WEST 49 INC. COMPLETES SALE TO BILLABONG

Toronto Stock Exchange Symbol: WXX

BURLINGTON, ON, Aug. 31 /CNW/ - West 49 Inc. (TSX: WXX) ("West 49" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the successful completion of the previously announced plan of arrangement pursuant to which Aurora Inc. ("Aurora"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Billabong International Limited ("Billabong"), acquired all of the outstanding common shares and preferred shares of the Company for a cash purchase price of Cdn$1.30 per share (and holders of the Company's preferred shares received accrued and unpaid dividends on their preferred shares).

"The completion of the sale of West 49 to Billabong marks the culmination of the respective contributions of West 49 Inc.'s employees, management team, board of directors and everyone else who has played a role in the Company's significant success over the past 15 years," stated Salvatore Baio, President and Chief Executive Officer of West 49 Inc. "I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of them for their contributions, as well as our loyal shareholders for their support throughout our years as a public company. Together with the West 49 Inc. team, we now look forward to building on past success as part of Billabong's exceptional group of companies."

With the completion of the plan of arrangement, the Company's common shares are expected to cease to be listed for trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange on or about the close of business on September 1, 2010. The Company intends to apply to the relevant securities regulatory authorities to cease to be a reporting issuer in the applicable jurisdictions in Canada.

For securityholders who held their common shares or preferred shares through a broker, the payment of the purchase price will be processed through their broker. For securityholders who held their Company common shares or preferred shares in registered form, the payment of the purchase price will be processed after they deposit their share certificates with Equity Transfer & Trust Company, the depositary for the transaction, in accordance with the instructions in the letters of transmittal delivered by mail on or about July 29, 2010. Any questions regarding payment of the purchase price, including any request for another letter of transmittal form, should be directed to your broker, if applicable, or the depositary via telephone at 1 [phone] (toll free in North America) or [phone] or via e-mail at [email protected].

Details of the transaction are contained in the management information circular of the Company dated July 26, 2010, which can be found at www.sedar.com.

West 49 Inc.'s special committee's financial advisors are National Bank Financial Inc., and its legal counsel is Goodmans LLP. Legal counsel to the Company and certain of its key shareholders is Stikeman Elliott LLP. Billabong International Limited's financial advisors are Goldman Sachs, and its legal counsel is Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP.

Corporate Profile

West 49 Inc. is a leading Canadian specialty retailer of apparel, footwear, accessories and equipment related to the youth action sports lifestyle. The Company's stores, which are primarily mall-based, carry a variety of high-performance, premium brand name and private label products that fulfill the lifestyle needs of identified target markets, primarily tweens and teens. At May 1, 2010, the Company operated 138 stores in nine provinces, under the banners West 49, Billabong, Off The Wall, Amnesia/Arsenic and D-Tox. The Company's common shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol WXX.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this release may be considered forward-looking statements, which reflect the board and management's current beliefs and expectations and which involve assumptions about expected future events or results that are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. There is significant risk that assumptions and other forward-looking statements will not prove to be accurate. Many factors could cause actual future results, conditions or events to differ materially from the results or outcomes expressed, including risks related to competition, changes in demographic trends, changes in consumer preferences and discretionary spending patterns, changes in business and economic conditions, human resource matters, legal proceedings, challenges to intellectual property rights, availability of credit facilities, and changes in laws, regulations, and accounting policies and practices. The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. Accordingly, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company includes in publicly available documents filed from time to time with securities commissions and the Toronto Stock Exchange, a thorough discussion of the risk factors that can cause anticipated outcomes to differ from actual outcomes. Forward-looking information is provided as of the date of this news release only, it should not be relied upon as of any other date, and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise this information to reflect new events or circumstances, except as expressly required by law. There can be no assurance that the Billabong transaction, or any other transaction, will be completed.

%SEDAR: 00000427E

For further information: Rhonda Biddix, Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary, West 49 Inc., [phone] ext. 224, E-mail: [email protected]; Lawrence Chamberlain, Investor Relations, The Equicom Group Inc., [phone] ext. 257, E-mail: [email protected]