Press Release

Kraton Announces
Appointment of Nathan Wright
to the Board of Directors

HOUSTON, TX – July 28, 2005 - Kraton Polymers LLC (Kraton) today announced the appointment of Nathan Wright to its Board of Directors. Mr. Wright will also serve as a member of the Board of Directors of Polymer Holdings LLC. Mr. Wright will also serve as a member of the Compensation Committee.

Mr. Wright has been a principal of Texas Pacific’s (TPG) operations group for five years, during which time he has supported transformation efforts within TPG portfolio companies. Prior to joining TPG, Mr. Wright spent six years as a consultant with Bain & Company in the firm’s Dallas, Sydney and Johannesburg offices. He received his M.B.A. from the Tuck School at Dartmouth College. Prior to earning his M.B.A., Mr. Wright worked in the information systems consulting and outsourcing industry for four years and founded an Atlanta-based systems strategy firm. He holds a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

“We are very pleased to have Nathan Wright join our Board,” said President and Chief Executive Officer, George Gregory. “His broad operations expertise will greatly assist Kraton.”

About Kraton

Kraton Polymers LLC is a premier, global specialty chemicals company and is the world’s largest producer of styrenic block copolymers (“SBCs”), a family of products whose chemistry was pioneered by Kraton over forty years ago.  SBCs are highly-engineered synthetic elastomers, which enhance the performance of products by delivering a variety of attributes, including greater flexibility, resilience, strength, durability and processability.  Kraton polymers are used in a wide range of applications including road and roofing materials, numerous consumer products (e.g., diapers, tool handles and toothbrushes), tapes, labels, medical applications, packaging, automotive and footwear products.  Kraton has the leading position in nearly all of its core markets and is the only producer of SBCs with global manufacturing capability.  Its production facilities are located in the United States, The Netherlands, Germany, France, Brazil, and Japan.

Polymer Holdings LLC is the parent company of Kraton Polymers LLC and has no material assets other than its investment in Kraton Polymers LLC. 

Kraton, the Kraton logo and design are trademarks of Kraton Polymers LLC.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release includes “forward-looking statements” as that term is defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.  All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements and are often characterized by the use of words such as “believes,” “expects,” “estimates,” “projects,” “may,” “will,” “intends,” “plans” or “anticipates,” or by discussions of strategy, plans or intentions.  All forward-looking statements in this press release are made based on management’s current expectations and estimates, which involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements.  Among these factors are changes in overall economic conditions, the cyclical nature of the chemical industry, changes in demand for our products, changes in inventories at our customers and distributors, technological and product development risks, availability and cost of raw materials, competitors’ actions, pricing and gross margin pressures, loss of key customers, order cancellations or reduced bookings, the timing and cost of planned capital expenditures, changes in manufacturing yields, control of costs and expenses, significant litigation, risks associated with acquisitions and dispositions, risks associated with our substantial leverage and restrictive covenants in our debt agreements, risks associated with our international operations, the threat or occurrence of international armed conflict and terrorist activities both in the United States and internationally, risks and costs associated with increased and new regulation of corporate governance and disclosure standards (including pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002), and risks involving environmental or other governmental regulation. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. We assume no obligation to update such information.