11,500,000 Shares of Common Stock NEW YORK & COMPANY, INC. UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT [ ], 2004

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EXHIBIT 1.1

11,500,000 Shares of Common Stock

NEW YORK & COMPANY, INC.

UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

[ ], 2004

BEAR, XXXXXXX & CO. INC.
X.X. XXXXXX SECURITIES INC.
BANC OF AMERICA SECURITIES LLC
WACHOVIA CAPITAL MARKETS, LLC
XXXXX XXXXXXX & CO.
    As Representatives of the
    several Underwriters named in
    Schedule I attached hereto (the "Representatives")
c/o Bear, Xxxxxxx & Co. Inc.
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000

Ladies/Gentlemen:

New York & Company, Inc., a corporation organized and existing under the laws of Delaware (the "Company"), proposes, subject to the terms and conditions stated herein, to issue and sell to the several underwriters named in Schedule I hereto (the "Underwriters") an aggregate of 6,666,667 shares (the "Company Shares") of its common stock, par value $0.01 per share (the "Common Stock"). The stockholders of the Company listed on Schedule I hereto (the "Selling Stockholders") severally and not jointly propose to sell to the Underwriters an aggregate of 3,333,333 shares of Common Stock (the "Selling Stockholders' Shares" and, together with the Company Shares, the "Firm Shares"). For the sole purpose of covering over-allotments in connection with the sale of the Firm Shares, at the option of the Underwriters, the Selling Stockholders also propose to sell to the Underwriters up to 1,500,000 additional shares of Common Stock (the "Additional Shares"). The Firm Shares and any Additional Shares purchased by the Underwriters are referred to herein as the "Shares". The Shares are more fully described in the Registration Statement and Prospectus referred to below. Bear, Xxxxxxx & Co. Inc. ("Bear Xxxxxxx"), X.X. Xxxxxx Securities Inc., Banc of America Securities LLC, Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC and Xxxxx Xxxxxxx & Co. are acting as lead managers (the "Lead Managers") in connection with the offering and sale of the Shares contemplated herein (the "Offering").

The Company also proposes, subject to the terms of this agreement (this "Agreement"), the applicable rules, regulations and interpretations of the National Association of Securities Dealers (the "NASD") and all other applicable laws, rules and regulations, that up to 5% of the Firm Shares (the "Directed Shares") shall be reserved for sale by the Underwriters to certain officers, directors, employees and other persons designated by the Company ("Directed Share Purchasers"). To the extent that sales of Directed Shares are not orally confirmed for purchase by Directed Share Purchasers by the end of the first day after the date of this Agreement, the Directed Shares will be offered to the public as part of the Offering.

The Company and the Selling Stockholders hereby confirm their engagement of X.X. Xxxxxx Securities Inc., and X.X. Xxxxxx Securities Inc. hereby confirms its agreement with the Company and the Selling Stockholders to render services as a "qualified independent underwriter" within the meaning of Rule 2720 of the Conduct Rules of the NASD with respect to the Offering. X.X. Xxxxxx Securities Inc., solely in its capacity as qualified independent underwriter and not otherwise, is referred to herein as the "QIU."

1. Representations and Warranties of the Company. The Company represents and warrants to, and agrees with, each of the Underwriters that:

(a) The Company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "Commission") a registration statement on Form S-1 (No. 333-115778), and amendments thereto, and related preliminary prospectuses for the registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), of the Shares, which registration statement, as so amended (including post-effective amendments, if any), has been declared effective by the Commission and copies of which have heretofore been delivered to the Underwriters. The registration statement, as amended at the time it became effective, including the prospectus, financial statements, schedules, exhibits and other information (if any) deemed to be part of the registration statement at the time of effectiveness pursuant to Rule 430A or 434(d) under the Securities Act, is hereinafter referred to as the "Registration Statement." If the Company has filed or is required pursuant to the terms hereof to file a registration statement pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act registering additional shares of Common Stock (a "Rule 462(b) Registration Statement"), then, unless otherwise specified, any reference herein to the term "Registration Statement" shall be deemed to include such Rule 462(b) Registration Statement. Other than a Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, which, if filed, becomes effective upon filing, a registration statement on Form 8-A registering the Shares pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the Prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b) (as defined below), no other document with respect to the Registration Statement has heretofore been filed with the Commission as of the date hereof or will be filed prior to the Closing Date (as defined herein). All of the Shares have been registered under the Securities Act pursuant to the Registration Statement or, if any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement is filed, will be duly registered under the Securities Act with the filing of such Rule 462(b) Registration Statement. No stop order suspending the effectiveness of either the Registration Statement or the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, if any, has been issued and no proceeding for that purpose has been initiated or, to the Company's knowledge, threatened by the Commission. The Company, if required by the Securities Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission (the "Rules and Regulations"), proposes to file the Prospectus with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act ("Rule 424(b)"). The prospectus, in the form in which it is to be filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b), or, if the prospectus is not to be filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b), the prospectus in the form included as part of the Registration Statement at the time the Registration Statement became effective, is hereinafter referred to as the "Prospectus," except that if any revised prospectus or prospectus supplement shall be provided to the Underwriters by the Company for use in connection with the Offering which differs from the Prospectus (whether or not such revised prospectus or prospectus supplement is required to be filed by the Company pursuant to Rule 424(b)), the term "Prospectus" shall also refer to such revised prospectus or prospectus supplement, as the case may be, from and after the time it is first provided to the Underwriters for such use. Any preliminary prospectus or prospectus subject to completion included in the Registration Statement or filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act is hereafter called a "Preliminary Prospectus." Any reference herein to the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include any wrapper or supplement thereto prepared in connection with the distribution of Directed Shares in any jurisdiction. All references in this Agreement to the Registration Statement, the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, a Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus, or any amendments or supplements to any of the foregoing shall be deemed to include any copy thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to its Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval System ("XXXXX").

(b) At the time of the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement or the effectiveness of any post-effective amendment to the Registration

Statement, when the Prospectus is first filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) or Rule 434 under the Securities Act ("Rule 434"), when any supplement to or amendment of the Prospectus is filed with the Commission and at the Closing Date and the Additional Closing Date, if any (as hereinafter respectively defined), the Registration Statement and the Prospectus and any amendments thereof and supplements thereto complied or will comply in all material respects with the applicable provisions of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations and did not and will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact and did not and will not omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein (i) in the case of the Registration Statement, not misleading and (ii) in the case of the Prospectus or any related Preliminary Prospectus, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. When any Preliminary Prospectus was first filed with the Commission (whether filed as part of the registration statement for the registration of the Shares or any amendment thereto or pursuant to Rule 424(a) under the Securities Act) and when any amendment thereof or supplement thereto was first filed with the Commission, such Preliminary Prospectus and any amendments thereof and supplements thereto complied in all material respects with the applicable provisions of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations and did not contain an untrue statement of a material fact and did not omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. If Rule 434 is used, the Company will comply with the requirements of Rule 434 and the Prospectus shall not be "materially different," as such term is used in Rule 434, from the Prospectus included in the Registration Statement at the time it became effective. No representation and warranty is made in this subsection (b), however, with respect to any information contained in or omitted from the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or any related Preliminary Prospectus or any amendment thereof or supplement thereto in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the Lead Managers specifically for use therein. The parties acknowledge and agree that such information provided by or on behalf of any Underwriter consists solely of the material included in the second and fourth sentences under the caption "About This Prospectus" with respect to the Underwriters only and in the first paragraph under the subcaption "Commission and Discounts" and under the subcaptions "Passive Market Making" and "Other Relationships" under the caption "Underwriting" in the Prospectus.

(c) Ernst & Young LLP, who have certified the financial statements and supporting schedules and information of the Company and its subsidiaries that are included in the Registration Statement and whose reports appear in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus are independent public accountants as required by the Securities Act, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act") and the Rules and Regulations.

(d) Subsequent to the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, except as disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, the Company has not declared, paid or made any dividends or other distributions of any kind on or in respect of its capital stock and there has been no material adverse change or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business, in or affecting (i) the business, condition (financial or otherwise), results of operations, stockholders' equity or properties of the Company and each subsidiary of the Company listed on Exhibit A hereto (the "Subsidiaries"), taken as a whole; (ii) the long-term debt or capital stock of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries; or (iii) the Offering or consummation of any of the other transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement or the Prospectus (a "Material Adverse Change"). Since the date of the latest balance sheet presented in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has incurred or undertaken any liabilities or obligations, whether direct or indirect, liquidated or contingent, matured or unmatured, or entered into any

transactions, including any acquisition or disposition of any business or asset, which are material to the Company and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole, except for liabilities, obligations and transactions which are disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus.

(e) The authorized, issued and outstanding capital stock of the Company is as set forth in the Prospectus in the column headed "July 31, 2004 Actual" under the caption "Capitalization" and, after giving effect to the Offering and the other transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, including the Refinancings (as defined in the Prospectus), will be as set forth in the column headed "As adjusted for the Financings" under the caption "Capitalization". All of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company are fully paid and non-assessable and have been duly and validly authorized and issued, in compliance with all applicable state, federal and foreign securities laws and not in violation of or subject to any preemptive or similar right that does or will entitle any person, upon the issuance or sale of any security, to acquire from the Company or any Subsidiary any Common Stock or other security of the Company or any Subsidiary or any security convertible into, or exercisable or exchangeable for, Common Stock or any other such security (any "Relevant Security"), except for such rights as may have been fully satisfied or waived prior to the effectiveness of the Registration Statement.

(f) The Company Shares have been duly and validly authorized and, when delivered in accordance with this Agreement, will be duly and validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable, will have been issued in compliance with all applicable state, federal and foreign securities laws and will not have been issued in violation of or subject to any preemptive or similar right that does or will entitle any person to acquire any Relevant Security from the Company or any Subsidiary upon issuance or sale of Shares in the Offering. The Common Stock and the Shares conform to the descriptions thereof contained in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has outstanding warrants, options to purchase, or any preemptive rights or other rights to subscribe for or to purchase, or any contracts or commitments to issue or sell, any Relevant Security.

(g) The Subsidiaries are the only subsidiaries of the Company within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act. Except for the Subsidiaries, the Company holds no ownership or other interest, nominal or beneficial, direct or indirect, in any corporation, partnership, joint venture or other business entity. All of the issued shares of capital stock of or other ownership interests in each Subsidiary have been duly and validly authorized and issued and are fully paid and non-assessable and, except as disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, are owned directly or indirectly by the Company free and clear of any lien, charge, mortgage, pledge, security interest, claim, equity, trust or other encumbrance, preferential arrangement, defect or restriction of any kind whatsoever (any "Lien").

(h) Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries has been duly organized and validly exists as a corporation, partnership or limited liability company in good standing under the laws of its jurisdiction of organization. Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries has all requisite power and authority to carry on its business as it is currently being conducted and as described in the Prospectus, and to own, lease and operate its respective properties. Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries is duly qualified to do business and is in good standing as a foreign corporation, partnership or limited liability company in each jurisdiction in which the character or location of its properties (owned, leased or licensed) or the nature or conduct of its business makes such qualification necessary, except for those failures to be so qualified or in good standing which, in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on (i) the business, condition (financial or otherwise), results of operations, stockholders' equity, properties or prospects of the Company and the Subsidiaries, taken as a whole; (ii) the long-term debt or

capital stock of the Company or any Subsidiary; or (iii) the Offering or consummation of any of the other transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement or the Prospectus (any such effect being a "Material Adverse Effect").

(i) Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries has all necessary consents, approvals, authorizations, orders, registrations, qualifications, licenses, filings and permits of, with and from all judicial, regulatory and other legal or governmental agencies and bodies and all third parties, foreign and domestic (collectively, the "Consents"), to own, lease and operate its properties and conduct its business as it is now being conducted and as disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, except where the failure to obtain such Consent could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, and each such Consent is valid and in full force and effect, and neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received notice of any investigation or proceedings which results in or, if decided adversely to the Company or any Subsidiary, could reasonably be expected to result in, the revocation of, or imposition of a materially burdensome restriction on, any Consent. Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries is in compliance with all applicable laws, rules, regulations, ordinances, directives, judgments, decrees and orders, foreign and domestic, except where failure to be in compliance could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. No Consent contains a material restriction not adequately disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus.

(j) The Company has full right, power and authority to execute and deliver this Agreement, to perform its obligations hereunder and to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus. This Agreement and the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus have been duly and validly authorized by the Company. This Agreement has been duly and validly executed and delivered by the Company.

(k) The execution, delivery, and performance of this Agreement and consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus do not and will not (i) conflict with, require consent under or result in a breach of any of the terms and provisions of, or constitute a default (or an event which with notice or lapse of time, or both, would constitute a default) under, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or assets of the Company or any Subsidiary pursuant to, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement, instrument, franchise, license or permit to which the Company or any Subsidiary is a party or by which the Company or any Subsidiary or their respective properties, operations or assets may be bound or (ii) violate or conflict with any provision of the certificate or articles of incorporation, by-laws, certificate of formation, limited liability company agreement, partnership agreement or other organizational documents of the Company or any Subsidiary, or (iii) violate or conflict with any law, rule, regulation, ordinance, directive, judgment, decree or order of any judicial, regulatory or other legal or governmental agency or body, domestic or foreign, other than state or foreign securities or blue sky laws or the by-laws and rules of the NASD or NASD Regulation ("NASDR") in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Shares by the Underwriters, and except (in the case of clauses (i) and (iii) above) as could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(l) No Consent of, with or from any judicial, regulatory or other legal or governmental agency or body or any third party, foreign or domestic, is required for the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement or consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, including the issuance, sale and delivery of the Shares to be issued, sold and delivered hereunder, except the registration under the Securities Act of the Shares, which has become effective, and such Consents as may be required under state or foreign securities or blue sky laws or the by-laws and rules of the NASD or NASDR in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Shares by the Underwriters.

(m) Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, there is no judicial, regulatory, arbitral or other legal or governmental proceeding or other litigation or arbitration, domestic or foreign, pending to which the Company or any Subsidiary is a party or of which any property, operations or assets of the Company or any Subsidiary is the subject which, individually or in the aggregate, if determined adversely to the Company or any Subsidiary, could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; to the Company's knowledge, no such proceeding, litigation or arbitration is threatened or contemplated; and the defense of all such proceedings, litigation and arbitration against or involving the Company or any Subsidiary could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(n) The financial statements, including the notes thereto, and the supporting schedules included in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus present fairly the financial position as of the dates indicated and the cash flows and results of operations for the periods specified of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries; except as otherwise stated in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, said financial statements have been prepared in conformity with United States generally accepted accounting principles applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods involved; and the supporting schedules included in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus present fairly the information required to be stated therein. No other financial statements or supporting schedules are required to be included in the Registration Statement. The other financial and statistical information included in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus present fairly the information included therein and have been prepared on a basis consistent with that of the financial statements that are included in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus and the books and records of the respective entities presented therein.

(o) There are no pro forma or as adjusted financial statements which are required to be included in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus in accordance with Regulation S-X.

(p) The statistical, industry-related and market-related data included in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources which the Company reasonably and in good faith believes are reliable and accurate, and such data agree with the sources from which they are derived.

(q) The Company and the Subsidiaries maintain a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurances that (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management's general or specific authorizations, (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with United States generally accepted accounting principles and to maintain accountability for assets, (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management's general or specific authorization, and (iv) the recorded accounting for assets is compared with existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences.

(r) Neither the Company nor any of its affiliates (within the meaning of Rule 144 under the Securities Act), other than Bear, Xxxxxxx & Co. Inc., which is an underwriter in the Offering, has taken, directly or indirectly, any action which constitutes or is designed to cause or result in, or which could reasonably be expected to constitute, cause or result in, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Shares.

(s) Neither the Company nor any of its affiliates has, prior to the date hereof, made any offer or sale of any securities which could be "integrated" for purposes of the Securities Act or the Rules and Regulations with the offer and sale of the Shares pursuant to the Registration Statement. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, neither Company nor any of its affiliates has sold or issued any Relevant Security during the six-month period preceding the date of the Prospectus, including but not limited to any sales pursuant to Rule 144A

or Regulation D or S under the Securities Act, other than shares of Common Stock issued pursuant to employee benefit plans, qualified stock option plans or the employee compensation plans or pursuant to outstanding options, rights or warrants.

(t) Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus or effectively waived by the holders thereof (and such waivers remain in full force and effect), no holder of any Relevant Security has any rights to require registration of any Relevant Security as part or on account of, or otherwise in connection with, the offer and sale of the Shares contemplated hereby, and any such rights so disclosed have been fully complied with by the Company.

(u) The Company is not and, at all times up to and including consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, and after giving effect to application of the net proceeds of the Offering, will not be, subject to registration as an "investment company" under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

(v) There are no contracts or other documents (including, without limitation, any voting agreement), which are required to be described in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus or filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement by the Securities Act or the Rules and Regulations and which have not been so described or filed.

(w) No relationship, direct or indirect, exists between or among any of the Company or any affiliate of the Company, on the one hand, and any director, officer, stockholder, customer or supplier of the Company or any affiliate of the Company, on the other hand, which is required by the Securities Act or the Rules and Regulations to be described in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus which is not so described and described as required. There are no outstanding loans, advances (except normal advances for business expenses in the ordinary course of business) or guarantees of indebtedness by the Company to or for the benefit of any of the officers or directors of the Company or any of their respective family members, except as disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus. The Company has not, in violation of the Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxx Act of 2002, directly or indirectly, including through a Subsidiary, extended or maintained credit, arranged for the extension of credit, or renewed an extension of credit, in the form of a personal loan to or for any director or executive officer of the Company.

(x) Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, there are no contracts, agreements or understandings between the Company and any person that would give rise to a valid claim against the Company or any Underwriter for a brokerage commission, finder's fee or other like payment in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus or, to the Company's knowledge, any arrangements, agreements, understandings, payments or issuance with respect to the Company or any of its officers, directors, stockholders, partners, employees, Subsidiaries or affiliates that may affect the Underwriters' compensation as determined by the NASD.

(y) The Company and each Subsidiary owns or leases all such properties as are necessary to the conduct of its business as presently operated and as proposed to be operated as described in the Registration and the Prospectus. The Company and the Subsidiaries have good and marketable title in fee simple to all real property and good and marketable title to all personal property owned by them, in each case free and clear of all Liens except such as are described in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus or such as do not, in the aggregate, materially affect the value of such property or interfere with the use made or proposed to be made of such property by the Company and the Subsidiaries; and any real property and buildings held under lease or sublease by the Company and the Subsidiaries are held by them under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases with such exceptions as are not material to, and do not interfere with, the use made and proposed to be made of such property and buildings by the Company and the Subsidiaries. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any notice of any claim adverse

to its ownership of any real or personal property or of any claim against the continued possession of any real property, whether owned or held under lease or sublease by the Company or any Subsidiary, except as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(z) The Company and each Subsidiary (i) owns or possesses adequate right to use all patents, patent applications, trademarks, service marks, trade names, trademark registrations, service xxxx registrations, copyrights, licenses, formulae, customer lists, and know-how and other intellectual property (including trade secrets and other unpatented and/or unpatentable proprietary or confidential information, systems or procedures, "Intellectual Property") necessary for the conduct of their respective businesses as being conducted and as described in the Registration Statement and Prospectus and (ii) have no reason to believe that the conduct of their respective businesses does or will conflict with, and have not received any notice of any claim of conflict with, any such right of others except as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. To the best of the Company's knowledge, all material technical information developed by and belonging to the Company or any Subsidiary which has not been patented has been kept confidential in accordance with industry practice. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement and Prospectus, neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has assigned to any other person or entity any right to manufacture, have manufactured, assemble or sell the current products and services of the Company and its Subsidiaries or those products and services described in the Registration Statement and Prospectus. To the Company's knowledge, there is no infringement by third parties of any such Intellectual Property. There is no pending or, to the Company's knowledge, threatened action, suit, proceeding or claim by others challenging the Company's or any Subsidiary's rights in or to any such Intellectual Property, and the Company is unaware of any facts which would form a reasonable basis for any such claim; and there is no pending or, to the Company's knowledge, threatened action, suit, proceeding or claim by others that the Company or any Subsidiary infringes or otherwise violates any patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret or other proprietary rights of others, and the Company is unaware of any other fact which would form a reasonable basis for any such claim.

(aa) The Company and the Subsidiaries maintain insurance in such amounts and covering such risks as the Company reasonably considers adequate for the conduct of its business and the value of its properties and as is customary for companies engaged in similar businesses in similar industries, all of which insurance is in full force and effect, except where the failure to maintain such insurance could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. There are no material claims by the Company or any Subsidiary under any such policy or instrument as to which any insurance company is denying liability or defending under a reservation of rights clause. The Company reasonably believes that it will be able to renew its existing insurance as and when such coverage expires or will be able to obtain replacement insurance adequate for the conduct of the business and the value of its properties at a cost that could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(bb) The Company has in effect insurance covering the Company, its directors and officers for liabilities or losses arising in connection with this Offering, including, without limitation, liabilities or losses arising under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act, the Rules and Regulations and applicable foreign securities laws.

(cc) Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries has accurately prepared and timely filed all federal, state, foreign and other tax returns that are required to be filed by it and has paid or made provision for the payment of all taxes, assessments, governmental or other similar charges, including without limitation, all sales and use taxes and all taxes which the Company or any Subsidiary is obligated to withhold from amounts owing to employees, creditors and third parties, with respect to the periods covered by such tax returns (whether or not such amounts are shown as due on any tax return), except where the failure to file or pay would not, in the aggregate,

reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. No deficiency assessment with respect to a proposed adjustment of the Company's or any Subsidiary's federal, state, local or foreign taxes is pending or, to the best of the Company's knowledge, threatened, except for such deficiencies that would not, in the aggregate, be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. The accruals and reserves on the books and records of the Company and the Subsidiaries in respect of tax liabilities reasonably expected for any taxable period not finally determined are reasonably adequate to meet any assessments and related liabilities for any such period and, since January 31, 2004, the Company and the Subsidiaries have not incurred any liability for taxes other than in the ordinary course of its business. There is no material tax lien, whether imposed by any federal, state, foreign or other taxing authority, outstanding against the assets, properties or business of the Company or any Subsidiary.

(dd) No labor disturbance by the employees of the Company or any Subsidiary exists or, to the best of the Company's knowledge, is imminent and the Company is not aware of any existing or imminent labor disturbances by the employees of any of its or any Subsidiary's principal suppliers, manufacturers', customers or contractors, which, in either case, in the aggregate, could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(ee) No "prohibited transaction" (as defined in either Section 406 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, including the regulations and published interpretations thereunder ("ERISA") or Section 4975 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code")), "accumulated funding deficiency" (as defined in Section 302 of ERISA) or other event of the kind described in Section 4043(c) of ERISA (other than events with respect to which the 30-day notice requirement under Section 4043 of ERISA has been waived) has occurred with respect to any employee benefit plan for which the Company or any Subsidiary has any liability that would, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; except as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, each employee benefit plan for which the Company or any Subsidiary has any liability is in compliance with applicable law, including (without limitation) ERISA and the Code; the Company has not incurred and does not expect to incur liability under Title IV of ERISA with respect to the termination of, or withdrawal from any "pension plan," except as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect and each employee benefit plan for which the Company would have any liability that is intended to be qualified under Section 401(a) of the Code has received a determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service to the effect that such employee benefit plan is so qualified and, to the Company's knowledge, nothing has occurred since the receipt of that letter, whether by action or by failure to act, which would reasonably be expected to cause the loss of such qualification.

(ff) There has been no storage, generation, transportation, handling, treatment, disposal, discharge, emission or other release of any kind of toxic or other wastes or other hazardous substances by, due to, or caused by the Company or any Subsidiary (or, to the Company's knowledge, any other entity for whose acts or omissions the Company is or may be liable) upon any other property now or previously owned or leased by the Company or any Subsidiary, or upon any other property, which would be a violation of or give rise to any liability under any applicable law, rule, regulation, order, judgment, decree or permit relating to pollution or protection of human health and the environment ("Environmental Law"), except for violations and liabilities which, in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. There has been no disposal discharge, emission or other release of any kind onto such property or into the environment surrounding such property of any toxic or other wastes or other hazardous substances with respect to which the Company or any Subsidiary has knowledge. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has agreed to assume, undertake or provide indemnification for any liability of any other person under any Environmental Law, including any obligation for cleanup or

remedial action, except as could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. There is no pending or, to the best of the Company's knowledge, threatened administrative, regulatory or judicial action, claim or notice of noncompliance or violation, investigation or proceedings relating to any Environmental Law against the Company or any Subsidiary.

(gg) Neither the Company, any Subsidiary nor, to the Company's knowledge, any of its employees or agents has at any time during the last five years (i) made any unlawful contribution to any candidate for foreign office, or failed to disclose fully any contribution in violation of law, or (ii) made any payment to any federal or state governmental officer or official, or other person charged with similar public or quasi-public duties, other than payments required or permitted by the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction thereof.

(hh) Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary (i) is in violation of its certificate or articles of incorporation, by-laws, certificate of formation, limited liability company agreement, partnership agreement or other organizational documents, (ii) is in default under, and no event has occurred which, with notice or lapse of time or both, would constitute a default under or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any of its property or assets pursuant to, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which it is a party or by which it is bound or to which any of its property or assets is subject or (iii) is in violation in any respect of any law, rule, regulation, ordinance, directive, judgment, decree or order of any judicial, regulatory or other legal or governmental agency or body, foreign or domestic, except, in the case clauses (ii) and (iii) above, for any violations or defaults that could not, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect and except (in the case of clause (ii) alone) for any lien, charge or encumbrance disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus.

(ii) The Registration Statement, the Prospectus and any Preliminary Prospectus comply, and any further amendments or supplements thereto will comply, with all applicable laws, rules, regulations, ordinances, directives, judgments, decrees and orders of foreign jurisdictions in which Directed Shares are offered or the Prospectus or any Preliminary Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, may be distributed in connection with therewith; and no Consent of, from or with any judicial, regulatory or other legal or governmental agency or body, other than such as have been obtained, is necessary under the any such law, rule, regulation, ordinance, directive, judgment, decree or order.

(jj) The Company has not offered, or caused the Underwriters to offer, Directed Shares to any person with the intention of unlawfully influencing (i) a customer or supplier of the Company or any Subsidiary to alter the customer's or supplier's level or type of business with the Company or any Subsidiary or (ii) a trade journalist or publication to write or publish favorable information about the Company, any Subsidiary or its products.

(kk) Neither the Company nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee or affiliate of the Company is currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury Department ("OFAC"); and the Company will not knowingly directly or indirectly use the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other person or entity, for the purpose of financing the activities of any person currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by OFAC.

Any certificate signed by or on behalf of the Company and delivered to the Representatives or to counsel for the Underwriters' shall be deemed to be a representation and warranty by the Company to each Underwriter as to the matters covered thereby.

2. Representations and Warranties of the Selling Stockholders. Each Selling Stockholder severally represents and warrants to, and agrees with, each of the Underwriters that:

(a) Such Selling Stockholder has full right, power and authority to execute and deliver this Agreement, to perform its obligations hereunder and to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus. To the extent applicable, this Agreement and the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus have been duly and validly authorized by such Selling Stockholder. This Agreement has been duly and validly executed and delivered by such Selling Stockholder.

(b) Other than BSMB/NYCG LLC, such Selling Stockholder has full right, power and authority to execute and deliver a Custody Agreement and Power of Attorney substantially in the form of Exhibits B and C hereto (such Selling Stockholder's "Custody Agreement" and "Power of Attorney", respectively), to perform its obligations thereunder and to consummate the transactions contemplated by thereby. The Custody Agreement and Power of Attorney and the transactions contemplated by thereby have been duly and validly authorized by such Selling Stockholder, other than BSMB/NYCG LLC. The Custody Agreement and Power of Attorney have each been duly and validly executed and delivered by such Selling Stockholder, other than BSMB/NYCG LLC, and constitute the legal, valid and binding obligation of such Selling Stockholder, other than BSMB/NYCG LLC, enforceable in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or similar laws affecting creditors' rights generally and except as enforceability may be subject to general principles of equity (regardless of whether such enforceability is considered in a proceeding in equity or at law). Counterparts of such Selling Stockholder's Custody Agreement, duly signed by (i) Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxx and Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx, as custodians (in such capacity, the "Custodian") and as such Selling Stockholders' attorneys-in-fact (in such capacity, the "Attorneys-In-Fact") have been delivered to the Company and the Lead Managers on or prior to the date of this Agreement.

(c) Other than BSMB/NYCG LLC, such Selling Stockholder agrees that the Selling Stockholders' Shares and Additional Shares, if any, to be sold by such Selling Stockholder, whether or not on deposit with the Custodian, are subject to the interests of the Attorneys-In-Fact, the Company and the Underwriters, that the arrangements made for such custody are to that extent irrevocable, and that the obligations of such Selling Stockholder hereunder shall not be terminated, except as provided in this Agreement or in the Custody Agreement and Power of Attorney, by any act of such Selling Stockholder, by operation of law or by the occurrence of any other event. If such Selling Stockholder, other than BSMB/NYCG LLC, should die or become incapacitated, or if any other event should occur affecting the legal status or capacity of such Selling Stockholder before the delivery of the Selling Stockholders' Shares and the Additional Shares, if any, to be sold by a Selling Stockholder hereunder, the documents evidencing the Selling Stockholders' Shares and the Additional Shares, if any, to be sold by such Selling Stockholder then on deposit with the Custodian shall be delivered by the Custodian in accordance with the terms and conditions of this Agreement as if such event had not occurred, regardless of whether or not the Custodian shall have received notice thereof.

(d) Such Selling Stockholder has, and on the Closing Date and any Additional Closing Date, will have, good and valid title to and is the lawful owner of the Selling Stockholders' Shares and Additional Shares, if any, to be sold by such Selling Stockholder hereunder, and upon sale and delivery of, and payment for, such Selling Stockholders' Shares and Additional Shares as provided herein, such Selling Stockholder will convey to the Underwriters good and marketable title to such Selling Stockholders' Shares and Additional Shares, free and clear of all Liens. Certificates for all of the Shares to be sold by such Selling Stockholder, other than BSMB/NYCG LLC, pursuant to this Agreement, in suitable form for transfer by delivery or accompanied by duly executed instruments of transfer or assignment in blank with signatures guaranteed, have been placed in

custody with the Custodian with irrevocable conditional instructions to deliver such Shares to the Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement.

(e) No Consent of, from or with any judicial, regulatory or other legal or governmental agency or body or any third party, foreign or domestic, is required for the execution, delivery and performance by such Selling Stockholder of this Agreement or, except for BSMB/NYCG LLC, its Custody Agreement and Power of Attorney, or consummation by such Selling Stockholder of the transactions contemplated herein or therein, except such as have been obtained under the Securities Act and such as may be required under the state or foreign securities laws, the blue sky laws of any jurisdiction, the NASD or NASDR in connection with the purchase and distribution of such Selling Stockholder's Shares and such Selling Stockholder's Additional Shares by the Underwriters.

(f) The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement by such Selling Stockholder and the execution, delivery and performance of the Power of Attorney and the Custody Agreement by such Selling Stockholder other than BSMB/NYCG LLC, and the consummation of any of the other transactions contemplated herein and therein by such Selling Stockholder or the fulfillment of the terms hereof by such Selling Stockholder will not (A) conflict with, result in a breach or violation of, or constitute a default (or an event that with notice or lapse of time, or both, would constitute a default) under, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or assets of such Selling Stockholder pursuant to, any law, statute, rule or regulation or the terms of any indenture or other agreement or instrument to which such Selling Stockholder is party or bound, or to which any of the property or assets of such Selling Stockholder is subject, except as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect or (B) if such Selling Stockholder is not a natural person, result in any violation of the provisions of any charter or bylaws or certificate of formation, trust agreement, partnership agreement, articles of partnership or other organizational documents, as applicable, of such Selling Stockholder, or (C) result in any violation or breach of any judgment, order, decree statute, rule or regulation applicable to such Selling Stockholder of any court or any public, governmental or regulatory agency or body, administrative agency or arbitrator having jurisdiction over such Selling Stockholder; provided, however, no representation is made with respect to this clause (C) as to any state or foreign security laws, the blue sky laws of any jurisdiction, the NASD or NASDR in connection with the purchase and distribution of such Selling Stockholder's Shares and such Selling Stockholder's Additional Shares by the Underwriters.

(g) Such Selling Stockholder does not have any registration or other similar rights to have any equity or debt securities registered for sale by the Company under the Registration Statement or included in the offering of the Shares and the Additional Shares, except for such rights as have been waived or which are described in the Prospectus (and which have been complied with).

(h) Such Selling Stockholder does not have, or has waived prior to the date hereof, any preemptive right, co-sale right or right of first refusal or other similar right to purchase any of the Shares that are to be sold by the Company or any other Selling Stockholder to the Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement; and such Selling Stockholder does not own any warrants, options or similar rights to acquire, and does not have any right or arrangement to acquire, any capital stock, right, warrants, options or other securities from the Company, other than those described in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus.

(i) Except as disclosed in the Prospectus, there are no contracts, agreements or understandings between such Selling Stockholder and any person that would give rise to a valid claim against the Company or any Underwriter for a brokerage commission, finder's fee or other like payment in connection with this offering or, to such Selling Stockholder's knowledge, any other arrangements, agreements, understandings, payments or issuance with respect to the Company or any of its officers, directors, stockholders, partners, employees, Subsidiaries or affiliates that may affect the Underwriters' compensation as determined by the NASD.

(j) The information in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus under the caption "Principal and Selling Stockholders" which specifically relates to such Selling Stockholder does not, and will not on the Closing Date, contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. In the event there is any change in the information under the caption "Principal and Selling Stockholders" which specifically relates to such Selling Stockholder from the first business day after the date of this Agreement and from time to time thereafter for such period as in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters a prospectus is required by law to be delivered in connection with sales by an Underwriter or a dealer, such Selling Stockholder will immediately notify the Underwriters of such change.

(k) Such Selling Stockholder has not taken and will not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to, or that could be reasonably expected to, cause or result in stabilization or manipulation of the price of the Common Stock to facilitate the sale or resale of the Shares or Additional Shares, if any.

(l) Such Selling Stockholder has not distributed and will not distribute, prior to the later of the Additional Closing Date, if any, and the completion of the Underwriters' distribution of the Shares, any offering material in connection with the offering and sale of the Shares and the Additional Shares, if any, by the Selling Stockholders other than a Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus or the Registration Statement.

(m) The representations and warranties of such Selling Stockholder in its Custody Agreement and Power of Attorney are, and on the Closing Date and Additional Closing Date, if any, will be, true and correct.

Any certificate signed by or on behalf of the Selling Stockholder and delivered to the Representatives or to counsel for the Underwriters shall be deemed to be a representation and warranty by such Selling Stockholder to each Underwriter as to the matters covered thereby.

3. Purchase, Sale and Delivery of the Shares.

(a) On the basis of the representations, warranties, covenants and agreements herein contained, but subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, the Company agrees, and each Selling Stockholder, severally and not jointly, agrees, to sell to each Underwriter and each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, agrees to purchase from the Company and the Selling Stockholders, at a purchase price per share of $[ ], the number of Firm Shares set forth opposite their respective names on Schedule I hereto together with any additional number of Shares which such Underwriter may become obligated to purchase pursuant to the provisions of Section 10 hereof.

(b) Payment of the purchase price for, and delivery of certificates representing, the Firm Shares shall be made at the office of Xxxxxxxx & Xxxxx LLP ("Company's Counsel"), or at such other place as shall be agreed upon by the Lead Managers and the Company, at 10:00 A.M., New York City time, on the third or (as permitted under Rule 15c6-1 under the Exchange Act) fourth business day (unless postponed in accordance with the provisions of Section 10 hereof) following the date of the effectiveness of the Registration Statement (or, if the Company has elected to rely

upon Rule 430A under the Securities Act, the third or (as permitted under Rule 15c6-1 under the Exchange Act) fourth business day after the determination of the public offering price of the Shares), or such other time not later than ten business days after such date as shall be agreed upon by the Lead Managers and the Company (such time and date of payment and delivery being herein called the "Closing Date").

Upon receipt of the purchase price, which shall be made by wire transfer in same day funds to or as directed by the Company and the Custodian (pursuant to each Selling Stockholder's Power of Attorney and Custody Agreement), as the case may be, for the Firm Shares, the Firm Shares shall be delivered to the Representatives through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters. Each Selling Stockholder hereby agrees that (i) it will pay all stock transfer taxes, stamp duties and other similar taxes, if any, payable upon the sale or delivery of the Firm Shares to be sold by the Selling Stockholders to the several Underwriters, or otherwise in connection with the performance of the Selling Stockholders' obligations hereunder and (ii) the Custodian is authorized to deduct for such payment any such amounts from the proceeds to the Selling Stockholders hereunder and to hold such amounts for the account of the Selling Stockholders with the Custodian under the Custody Agreement and Power of Attorney. Certificates for the Firm Shares shall be registered in such name or names and shall be in such denominations as the Lead Managers may request at least two business days before the Closing Date. The Company and the Custodian will permit the Lead Managers to examine and package such certificates for delivery at least one full business day prior to the Closing Date.

(c) In addition, on the basis of the representations, warranties, covenants and agreements herein contained, but subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, the Selling Stockholders listed on Schedule I hereto hereby grant to the Underwriters, acting severally and not jointly, the option to purchase up to 1,500,000 Additional Shares at the same purchase price per share to be paid by the Underwriters for the Firm Shares as set forth in Section 3(a) above, for the sole purpose of covering over-allotments in the sale of Firm Shares by the Underwriters, the respective number of Additional Shares obtained by multiplying the number of Additional Shares specified in such notice by a fraction the numerator of which is the number of shares set forth opposite the name of such Selling Stockholder in Schedule I hereto, and the denominator of which is the total number of Additional Shares (subject to adjustment by the Lead Managers to eliminate fractions). This option may be exercised at any time and from time to time, in whole or in part on one or more occasions, on or before the thirtieth day following the date of the Prospectus, by written notice from the Lead Managers to the Company and the Selling Stockholders. If the option is exercised in part, the Selling Stockholders will sell the amount that is proportional to the total number of Additional Shares listed on Schedule I. Such notice shall set forth the aggregate number of Additional Shares as to which the option is being exercised and the date and time, as reasonably determined by the Lead Managers, when the Additional Shares are to be delivered (any such date and time being herein sometimes referred to as the "Additional Closing Date"); provided, however, that no Additional Closing Date shall occur earlier than the Closing Date or earlier than the second full business day after the date on which the option shall have been exercised nor later than the eighth full business day after the date on which the option shall have been exercised (unless such time and date are postponed in accordance with the provisions of Section 10 hereof). Upon any exercise of the option as to all or any portion of the Additional Shares, each Underwriter, acting severally and not jointly, agrees to purchase from the Company the number of Additional Shares that bears the same proportion of the total number of Additional Shares then being purchased as the number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto (or such number increased as set forth in Section 10 hereof) bears to the total number of Firm Shares that the Underwriters have agreed to purchased hereunder, subject, however, to such adjustments to eliminate fractional shares as Bear Xxxxxxx in its sole discretion shall make.

(d) Payment of the purchase price for, and delivery of certificates representing, the Additional Shares shall be made at the office of Company's Counsel, or at such other place as shall be agreed upon by the Lead Managers and the Company, at 10:00 A.M., New York City time, on the Additional Closing Date (unless postponed in accordance with the provisions of Section 10 hereof), or such other time as shall be agreed upon by Bear Xxxxxxx and the Company.

Payment of the purchase price for the Additional Shares shall be made by wire transfer in same day funds to or as directed by the Custodian (pursuant to each Selling Stockholder's Power of Attorney and Custody Agreement) upon delivery of certificates for the Additional Shares to the Representatives through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters. Certificates for the Additional Shares shall be registered in such name or names and shall be in such denominations as the Lead Managers may request at least two business days before the Additional Closing Date. The Custodian will permit the Lead Managers to examine and package such certificates for delivery at least one full business day prior to the Additional Closing Date.

4. Offering. Upon authorization of the release of the Firm Shares by the Lead Managers, the Underwriters propose to offer the Shares for sale to the public upon the terms and conditions set forth in the Prospectus.

5. Covenants of the Company and the Selling Stockholders.

A. The Company covenants and agrees with the Underwriters that:

(a) The Registration Statement and any amendments thereto have been declared effective, and if Rule 430A is used or the filing of the Prospectus is otherwise required under Rule 424(b) or Rule 434, the Company will file the Prospectus (properly completed if Rule 430A has been used) pursuant to Rule 424(b) within the prescribed time period and will provide evidence satisfactory to the Lead Managers of such timely filing. If the Company elects to rely on Rule 434, the Company will prepare and file a term sheet that complies with the requirements of Rule 434, and the Prospectus shall not be "materially different" (as such term is used in Rule 434) from the Prospectus included in the Registration Statement at the time it became effective.

The Company will notify the Lead Managers immediately (and, if requested by the Lead Managers, will confirm such notice in writing) (i) when the Registration Statement and any amendments thereto become effective, (ii) of any request by the Commission for any amendment of or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or for any additional information, (iii) of the Company's intention to file or prepare any supplement or amendment to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, (iv) of the mailing or the delivery to the Commission for filing of any amendment of or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, including but not limited to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, (v) of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto or of the initiation, or the threatening, of any proceedings therefor, it being understood that the Company shall make every effort to avoid the issuance of any such stop order, (vi) of the receipt of any comments from the Commission, and (vii) of the receipt by the Company of any notification with respect to the suspension of the qualification of the Shares for sale in any jurisdiction or the initiation or threatening of any proceeding for that purpose. If the Commission shall propose or enter a stop order at any time, the Company will make every reasonable effort to prevent the issuance of any such stop order and, if issued, to obtain the lifting of such order as soon as possible. The Company will not file any amendment to the Registration Statement or any amendment of or supplement to the Prospectus (including the prospectus required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) or Rule 434) that differs from the prospectus on file at the time of the effectiveness of the Registration Statement to which the Lead Managers shall object in writing after being timely furnished in advance a copy thereof. The Company will provide the Lead Managers with copies of all such amendments, filings and other

documents a sufficient time prior to any filing or other publication thereof to permit the Lead Managers a reasonable opportunity to review and comment thereon.

(b) The Company shall comply with the Securities Act to permit completion of the distribution as contemplated in this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus. If at any time when a prospectus relating to the Shares is required to be delivered under the Securities Act in connection with the sales of Shares, any event shall have occurred as a result of which the Prospectus as then amended or supplemented would, in the judgment of the Underwriters or the Company, include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing at the time of delivery to the purchaser, not misleading, or if to comply with the Securities Act or the Rules and Regulations it shall be necessary at any time to amend or supplement the Prospectus or Registration Statement the Company will notify the Lead Managers promptly and prepare and file with the Commission, subject to Section 5.A(a) hereof, an appropriate amendment or supplement (in form and substance satisfactory to the Lead Managers) which will correct such statement or omission and will use its best efforts to have any amendment to the Registration Statement declared effective as soon as possible.

(c) The Company will promptly deliver to each of the Lead Managers and Xxxxxx & Xxxxxxx LLP ("Underwriters' Counsel") a signed copy of the Registration Statement, as initially filed and all amendments thereto, including all consents and exhibits filed therewith, and will maintain in the Company's files manually signed copies of such documents for at least five years after the date of filing. The Company will promptly deliver to each of the Underwriters such number of copies of any Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus, the Registration Statement, and all amendments of and supplements to such documents, if any, as the Lead Managers may reasonably request. Prior to 10:00 A.M., New York time, on the business day next succeeding the date of this Agreement and from time to time thereafter, the Company will furnish the Underwriters with copies of the Prospectus in New York City in such quantities as the Lead Managers may reasonably request.

(d) The Company consents to the use and delivery of the Preliminary Prospectus by the Underwriters in accordance with Rule 430 and Section 5(b) of the Securities Act.

(e) The Company will use its best efforts, in cooperation with the Lead Managers, at or prior to the time of effectiveness of the Registration Statement, to qualify the Shares for offering and sale under the securities laws relating to the offering or sale of the Shares of such jurisdictions, domestic or foreign, as the Lead Managers may reasonably designate and to maintain such qualification in effect for so long as required for the distribution thereof; except that in no event shall the Company be obligated in connection therewith to qualify as a foreign corporation or to execute a general consent to service of process.

(f) The Company will make generally available to its security holders and to the Underwriters as soon as practicable, but in any event not later than twelve months after the effective date of the Registration Statement (as defined in Rule 158(c) under the Securities Act), an earnings statement of the Company and the Subsidiaries (which need not be audited) complying with Section 11(a) of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations (including, at the option of the Company, Rule 158).

(g) During the period of 180 days from the date of the Prospectus (the "Lock-Up Period"), without the prior written consent of Bear Xxxxxxx and X.X. Xxxxxx Securities Inc., the Company (i) will not, directly or indirectly, issue, offer, sell, agree to issue, offer or sell, solicit offers to purchase, grant any call option, warrant or other right to purchase, purchase any put option or other right to sell, pledge, borrow or otherwise dispose of any Relevant Security, or make any announcement of any of the foregoing, (ii) will not establish or increase any "put equivalent

position" or liquidate or decrease any "call equivalent position" (in each case within the meaning of Section 16 of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder) with respect to any Relevant Security, and (iii) will not otherwise enter into any swap, derivative or other transaction or arrangement that transfers to another, in whole or in part, any economic consequence of ownership of a Relevant Security, whether or not such transaction is to be settled by delivery of Relevant Securities, other securities, cash or other consideration; and the Company will obtain an undertaking in substantially the form of Annex II hereto of each of its officers and directors and its stockholders listed on Schedule II attached hereto not to engage in any of the aforementioned transactions on their own behalf, other than the sale of Shares as contemplated by this Agreement and the Company's issuance of Common Stock (i) upon the 8.7484-for-one split of the Company's Common Stock immediately prior to the Closing Date; (ii) upon the conversion or exchange of convertible or exchangeable securities outstanding on the date hereof; (iii) upon the exercise of currently outstanding options; (iv) upon the grant and exercise of options under, or the issuance and sale of shares pursuant to, employee stock option plans or purchase plan in effect on the date hereof, each as described in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus and (v) in connection with acquisitions made by the Company, provided that no more than 5% of the number of shares of Common Stock then outstanding are issued in connection with such acquisitions and provided, further that, the recipients receiving Common Stock in connection with such acquisitions agree in writing with the Representatives to the restrictions of this Section 5(A)(g) and represent to the Representatives that they have not transferred to another, in whole or in part, any economic consequence of ownership of such shares of Common Stock prior to the consummation of such acquisition. The Company will not file a registration statement under the Securities Act in connection with any transaction by the Company or any person that is prohibited pursuant to the foregoing, except for registration statements on Form S-8 relating to employee benefit plans, without the prior written consent of Bear Xxxxxxx and X.X. Xxxxxx Securities, Inc.

(h) During the period of three years from the effective date of the Registration Statement, the Company will furnish to the Lead Managers copies of all reports or other communications (financial or other) furnished to security holders or from time to time published or publicly disseminated by the Company, and will deliver to the Lead Managers, except to the extent that such information is otherwise publicly available (i) as soon as they are available, copies of any reports, financial statements and proxy or information statements furnished to or filed with the Commission or any national securities exchange on which any class of securities of the Company is listed; and (ii) such additional information concerning the business and financial condition of the Company as the Lead Managers may from time to time reasonably request (such financial information to be on a consolidated basis to the extent the accounts of the Company and the Subsidiaries are consolidated in reports furnished to its security holders generally or to the Commission).

(i) The Company will apply the net proceeds from the sale of the Shares as set forth under the caption "Use of Proceeds" in the Prospectus.

(j) The Company will use its best efforts to list the Shares, subject to notice of issuance, on the NYSE and maintain the listing of the Shares on the NYSE during the two (2) years following the date of the Prospectus.

(k) The Company will comply with all applicable securities and other applicable laws, rules and regulations in each foreign jurisdiction in which the Directed Shares are offered.

(l) The Company will not take, and will cause its affiliates (within the meaning of Rule 144 under the Securities Act), other than BSMB/NYCG LLC and its affiliates (other than the Company), not to take, directly or indirectly, any action which constitutes or is designed to cause

or result in, or which could reasonably be expected to constitute, cause or result in, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security to facilitate the sale or resale of the Shares.

B. Each of the Selling Stockholders covenants and agrees with the Underwriters to:

(a) deliver to the Representatives prior to the Closing Date, a properly completed and executed United States Treasury Department Form W-8 (if the Selling Stockholder is a non-United States Person) or Form W-9 (if the Selling Stockholder is a United States Person);

(b) promptly notify the Company and the Representatives if, at any time prior to the date on which the distribution of the Shares as contemplated herein and in the Prospectus has been completed, as determined by the Representatives, such Selling Stockholder has knowledge of the occurrence of any event as a result of which the Prospectus or the Registration Statement, in each case as then amended or supplemented, would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading;

(c) cooperate to the extent necessary to cause the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto to become effective at the earliest possible time;

(d) pay or to cause to be paid all transfer taxes, stamp duties and other similar taxes with respect to the Shares, if any, to be sold by such Selling Stockholder; and

(e) deliver to the Lead Managers on or prior to the date of this Agreement a lock-up agreement in the form referenced in Section 7(g) hereof.

6. Payment of Expenses. Whether or not the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, the Company hereby agrees to pay all costs and expenses incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder, including the following: (i) all expenses in connection with the preparation, printing and filing of the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus and any and all amendments and supplements thereto and the mailing and delivering of copies thereof to the Underwriters and dealers; (ii) the fees, disbursements and expenses of the Company's counsel and accountants in connection with the registration of the Shares under the Securities Act and the Offering; (iii) the cost of printing this Agreement and any agreement among Underwriters, blue sky survey, closing documents and other instruments, agreements or documents (including any compilations thereof) in connection with the Offering; (iv) all reasonable expenses in connection with the qualification of the Shares for offering and sale under state or foreign securities or blue sky laws as provided in Section 5.A(e) hereof and any offering of Directed Shares in outside the United States), including the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with such qualification or offering and in connection with any blue sky survey; (v) the filing fees incident to, and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with, securing any required review by the NASD of the terms of the Offering; (vi) all fees and expenses in connection with listing the Shares on the NYSE; (vii) all travel expenses of the Company's officers and employees and any other expense of the Company incurred in connection with attending or hosting meetings with prospective purchasers of the Shares; and (viii) any stock transfer taxes incurred in connection with this Agreement or the Offering, other than those to be paid by the Selling Stockholders pursuant to this Agreement. The Company also will pay or cause to be paid: (x) the cost of preparing stock certificates representing the Shares; (y) the cost and charges of any transfer agent or registrar for the Shares; and (z) all other costs and expenses incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder which are not otherwise specifically provided for in this Section 6. It is understood, however, that except as provided in this Section, and Sections 8, 9 and 13 hereof, the Underwriters will pay all of their own costs and expenses, including the fees of their counsel and stock transfer taxes on resale of any of the Shares by

them. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Section 6, in the event that this Agreement is terminated pursuant to Section 7 or 13(b) hereof, or subsequent to a Material Adverse Change, the Company will pay all out-of pocket expenses of the Underwriters (including but not limited to fees and disbursements of counsel to the Underwriters) incurred in connection herewith.

7. Conditions of Underwriters' Obligations. The obligations of the Underwriters to purchase and pay for the Firm Shares and the Additional Shares, as provided herein, shall be subject to the accuracy of the representations and warranties of the Company herein contained, as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date (for purposes of this Section 7 "Closing Date" shall refer to the Closing Date for the Firm Shares and any Additional Closing Date, if different, for the Additional Shares), to the absence from any certificates, opinions, written statements or letters furnished to the Lead Managers or to Underwriters' Counsel pursuant to this Section 7 of any misstatement or omission, to the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder, and to each of the following additional conditions:

(a) The Registration Statement shall have become effective and all necessary regulatory or stock exchange approvals shall have been received not later than 5:30 P.M., New York time, on the date of this Agreement, or at such later time and date as shall have been consented to in writing by the Lead Managers; if the Company shall have elected to rely upon Rule 430A or Rule 434 under the Securities Act, the Prospectus shall have been filed with the Commission in a timely fashion in accordance with Section 5.A(a) hereof and a form of the Prospectus containing information relating to the description of the Shares and the method of distribution and similar matters shall have been filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) within the applicable time period; and, at or prior to the Closing Date no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereof shall have been issued and no proceedings therefor shall have been initiated or threatened by the Commission.

(b) At the Closing Date the Lead Managers on behalf of all the Underwriters shall have received (i) the written opinion of Xxxxxxxx and Xxxxx LLP, counsel for the Company, dated the Closing Date addressed to the Underwriters substantially in the form attached hereto as Annex IA; and (ii) the favorable written opinion of Xxxxxxxx and Xxxxx LLP, counsel for Selling Stockholders, dated the Closing Date address to the Underwriters substantially in the form attached hereto as Annex IB.

(c) All proceedings taken in connection with the sale of the Firm Shares and the Additional Shares as herein contemplated shall be reasonably satisfactory in form and substance to the Lead Managers and to Underwriters' Counsel, and the Underwriters shall have received from Underwriters' Counsel a favorable written opinion, dated as of the Closing Date, with respect to the issuance and sale of the Shares, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus and such other related matters as the Lead Managers may require, and the Company shall have furnished to Underwriters' Counsel such documents as they may reasonably request for the purpose of enabling them to pass upon such matters.

(d) At the Closing Date you shall have received a certificate of the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer of the Company, dated the Closing Date to the effect that (i) the condition set forth in subsection (a) of this Section 7 has been satisfied, (ii) as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date, the representations and warranties of the Company set forth in Section 1 hereof are accurate, (iii) as of the Closing Date all agreements, conditions and obligations of the Company to be performed or complied with hereunder on or prior thereto have been duly performed or complied with, (iv) the Company and the Subsidiaries have not sustained any material loss or interference with their respective businesses or properties from fire, flood, hurricane, accident or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or any legal or governmental proceeding, (v) no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereof has been issued and no

proceedings therefor have been initiated or threatened by the Commission and (vi) subsequent to the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus there has not been any material adverse change or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business, in or affecting (x) the business, condition (financial or otherwise), results of operations, stockholders' equity or properties of the Company and the Subsidiaries, taken as a whole; (y) the long-term debt or capital stock of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries; or (z) the Offering or consummation of any of the other transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus.

At the Closing Date you shall have received a certificate of an authorized representative of the Selling Stockholders, dated the Closing Date, to the effect that such Selling Stockholder has examined the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and any supplement to the Prospectus and this Agreement and (i) as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date, the representations and warranties of such Selling Stockholder set forth in Section 2 hereof are true and correct and (ii) as of the Closing Date all agreements, conditions and obligations of such Selling Stockholder to be performed or complied with hereunder on or prior thereto have been duly performed or complied with in all material respects.

(e) At the time this Agreement is executed and at the Closing Date, the Lead Managers on behalf of all of the Underwriters shall have received a comfort letter, from Ernst & Young LLP, independent public auditors for the Company, dated, respectively, as of the date of this Agreement and as of the Closing Date addressed to the Underwriters and in form and substance satisfactory to the Underwriters and Underwriters' Counsel.

(f) Subsequent to the execution and delivery of this Agreement or, if earlier, the dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement (exclusive of any amendment thereof) and the Prospectus (exclusive of any supplement thereto), there shall not have been any change in the capital stock or long-term debt of the Company or any Subsidiary or any change or development involving a change, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business, in the business, condition (financial or otherwise), results of operations, stockholders' equity, properties or prospects of the Company and the Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, including but not limited to the occurrence of any fire, flood, storm, explosion, accident or other calamity at any of the properties owned or leased by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, the effect of which, in any such case described above, is, in the judgment of the Lead Managers, so material and adverse as to make it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the Offering on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Prospectus (exclusive of any supplement).

(g) The Lead Managers on behalf of all of the Underwriters shall have received a duly executed lock-up agreement from each person who is a director or officer of the Company and each stockholder listed on Schedule II hereto, in each case substantially in the form attached hereto as Annex II.

(h) At the Closing Date, the Shares shall have been approved for listing on the NYSE.

(i) At the Closing Date, the NASD shall have confirmed that it has not raised any objection with respect to the fairness and reasonableness of the underwriting terms and arrangements.

(j) No action shall have been taken and no statute, rule, regulation or order shall have been enacted, adopted or issued by any federal, state or foreign governmental or regulatory authority that would, as of the Closing Date, prevent the issuance or sale of the Shares; and no injunction or order of any federal, state or foreign court shall have been issued that would, as of the Closing Date, prevent the issuance or sale of the Shares.

(k) The Company shall have furnished the Underwriters and Underwriters' Counsel with such other certificates, opinions or other documents as they may have reasonably requested.

(l) On or prior to the date of this Agreement, the Lead Managers on behalf of all of the Underwriters shall have received a certificate, dated the date hereof, of Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx, chief financial officer of the Company, stating to the effect that he has compared specified dollar amounts (or percentages derived from such dollar amounts) and other financial information contained in the Prospectus (in each case to the extent that such dollar amounts, percentages and other financial information are derived from the general accounting records of the Company and its subsidiaries subject to the internal controls of the Company's accounting system or are derived directly from such records by analysis or computation) with the results obtained from inquiries, a reading of such general accounting records and other procedures specified in such certificate and has found such dollar amounts, percentages and other financial information to be in agreement with such results, except as otherwise specified in such certificate.

If any of the conditions specified in this Section 7 shall not have been fulfilled when and as required by this Agreement, or if any of the certificates, opinions, written statements or letters furnished to the Lead Managers on behalf of all of the Underwriters or to Underwriters' Counsel pursuant to this Section 7 shall not be reasonably satisfactory in form and substance to the Lead Managers and to Underwriters' Counsel, all obligations of the Underwriters hereunder may be cancelled by the Lead Managers at, or at any time prior to, the Closing Date and the obligations of the Underwriters to purchase the Additional Shares may be cancelled by the Lead Managers at, or at any time prior to, the Additional Closing Date. Notice of such cancellation shall be given to the Company in writing, or by telephone. Any such telephone notice shall be confirmed promptly thereafter in writing.

8. Indemnification.

(a) The Company shall indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter and each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, against any and all losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses whatsoever as incurred (including but not limited to reasonable attorneys' fees and any and all expenses whatsoever incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever, and any and all amounts paid in settlement of any claim or litigation), joint or several, to which they or any of them may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, or any related Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any supplement thereto or amendment thereof, (ii) the omission or alleged omission to state in the Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, or any related Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any supplement thereto or amendment thereof, a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading or (iii) (A) the violation by the Company of any applicable laws or regulations of any foreign jurisdictions where Directed Shares have been offered or (B) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact included in the supplement or prospectus wrapper material distributed in connection with the reservation and sale of the Directed Shares or the omission or alleged omission therefrom of a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, when considered in conjunction with the Prospectus or Preliminary Prospectus, not misleading; provided, however, that the Company will not be liable in any such case to the extent but only to the extent that any such loss, liability, claim, damage or expense arises out of or is based upon any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in the Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, or any related Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any supplement thereto or amendment thereof, in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by or on

behalf of any Underwriter through the Lead Managers expressly for use therein. The parties agree that such information provided by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the Lead Managers consists solely of the material referred to in the last sentence of Section 1(b) hereof; and provided, further, that the foregoing indemnity agreement with respect to any Preliminary Prospectus shall not inure to the benefit of any Underwriter who failed to deliver a Prospectus (as then amended or supplemented, provided by the Company to the several Underwriters in the requisite quantity and on a timely basis to permit proper delivery on or prior to the Closing Date) to the person asserting any losses, claims, damages and liabilities and judgments caused by any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any Preliminary Prospectus, or caused by any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, if such material misstatement or omission or alleged material misstatement or omission was cured, as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction in a decision not subject to further appeal, in such Prospectus and such Prospectus was required by law to be delivered at or prior to the written confirmation of sale to such person. This indemnity agreement will be in addition to any liability which the Company may otherwise have, including but not limited to other liability under this Agreement.

(b) Each of the Selling Stockholders shall, severally and not jointly, indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter and each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, against any and all losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses whatsoever as incurred (including but not limited to reasonable attorneys' fees and other expenses incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, commenced or threatened, or any claim, and any and all amounts paid in settlement of any claim or litigation in accordance with the terms of this Agreement), joint or several, to which they or any of them may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact relating to such Selling Stockholder contained in the Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, or any related Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any amendment thereof or supplement thereto, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; provided, however, that such Selling Stockholder will not be liable in any such case to the extent but only to the extent that any such loss, liability, claim, damage or expense arises out of or is based upon any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in the Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, or any related Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any supplement thereto or amendment thereof, in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by such Selling Stockholder expressly for use therein, it being agreed that the only such information is that which is included under the heading "Principal and Selling Stockholders" which relates to such Selling Stockholder; and provided, further, that he foregoing indemnity agreement with respect to any Preliminary Prospectus shall not inure to the benefit of any Underwriter who failed to deliver a Prospectus (as then amended or supplemented, provided by the Company to the several Underwriters in the requisite quantity and on a timely basis to permit proper delivery on or prior to the Closing Date) to the person asserting any losses, claims, damages and liabilities and judgments caused by any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any Preliminary Prospectus, or caused by any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, if such material misstatement or omission or alleged material misstatement or omission was cured, as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction in a decision not subject to further appeal, in such Prospectus and such Prospectus was required by law to be delivered at or prior to the written confirmation of sale to

such person.. This indemnity agreement will be in addition to any liability which each of the Selling Stockholders may otherwise have, including but not limited to other liability under this Agreement; provided, however, that in no case shall any Selling Stockholder be liable or responsible for any amount in excess of the product of (i) the number of Shares sold by such Selling Stockholder, and (ii) the initial public offering price of the Shares as set forth in the Prospectus, net of underwriting discounts and commissions.

(c) Each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, shall indemnify and hold harmless the Company, each of the directors of the Company, each of the officers of the Company who shall have signed the Registration Statement, each of the Selling Stockholders and each other person, if any, who controls the Company or any Selling Stockholders within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, against any losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses whatsoever as incurred (including but not limited to reasonable attorneys' fees and any and all expenses whatsoever incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever, and any and all amounts paid in settlement of any claim or litigation), joint or several, to which they or any of them may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, or any related Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any amendment thereof or supplement thereto, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, in each case to the extent, but only to the extent, that any such loss, liability, claim, damage or expense arises out of or is based upon any such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made therein in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the Lead Managers specifically for use therein; provided, however, that in no case shall any Underwriter be liable or responsible for any amount in excess of the proceeds applicable to the Shares to be purchased by such Underwriter hereunder. The parties agree that such information provided by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the Lead Managers consists solely of the material referred to in the last sentence of Section 1(b) hereof. This indemnity will be in addition to any liability which any Underwriter may otherwise have, including but not limited to other liability under this Agreement.

(d) In connection with the offer and sale of Directed Shares the Company agrees promptly upon written notice, to indemnify and hold harmless the Underwriters from and against any and all losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses incurred by them as a result of the failure of any Directed Share Purchaser, who makes an oral agreement, properly confirmed by the Underwriters, to purchase Directed Shares within twenty-four hours of establishing the public offer price, to pay for and accept delivery of the Directed Shares. Under no circumstances will the Lead Managers or any Underwriter be liable to the Company or to any Directed Share Purchaser for any action taken or omitted to be taken in connection with the Directed Shares or any transaction effected with any Directed Share Purchaser, except to the extent found in a final judgment by a court of competent jurisdiction (not subject to further appeal) to have resulted primarily and directly from the gross negligence or willful misconduct of the Lead Managers or such Underwriter, as the case may be.

(e) In addition to and without limitation of the Company's obligation to indemnify the QIU as an underwriter pursuant to subsection (a) above, the Company also agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the QIU and each person, if any, who controls the QIU within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, from and against any and all losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses whatsoever as incurred as a result of the QIU's

participation in the Offering as a "qualified independent underwriter" within the meaning of Rule 2720 of the Conduct Rules of the NASD; provided, however, that the Company shall not be liable in any such case to the extent that such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses are found in a final judgment (not subject to further appeal) by a court of competent jurisdiction to have resulted primarily or directly from the gross negligence or willful misconduct of the QIU. This indemnity agreement will be in addition to any liability which the Company may otherwise have, including but not limited to other liability under this Agreement.

(f) Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party under subsection (a), (b), (c), (d) or (e) above of notice of any claims or the commencement of any action, such indemnified party shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under such subsection, notify each party against whom indemnification is to be sought in writing of the claim or the commencement thereof (but the failure so to notify an indemnifying party shall not relieve the indemnifying party from any liability which it may have under this Section 8 to the extent that it is not materially prejudiced as a result thereof and in any event shall not relieve it from any liability that such indemnifying party may have otherwise than on account of the indemnity agreement hereunder). In case any such claim or action is brought against any indemnified party, and it notifies an indemnifying party of the commencement thereof, the indemnifying party will be entitled to participate, at its own expense in the defense of such action, and to the extent it may elect by written notice delivered to the indemnified party promptly after receiving the aforesaid notice from such indemnified party, to assume the defense thereof with counsel satisfactory to such indemnified party; provided however, that counsel to the indemnifying party shall not (except with the written consent of the indemnified party) also be counsel to the indemnified party. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the indemnified party or parties shall have the right to employ its or their own counsel in any such case, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such indemnified party or parties unless (i) the employment of such counsel shall have been authorized in writing by one of the indemnifying parties in connection with the defense of such action, (ii) the indemnifying parties shall not have employed counsel to have charge of the defense of such action within a reasonable time after notice of commencement of the action, (iii) the indemnifying party does not diligently defend the action after assumption of the defense, or (iv) such indemnified party or parties shall have reasonably concluded that there may be defenses available to it or them which are different from or additional to those available to one or all of the indemnifying parties (in which case the indemnifying parties shall not have the right to direct the defense of such action on behalf of the indemnified party or parties), in any of which events such fees and expenses of not more than one counsel (in addition to any local counsel) shall be borne by the indemnifying parties; and provided, further, that if indemnity is sought pursuant to Section 8(e) hereof, then, in addition to the fees and expenses of such counsel for the indemnified parties, the indemnifying party shall be liable for the reasonable fees and expenses of not more than one counsel (in addition to any local counsel) separate from its own counsel and that of the other indemnified parties for the QIU in its capacity as a "qualified independent underwriter" and all persons, if any, who control the QIU within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act in connection with any one action or separate but similar or related actions in the same jurisdiction arising out of the same general allegations or circumstances if, in the reasonable judgment of the QIU, there may exist a conflict of interest between the QIU and the other indemnified parties. Any such separate counsel for the QIU and such control persons of the QIU shall be designated in writing by the QIU. No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified parties, effect any settlement or compromise of, or consent to the entry of judgment with respect to, any pending or threatened claim, investigation, action or proceeding in respect of which indemnity or contribution may be or could have been sought by an indemnified party under this Section 8 or Section 9 hereof (whether or not the indemnified party is an actual or potential party thereto), unless (x) such settlement,

compromise or judgment (i) includes an unconditional release of the indemnified party from all liability arising out of such claim, investigation, action or proceeding and (ii) does not include a statement as to or an admission of fault, culpability or any failure to act, by or on behalf of the indemnified party, and (y) the indemnifying party confirms in writing its indemnification obligations hereunder with respect to such settlement, compromise or judgment.

9. Contribution. In order to provide for contribution in circumstances in which the indemnification provided for in Section 8 hereof is for any reason held to be unavailable from any indemnifying party or is insufficient to hold harmless a party indemnified thereunder, the Company and the Selling Stockholders (together with the Company, the "Sellers") and the Underwriters shall contribute to the aggregate losses, claims, damages, liabilities and expenses of the nature contemplated by such indemnification provision (including any investigation, legal and other expenses incurred in connection with, and any amount paid in settlement of, any action, suit or proceeding or any claims asserted, but after deducting in the case of losses, claims, damages, liabilities and expenses suffered by the Sellers, any contribution received by the Sellers from persons, other than the Underwriters, who may also be liable for contribution, including persons who control the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, officers of the Company who signed the Registration Statement and directors of the Company) as incurred to which the Sellers and one or more of the Underwriters may be subject, in such proportions as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Sellers and the Underwriters from the Offering or, if such allocation is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportions as are appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to above but also the relative fault of the Sellers and the Underwriters in connection with the statements or omissions which resulted in such losses, claims, damages, liabilities or expenses, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Sellers and the Underwriters shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as (x) the total proceeds from the Offering (net of underwriting discounts and commissions but before deducting expenses) received by the Sellers bears to (y) the underwriting discount or commissions received by the Underwriters, in each case as set forth in the table on the cover page of the Prospectus. The relative fault of each of the Sellers and of the Underwriters shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Sellers or the Underwriters and the parties' relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission. The Sellers and the Underwriters agree that X.X. Xxxxxx Securities Inc. will not receive any additional benefits hereunder for serving as the QIU in connection with the Offering, except as provided in Section 8 of this Agreement. The Sellers and the Underwriters further agree that it would not be just and equitable if contribution pursuant to this Section 9 were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to above in this Section. The aggregate amount of losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses incurred by an indemnified party and referred to above in this Section 9 shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any judicial, regulatory or other legal or governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever based upon any such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 9, (i) no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total price at which the Shares are underwritten by it and distributed to the public exceeds the amount of any damages which such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission, (ii) no person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation and (iii) no Selling Stockholder shall be required to contribute an amount in excess of the product of

(A) the number of the shares sold by such Selling Stockholder and (B) the initial public offering price of the Shares as set forth in the Prospectus, net of underwriting discounts and commissions. For purposes of this Section 9, each person, if any, who controls an Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act shall have the same rights to contribution as such Underwriter, and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, each officer of the Company who shall have signed the Registration Statement and each director of the Company shall have the same rights to contribution as the Company, subject in each case to clauses (i), (ii) and (iii) of the immediately preceding sentence. Any party entitled to contribution will, promptly after receipt of notice of commencement of any action, suit or proceeding against such party in respect of which a claim for contribution may be made against another party or parties, notify each party or parties from whom contribution may be sought, but the omission to so notify such party or parties shall not relieve the party or parties from whom contribution may be sought from any obligation it or they may have under this Section 9 or otherwise. The obligations of the Underwriters to contribute pursuant to this Section 9 are several in proportion to the respective number of Shares to be purchased by each of the Underwriters hereunder and not joint.

10. Underwriter Default.

(a) If any Underwriter or Underwriters shall default in its or their obligation to purchase Firm Shares or Additional Shares hereunder, and if the Firm Shares or Additional Shares with respect to which such default relates (the "Default Shares") do not (after giving effect to arrangements, if any, made by the Lead Managers pursuant to subsection (b) below) exceed in the aggregate 10% of the number of Firm Shares or Additional Shares, each non-defaulting Underwriter, acting severally and not jointly, agrees to purchase from the Company and the Selling Stockholders that number of Default Shares that bears the same proportion of the total number of Default Shares then being purchased as the number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto bears to the aggregate number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the names of the non-defaulting Underwriters, subject, however, to such adjustments to eliminate fractional shares as the Lead Managers in their sole discretion shall make.

(b) In the event that the aggregate number of Default Shares exceeds 10% of the number of Firm Shares or Additional Shares, as the case may be, the Lead Managers may in their discretion arrange for itself or for another party or parties (including any non-defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters who so agree) to purchase the Default Shares on the terms contained herein. In the event that within five calendar days after such a default the Lead Managers do not arrange for the purchase of the Default Shares as provided in this Section 10, this Agreement or, in the case of a default with respect to the Additional Shares, the obligations of the Underwriters to purchase and of the Selling Stockholders to sell the Additional Shares shall thereupon terminate, without liability on the part of the Company or the Selling Stockholders with respect thereto (except in each case as provided in Sections 6, 8, 9, 12 and 13(d)) or the Underwriters, but nothing in this Agreement shall relieve a defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters of its or their liability, if any, to the other Underwriters and the Company and the Selling Stockholders for damages occasioned by its or their default hereunder.

(c) In the event that any Default Shares are to be purchased by the non-defaulting Underwriters, or are to be purchased by another party or parties as aforesaid, the Lead Managers or the Company shall have the right to postpone the Closing Date or Additional Closing Date, as the case may be for a period, not exceeding five business days, in order to effect whatever changes may thereby be made necessary in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or in any other documents and arrangements, and the Company agrees to file promptly any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus which, in the opinion of Underwriters' Counsel, may thereby be made necessary or advisable. The term "Underwriter" as used in this

Agreement shall include any party substituted under this Section 10 with like effect as if it had originally been a party to this Agreement with respect to such Firm Shares and Additional Shares.

11. Default by Selling Stockholders.

(a) If any Selling Stockholder shall fail to sell and deliver the number of Shares which such Selling Stockholder is obligated to sell hereunder, and the remaining Selling Stockholders do not exercise the right hereby granted to increase, pro rata or otherwise, the number of Shares to be sold by them hereunder to the total number to be sold by all Selling Stockholders as set forth in Schedule I hereto, then the Underwriters may, at option of the Lead Managers, by notice from the Lead Managers to the Company and the non-defaulting Selling Stockholder(s), either (a) terminate this Agreement without any liability on the fault of any non-defaulting party except that the provisions of Sections 6, 8, 9 and 12 shall remain in full force and effect or (b) elect to purchase the shares which the non-defaulting Selling Stockholder(s) have agreed to sell hereunder. No action taken pursuant to this Section 11 shall relieve any Selling Stockholder so defaulting from liability, if any, in respect of such default.

(b) In the event that the Firm Shares or Additional Shares to which the default relates are to be sold by the non-defaulting Selling Stockholder(s), the Lead Managers or the Company shall have the right to postpone the Closing Date or Additional Closing Date, as the case may be for a period, not exceeding five business days, in order to effect whatever changes may thereby be made necessary in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or in any other documents and arrangements, and the Company agrees to file promptly any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus which, in the opinion of Underwriters' Counsel, may thereby be made necessary or advisable.

12. Survival of Representations and Agreements. All representations and warranties, covenants and agreements of the Underwriters, Company and the Selling Stockholders contained in this Agreement or in certificates of officers of the Company or any Subsidiary submitted pursuant hereto, including the agreements contained in Section 6, the indemnity agreements contained in Section 8 and the contribution agreements contained in Section 9, shall remain operative and in full force and effect regardless of any investigation made by or on behalf of any Underwriter or any controlling person thereof or by or on behalf of the Company or the Selling Stockholders, any of their officers and directors or any controlling person thereof, and shall survive delivery of and payment for the Shares to and by the Underwriters. The representations contained in Sections 1 and 2 and the agreements contained in Sections 6, 8, 9, 12 and 13 through 19 hereof shall survive any termination of this Agreement, including termination pursuant to Section 10, 11 or 13 hereof.

13. Effective Date of Agreement; Termination.

(a) This Agreement shall become effective upon the later of (i) receipt by the Lead Managers and the Company of notification of the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or (ii) the execution of this Agreement. Notwithstanding any termination of this Agreement, the provisions of this Section 13 and of Sections 1, 2, 6, 8, 9, 12 and 14 through 19, inclusive, shall remain in full force and effect at all times after the execution hereof.

(b) The Lead Managers shall have the right to terminate this Agreement at any time prior to the Closing Date or to terminate the obligations of the Underwriters to purchase the Additional Shares at any time prior to the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, if (i) any domestic or international event or act or occurrence has materially disrupted, or in the opinion of the Lead Managers will in the immediate future materially disrupt, the market for the Company's securities or securities in general; or (ii) trading on The New York Stock Exchange ("the NYSE") shall have been suspended or been made subject to material limitations, or minimum or maximum prices for trading shall have been fixed, or maximum ranges for prices for securities shall have been required,

on the NYSE or by order of the Commission or any other governmental authority having jurisdiction; or (iii) a banking moratorium has been declared by any state or federal authority or if any material disruption in commercial banking or securities settlement or clearance services shall have occurred; or (iv) (A) there shall have occurred any outbreak or escalation of hostilities or acts of terrorism involving the United States or there is a declaration of a national emergency or war by the United States or (B) there shall have been any other calamity or crisis or any change in political, financial or economic conditions if the effect of any such event in (A) or (B), in the judgment of the Lead Managers, makes it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the offering, sale and delivery of the Firm Shares or the Additional Shares, as the case may be, on the terms and in the manner contemplated by the Prospectus.

(d) If this Agreement shall be terminated pursuant to any of the provisions hereof (other than pursuant to Section 10(b) hereof), or if the sale of the Shares provided for herein is not consummated because any condition to the obligations of the Underwriters set forth herein is not satisfied or because of any refusal, inability or failure on the part of the Company or any Selling Stockholder to perform any agreement herein or comply with any provision hereof, the Company will, subject to demand by the Lead Managers, reimburse the Underwriters for all out-of-pocket expenses (including the fees and expenses of their counsel), incurred by the Underwriters in connection herewith.

14. Notices. All communications hereunder, except as may be otherwise specifically provided herein, shall be in writing, and:

(a) if sent to any Underwriter, shall be mailed, delivered, or faxed with confirmation page received by sender, to such Underwriter c/o Bear, Xxxxxxx & Co. Inc., 000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000, Attention: Xxxxxxx Parish, Senior Managing Director, Equity Capital Markets, with a copy to Underwriter's Counsel at Xxxxxx & Xxxxxxx LLP, 000 Xxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxxxx 0000, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000, Attention: Xxxx Xxxxx, Esq.;

(b) if sent to the Company or any Selling Stockholder, shall be mailed, delivered, or faxed with confirmation page received by sender to the Company, Attention: Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxx and its counsel at the addresses set forth in the Registration Statement, Attention: Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxx, Esq;

provided, however, that any notice to an Underwriter pursuant to Section 8 shall be delivered or sent by mail or facsimile transmission to such Underwriter at its address set forth in its acceptance facsimile to Bear Xxxxxxx, which address will be supplied to any other party hereto by Bear Xxxxxxx upon request. Any such notices and other communications shall take effect at the time of receipt thereof.

15. Parties. This Agreement shall inure solely to the benefit of, and shall be binding upon, the Underwriters, the Company and the Selling Stockholders and the controlling persons, directors, officers, employees and agents referred to in Sections 8 and 9 hereof, and their respective successors and assigns, and no other person shall have or be construed to have any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of or by virtue of this Agreement or any provision herein contained. This Agreement and all conditions and provisions hereof are intended to be for the sole and exclusive benefit of the parties hereto and said controlling persons and their respective successors, officers, directors, heirs and legal representatives, and it is not for the benefit of any other person, firm or corporation. The term "successors and assigns" shall not include a purchaser, in its capacity as such, of Shares from any of the Underwriters.

16. Governing Law and Jurisdiction; Waiver of Jury Trial. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York. The Company, each of the Selling Stockholders and the Underwriters irrevocably (a) submits to the jurisdiction of any court of the State of New York or the United State District Court for the Southern District of the State of New York for

the purpose of any suit, action, or other proceeding arising out of this Agreement, or any of the agreements or transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus (each, a "Proceeding"), (b) agrees that all claims in respect of any Proceeding may be heard and determined in any such court, (c) waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any immunity from jurisdiction of any such court or from any legal process therein, (d) agrees not to commence any Proceeding other than in such courts, and (e) waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any claim that such Proceeding is brought in an inconvenient forum. THE COMPANY (ON BEHALF OF ITSELF AND, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, ON BEHALF OF ITS RESPECTIVE EQUITY HOLDERS AND CREDITORS), EACH SELLING STOCKHOLDER AND THE UNDERWRITERS HEREBY WAIVES ANY RIGHT IT MAY HAVE TO A TRIAL BY JURY IN RESPECT OF ANY CLAIM BASED UPON, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THIS AGREEMENT AND THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED BY THIS AGREEMENT, THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT AND THE PROSPECTUS.

17. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original, but all such counterparts shall together constitute one and the same instrument. Delivery of a signed counterpart of this Agreement by facsimile transmission shall constitute valid and sufficient delivery thereof.

18. Headings. The headings herein are inserted for convenience of reference only and are not intended to be part of, or to affect the meaning or interpretation of, this Agreement.

19. Time is of the Essence. Time shall be of the essence of this Agreement. As used herein, the term "business day" shall mean any day when the Commission's office in Washington, D.C. is open for business.

[signature pages follow]

If the foregoing correctly sets forth your understanding, please so indicate in the space provided below for that purpose, whereupon this letter shall constitute a binding agreement among us. It is understood that your acceptance of this letter on behalf of each of the Underwriters is pursuant to the authority set forth in an Agreement Among Underwriters, the form of which shall be submitted to the Company for examination upon request.

		Very truly yours,
		NEW YORK & COMPANY, INC.
		By:

			Name:
			Title:
		BSMB/NYCG LLC
		By:	Bear Xxxxxxx Merchant Manager II, LLC
		Its:	Manager
		By:	JDH Management LLC
		Its:	Manager
		By:

			Name:
			Title:
		THE SELLING STOCKHOLDERS NAMED IN SCHEDULE I TO THIS AGREEMENT
		By:

			Name:
			Title:
			As Attorney-in-Fact on behalf of each of the Selling Stockholders named in Schedule I to this Agreement

Accepted as of the date first above written
BEAR, XXXXXXX & CO. INC. X.X. XXXXXX SECURITIES INC. BANC OF AMERICA SECURITIES LLC WACHOVIA CAPITAL MARKETS, LLC XXXXX XXXXXXX & CO.
By:	Bear, Xxxxxxx & Co. Inc.
By:

	Name:
	Title:
On behalf of themselves and the other Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto.

SCHEDULE I

Name of Underwriter			Total Number of Firm Shares to be Purchased		Number of Additional Shares to be Purchased if Option is Fully Exercised
Bear, Xxxxxxx & Co. Inc.
X.X. Xxxxxx Securities Inc.
Bank of America Securities, LLC
Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC
Xxxxx Xxxxxxx Inc.
	Total

Name of Selling Stockholder		Total Number of Firm Shares to be Sold
BSMB/NYCG LLC		2,710,833
Xxxxxxx X. Crystal		300,857
Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx		156,220
Xxxxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx		15,896
Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx		30,829
M. Xxxxxxxxx Xxxxx		7,261
Xxxxx X. Xxxxx		7,261
Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxx		20,760
Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxx		12,606
Xxxxx X Xxxxxxxx		29,753
Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx		9,291
Xxxxx Xxxxxx		16,421
Xxxxxxxx X. Xxxx		15,345
	Total	3,333,333

SCHEDULE II

Xxxxxxx X. Crystal
Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx
Xxxxxx X. Xxxxx
Xxxxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx
Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx
Xxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx
Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxxx III
Xxxx X. Xxxxxx
Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxx
M. Xxxxxxxxx Xxxxx
Xxxxx X. Xxxxx
Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx
Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxx
Xxxx X. XxXxxx
Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxx
Xxxxx X Xxxxxxxx
Xxxxxx Xxxxxxx
Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx
Xxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxxxxxxx X. Xxxx
Xxxxxxx X. Xxxx
BSMB/NYCG LLC
Xxxx Xxxxxxx 2004 Trust
Xxxxxxx Xxxxxxx 2004 Trust
Ian Crystal 2004 Trust
Xxxxxxxx Xxxxx 2004 Trust
RWR 2004 Grantor Retained Annuity Trust
Xxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx 2004 GRAT

EXHIBIT A

Subsidiaries

Xxxxxx New York Holding
Xxxxxx New York, Inc.
Lernco, Inc.
Associated Xxxxxx Shops of America, Inc.
Nevada Receivable Fact.
Xxxxxx New York GC, LLC

EXHIBIT B

Form of Custody Agreement

EXHIBIT C

Form of Power of Attorney

ANNEX IA

Form of Opinion of Xxxxxxxx & Xxxxx LLP

ANNEX IA

Form of Opinion of Selling Stockholders' Counsel

ANNEX II

Form of Lock-Up Agreement

September , 2004

Bear, Xxxxxxx & Co. Inc.
X.X. Xxxxxx Securities Inc.
Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC
Banc of America Securities LLC
Xxxxx Xxxxxxx & Co.
As Representatives of the several
Underwriters (the "Representatives")
c/o Bear, Xxxxxxx & Co. Inc.
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000
Attention: Equity Capital Markets

New York & Company, Inc. Lock-Up Agreement

Ladies and Gentlemen:

This letter agreement (this "Agreement") relates to the proposed public offering (the "Offering") by New York & Company, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the "Company"), of its common stock, $.01 par value (the "Stock").

In order to induce you and the other underwriters for which you act as representatives (the "Underwriters") to underwrite the Offering, the undersigned hereby agrees that, without the prior written consent of Bear, Xxxxxxx & Co. Inc. ("Bear Xxxxxxx") and X.X. Xxxxxx Securities Inc. ("X.X. Xxxxxx"), during the period from the date hereof until one hundred eighty (180) days from the date of such final prospectus for the Offering (the "Lock-Up Period"), the undersigned (a) will not, directly or indirectly, offer, sell, agree to offer or sell, solicit offers to purchase, grant any call option or purchase any put option with respect to, pledge, borrow or otherwise dispose of any Relevant Security (as defined below), and (b) will not establish or increase any "put equivalent position" or liquidate or decrease any "call equivalent position" with respect to any Relevant Security (in each case within the meaning of Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder), or otherwise enter into any swap, derivative or other transaction or arrangement that transfers to another, in whole or in part, any economic consequence of ownership of a Relevant Security, whether or not such transaction is to be settled by delivery of Relevant Securities, other securities, cash or other consideration. As used herein "Relevant Security" means the Stock, any other equity security of the Company and any security convertible into, or exercisable or exchangeable for, any Stock or other such equity security.

The undersigned hereby authorizes the Company during the Lock-Up Period to cause any transfer agent for the Relevant Securities to decline to transfer, and to note stop transfer restrictions on the stock register and other records relating to, Relevant Securities for which the undersigned is the record holder and, in the case of Relevant Securities for which the undersigned is the beneficial but not the record holder, agrees during the Lock-Up Period to cause the record holder to cause the relevant transfer agent to decline to transfer, and to note stop transfer restrictions on the stock register and other records relating to, such Relevant Securities. The undersigned hereby further agrees that, without the prior written consent of Bear Xxxxxxx and X.X. Xxxxxx, during the Lock-up Period the undersigned (x) will not file or participate in the filing or exercise any rights which would cause the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission of any registration statement, or circulate or participate in the circulation of any preliminary or final prospectus or other disclosure document with respect to any proposed offering or sale of a Relevant Security, except in connection with the Offering and a Registration Statement on Form S-8 and (y) will not exercise any rights the undersigned may have to

require registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission of any proposed offering or sale of a Relevant Security.

The restrictions set forth herein shall not apply to (1) the sale of any Stock to the Underwriters pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement; (2) transactions relating to any Relevant Security acquired in open market transactions; and (3) the conversion of any options into Stock, as contemplated in the Prospectus. It shall be understood that such restrictions shall apply to the underlying Stock received upon such conversion.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the undersigned may transfer any Relevant Security (i) as a bona fide gift or gifts, provided that the donee or donees thereof agree to be bound in writing by the restrictions set forth herein, (ii) to any trust for the direct or indirect benefit of the undersigned or the immediate family of the undersigned, provided that the trustee of the trust agrees to be bound in writing by the restrictions set forth herein, and provided further that any such transfer shall not involve a disposition for value, (iii) to the undersigned's executors, administrators, testamentary trustees, legatees or beneficiaries upon the death of the undersigned, or (iv) with the prior written consent of Bear Xxxxxxx and X.X. Xxxxxx on behalf of the Underwriters. For purposes of this Agreement, "immediate family" shall mean any relationship by blood, marriage or adoption, not more remote than first cousin. In addition, notwithstanding the forgoing, if the undersigned is a partnership, corporation or limited liability company, such entity may transfer its Relevant Securities (a) to any general or limited partner, wholly-owned subsidiary, affiliate or member of such entity, (b) in connection with a statutory merger or consolidation of such entity or (c) to any of its shareholders, and such transferee may transfer Relevant Securities to any other shareholder, partner or member of the undersigned; provided, however, that (x) in any such case, it shall be a condition to the transfer that the transferee execute an agreement stating that the transferee is receiving and holding such Relevant Securities subject to the provisions of this Agreement and there shall be no further transfer of such Relevant Securities except in accordance with this Agreement, (y) except in the case of transfer made pursuant to clause (c) above, any such transfer shall not involve a disposition for value, and (z) no such transfer shall be effected on the New York Stock Exchange, the over-the-counter market or any other system providing share price quotations.

The undersigned hereby represents and warrants that the undersigned has full power and authority to enter into this Agreement and that this Agreement constitutes the legal, valid and binding obligation of the undersigned, enforceable in accordance with its terms subject, as to enforceability, to (i) bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization and similar laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors' rights, (ii) limitations thereon under the laws of the State of Delaware and (iii) to general equity principles. Upon request, the undersigned will execute any additional documents reasonably necessary in connection with enforcement hereof. Any obligations of the undersigned shall be binding upon the successors and assigns of the undersigned from the date first above written.

The restrictions hereunder shall lapse and become null and void if the Offering is not consummated prior to December 1, 2004.

[Signature page follows]

This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York. Delivery of a signed copy of this letter by facsimile transmission shall be effective as delivery of the original hereof.

		Very truly yours,
		By:

		Print Name:

QuickLinks

SCHEDULE I
SCHEDULE II
EXHIBIT A
EXHIBIT B
EXHIBIT C
ANNEX IA
ANNEX IA

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Table of Contents

11,500,000 Shares of Common Stock NEW YORK & COMPANY, INC. UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT [ ], 2004

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