West Marine Announces Share Repurchase Authorization

WATSONVILLE, Calif., March 15, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- West Marine, Inc. (Nasdaq:WMAR) the largest specialty retailer of boating supplies and accessories today announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a new share repurchase program through which West Marine, from time to time, may repurchase of its common stock in the open market or through privately negotiated transactions in an amount up to $10 million, with the amount and timing of repurchases to be determined by the company's management.

This new program is being implemented primarily to mitigate the dilutive impact of shares issued under the company's omnibus equity incentive plan and its employee stock purchase plans. West Marine currently plans to implement the repurchase program after the release of results for the second fiscal quarter of 2013.

Commenting on the new program, West Marine Chief Executive Officer Matthew Hyde said, "Our strong cash flow and solid financial position enable us to carry out this repurchase program, on a measured basis, without limiting our ability to invest capital in our key growth strategies."

West Marine has no obligation to repurchase shares under the Board's authorization, and the timing, actual number and price of shares that are purchased will depend on a number of factors, including the market value of West Marine's common stock. West Marine may suspend or discontinue this repurchase program at any time.

About West Marine

West Marine, the largest specialty retailer of boating supplies and accessories, has 299 company-operated stores located in 38 states, Puerto Rico and Canada and five franchised stores in Turkey. Our Direct-to-Consumer operations, which comprises our call center, direct mail and e-commerce channels, offers customers over 75,000 products plus the convenience of exchanging catalog and e-commerce purchases at our store locations. Our Port Supply division is one of the largest wholesale distributors of marine equipment, serving boat manufacturers, marine services, commercial vessel operators and government agencies. For more information on West Marine's products and store locations, or to start shopping, visit westmarine.com or call 1-800-BOATING (1-800-262-8464).

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