Press Release

Household Unveils National Advertising Campaign to Position Corporate Brand

Prospect Heights, IL - January 4, 2002 - Household International (NYSE: HI), the $105 billion (managed assets) consumer lender, this week will unveil a national advertising campaign designed to position and promote its corporate brand. Aimed at business and opinion leaders, the campaign underscores Household's nearly 125-year commitment to helping customers get the credit they need to get a new start on life, make a major purchase, send a child to college or meet unexpected expenses.

"Our goal is to transform Household from a name to a nationally-recognized, well-respected brand known for its leadership in meeting the financial needs of everyday Americans," said Craig Streem, vice president-corporate relations and communications, Household. "For nearly 125 years, we've specialized in loans, credit and understanding—and our ads build awareness of that message."

The $12 million national advertising campaign will launch on January 6, 2002. Developed by Gotham Inc., an advertising agency headquartered in New York City, the campaign breaks on network and cable television programs, as well as in leading business publications. The campaign is an extension of a corporate branding program that Household initiated in 1999, which included the launch of a new corporate identity and brand in early 2001.

The television campaign, conceived and produced by Gotham, shows vignettes of consumers faced with various real-life situations--such as the arrival of another baby, a broken dishwasher or financing a college education--that require additional sources of credit. "Life does not always stick to the game plan," the announcer acknowledges. The ad goes on to say that Household specializes in loans, credit and understanding and concludes with the tag line, "Household. Helping everyday people. Everyday.^SM"

"Our challenge was to identify the intangible aspects that differentiate Household from its competitors," said Melissa Murphy, group account director and managing partner for Gotham. "We realized that, more than anything, Household is in the 'customer understanding' business."

The 30-second television commercials will air beginning in January and throughout 2002 on network news programs such as "Meet The Press," "Face the Nation," and "Nightline." They will also air on cable news networks, such as CNN, CNBC, Fox and MSNBC. Sports event programming is planned on ESPN and other networks as well. The print campaign will run beginning in January in the Chicago Tribune and selected business publications, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and Fortune, among others.

About Household
Household's businesses are leading providers of consumer loan, credit card, auto finance and credit insurance products in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, Household's largest business, founded in 1878, operates under the two oldest and most widely recognized names in consumer finance - HFC and Beneficial. Household is also one of the nation's largest issuers of private-label and general-purpose credit cards, including The GM Card® and the AFL-CIO's Union Plus® card. For more information, visit the company's web site at http://www.household.com.

About Gotham
Gotham, Inc. is a $524 million advertising agency headquartered in New York City. It is part of the Interpublic Group of companies. Clients include Pfizer, Inc., Fidelity Investments, Deutsche Bank, Bristol-Myers, Abbott Labs Ross Division, Maybelline, Liz Claiborne, Helena Rubinstein, and America On-Line. For further information log on to www.Gothaminc.com.

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CONTACTS:
Craig Streem, vice president - corporate relations and communications: 847-564-6053
Megan Hayden, manager - corporate communications: 847-291-2101