**Exhibit 12**

**Paper Warehouse, Inc. and Subsidiaries**

**Computation of Ratio of Earnings to Fixed Charges**

**For the Five Years Ended February 1, 2002**

 

 

 

 
|                                                                                                         |   | **Fiscal Year Ended**        |   |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|--------|------------------------------|--------|
|                                                                                                         |   | **February 1,********2002**  |   | **February 2, 2001** |   | **January 28, 2000** |   | **January 29,********1999** |   | **January 30,********1998** |   |
| **Ratio of Earnings to Fixed Charges:**                                                                      |   | **($’s in  thousands)** |   |
| Earnings:                                                                                                    |   |                         |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |
| Consolidated net loss                                                                                        |   | $                            | (9,801 | ) | $ | (434 | ) | $ | (4,448 | ) | $ | (521 | ) | $ | (207 | ) |
| Extraordinary charge, net                                                                                    |   | —                       |   | — |   | — |   | — |   | 110 |   |
| Cumulative effect of accounting change, net                                                                  |   | —                       |   | — |   | 108 |   | — |   | — |   |
| Income taxes                                                                                                 |   | 3,733                        |   | (295 | ) | (2,970 | ) | (323 | ) | 22 |   |
| Total loss before extraordinary chargeand cumulative effect of accounting change                             |   | (6,068                       | )      | (729 | ) | (7,310 | ) | (844 | ) | (75 | ) |
|                                                                                                         |   |                         |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |
| Fixed Charges:                                                                                               |   |                         |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |
| Interest expense                                                                                             |   | 1,433                        |   | 1,670 |   | 1,182 |   | 279 |   | 860 |   |
| Interest portion of rental expense                                                                           |   | 3,435                        |   | 3,386 |   | 3,281 |   | 2,378 |   | 1,779 |   |
| Total fixed charges                                                                                          |   | 4,868                        |   | 5,056 |   | 4,463 |   | 2,657 |   | 2,639 |   |
|                                                                                                         |   |                         |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |
| Earnings available for fixed charges                                                                         |   | $                            | (1,200 | ) | $ | 4,327 |   | $ | (2,847 | ) | $ | 1,813 |   | $ | 2,564 |   |
|                                                                                                         |   |                         |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |
| Ratio of earnings before extraordinary charge and cumulativeeffect of accounting change to fixed charges (1) |   | ——                 |   | —— |   | —— |   | —— |   | —— |   |

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(1) For the fiscal years ended February 1,2002, February 2, 2001, January 28, 2000, January 29, 1999, and January 30, 1998 earnings were not adequate tocover fixed charges by approximately $6.1 million, $729,000, $7.3 million,$844,000 and $75,000, respectively.

 

 

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