Northwest Bancshares, Inc. elects Mark A. Paup to Board of Directors

WARREN, Pa., May 12, 2016

Mr. Paup currently serves as president and chief executive officer of Zippo Manufacturing Company and W.R. Case and Sons Cutlery Company, both of which are headquartered in Bradford, Pennsylvania.

During his twenty-year career with Zippo and Case, Mr. Paup has served as Vice President of Sales and Marketing, National Sales Manager, European Sales Manager and Global Marketing Director. He has also served as a member of the Board of Directors of Zippo Manufacturing Company, as President of the Supervisory Board of Zippo Europe S.A. and as a Director of Zippo Asia Ltd. At Zippo and Case, Mr. Paup has been instrumental in corporate strategic planning, product diversification and the development of the sales and marketing departments.

He has been a member of Northwest Bank's McKean County Advisory Board since 2010.

Mr. Paup's extensive experience in the areas of sales, marketing, and strategic planning will greatly assist the Board in its oversight of Northwest Bank's organic growth initiatives and strategic direction.

Northwest Bank operates 157 full-service offices and 7 free-standing drive throughs. Founded in 1896, Northwest offers a complete line of personal and business banking products including employee benefits, investment management services, insurance and trust. Northwest Bancshares, Inc. is the holding company of Northwest Bank and is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market as NWBI. More information about Northwest can be found online at www.northwest.com.

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