director 

/s/ David L. Jaffe 
- ---------------------------- 
David L. Jaffe                Director 

/s/ Andrew J. Nathanson 
- ---------------------------- 
Andrew J. Nathanson           Director 
</TABLE>

                               II-7           

<PAGE>

                                  SIGNATURES 

   Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant 
has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the 
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of New York, State of New 
York on December 23, 1997. 
                                          DABOCO INC. 
                                          By: /s/ Anthony J. Cuti 
                                              ------------------------------- 
                                          Name: Anthony J. Cuti 
                                          Title: President and Chief 
                                          Executive Officer 

                              POWER OF ATTORNEY 

   KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears 
below constitutes and appoints Anthony J. Cuti and William Tennant and each 
of them, his true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, with full power of 
substitution and resubstitution, for him and in his name, place and stead, in 
any and all capacities (including his capacity as a director and/or officer 
of Daboco Inc.), to sign any or all amendments (including post-effective 
amendments) to this registration statement and any subsequent registration 
statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, and 
to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in 
connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting 
unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and 
authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and 
necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully to all intents and 
purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming 
all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents or any of them, or their or his 
substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue 
hereof. 

   Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this 
Registration Statement and Power of Attorney have been signed on December 23, 
1997, by the following persons in the capacities indicated with respect to 
Daboco Inc.: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
          SIGNATURE                              CAPACITY 
- ---------------------------  ------------------------------------------------
<S>                          <C>                                             
/s/ Anthony J. Cuti 
- ---------------------------  President and Chief Executive Officer and
    Anthony J. Cuti Director  (principal executive officer)

/s/ William J. Tennant 
- ---------------------------  Vice President
    William J. Tennant        (principal accounting and financial officer)

/s/ Nicole S. Arnaboldi 
 --------------------------- Director
    Nicole S. Arnaboldi 

/s/ David L. Jaffe 
 --------------------------- Director 
    David L. Jaffe 

/s/ Andrew J. Nathanson 
 --------------------------- Director
    Andrew J. Nathanson     
</TABLE>

                                      II-8

<PAGE>

                                  SIGNATURES 

   Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant 
has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the 
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of New York, State of New 
York on December 23, 1997. 
                                          DUANE READE 
By: DRI I Inc., a general partner         By: DABOCO Inc., a general partner 

By: /s/ Anthony J. Cuti                   By: /s/ Anthony J. Cuti             
   -----------------------------------       ----------------------------------
Name:  Anthony J. Cuti                       Name:  Anthony J. Cuti            
Title: President and                         Title: President and Chief        
       Chief Executive Officer                      Executive Officer          
                                            
                                          
                                          
                                          
                                          

                              POWER OF ATTORNEY 

   KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears 
below constitutes and appoints Anthony J. Cuti and William Tennant and each 
of them, his true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, with full power of 
substitution and resubstitution, for him and in his name, place and stead, in 
any and all capacities (including his capacity as a director and/or officer 
of Daboco Inc. and DRI I Inc., the general partners of Duane Reade on behalf 
of Duane Reade), to sign any or all amendments (including post-effective 
amendments) to this registration statement and any subsequent registration 
statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, and 
to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in 
connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting 
unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and 
authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and 
necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully to all intents and 
purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming 
all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents or any of them, or their or his 
substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue 
hereof. 

   Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this 
Registration Statement and Power of Attorney have been signed on December 23, 
1997, by the following persons in the capacities indicated with respect to 
Daboco Inc. and DRI I Inc., the general partners of Duane Reade on behalf of 
Duane Reade: 

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
          SIGNATURE                                CAPACITY 
- ---------------------------  ---------------------------------------------------
<S>                         <C>                                        
/s/ Anthony J. Cuti 
- ---------------------------  President, Chief Executive Officer and Director
    Anthony J. Cuti           (principal executive officer)

/s/ William J. Tennant
- ---------------------------  Vice President
    William J. Tennant        (principal accounting and financial officer)

/s/ Nicole S. Arnaboldi
- ---------------------------  Director
    Nicole S. Arnaboldi 

/s/ David L. Jaffe
- ---------------------------  Director
    David L. Jaffe 

/s/ Andrew J. Nathanson
- ---------------------------
    Andrew J. Nathanson      Director
</TABLE>

                               II-9           




<PAGE>
                          Duane Reade Inc.                        Exhibit 12.1
   Computation of Ratio of Earnings to Fixed Charges
          (Amounts in thousands of dollars)
 
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                   Predecessor                            Company
                                                  ------------ -------------------------------------------------------------
                                                     Period        Period
                                                    January 1    September 26              
                                                       to            to                         Fiscal Year
                                                  September 25,  December 31,  ---------------------------------------------
                                                      1992           1992         1993       1994        1995         1996  
                                                  ------------  -----------    --------   --------     --------     --------
<S>                                               <C>             <C>           <C>       <C>         <C>          <C>
Pre-tax income (loss) before extraordinary items      $16,340     $(7,293)     $(24,418)  $(16,438)    $(18,058)    $(17,854)
                                                  ------------  -----------    --------   --------     --------     --------
Fixed charges:

   Capitalized interest                                                                        192         847
   Interest expense and amortization of deferred
       financing costs on all indebtedness              3,298       6,989        26,199     27,480       30,224       32,396
   Rentals: operating leases - 1/3                      3,479       1,164         4,732      5,791        7,568        8,140
                                                  ------------  -----------    --------   --------     --------     --------
        Total Fixed Charges                             6,777       8,153        30,931     33,463       38,639       40,536
                                                  ------------  -----------    --------   --------     --------     --------

Earnings before income taxes, extraordinary
   items and fixed charges                             23,117         860         6,513     17,025       20,581       22,682
   Less: Interest capitalized during the period                                               (192)        (847)
                                                  ------------  -----------    --------   --------     --------     --------

Earnings (loss) before income taxes, extraordinary
   items and adjusted fixed charges                    23,117         860         6,513     16,833       19,734       22,682
                                                  ------------  -----------    --------   --------     --------     --------

Ratio of earnings to fixed charges                       3.41         (A)          (A)       (A)          (A)          (A)
                                                  ------------  -----------    --------   --------     --------     --------
                                                  ------------  -----------    --------   --------     --------     --------

<CAPTION>
                                                                                         --Pro Forma--
                                                         39 Weeks Ended           --------------------------
                                                   -----------------------------              39 Weeks Ended
                                                   September 28,  September 27,    Fiscal      September 27,
                                                        1996          1997         1996            1997
                                                   -------------  ------------    ----------  ---------------
<S>                                                <C>            <C>            <C>           <C>
Pre-tax income (loss) before extraordinary items        $(12,485)     $(14,165)   $(5,264)        $(3,505)
                                                      ----------    ----------  ---------      ----------
Fixed charges:
 
   Capitalized interest                            
   Interest expense and amortization of deferred
       financing costs on all indebtedness                24,334        25,433     19,689          14,773
   Rentals: operating leases - 1/3                         6,083         6,524      8,140           6,524
                                                      ----------    ----------  ---------      ----------
        Total Fixed Charges                               30,417        31,957     27,829          21,297
                                                      ----------    ----------  ---------      ----------
 
Earnings before income taxes, extraordinary
   items and fixed charges                                17,932        17,792     22,565          17,792
   Less: Interest capitalized during the period                                                         
                                                      ----------    ----------  ---------      ----------
 
Earnings (loss) before income taxes, extraordinary
   items and adjusted fixed charges                       17,932        17,792     22,565          17,792
 
                                                      ----------    ----------  ---------      ----------
Ratio of earnings to fixed charges                      (A)           (A) (C)     (B)            (B) (C)
                                                      ----------    ----------  ---------      ----------
                                                      ----------    ----------  ---------      ----------
</TABLE>
 
(A)  As a result of the loss incurred in the period September 26 to December
     31, 1992, fiscal years 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996 and the 39 weeks ended
     September 28, 1996 and September 27, 1997, the Company was unable to 
     fully cover the indicated fixed charges.
 
(B)  As a result of the loss incurred in fiscal 1996 and for the 39 weeks ended
     September 27, 1997 on a pro forma basis, after giving effect to the
     Offering as if all transactions had occurred on December 31, 1995, the 
     Company would have been unable to fully cover the indicated fixed charges.
 
(C)  Included in the loss before extraordinary items for the 39 weeks ended
     September 27, 1997 was a nonrecurring charge of $10,887 as disclosed in
     Note 11 to the Company's consolidated financial statements. If such 
     charge had not been incurred, earnings would have been insufficient to 
     cover fixed charges by $3,278. On a pro forma basis, after giving effect 
     to the Offering, the ratio of earnings to fixed charges would have 
     been 1.4.


<PAGE>




                      CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS

        We hereby consent to the use in the Prospectus constituting part of this
Registration Statement on Form S-1 of our report dated February 18, 1997, except
as to the recapitalization described in Note 12 which is as of June 18, 1997, 
relating to the financial statements of Duane Reade Holding Corp., which
appears in such Prospectus. We also consent to the reference to us under the
heading "Experts" in such Prospectus.




PRICE WATERHOUSE LLP


New York, New York
December 22, 1997




<TABLE> <S> <C>

<PAGE>

<ARTICLE> 5
<LEGEND>
THE SCHEDULE CONTAINS SUMMARY FINANCIAL INFORMATION EXTRACTED FROM THE
COMPANY'S CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS AS OF DECEMBER 28, 1996 AND SEPTEMBER 27,
1997 AND THE RELATED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS FOR THE 52 WEEKS
ENDED DECEMBER 28,1996 AND 39 WEEKS ENDED SEPTEMBER 27, 1997 AND IS QUALIFIED
IN ITS ENTIRETY BY REFERENCE TO SUCH CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS.
</LEGEND>
<MULTIPLIER> 1,000
       
<S>                             <C>                     <C>
<PERIOD-TYPE>                   OTHER                   OTHER
<FISCAL-YEAR-END>                          DEC-28-1996             DEC-27-1997
<PERIOD-END>                               DEC-28-1996             SEP-27-1997
<CASH>                                             216                     218
<SECURITIES>                                         0                       0
<RECEIVABLES>                                    7,171                   9,084
<ALLOWANCES>                                         0                       0
<INVENTORY>                                     47,914                  65,872
<CURRENT-ASSETS>                                56,466                  76,545
<PP&E>                                          30,090                  34,771
<DEPRECIATION>                                 (7,025)                 (9,553)
<TOTAL-ASSETS>                                 222,476                 239,520
<CURRENT-LIABILITIES>                           46,549                  46,696
<BONDS>                                        245,657                 262,649
                                0                       0
                                          0                       0
<COMMON>                                            13                     854
<OTHER-SE>                                    (59,409)                  74,415
<TOTAL-LIABILITY-AND-EQUITY>                   222,476                 239,520
<SALES>                                        381,466                 313,796
<TOTAL-REVENUES>                               381,466                 313,796
<CGS>                                          288,505                 236,413
<TOTAL-COSTS>                                  288,505                 236,413
<OTHER-EXPENSES>                                     0                       0
<LOSS-PROVISION>                                     0                       0
<INTEREST-EXPENSE>                              32,396                  25,433
<INCOME-PRETAX>                               (17,854)                (14,165)
<INCOME-TAX>                                         0                       0
<INCOME-CONTINUING>                           (17,854)                (14,165)
<DISCONTINUED>                                       0                       0
<EXTRAORDINARY>                                      0                       0
<CHANGES>                                            0                       0
<NET-INCOME>                                  (17,854)                (14,165)
<EPS-PRIMARY>                                   (0.21)                  (0.17)
<EPS-DILUTED>                                        0                       0
        


</TABLE>


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