The North West Company Inc. Announces Amount of Special Distribution

WINNIPEG, MANITOBA--(Marketwire - Feb. 11, 2011) - The North West Company Inc. (TSX:NWF) ("North West") today announced that the amount of the special distribution for its predecessor, the North West Company Fund (the "Fund"), will be $0.09 per unit for the taxation period of January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2010. The special distribution is payable to the unitholders of record of the Fund on December 31, 2010, and will be distributed on or before February 18, 2011. Distributions from the Fund were primarily based on an allocation of the taxable income of The North West Company LP less Fund expenses for the taxation period of January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2010.

The Fund's obligation to pay this special distribution was assumed by North West upon the closing of the conversion of the Fund to a share corporation, which occurred on January 1, 2011.

Further information on the Fund and North West can be found in the disclosure documents filed with the securities regulatory authorities, available at www.sedar.com, or on North West's website, available at www.northwest.ca.

Company Profile

The North West Company Inc. is a leading retailer of food and everyday products and services to rural communities and urban neighbourhoods in Canada, Alaska, the South Pacific and the Caribbean. North West operates 230 stores under the trading names Northern, NorthMart, Giant Tiger, AC Value Center and Cost-U-Less and has annualized sales of approximately CDN$1.5 billion.

The common shares of North West trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "NWF".