LULU, §1A diff (2017 → 2018)

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS In addition to the other information contained in this Form 10-K, the following risk factors should be considered carefully in evaluating our business. Our business, financial condition or results of operations could be materially adversely affected by any of these risks. Please note that additional risks not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial could also impair our business and operations. Our success depends on our ability to maintain the value and reputation of our brand. Our success depends on the value and reputation of the lululemon brand. The lululemon name is integral to our business as well as to the implementation of our strategies for expanding our business. Maintaining, promoting, and positioning our brand will depend largely on the success of our marketing and merchandising efforts and our ability to provide a consistent, high quality product, and guest experience. We rely on social media, as one of our marketing strategies, to have a positive impact on both our brand value and reputation. Our brand and reputation could be adversely affected if we fail to achieve these objectives, if our public image was to be tarnished by negative publicity, if we fail to deliver innovative and high quality products acceptable to our guests, or if we face a product recall. Negative publicity regarding the production methods of any of our suppliers or manufacturers could adversely affect our reputation and sales and force us to locate alternative suppliers or manufacturing sources. Additionally, while we devote considerable efforts and resources to protecting our intellectual property, if these efforts are not successful the value of our brand may be harmed. Any harm to our brand and reputation could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition. If any of our products are unacceptable to us or our guests, our business could be harmed. We have occasionally received, and may in the future receive, shipments of products that fail to comply with our technical specifications or that fail to conform to our quality control standards. We have also received, and may in the future receive, products that are otherwise unacceptable to us or our guests. Under these circumstances, unless we are able to obtain replacement products in a timely manner, we risk the loss of net revenue resulting from the inability to sell those products and related increased administrative and shipping costs. Additionally, if the unacceptability of our products is not discovered until after such products are purchased by our guests, our guests could lose confidence in our products or we could face a product recall and our results of operations could suffer and our business, reputation, and brand could be harmed. We operate in a highly competitive market and the size and resources of some of our competitors may allow them to compete more effectively than we can, resulting in a loss of our market share and a decrease in our net revenue and profitability. The market for technical athletic apparel is highly competitive. Competition may result in pricing pressures, reduced profit margins or lost market share, or a failure to grow or maintain our market share, any of which could substantially harm our business and results of operations. We compete directly against wholesalers and direct retailers of athletic apparel, including large, diversified apparel companies with substantial market share and established companies expanding their production and marketing of technical athletic apparel, as well as against retailers specifically focused on women's athletic apparel. We also face competition from wholesalers and direct retailers of traditional commodity athletic apparel, such as cotton T-shirts and sweatshirts. Many of our competitors are large apparel and sporting goods companies with strong worldwide brand recognition. Because of the fragmented nature of the industry, we also compete with other apparel sellers, including those specializing in yoga apparel and other activewear. Many of our competitors have significant competitive advantages, including longer operating histories, larger and broader customer bases, more established relationships with a broader set of suppliers, greater brand recognition and greater financial, research and development, store development, marketing, distribution, and other resources than we do. Our competitors may be able to achieve and maintain brand awareness and market share more quickly and effectively than we can. In contrast to our "grassroots" marketing approach, many of our competitors promote their brands through traditional forms of advertising, such as print media and television commercials, and through celebrity endorsements, and have substantial resources to devote to such efforts. Our competitors may also create and maintain brand awareness using traditional forms of advertising more quickly than we can. Our competitors may also be able to increase sales in their new and existing markets faster than we do by emphasizing different distribution channels than we do, such as catalog sales or an extensive franchise network. In addition, because we hold limited patents and exclusive intellectual property rights in the technology, fabrics or processes underlying our products, our current and future competitors are able to manufacture and sell products with performance characteristics, fabrication techniques, and styling similar to our products. Our reliance on suppliers to provide fabrics for and to produce our products could cause problems in our supply chain. We do not manufacture our products or the raw materials for them and rely instead on suppliers. Many of the specialty fabrics used in our products are technically advanced textile products developed and manufactured by third parties and may be available, in the short-term, from only one or a very limited number of sources. We work with a group of approximately 65 suppliers to provide the fabrics for our products. In fiscal 2017, approximately 59% of our fabrics were produced by our top five fabric suppliers, and no single manufacturer produced more than 35% of raw materials used. We work with a group of approximately 47 vendors that manufacture our products, five of which produced approximately 64% of our products in fiscal 2017. During fiscal 2017, no single manufacturer produced more than 25% of our product offerings. We have no long-term contracts with any of our suppliers or manufacturing sources for the production and supply of our fabrics and garments, and we compete with other companies for fabrics, raw materials, and production. We have experienced, and may in the future experience, a significant disruption in the supply of fabrics or raw materials from current sources and we may be unable to locate alternative materials suppliers of comparable quality at an acceptable price, or at all. In addition, if we experience significant increased demand, or if we need to replace an existing supplier or manufacturer, we may be unable to locate additional supplies of fabrics or raw materials or additional manufacturing capacity on terms that are acceptable to us, or at all, or we may be unable to locate any supplier or manufacturer with sufficient capacity to meet our requirements or to fill our orders in a timely manner. Identifying a suitable supplier is an involved process that requires us to become satisfied with its quality control, responsiveness and service, financial stability, and labor and other ethical practices. Even if we are able to expand existing or find new manufacturing or fabric sources, we may encounter delays in production and added costs as a result of the time it takes to train our suppliers and manufacturers in our methods, products, and quality control standards. Delays related to supplier changes could also arise due to an increase in shipping times if new suppliers are located farther away from our markets or from other participants in our supply chain. Any delays, interruption or increased costs in the supply of fabric or manufacture of our products could have an adverse effect on our ability to meet guest demand for our products and result in lower net revenue and income from operations both in the short and long term. An economic downturn or economic uncertainty in our key markets may adversely affect consumer discretionary spending and demand for our products. Many of our products may be considered discretionary items for consumers. Factors affecting the level of consumer spending for such discretionary items include general economic conditions, particularly those in North America, and other factors such as consumer confidence in future economic conditions, fears of recession, the availability and cost of consumer credit, levels of unemployment, and tax rates. As global economic conditions continue to be volatile or economic uncertainty remains, trends in consumer discretionary spending also remain unpredictable and subject to reductions due to credit constraints and uncertainties about the future. Unfavorable economic conditions may lead consumers to delay or reduce purchases of our products. Consumer demand for our products may not reach our targets, or may decline, when there is an economic downturn or economic uncertainty in our key markets, particularly in North America. Our sensitivity to economic cycles and any related fluctuation in consumer demand may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition. Our sales and profitability may decline as a result of increasing product costs and decreasing selling prices. Our business is subject to significant pressure on costs and pricing caused by many factors, including intense competition, constrained sourcing capacity and related inflationary pressure, pressure from consumers to reduce the prices we charge for our products, and changes in consumer demand. These factors may cause us to experience increased costs, reduce our prices to consumers or experience reduced sales in response to increased prices, any of which could cause our operating margin to decline if we are unable to offset these factors with reductions in operating costs and could have a material adverse effect on our financial conditions, operating results and cash flows. If we are unable to anticipate consumer preferences and successfully develop and introduce new, innovative and updated products, we may not be able to maintain or increase our sales and profitability. Our success depends on our ability to identify and originate product trends as well as to anticipate and react to changing consumer demands in a timely manner. All of our products are subject to changing consumer preferences that cannot be predicted with certainty. If we are unable to introduce new products or novel technologies in a timely manner or our new products or technologies are not accepted by our guests, our competitors may introduce similar products in a more timely fashion, which could hurt our goal to be viewed as a leader in technical athletic apparel innovation. Our new products may not receive consumer acceptance as consumer preferences could shift rapidly to different types of athletic apparel or away from these types of products altogether, and our future success depends in part on our ability to anticipate and respond to these changes. Our failure to anticipate and respond in a timely manner to changing consumer preferences could lead to, among other things, lower sales and excess inventory levels. Even if we are successful in anticipating consumer preferences, our ability to adequately react to and address those preferences will in part depend upon our continued ability to develop and introduce innovative, high-quality products. Our failure to effectively introduce new products that are accepted by consumers could result in a decrease in net revenue and excess inventory levels, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition. Our results of operations could be materially harmed if we are unable to accurately forecast guest demand for our products. To ensure adequate inventory supply, we must forecast inventory needs and place orders with our manufacturers based on our estimates of future demand for particular products. Our ability to accurately forecast demand for our products could be affected by many factors, including an increase or decrease in guest demand for our products or for products of our competitors, our failure to accurately forecast guest acceptance of new products, product introductions by competitors, unanticipated changes in general market conditions, and weakening of economic conditions or consumer confidence in future economic conditions. If we fail to accurately forecast guest demand, we may experience excess inventory levels or a shortage of products available for sale in our stores or for delivery to guests. Inventory levels in excess of guest demand may result in inventory write-downs or write-offs and the sale of excess inventory at discounted prices, which would cause our gross margin to suffer and could impair the strength and exclusivity of our brand. Conversely, if we underestimate guest demand for our products, our manufacturers may not be able to deliver products to meet our requirements, and this could result in damage to our reputation and guest relationships. Our inability to safeguard against security breaches with respect to our information technology systems could disrupt our operations. Our business employs systems and websites that allow for the storage and transmission of proprietary or confidential information regarding our business, guests and employees including credit card information. Security breaches could expose us to a risk of loss or misuse of this information and potential liability. We may not have the resources or technical sophistication to be able to anticipate or prevent rapidly evolving types of cyber-attacks. Actual or anticipated attacks may cause us to incur increasing costs including costs to deploy additional personnel and protection technologies, train employees and engage third party experts and consultants. Advances in computer capabilities, new technological discoveries or other developments may result in the technology used by us to protect transaction or other data being breached or compromised. Data and security breaches can also occur as a result of non-technical issues including intentional or inadvertent breach by employees or persons with whom we have commercial relationships that result in the unauthorized release of personal or confidential information. Any compromise or breach of our security could result in a violation of applicable privacy and other laws, significant litigation and potential liability and damage to our brand and reputation or other harm to our business. Any material disruption of our information technology systems or unexpected network interruption could disrupt our business and reduce our sales. We are increasingly dependent on information technology systems and third-parties to operate our e-commerce websites, process transactions, respond to guest inquiries, manage inventory, purchase, sell and ship goods on a timely basis, and maintain cost-efficient operations. The failure of our information technology systems to operate properly or effectively, problems with transitioning to upgraded or replacement systems, or difficulty in integrating new systems, could adversely affect our business. In addition, we have e-commerce websites in the United States, Canada, and internationally. Our information technology systems, websites, and operations of third parties on whom we rely, may encounter damage or disruption or slowdown caused by a failure to successfully upgrade systems, system failures, viruses, computer "hackers" or other causes, could cause information, including data related to guest orders, to be lost or delayed which could, especially if the disruption or slowdown occurred during the holiday season, result in delays in the delivery of products to our stores and guests or lost sales, which could reduce demand for our products and cause our sales to decline. In addition, if changes in technology cause our information systems to become obsolete, or if our information systems are inadequate to handle our growth, we could lose guests. We have limited back-up systems and redundancies, and our information technology systems and websites have experienced system failures and electrical outages in the past which have disrupted our operations. Any significant disruption in our information technology systems or websites could harm our reputation and credibility, and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. If the technology-based systems that give our customers the ability to shop with us online do not function effectively, our operating results, as well as our ability to grow our e-commerce business globally, could be materially adversely affected. Many of our customers shop with us through our e-commerce websites and mobile apps. Increasingly, customers are using tablets and smart phones to shop online with us and with our competitors and to do comparison shopping. We are increasingly using social media and proprietary mobile apps to interact with our customers and as a means to enhance their shopping experience. Any failure on our part to provide attractive, effective, reliable, user-friendly e-commerce platforms that offer a wide assortment of merchandise with rapid delivery options and that continually meet the changing expectations of online shoppers could place us at a competitive disadvantage, result in the loss of e-commerce and other sales, harm our reputation with customers, have a material adverse impact on the growth of our e-commerce business globally and could have a material adverse impact on our business and results of operations. Risks specific to our e-commerce business also include diversion of sales from our company-operated stores, difficulty in recreating the in-store experience through direct channels and liability for online content. Our failure to successfully respond to these risks might adversely affect sales in our e-commerce business, as well as damage our reputation and brands. The fluctuating cost of raw materials could increase our cost of goods sold and cause our results of operations and financial condition to suffer. The fabrics used by our suppliers and manufacturers include synthetic fabrics whose raw materials include petroleum-based products. Our products also include silver and natural fibers, including cotton. Our costs for raw materials are affected by, among other things, weather, consumer demand, speculation on the commodities market, the relative valuations and fluctuations of the currencies of producer versus consumer countries, and other factors that are generally unpredictable and beyond our control. Increases in the cost of raw materials, including petroleum or the prices we pay for silver and our cotton yarn and cotton-based textiles, could have a material adverse effect on our cost of goods sold, results of operations, financial condition, and cash flows. Our limited operating experience and limited brand recognition in new international markets may limit our expansion and cause our business and growth to suffer. Our future growth depends in part on our expansion efforts outside of North America. We have limited experience with regulatory environments and market practices internationally, and we may not be able to penetrate or successfully operate in any new market. In connection with our expansion efforts we may encounter obstacles we did not face in North America, including cultural and linguistic differences, differences in regulatory environments, labor practices and market practices, difficulties in keeping abreast of market, business and technical developments, and foreign guests' tastes and preferences. We may also encounter difficulty expanding into new international markets because of limited brand recognition leading to delayed acceptance of our technical athletic apparel by guests in these new international markets. Our failure to develop our business in new international markets or disappointing growth outside of existing markets could harm our business and results of operations. If we encounter problems with our distribution system, our ability to deliver our products to the market and to meet guest expectations could be harmed. We rely on our distribution facilities for substantially all of our product distribution. Our distribution facilities include computer controlled and automated equipment, which means their operations may be subject to a number of risks related to security or computer viruses, the proper operation of software and hardware, electronic or power interruptions, or other system failures. In addition, because substantially all of our products are distributed from four locations, our operations could also be interrupted by labor difficulties, extreme or severe weather conditions or by floods, fires or other natural disasters near our distribution centers. If we encounter problems with our distribution system, our ability to meet guest expectations, manage inventory, complete sales, and achieve objectives for operating efficiencies could be harmed. Our fabrics and manufacturing technology generally are not patented and can be imitated by our competitors. The intellectual property rights in the technology, fabrics, and processes used to manufacture our products generally are owned or controlled by our suppliers and are generally not unique to us. Our ability to obtain intellectual property protection for our products is therefore limited and we do not generally own patents or hold exclusive intellectual property rights in the technology, fabrics or processes underlying our products. As a result, our current and future competitors are able to manufacture and sell products with performance characteristics, fabrics and styling similar to our products. Because many of our competitors have significantly greater financial, distribution, marketing, and other resources than we do, they may be able to manufacture and sell products based on our fabrics and manufacturing technology at lower prices than we can. If our competitors do sell similar products to ours at lower prices, our net revenue and profitability could suffer. Our failure or inability to protect our intellectual property rights could diminish the value of our brand and weaken our competitive position. We currently rely on a combination of copyright, trademark, trade dress, and unfair competition laws, as well as confidentiality procedures and licensing arrangements, to establish and protect our intellectual property rights. The steps we take to protect our intellectual property rights may not be adequate to prevent infringement of these rights by others, including imitation of our products and misappropriation of our brand. In addition, intellectual property protection may be unavailable or limited in some foreign countries where laws or law enforcement practices may not protect our intellectual property rights as fully as in the United States or Canada, and it may be more difficult for us to successfully challenge the use of our intellectual property rights by other parties in these countries. If we fail to protect and maintain our intellectual property rights, the value of our brand could be diminished and our competitive position may suffer. Our future success is substantially dependent on the continued service of our senior management and identifying and attracting our next Chief Executive Officer. On February 2, 2018, our Chief Executive Officer resigned. In addition to this change, a number of members of our senior management team have left the Company in the last several years. These changes, or the loss of services of any of our other key executive officers or other members of our senior management team, or any negative public perception with respect to these individuals, may be disruptive to, or cause uncertainty in, our business and could have a negative impact on our ability to manage and grow our business effectively. Such disruption could have a material adverse impact on our financial performance, financial condition, and the market price of our stock. We may not be successful in identifying and attracting a highly qualified successor to our Chief Executive Officer, and our process to search for the successor may be time-consuming and divert management's attention and resources away from our business. The search for our next Chief Executive Officer may have a negative impact on our senior management team, business, and financial performance and condition. We do not maintain a key person life insurance policy on any of the members of our senior management team. As a result, we would have no way to cover the financial loss if we were to lose the services of members of our senior management team. Changes in tax laws or unanticipated tax liabilities could adversely affect our effective income tax rate and profitability. We are subject to the income tax laws of the United States, Canada, and several other international jurisdictions. Our effective income tax rates could be unfavorably impacted by a number of factors, including changes in the mix of earnings amongst countries with differing statutory tax rates, changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets and liabilities, changes in tax laws, the outcome of income tax audits in various jurisdictions around the world, and any repatriation of unremitted earnings for which we have not previously accrued applicable U.S. income taxes and foreign withholding taxes. We and our subsidiaries engage in a number of intercompany transactions across multiple tax jurisdictions. Although we believe that these transactions reflect the accurate economic allocation of profit and that proper transfer pricing documentation is in place, the profit allocation and transfer pricing terms and conditions may be scrutinized by local tax authorities during an audit and any resulting changes may impact our mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates. Current economic and political conditions make tax rules in any jurisdiction, including the United States and Canada, subject to significant change. Changes in applicable U.S., Canadian, or other or foreign tax laws and regulations, or their interpretation and application, including the possibility of retroactive effect, could affect our income tax expense and profitability, as they have in fiscal 2017 upon passage of the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. We have recorded provisional amounts in fiscal 2017 in relation to the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. We may make adjustments to the provisional amounts as additional information is collected and analyzed, and as we complete our assessment of the impact that the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has, if any, upon our reinvestment plans for the accumulated earnings of the Company's foreign subsidiaries. As the Company completes its analysis of the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act it may also make adjustments to incorporate any additional interpretations or guidance that may be issued. The Company may also identify additional effects of the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that are not reflected as of January 28, 2018. Any such adjustments may materially impact the provision for income taxes and our effective income tax rate in the period in which the adjustments are made, and in future periods. If we continue to grow at a rapid pace, we may not be able to effectively manage our growth and the increased complexity of our business and as a result our brand image and financial performance may suffer. We have expanded our operations rapidly since our inception in 1998 and our net revenue has increased from $40.7 million in fiscal 2004 to $2.6 billion in fiscal 2017. If our operations continue to grow at a rapid pace, we may experience difficulties in obtaining sufficient raw materials and manufacturing capacity to produce our products, as well as delays in production and shipments, as our products are subject to risks associated with overseas sourcing and manufacturing. We could be required to continue to expand our sales and marketing, product development and distribution functions, to upgrade our management information systems and other processes and technology, and to obtain more space for our expanding workforce. This expansion could increase the strain on our resources, and we could experience operating difficulties, including difficulties in hiring, training and managing an increasing number of employees. These difficulties could result in the erosion of our brand image which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition. We are subject to risks associated with leasing retail and distribution space subject to long-term and non-cancelable leases. We lease the majority of our stores under operating leases and our inability to secure appropriate real estate or lease terms could impact our ability to grow. Our leases generally have initial terms of between five and ten years, and generally can be extended in five-year increments if at all. We generally cannot cancel these leases at our option. If an existing or new store is not profitable, and we decide to close it, as we have done in the past and may do in the future, we may nonetheless be committed to perform our obligations under the applicable lease including, among other things, paying the base rent for the balance of the lease term. Similarly, we may be committed to perform our obligations under the applicable leases even if current locations of our stores become unattractive as demographic patterns change. In addition, as each of our leases expire, we may fail to negotiate renewals, either on commercially acceptable terms or at all, which could require us to close stores in desirable locations. We also lease the majority of our distribution centers and our inability to secure appropriate real estate or lease terms could impact our ability to deliver our products to the market. Our ability to source our merchandise profitably or at all could be hurt if new trade restrictions are imposed or existing trade restrictions become more burdensome. The United States and the countries in which our products are produced or sold internationally have imposed and may impose additional quotas, duties, tariffs, or other restrictions or regulations, or may adversely adjust prevailing quota, duty or tariff levels. We have expanded our relationships with suppliers outside of China, which among other things has resulted in increased costs and shipping times for some products. Countries impose, modify and remove tariffs and other trade restrictions in response to a diverse array of factors, including global and national economic and political conditions, which make it impossible for us to predict future developments regarding tariffs and other trade restrictions. Trade restrictions, including tariffs, quotas, embargoes, safeguards, and customs restrictions, could increase the cost or reduce the supply of products available to us or may require us to modify our supply chain organization or other current business practices, any of which could harm our business, financial condition and results of operations. We are dependent on international trade agreements and regulations. If the United States were to withdraw from or materially modify certain international trade agreements, our business could be adversely affected. Increasing labor costs and other factors associated with the production of our products in South and South East Asia could increase the costs to produce our products. A significant portion of our products are produced in South and South East Asia and increases in the costs of labor and other costs of doing business in the countries in this area could significantly increase our costs to produce our products and could have a negative impact on our operations, net revenue, and earnings. Factors that could negatively affect our business include a potential significant revaluation of the currencies used in these countries, which may result in an increase in the cost of producing products, labor shortage and increases in labor costs, and difficulties in moving products manufactured out of the countries in which they are manufactured and through the ports on the western coast of North America, whether due to port congestion, labor disputes, product regulations and/or inspections or other factors, and natural disasters or health pandemics. A labor strike or other transportation disruption affecting these ports could significantly disrupt our business. Also, the imposition of trade sanctions or other regulations against products imported by us from, or the loss of "normal trade relations" status with any country in which our products are manufactured, could significantly increase our cost of products imported into North America and/or Australia and harm our business. The operations of many of our suppliers are subject to additional risks that are beyond our control and that could harm our business, financial condition, and results of operations. Almost all of our suppliers are located outside of North America. During fiscal 2017, approximately 53% of our products were manufactured in South East Asia, approximately 25% in South Asia, approximately 10% in China, approximately 8% in the Americas, and the remainder in other regions. As a result of our international suppliers, we are subject to risks associated with doing business abroad, including: • political unrest, terrorism, labor disputes, and economic instability resulting in the disruption of trade from foreign countries in which our products are manufactured; • the imposition of new laws and regulations, including those relating to labor conditions, quality and safety standards, imports, duties, taxes and other charges on imports, as well as trade restrictions and restrictions on currency exchange or the transfer of funds; • reduced protection for intellectual property rights, including trademark protection, in some countries, particularly China; • disruptions or delays in shipments; and • changes in local economic conditions in countries where our manufacturers, suppliers, or guests are located. These and other factors beyond our control could interrupt our suppliers' production in offshore facilities, influence the ability of our suppliers to export our products cost-effectively or at all and inhibit our suppliers' ability to procure certain materials, any of which could harm our business, financial condition, and results of operations. We may not be able to successfully open new store locations in a timely manner, if at all, which could harm our results of operations. Our growth will largely depend on our ability to successfully open and operate new stores, which depends on many factors, including, among others, our ability to: • identify suitable store locations, the availability of which is outside of our control; • negotiate acceptable lease terms, including desired tenant improvement allowances; • hire, train and retain store personnel and field management; • immerse new store personnel and field management into our corporate culture; • source sufficient inventory levels; and • successfully integrate new stores into our existing operations and information technology systems. Successful new store openings may also be affected by our ability to initiate our grassroots marketing efforts in advance of opening our first store in a new market. We typically rely on our grassroots marketing efforts to build awareness of our brand and demand for our products. Our grassroots marketing efforts are often lengthy and must be tailored to each new market based on our emerging understanding of the market. We may not be able to successfully implement our grassroots marketing efforts in a particular market in a timely manner, if at all. Additionally, we may be unsuccessful in identifying new markets where our technical athletic apparel and other products and brand image will be accepted or the performance of our stores will be considered successful. Our failure to comply with trade and other regulations could lead to investigations or actions by government regulators and negative publicity. The labeling, distribution, importation, marketing, and sale of our products are subject to extensive regulation by various federal agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Product Safety Commission and state attorneys general in the United States, the Competition Bureau and Health Canada in Canada, as well as by various other federal, state, provincial, local and international regulatory authorities in the countries in which our products are distributed or sold. If we fail to comply with any of these regulations, we could become subject to enforcement actions or the imposition of significant penalties or claims, which could harm our results of operations or our ability to conduct our business. In addition, the adoption of new regulations or changes in the interpretation of existing regulations may result in significant compliance costs or discontinuation of product sales and could impair the marketing of our products, resulting in significant loss of net revenue. Our international operations are also subject to compliance with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, and other anti-bribery laws applicable to our operations. In many foreign countries, particularly in those with developing economies, it may be a local custom that businesses operating in such countries engage in business practices that are prohibited by the FCPA or other U.S. and foreign laws and regulations applicable to us. Although we have implemented procedures designed to ensure compliance with the FCPA and similar laws, some of our employees, agents, or other channel partners, as well as those companies to which we outsource certain of our business operations, could take actions in violation of our policies. Any such violation could have a material and adverse effect on our business. Our business is affected by seasonality. Our business is affected by the general seasonal trends common to the retail apparel industry. This seasonality may adversely affect our business and cause our results of operations to fluctuate, and, as a result, we believe that comparisons of our operating results between different quarters within a single fiscal year are not necessarily meaningful and that results of operations in any period should not be considered indicative of the results to be expected for any future period. Because a significant portion of our net revenue and expenses are generated in countries other than the United States, fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates have affected our results of operations and may continue to do so in the future. The functional currency of our foreign subsidiaries is generally the applicable local currency. Our consolidated financial statements are presented in U.S. dollars. Therefore, the net revenue, expenses, assets, and liabilities of our foreign subsidiaries are translated from their functional currencies into U.S. dollars. Fluctuations in the value of the U.S. dollar affect the reported amounts of net revenue, expenses, assets, and liabilities. Foreign exchange differences which arise on translation of our foreign subsidiaries' balance sheets into U.S. dollars are recorded as a foreign currency translation adjustment in accumulated other comprehensive income or loss within stockholders' equity. We also have exposure to changes in foreign exchange rates associated with transactions which are undertaken by our subsidiaries in currencies other than their functional currency. Such transactions include intercompany transactions and inventory purchases denominated in currencies other than the functional currency of the purchasing entity. As a result, we have been impacted by changes in exchange rates and may be impacted for the foreseeable future. The potential impact of currency fluctuation increases as our international expansion increases. We have, and may continue to, enter into forward currency contracts, or other derivative instruments, in an effort to mitigate the foreign exchange risks which we are exposed to. This may include entering into forward currency contracts to hedge against the foreign exchange gains and losses which arise on translation of our foreign subsidiaries' balance sheets into U.S. dollars, or entering into forward currency contracts in an effort to reduce our exposure to foreign exchange revaluation gains and losses that arise on monetary assets and liabilities held by our subsidiaries in a currency other than their functional currency. Although we use financial instruments to hedge certain foreign currency risks, these measures may not succeed in fully offsetting the negative impact of foreign currency rate movements. We are exposed to credit-related losses in the event of nonperformance by the counterparties to the forward currency contracts. Our trademarks and other proprietary rights could potentially conflict with the rights of others and we may be prevented from selling some of our products. Our success depends in large part on our brand image. We believe that our trademarks and other proprietary rights have significant value and are important to identifying and differentiating our products from those of our competitors and creating and sustaining demand for our products. We have obtained and applied for some United States and foreign trademark registrations, and will continue to evaluate the registration of additional trademarks as appropriate. However, some or all of these pending trademark applications may not be approved by the applicable governmental authorities. Moreover, even if the applications are approved, third parties may seek to oppose or otherwise challenge these registrations. Additionally, we may face obstacles as we expand our product line and the geographic scope of our sales and marketing. Third parties may assert intellectual property claims against us, particularly as we expand our business and the number of products we offer. Our defense of any claim, regardless of its merit, could be expensive and time consuming and could divert management resources. Successful infringement claims against us could result in significant monetary liability or prevent us from selling some of our products. In addition, resolution of claims may require us to redesign our products, license rights from third parties, or cease using those rights altogether. Any of these events could harm our business and cause our results of operations, liquidity, and financial condition to suffer. We are subject to periodic claims and litigation that could result in unexpected expenses and could ultimately be resolved against us. From time to time, we are involved in litigation and other proceedings, including matters related to product liability claims, stockholder class action and derivative claims, commercial disputes and intellectual property, as well as trade, regulatory, employment, and other claims related to our business. Any of these proceedings could result in significant settlement amounts, damages, fines or other penalties, divert financial and management resources, and result in significant legal fees. An unfavorable outcome of any particular proceeding could exceed the limits of our insurance policies or the carriers may decline to fund such final settlements and/or judgments and could have an adverse impact on our business, financial condition, and results of operations. In addition, any proceeding could negatively impact our reputation among our guests and our brand image. Our business could be negatively affected as a result of actions of activist stockholders, and such activism could impact the trading value of our securities. Responding to actions by activist stockholders can be costly and time-consuming, disrupting our operations and diverting the attention of management and our employees. Such activities could interfere with our ability to execute our strategic plan. In addition, a proxy contest for the election of directors at our annual meeting would require us to incur significant legal fees and proxy solicitation expenses and require significant time and attention by management and our board of directors. The perceived uncertainties as to our future direction also could affect the market price and volatility of our securities. Anti-takeover provisions of Delaware law and our certificate of incorporation and bylaws could delay and discourage takeover attempts that stockholders may consider to be favorable. Certain provisions of our certificate of incorporation and bylaws and applicable provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law may make it more difficult or impossible for a third-party to acquire control of us or effect a change in our board of directors and management. These provisions include: • the classification of our board of directors into three classes, with one class elected each year; • prohibiting cumulative voting in the election of directors; • the ability of our board of directors to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval; • the ability to remove a director only for cause and only with the vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3% of our voting stock; • a special meeting of stockholders may only be called by our chairman or Chief Executive Officer, or upon a resolution adopted by an affirmative vote of a majority of the board of directors, and not by our stockholders; • prohibiting stockholder action by written consent; and • our stockholders must comply with advance notice procedures in order to nominate candidates for election to our board of directors or to place stockholder proposals on the agenda for consideration at any meeting of our stockholders. In addition, we are governed by Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law which, subject to some specified exceptions, prohibits "business combinations" between a Delaware corporation and an "interested stockholder," which is generally defined as a stockholder who becomes a beneficial owner of 15% or more of a Delaware corporation's voting stock, for a three-year period following the date that the stockholder became an interested stockholder. Section 203 could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change in control that our stockholders might consider to be in their best interests. ITEM 2.