Item 1A. Risk Factors
Item 1A. Risk Factors.
Investing in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below, together with all of the other information in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q,
including the section titled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and the accompanying notes and the information contained in our other public filings before deciding whether to invest in shares of our common stock. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones we face. Additional risks and uncertainties that we are unaware of or that we deem immaterial may also become important factors that adversely affect our business. If any of the following risks occur, our business, financial condition, operating results, and future prospects could be materially and adversely affected. In that event, the market price of our common stock could decline, and you could lose part or all of your investment.
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Summary of Risk Factors
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
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If we are unable to anticipate and satisfy consumer preferences and shifting views of health, fitness and nutrition, our business may be adversely affected.
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The perception of the effects or value of our nutritional products may change over time, which could reduce customer demand.
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If we are unable to sustain pricing levels for our products and services, our business could be adversely affected.
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Our marketing strategy relies on the use of social media platforms and any negative publicity on such social media platforms may adversely affect the public perception of our brand, and changing terms or conditions or ways in which advertisers use their platforms may adversely affect our ability to engage with customers, both of which in turn could have a material and adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, our use of social media could subject us to fines or other penalties.
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We may be unable to attract and retain customers, which would materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
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Our customers use their connected fitness products and fitness accessories to track and record their workouts. If our products fail to provide accurate metrics and data to our customers, our brand and reputation could be harmed and we may be unable to retain our customers.
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Our business relies on sales of a few key products.
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We may be unable to effectively integrate Myx’s business into our operations.
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If there are any material delays or disruptions in our supply chain, or errors in forecasting of the demand for our products and services, our business may be adversely affected.
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The failure or inability of our contract manufacturers to comply with the specifications and requirements of our products could result in product recall, which could adversely affect our reputation and subject us to significant liability should the consumption of any of our products cause or be claimed to cause illness or physical harm.
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If any of our products are unacceptable to us or our customers, or any other change in the competitive landscape and activities of our competitors, our business could be harmed.
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Our business model relies on high quality customer service, and any negative impressions of our customer service experience may adversely affect our business and result in harm to our reputation.
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The seasonal nature of our business could cause operating results to fluctuate.
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If we fail to obtain and retain high-profile strategic relationships, or if the reputation of any of these parties is impaired, our business may suffer.
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Our founder has control over all stockholder decisions because he controls a substantial majority of our voting power through “super” voting stock.
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If there is a material change or decline in the continued market acceptance of, and the related growth of, the connected fitness and wellness market, our business could be harmed.
Risks Related to Expansion
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There can be no assurance that we can further penetrate existing markets or that we can successfully expand our business into new markets.
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We plan to expand into international markets, which will expose us to significant risks.
Risks Related to Our Personnel
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We depend on our senior management team and other key employees, and the loss of one or more key personnel or an inability to attract, hire, integrate and retain highly skilled personnel could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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Risks Related to Data and Information Systems
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We collect, store, process, and use personal information and other customer data which subjects us to legal obligations and laws and regulations related to data security and privacy, and any actual or perceived failure to meet those obligations could harm our business.
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Any major disruption or failure of our information technology systems or websites, or our failure to successfully implement upgrades and new technology effectively, could adversely affect our business and operations.
Risks Related to Laws and Regulations
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We face risks, such as unforeseen costs and potential liability in connection with allegations of injuries arising from equipment we supply and content we produce, license, advertise, and distribute through our various content delivery platforms.
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Our nutritional products must comply with regulations of the Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, as well as state, local and applicable international regulations. Any non-compliance
with the FDA or other applicable regulations could harm our business.
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Our network of micro-influencers could be found not to be in compliance with current or newly adopted laws or regulations in one or more markets, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
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Our products or services offered as part of automatically renewing subscriptions or memberships could be found not to be in compliance with laws or regulations in one or more markets, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
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Myx may be subject to warranty claims that could result in significant direct or indirect costs, or Myx could experience greater returns than expected, either of which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
Risk Factors
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
If we are unable to anticipate and satisfy consumer preferences and shifting views of health, fitness and nutrition, our business may be adversely affected.
The fitness industry is highly susceptible to changes in consumer preferences. Our success depends on our ability to anticipate and satisfy consumer preferences relating to health, fitness and nutrition. Our business is, and all of our workouts and products are, subject to changing consumer preferences that cannot be predicted with certainty. Consumers’ preferences for health and fitness services and products, including the technology through which they consume these services and products, could shift rapidly to offerings different from what we offer, and we may be unable to anticipate and respond to such shifts in consumer preferences. It is also possible that competitors could introduce new products, services and/or technologies that negatively impact consumer preference for our workouts and products. In addition, developments or shifts in research or public opinion on the types of workouts and products we provide could negatively impact our business. 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 health and fitness services. Our failure to effectively introduce new health and fitness services that are accepted by consumers could result in a decrease in revenue, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and adversely impact our business.
The perception of the effects of our nutritional products may change over time, which could reduce customer demand.
A substantial portion of our revenues is derived from our Shakeology line of products. We believe that these nutritional products have, or are perceived to have, positive effects on health, and compete in a market that relies on innovation and evolving consumer preferences. However, the nutritional industry is subject to changing consumer trends, demands and preferences. Additionally, the science underlying nutritious foods and dietary supplements is constantly evolving. Therefore, products once considered healthy may over time become disfavored by consumers or no longer be perceived as healthy. Trends within the food industry change often and our failure to anticipate, identify or react to changes in these trends could, among other things, lead to reduced consumer demand and spending reductions, and could adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, ingredients used in our products may become negatively perceived by consumers, resulting in reformulation of existing products to remove such ingredients, which may negatively affect taste
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or other qualities. Factors that may affect consumer perception of nutritional products include dietary trends and attention to different nutritional aspects of foods, concerns regarding the health effects of specific ingredients and nutrients, trends away from specific ingredients in products and increasing awareness of the environmental and social effects of product production. For example, conflicting scientific information on what constitutes good nutrition, diet trends and other weight loss trends may also adversely affect our business from time to time. Our success depends, in part, on our ability to anticipate the tastes and dietary habits of consumers and other consumer trends and to offer nutritional products that appeal to their needs and preferences on a timely and affordable basis. Failure to do so could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and adversely impact our business.
We rely on consumer discretionary spending, which may be adversely affected by economic downturns and other macroeconomic conditions or trends.
Our business and operating results are subject to global economic conditions and their impact on consumer discretionary spending. Some of the factors that may negatively influence consumer spending include high levels of unemployment, higher consumer debt levels, reductions in net worth, declines in asset values and related market uncertainty, home foreclosures and reductions in home values, fluctuating interest rates and credit availability, fluctuating fuel and other energy costs, fluctuating commodity prices and general uncertainty regarding the overall future of the political and economic environment. Consumer purchases of discretionary items generally decline during periods of economic uncertainty, when disposable income is reduced or when there is a reduction in consumer confidence. If consumer purchases of subscriptions and products decline, our revenue may be adversely affected.
For example, COVID-19
continues to affect consumer spending. Continued efforts to contain the effect of the virus have included travel restrictions and restrictions on public gatherings. Many businesses continue to limit non-essential
travel and in-person
events, and governments across the globe continue to restrict business and personal activities. These efforts have led to an increase in at-home
gyms and workouts which has in turn led to an increase in our consumers, a trend which may be negatively impacted as commercial and office gyms attempt to reopen. The ultimate severity of the coronavirus outbreak and successful distribution and vaccine inoculation results are uncertain at this time and therefore we cannot predict the full impact it may have on our end markets or operations; however, the effect on our results could be material and adverse. Any significant or prolonged decrease in consumer spending on fitness or nutritional products could adversely affect the demand for our offerings, reducing our cash flows and revenues, and thereby materially harming our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Further, COVID-19
has had a significant impact on the fitness sector and has increased demand for home fitness solutions as gyms across the country have either been shuttered by government orders or abandoned by members uncertain of their safety in those facilities. While we cannot predict the long-term impact on consumer behavior, we believe that a significant percentage of gym goers do not plan to return to the gym even after widespread distribution of the COVID-19
vaccine. The adoption of at-home
connected fitness by the broad market consumer has been accelerated by the pandemic. In addition, COVID-19
has had an adverse impact on global supply chains, resulting in an increased uncertainty in shipping lead times as well as increased import and logistics costs. However, if a significant percentage of consumers return to the gym and do not continue at-home
fitness, or import and logistics costs continue to increase, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may be adversely affected.
If we are unable to sustain pricing levels for our products and services, our business could be adversely affected.
If we are unable to sustain pricing levels for our products and services, including our nutritional products, digital services and connected fitness products, whether due to competitive pressure or otherwise, our revenue and gross margins could be significantly reduced. Further, our decisions around the development of new ancillary products and services are grounded in assumptions about eventual pricing levels. If there is price compression in the market after these decisions are made, it could have a negative effect on our business.
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Our success depends on our ability to maintain the value and reputation of our brands.
We believe that our brands are important to attracting and retaining customers. Maintaining, protecting, and enhancing our brands depends largely on the success of our marketing efforts, ability to provide consistent, high-quality products, services, features, content, and support, and our ability to successfully secure, maintain, and defend our rights to use our trademarks, logos and other intellectual property important to our brands. We believe that the importance of our brands will increase as competition further intensifies and brand promotion activities may require substantial expenditures. Our brands could be harmed if we fail to achieve these objectives or if our public image were to be tarnished by negative publicity. Unfavorable publicity about us, including our products, services, technology, subscriber service, content, personnel, industry, distribution and/or marketing channel, and suppliers could diminish confidence in, and the use of, our products and services. Such negative publicity also could have an adverse effect on the size, engagement and loyalty of our customer base and result in decreased revenue, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and operating results.
Adverse publicity associated with our products, ingredients or network marketing program, or those of similar companies, could adversely affect our business.
The size of our distributor base and the results of our operations may be significantly affected by the perception of our company and similar companies. This perception is dependent upon opinions concerning:
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the safety and quality of our products and nutritional supplement ingredients;
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the safety and quality of similar products and ingredients distributed by other companies;
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our distributors;
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publicity concerning network marketing; and
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the direct selling business generally.
Adverse publicity concerning any actual or purported failure of our Company or our distributors to comply with applicable laws and regulations regarding product claims and advertising, good manufacturing practices, the regulation of our network marketing business, the licensing of our products for sale in our target markets, or other aspects of our business, whether or not resulting in enforcement actions or the imposition of penalties, could have an adverse effect on the goodwill of our Company and could negatively affect our ability to attract, motivate and retain distributors, which would have a material adverse effect on our ability to generate revenue. We cannot ensure that all distributors will comply with applicable legal requirements relating to the advertising, sale, labeling, licensing or distribution of our products or promotion of the income opportunity.
In addition, our distributors’ and consumers’ perception of the safety and quality of our products and ingredients as well as similar products and ingredients distributed by other companies can be significantly influenced by national media attention, publicized scientific research or findings, widespread product liability claims and other publicity concerning our products or ingredients or similar products and ingredients distributed by other companies. Adverse publicity, whether or not accurate or resulting from consumers’ use or misuse of our products, that associates consumption of our products or ingredients or any similar products or ingredients with illness or other adverse effects, questions the benefits of our or similar products or claims that any such products are ineffective, inappropriately labeled or have inaccurate instructions as to their use, could have a material adverse effect on our reputation or the market demand for our products.
Our marketing strategy relies on the use of social media platforms and any negative publicity on such social media platforms may adversely affect the public perception of our brand, and changing terms or conditions or ways in which advertisers use their platforms may adversely affect our ability to engage with customers, both of which in turn could have a material and adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, our use of social media could subject us to fines or other penalties.
We rely on social media marketing through various social media platforms, such as Instagram, YouTube and Facebook, as a means to engage with our existing customers as well as attract new customers. Existing and new customers alike interact with the brand both organically, through posts by the Beachbody community, as well as through distributors via their own social media accounts. While the use of social media platforms allows us access to a broad audience of consumers and other interested persons, our use of, and reliance on, social media as a key marketing tool exposes us to significant risk of
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widespread negative publicity. Social media users generally have the ability to post information to social media platforms without filters or checks on accuracy of the content posted. Information concerning the Company or its many brands may be posted on such platforms at any time. Such information may be adverse to our interests or may be inaccurate, each of which can harm our reputation and value of our brands. The harm may be immediate without affording us an opportunity for redress or correction. In addition, social media platforms provide users with access to such a broad audience that collective action against our products and offerings, such as boycotts, can be more easily organized. If such actions were organized, we could suffer reputational damage. Social media platforms may be used to attack us, our information security systems, including through use of spam, spyware, ransomware, phishing and social engineering, viruses, worms, malware, distributed denial of service attacks, password attacks, “Man in the Middle” attacks, cybersquatting, impersonation of employees or officers, abuse of comments and message boards, fake reviews, doxing and swatting. As such, the dissemination of information on social media platforms and other online platforms could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition, regardless of the information’s accuracy.
Our reliance on social media platforms for advertising also subjects us to the risk that any change to the platforms’ algorithms, terms and conditions and/or ways in which advertisers may advertise on their platforms may adversely affect our ability to effectively engage with customers and sell our products, which in turn could have a material and adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
In addition, our use of social media platforms as a marketing tool could also subject us to fines or other penalties. As laws and regulations, including those from the Federal Trade Commission, State Attorneys General, and other enforcement agencies rapidly evolve to govern the use of these platforms, the failure by us, our distributors, influencers, or other third parties acting at our direction to abide by applicable laws and regulations in the use of these platforms could materially and adversely impact our business, results of operations and financial condition or subject us to fines or other penalties.
We may be unable to attract and retain customers, which would materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
The success of our business depends on our ability to attract and retain customers. Our marketing efforts may not be successful in attracting customers, and membership levels may materially decline over time. Customers may cancel their membership at any time. In addition, we experience attrition, and we must continually engage existing customers and attract new customers in order to maintain membership levels. Some of the factors that could lead to a decline in membership levels include, among other factors:
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changing desires and behaviors of consumers or their perception of our brand;
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changes in discretionary spending trends;
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market maturity or saturation;
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a decline in our ability to deliver quality service at a competitive price;
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a failure to introduce new features, products or services that customers find engaging;
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the introduction of new products or services, or changes to existing products and services, that are not favorably received;
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technical or other problems that affect the customer experience;
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an increase in membership fees due to inflation;
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direct and indirect competition in our industry;
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a decline in the public’s interest in health and fitness; and
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a general deterioration of economic conditions or a change in consumer spending preferences or buying trends.
Any decrease in our average fees or higher membership costs may materially and adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition. Additionally, further expansion into international markets may create new challenges in attracting and retaining customers that we may not successfully address, as these markets carry unique risks as discussed below. As a result of these factors, we cannot be certain that our membership levels will be adequate to maintain or permit the expansion of our operations. A decline in membership levels would have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
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Our customers use their connected fitness products and fitness accessories to track and record their workouts. If our products fail to provide accurate metrics and data to our customers, our brand and reputation could be harmed, and we may be unable to retain our customers.
Our customers use their connected fitness products and fitness accessories to track and record certain metrics related to their workouts. Examples of metrics tracked on our platform currently include heartrate and calories burned. These metrics assist our customers in tracking their fitness journeys and understanding the effectiveness of their workouts. We anticipate introducing new metrics and features in the future. If the software used in our connected fitness products or on our platform malfunctions and fails to accurately track, display, or record customers workouts and metrics, we could face claims alleging that our products and services do not operate as advertised. Such reports and claims could result in negative publicity, product liability claims, and, in some cases, may require us to expend time and resources to refute such claims and defend against potential litigation. If our products and services fail to provide accurate metrics and data to our customers, or if there are reports or claims of inaccurate metrics and data or claims of inaccuracy regarding the overall health benefits of our products and services in the future, we may become the subject of negative publicity, litigation, regulatory proceedings, and warranty claims, and our brand, operating results, and business could be harmed.
Our business relies on sales of a few key products.
Our digital platforms which provide recurring subscription revenue also provide a significant portion of our revenue, accounting for approximately 42% of revenue for the three months ended June 30, 2021. Our Shakeology dietary supplement product also constitutes a significant portion of our revenue, accounting for approximately 35% of revenue for the three months ended June 30, 2021. If consumer demand for these products decreases significantly or we cease offering these products without a suitable replacement, our operations could be materially adversely affected. Despite these efforts, our financial performance currently remains dependent on a few products. Any significant diminished consumer interest in these products would adversely affect our business. We could also experience adverse financial consequences if we fail to sustain market interest in the newly-added Myx business. We may not be able to develop successful new products or implement successful enhancements to existing products. Any products that we do develop or enhance may not generate sufficient revenue to justify the cost of developing and marketing these products.
We operate in highly competitive markets and we may be unable to compete successfully against existing and future competitors.
Our products and services are offered in a highly competitive market. We face significant competition in every aspect of our business, including at-home
fitness equipment and content, fitness clubs, nutritional products, dietary supplements, and health and wellness apps. Moreover, we expect the competition in our market to intensify in the future as new and existing competitors introduce new or enhanced products and services that compete with ours.
Our competitors may develop, or have already developed, products, features, content, services, or technologies that are similar to ours or that achieve greater acceptance, may undertake more successful product development efforts, create more compelling employment opportunities, or marketing campaigns, or may adopt more aggressive pricing policies. Our competitors may develop or acquire, or have already developed or acquired, intellectual property rights that significantly limit or prevent our ability to compete effectively in the public marketplace. In addition, our competitors may have significantly greater resources than us, allowing them to identify and capitalize more efficiently upon opportunities in new markets and consumer preferences and trends, quickly transition and adapt their products and services, devote greater resources to marketing, advertising and research and development, or be better positioned to withstand substantial price competition. If we are not able to compete effectively against our competitors, they may acquire and engage customers or generate revenue at the expense of our efforts, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and operating results. The business of marketing nutritional products is highly competitive and sensitive to the introduction of new products,
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including various prescription drugs, which may rapidly capture a significant share of the market. These market segments include numerous manufacturers, distributors, marketers, retailers and physicians that actively compete for the business of consumers both in the United States and abroad. In addition, we anticipate that we will be subject to increasing competition in the future from large electronic commerce sellers. Some of these competitors have significantly greater financial, technical, product development, marketing and sales resources, greater name recognition, larger established subscriber bases, and better-developed distribution channels than we do. Our present or future competitors may be able to develop products that are comparable or superior to those we offer, adapt more quickly than we do to new technologies, evolving industry trends and standards or subscriber requirements, or devote greater resources to the development, promotion and sale of their products than we do. Accordingly, we may not be able to compete effectively in our markets and competition may intensify.
We are also subject to competition for the recruitment of distributors from other organizations, including those that market nutritional products, dietary and nutritional supplements, and personal care products as well as other types of products. Our ability to remain competitive depends, in part, on our success in recruiting and retaining our Coaches through an attractive compensation plan, the maintenance of an attractive product portfolio, and other incentives. We cannot ensure that our programs for recruitment and retention efforts will be successful.
We compete with other direct selling organizations, some of which have longer operating histories and higher visibility, name recognition and financial resources. We compete for new Coaches on the basis of the culture, premium quality products and compensation plan. We envision the entry of many more direct selling organizations into the marketplace as this channel of distribution expands. There can be no assurance that the Company will be able to successfully meet the challenges posed by increased competition.
We also compete for the time, attention and commitment of our independent distributor force. Given that the pool of individuals interested in the business opportunities presented by direct selling tends to be limited in each market, the potential pool of distributors for our products is reduced to the extent other companies successfully recruit these individuals into their businesses. Although we believe that we offer an attractive business opportunity, there can be no assurance that other companies will not be able to recruit our existing distributors or deplete the pool of potential distributors in a given market.
We may be unable to effectively integrate the Myx business into our operations.
The acquisition of Myx, including the Myx brand name, its product line, and all existing equipment, inventory and facilities presents significant challenges for our management team. To be successful, we must effectively and efficiently integrate the Myx business into our organization, including the Myx product line, marketing and distribution system, production facilities, product development teams, and administrative and finance personnel and policies. We must also implement appropriate operational, financial and management systems and controls. We may encounter significant difficulties in this process, any one or more of which could adversely affect our business.
Additionally, our contract manufacturing experience is generally limited to the production of our dietary supplement products. We intend to continue Myx’s contract manufacturing operations, which are much more extensive than our own. We may be unable to operate Myx’s manufacturing operations in a cost-effective or timely manner.
Because of these and other risks, our acquisition of Myx could fail to produce the revenue, earnings and business synergies that we anticipate, in which case our business would be adversely affected.
We have limited control over our suppliers, manufacturers, and logistics providers, which may subject us to significant risks, including the potential inability to produce or obtain quality products on a timely basis or in sufficient quantity in order to meet demand.
We have limited control over our suppliers, manufacturers, and logistics providers, which subjects us to risks, such as the following:
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inability to satisfy demand for our products or other products or services that we currently offer or may offer in the future;
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reduced control over delivery timing and product reliability;
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reduced ability to monitor the manufacturing process and components used in our products;
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limited ability to develop comprehensive manufacturing specifications that take into account any materials shortages or substitutions;
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variance in the manufacturing capability of our third-party manufacturers;
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price increases;
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failure of a significant supplier, manufacturer, or logistics provider to perform its obligations to us for technical, market or other reasons;
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difficulties in establishing additional supplier, manufacturer or logistics provider relationships if we experience difficulties with our existing suppliers, manufacturers, or logistics providers;
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shortages of materials or components;
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misappropriation of our intellectual property;
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exposure to natural catastrophes, pandemics, political unrest, terrorism, labor disputes, and economic instability resulting in the disruption of trade from foreign countries in which our products are manufactured or the components thereof are sourced;
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changes in local economic conditions in the jurisdictions where our suppliers, manufacturers, and logistics providers are located;
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the imposition of new laws and regulations, including those relating to labor conditions, quality and safety standards, imports, duties, tariffs, taxes, and other charges on imports, as well as trade restrictions and restrictions on currency exchange or the transfer of funds; and
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insufficient warranties and indemnities on ingredients or components supplied to our manufacturers or performance by these parties.
We also rely on our logistics providers, including last mile warehouse and delivery providers, to complete deliveries to customers. If any of these independent contractors do not perform their obligations or meet the expectations of us or our customers, our reputation and business could suffer.
The occurrence of any of these risks, especially during seasons of peak demand, could cause us to experience a significant disruption in our ability to produce and deliver our products to our customers.
The failure or inability of our contract manufacturers to comply with the specifications and requirements of our products could result in a product recall, which could adversely affect our reputation and subject us to significant liability should the consumption of any of our products cause or be claimed to cause illness or physical harm.
We sell nutritional products for human consumption, which involves risks such as product contamination or spoilage, product tampering, other adulteration, mislabeling and misbranding. We also sell stationary bikes. All of our products are manufactured by independent third-party contract manufacturers. In addition, we do not own a warehouse facility, instead it is managed for us by a third party. Under certain circumstances, we may be required to, or may voluntarily, recall or withdraw products.
A widespread recall or withdrawal of any of our products may negatively and significantly impact our sales and profitability for a period of time and could result in significant losses depending on the costs of the recall, destruction of product inventory, reduction in product availability, and reaction of competitors and consumers. We may also be subject to claims or lawsuits, including class actions lawsuits (which could significantly increase any adverse settlements or rulings), resulting in liability for actual or claimed injuries, illness or death. Any of these events could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Even if a product liability claim or lawsuit is unsuccessful or is not fully pursued, the negative publicity surrounding any assertion that our products caused illness or physical harm could adversely affect our reputation with existing and potential consumers and its corporate and brand image. Moreover, claims or liabilities of this sort might not be covered by insurance or by any rights of indemnity or contribution that we may have against others. We maintain product liability and product recall insurance in an amount that we believe to be adequate. However, we may incur claims or liabilities for which we are not insured or that exceed the amount of our insurance coverage. A product liability judgment against us or a product recall could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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If any of our products are unacceptable to us or our customers, our business could be harmed.
We have occasionally received, and may in the future continue to 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 continue to receive, products that either meet our technical specifications but that are nonetheless unacceptable to us, or products that are otherwise unacceptable to us or our customers. 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 customers or riders, they could lose confidence in the quality of our products and our results of operations could suffer and our business could be harmed.
Our products and services may be affected from time to time by design and manufacturing defects that could adversely affect our business and result in harm to our reputation.
We offer through Myx complex hardware and software products and services that can be affected by design and manufacturing defects. Sophisticated operating system software and applications, such as those which will be offered by us, often have issues that can unexpectedly interfere with the intended operation of hardware or software products. Defects may also exist in components and products that we source from third parties. Any such defects could make our products and services unsafe, create a risk of environmental or property damage and personal injury, and subject us to the hazards and uncertainties of product liability claims and related litigation. In addition, from time to time we may experience outages, service slowdowns, or errors that affect our fitness and wellness programming. As a result, our services may not perform as anticipated and may not meet customer expectations. There can be no assurance that we will be able to detect and fix all issues and defects in the hardware, software, and services we offer. Failure to do so could result in widespread technical and performance issues affecting our products and services and could lead to claims against us. We maintain general liability insurance; however, design and manufacturing defects, and claims related thereto, may subject us to judgments or settlements that result in damages materially in excess of the limits of our insurance coverage. In addition, we may be exposed to recalls, product replacements or modifications, write-offs of inventory, property, plant and equipment, or intangible assets, and significant warranty and other expenses such as litigation costs and regulatory fines. If we cannot successfully defend any large claim, maintain our general liability insurance on acceptable terms, or maintain adequate coverage against potential claims, our financial results could be adversely impacted. Further, quality problems could adversely affect the experience for users of our products and services, and result in harm to our reputation, loss of competitive advantage, poor market acceptance, reduced demand for our products and services, delay in new product and service introductions, and lost revenue.
We may incur material product liability claims, which could increase our costs and adversely affect our revenues and operating income.
Additionally, our nutritional and dietary supplement products consist of herbs, vitamins and minerals and other ingredients that are classified as foods or dietary supplements and are not subject to pre-market
regulatory approval in the United States. Our products could contain contaminated substances, and some of our products contain innovative ingredients that do not have long histories of human consumption. We do not always conduct or sponsor clinical studies for our products and previously unknown adverse reactions resulting from human consumption of these ingredients could occur. As a marketer of dietary and nutritional supplements and other products that are ingested by consumers, we have been, and may again be, subjected to various product liability claims, including that the products contain contaminants, the products include inadequate instructions as to their uses, or the products include inadequate warnings concerning side effects and interactions with other substances. It is possible that widespread product liability claims could increase our costs, and adversely affect our revenues and operating income. Moreover, liability claims arising from a serious adverse event may increase our costs through higher insurance premiums and deductibles and may make it more difficult to secure adequate insurance coverage in the future. In addition, our product liability insurance may fail to cover future product liability claims thereby requiring us to pay substantial monetary damages and adversely affecting our business.
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Our business model relies on high quality customer service, and any negative impressions of our customer service experience may adversely affect our business and result in harm to our reputation.
We rely on high quality overall customer service across all of our products and services. Positive customer service experiences help drive a positive reputation, increased sales and minimization of litigation. For example, once our streaming services and integrated connected-bike products are purchased, our customers rely on our high-touch delivery and set up service to deliver and install their equipment in a professional and efficient manner. Our customers also rely on our support services to resolve any issues related to the use of such services and content. Providing a high-quality customer experience is vital to our success in generating word-of-mouth
referrals to drive sales and for retaining existing customers. The importance of high-quality support will increase as we expand our business and introduce new products and services. If we do not help our customers quickly resolve issues and provide effective ongoing support, our reputation may suffer and our ability to retain and attract customers, or to sell additional products and services to existing customers, could be harmed.
The seasonal nature of our business could cause operating results to fluctuate.
We have experienced and continue to expect fluctuations in quarterly results of operations due to the seasonal nature of our business. The months of January to May result in the greatest retail sales due to renewed consumer focus on healthy living following New Year’s Day, as well as significant subscriber enrollment around that time. This seasonality could cause our share price to fluctuate as the results of an interim financial period may not be indicative of our full year results. Seasonality also impacts relative revenue and profitability of each quarter of the year, both on a quarter-to-quarter
and year-over-year basis.
If we fail to obtain and retain high-profile strategic relationships, or if the reputation of any of these parties is impaired, our business may suffer.
A principal component of our marketing program has been to develop relationships with high-profile persons, such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lebron James, to help us extend the reach of our brand. Although we have relationships with several well-known individuals in this manner, we may not be able to attract and build relationships with new persons in the future. In addition, if the actions of these parties were to damage their or our reputation, our relationships may be less attractive to our current or prospective customers. Any of these failures by us or these parties could materially and adversely affect our business and revenues.
Our operating results could be adversely affected if we are unable to accurately forecast consumer demand for our products and services and adequately manage our inventory.
To ensure adequate inventory supply, we must forecast inventory needs and expenses and place orders sufficiently in advance with our suppliers and manufacturers, based on our estimates of future demand for particular products and services. Failure to accurately forecast our needs may result in manufacturing delays or increased costs. Our ability to accurately forecast demand could be affected by many factors, including changes in consumer demand for our products and services, changes in demand for the products and services of our competitors, unanticipated changes in general market conditions, and the weakening of economic conditions or consumer confidence in future economic conditions. This risk may be exacerbated by the fact that we may not carry a significant amount of inventory and may not be able to satisfy short-term demand increases. If we fail to accurately forecast consumer demand, we may experience excess inventory levels or a shortage of products available for sale.
Inventory levels in excess of consumer demand may result in inventory write-downs or write-offs and the sale of excess inventory at discounted prices, which would cause our gross margins to suffer and could impair the strength and premium nature of our brand. Further, lower than forecasted demand could also result in excess manufacturing capacity or reduced manufacturing efficiencies, which could result in lower margins. Conversely, if we underestimate consumer demand, our suppliers and manufacturers may not be able to deliver products to meet our requirements or we may be subject to higher costs in order to secure the necessary production capacity. An inability to meet consumer demand and delays in the delivery of our products to our customers could result in reputational harm and damaged customer relationships and have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and operating results.
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Our founder has control over all stockholder decisions because he controls a substantial majority of our voting power through our Class X Common Stock, or “super” voting stock.
As of June 30, 2021, our founder, Carl Daikeler, owns or controls “super” voting shares of the Company representing approximately 84.8% of the voting power of the Company. Mr. Daikeler and certain of his affiliated entities own a majority of the Company’s outstanding Class X Common Stock, which stock carries 10 votes per share, and, therefore, will control a majority of the voting power of the Company’s outstanding common stock. The Class X Common Stock carries substantially similar rights as the Class A Common Stock, except that each share of Class X Common Stock carries 10 votes. Therefore, Mr. Daikeler alone can exercise voting control over a majority of our voting power. As a result, Mr. Daikeler has the ability to control the outcome of all matters submitted to our stockholders for approval, including the election, removal, and replacement of our directors, amendments to our organizational documents and approval of major corporate transactions. This concentrated control could give our founder the ability to delay, defer or prevent a change of control, merger, consolidation, or sale of all or substantially all of our assets that other stockholders support. Conversely, this concentrated control could allow our founder to consummate such a transaction that our other stockholders do not support. In addition, our founder may make long-term strategic investment decisions and take risks that may not be successful and may seriously harm our business.
The Class X Common Stock will automatically convert into Class A Common Stock if Mr. Daikeler no longer provides services to Beachbody as a senior executive officer or director or if Mr. Daikeler and certain of his affiliates have sold more than 75% of the shares of Class X Common Stock held by them at the time of the consummation of the Business Combination when they were originally issued.
As our Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Daikeler has control over our day-to-day
management and the implementation of major strategic investments of our company, subject to authorization and oversight by our board of directors. As a board member and officer, Mr. Daikeler owes a fiduciary duty to our stockholders and must act in good faith in a manner they reasonably believe to be in the best interests of our stockholders. As a stockholder, even a controlling stockholder, Mr. Daikeler is entitled to vote his shares, and shares over which he has voting control, in his own interests, which may not always be in the interests of our stockholders generally. Even if Mr. Daikeler’s employment with us is terminated, he will continue to have the ability to exercise the same significant voting power and potentially control the outcome of all matters submitted to our stockholders for approval.
The concentration of our stock ownership limits our stockholders’ ability to influence corporate matters.
Our Class X Common Stock has 10 votes per share, our Class A Common Stock has one vote per share, and our Class C Common Stock has no voting rights. Because our Class C Common Stock carries no voting rights, the issuance of the Class C Common Stock, including in future stock-based acquisition transactions, to fund employee equity incentive programs or otherwise could continue Mr. Daikeler’s current relative voting power and his ability to elect our directors and to determine the outcome of most matters submitted to a vote of our stockholders because, in the event of such an issuance of Class C Common Stock, the voting control of holders of Class X Common Stock would not be affected whereas the economic power of the Class X Common Stock would be diluted. This concentrated control limits or severely restricts other stockholders’ ability to influence corporate matters and we may take actions that some of our stockholders do not view as beneficial, which could reduce the market price of our Class A Common Stock and our Class C Common Stock.
Because the Company is a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE rules, our stockholders may not have certain corporate governance protections that are available to stockholders of companies that are not controlled companies
So long as more than 50% of the voting power for the election of directors of the Company is held by an individual, a group or another company, we will qualify as a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE corporate governance standards. As of June 30, 2021, Mr. Daikeler and certain of his affiliates control approximately 84.8% of the voting power of our
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outstanding capital stock. As a result, we are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE corporate governance standards and may elect not be subject to the requirements that would otherwise require us to have: (i) a majority of independent directors; (ii) a nominating committee comprised solely of independent directors; (iii) compensation of our executive officers determined by a majority of the independent directors or a compensation committee comprised solely of independent directors; and (iv) director nominees selected, or recommended for the Board’s selection, either by a majority of the independent directors or a nominating committee comprised solely of independent directors.
Mr. Daikeler may have his interest in the Company diluted due to future equity issuances or his own actions in selling shares of Class X Common Stock, in each case, which could result in a loss of the “controlled company” exemption under the NYSE listing rules. We might then be required to comply with those provisions of the NYSE listing requirements.
We track certain operational and business metrics with internal methods that are subject to inherent challenges in measurement, and real or perceived inaccuracies in such metrics may harm our reputation and negatively affect our business.
We track certain operational and business metrics, including total workouts and average monthly workouts per connected fitness subscription, with internal methods, which are not independently verified by any third party and, are often reliant upon an interface with mobile operating systems, networks and standards that we do not control. Our internal methods have limitations and our process for tracking these metrics may change over time, which could result in unexpected changes to our metrics, including the metrics we report. If the internal methods we use under-count or over-count metrics related to our total workouts, average monthly workouts per connected fitness subscription or other metrics as a result of algorithm or other technical errors, the operational and business metrics that we report may not be accurate. In addition, limitations or errors with respect to how we measure certain operational and business metrics may affect our understanding of certain details of our business, which could affect our longer-term strategies. If our operational and business metrics are not accurate representations of our business, market penetration, retention or engagement; if we discover material inaccuracies in our metrics; or if the metrics we rely on to track our performance do not provide an accurate measurement of our business, our reputation may be harmed, and our operating and financial results could be adversely affected.
Risks Related to Expansion
There can be no assurance that we can further penetrate existing markets or that we can successfully expand our business into new markets.
Our ability to further penetrate existing markets in which we compete or to successfully expand our business into additional countries in Western Europe, Asia, or elsewhere, to the extent we believe that we have identified attractive geographic expansion opportunities in the future, are subject to numerous factors, many of which are out of our control. These factors may include, among others, challenges around supplement formulations, localization, harmonization, market size and acceptance, costs, competitors, geopolitical stability, labor market dynamics, legal and regulatory, culture and language, infrastructure, supply chain, payment processing, customer service, payment method, taxes, foreign exchange, and repatriation.
In addition, government regulations in both our domestic and international markets can delay or prevent the introduction, or require the reformulation or withdrawal, of some of our products, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Also, our ability to increase market penetration in some countries may be limited by the finite number of persons in a given country inclined to pursue a direct selling business opportunity. Moreover, our growth will depend upon improved training and other activities that enhance distributor retention in our markets. We cannot assure you that our efforts to increase our market penetration and distributor retention in existing markets will be successful.
We plan to expand into international markets, which will expose us to significant risks.
We are currently expanding our operations to other countries, which requires significant resources and management attention and subjects us to regulatory, economic, and political risks in addition to those we already face in the United States. There are significant risks and costs inherent in doing business in international markets, including:
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difficulty establishing and managing international operations and the increased operations, travel, infrastructure, including establishment of local delivery service and customer service operations, and legal compliance costs associated with locations in different countries or regions;
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the need to vary pricing and margins to effectively compete in international markets;
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the need to adapt and localize products for specific countries, including obtaining rights to third-party intellectual property and potentially unique music rights or licenses used in each country;
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increased competition from local providers of similar products and services;
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the ability to obtain, protect and enforce intellectual property rights abroad;
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the need to offer content and customer support in various languages;
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difficulties in understanding and complying with local laws, regulations, and customs in other jurisdictions;
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complexity and other risks associated with current and future legal and regulatory requirements in other countries, including legal requirements related to advertising, our supplements and nutritional products, consumer protection, consumer product safety and data privacy;
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varying levels of internet technology adoption and infrastructure, and increased or varying network and hosting service provider costs;
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tariffs and other non-tariff
barriers, such as quotas and local content rules, as well as tax consequences;
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fluctuations in currency exchange rates and the requirements of currency control regulations, which might restrict or prohibit conversion of other currencies into U.S. dollars; and
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political or social unrest or economic instability in a specific country or region in which we operate.
We have limited experience with international regulatory environments and market practices and may not be able to penetrate or successfully operate in the markets we choose to enter. In addition, we may incur significant expenses as a result of our international expansion, and we may not be successful. We may face limited brand recognition in parts of the world that could lead to non-acceptance
or delayed acceptance of our products and services by consumers in new markets. We may also face challenges to acceptance of our fitness, supplements and nutritional products, and wellness content in new markets. Our failure to successfully manage these risks could harm our international operations and have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and operating results.
We may engage in merger and acquisition activities, which could require significant management attention, disrupt our business, dilute stockholder value, and adversely affect our operating results.
As part of our business strategy, we have made or may make investments in other companies, products, or technologies in the future. We may not be able to find suitable acquisition candidates and we may not be able to complete acquisitions on favorable terms, if at all, in the future. If we do complete acquisitions, we may not ultimately strengthen our competitive position or achieve our goals, and any acquisitions we complete could be viewed negatively by customers or investors. Moreover, an acquisition, investment, or business relationship may result in unforeseen operating difficulties and expenditures, including disrupting our ongoing operations, diverting management from their primary responsibilities, subjecting us to additional liabilities, increasing our expenses, and adversely impacting our business, financial condition, and operating results. Moreover, we may be exposed to unknown liabilities and the anticipated benefits of any acquisition, investment, or business relationship may not be realized, if, for example, we fail to successfully integrate such acquisitions, or the technologies associated with such acquisitions, into our company.
To pay for any such acquisitions, we would have to use cash, incur debt, or issue equity securities, each of which may affect our financial condition or the value of our capital stock and could result in dilution to our stockholders. Additionally, we may receive indications of interest from other parties interested in acquiring some or all of our business. The time required to evaluate such indications of interest could require significant attention from management, disrupt the ordinary functioning of our business, and could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and operating results.
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Covenants in the loan and security agreement governing our revolving credit facility may restrict our operations, and if we do not effectively manage our business to comply with these covenants, our financial condition could be adversely impacted.
We entered into a Credit Agreement with Bank of America in 2018, providing for a $35 million secured revolving line of credit. The revolving credit facility contains various restrictive covenants, including, among other things, minimum liquidity and revenue requirements, restrictions on our ability to dispose of assets, make acquisitions or investments, incur debt or liens, make certain distributions to our stockholders, or enter into certain types of related party transactions. These restrictions may restrict our current and future operations, particularly our ability to respond to certain changes in our business or industry or take future actions. Pursuant to the Credit Agreement, we granted the parties thereto a security interest in substantially all of our assets. See Note 12 of our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements as of and for the periods ended June 30, 2021 contained elsewhere in this Report for additional information.
Our ability to meet these restrictive covenants can be impacted by events beyond our control and we may be unable to do so. Our Credit Agreement provides that our breach or failure to satisfy certain covenants constitutes an event of default. Upon the occurrence of an event of default, our lenders could elect to declare all amounts outstanding under its debt agreements to be immediately due and payable. In addition, our lenders would have the right to proceed against the assets we provided as collateral. If the debt under our Credit Agreement was to be accelerated, we may not have sufficient cash on hand or be able to sell sufficient collateral to repay it, which would have an immediate adverse effect on our business and operating results.
Risks Related to Our Personnel
Increases in labor costs, including wages, could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The labor costs associated with our businesses are subject to many external factors, including unemployment levels, prevailing wage rates, minimum wage laws, potential collective bargaining arrangements, health insurance costs and other insurance costs and changes in employment and labor legislation or other workplace regulation. From time to time, legislative proposals are made to increase the federal minimum wage in the U.S., as well as the minimum wage in a number of individual states and municipalities, and to reform entitlement programs, such as health insurance and paid leave programs. As minimum wage rates increase or related laws and regulations change, we may need to increase not only the wage rates of our minimum wage employees, but also the wages paid to our other hourly or salaried employees. Our employees may seek to be represented by labor unions in the future or negotiate additional compensation. Any increase in the cost of our labor could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations or if we fail to pay such higher wages, we could suffer increased employee turnover. Increases in labor costs could force us to increase prices, which could adversely impact our visits. If competitive pressures or other factors prevent us from offsetting increased labor costs by increases in prices, our profitability may decline and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
If we cannot maintain our culture as we grow, we could lose the innovation, teamwork, and passion that we believe contribute to our success and our business may be harmed.
We believe that a critical component of our success has been our corporate culture. We have invested substantial time and resources in building our culture, which is based on our core purpose that we are here to help people achieve their goals and lead healthy, fulfilling lives. As we continue growing and developing our infrastructure, we will need to maintain our culture among a larger number of employees, dispersed across various geographic regions. Any failure to preserve our culture could negatively affect our future success, including our ability to retain and recruit personnel and to effectively focus on and pursue our corporate objectives.
We depend on our senior management team and other key employees, and the loss of one or more key personnel or an inability to attract, hire, integrate and retain highly skilled personnel could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our success depends largely upon the continued services of our senior management team and other key employees. We rely on our executives in setting our strategic direction, operating our business, identifying, recruiting and training key personnel,
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identifying growth opportunities, and leading general and administrative functions. From time to time, there may be changes in our executive management team resulting from the hiring or departure of executives, which could disrupt our business. Imperative to our success are also our fitness trainers, instructors and influencers, whom we rely on to develop safe, effective and fun workouts for our customers and to bring new, exciting and innovative fitness content to our platform. If we are unable to attract or retain creative and experienced trainers and nutritionists, we may not be able to generate workout content or dietary supplements on a scale or of a quality sufficient to retain or grow our membership base. The loss of one or more of our executive officers or other key employees, including any of our trainers, could have a serious adverse effect on our business. The replacement of one or more of our executive officers or other key employees would involve significant time and expense and may significantly delay or prevent the achievement of our business objectives. To continue to execute our growth strategy, we also must identify, hire and retain highly skilled personnel. Failure to identify, hire and retain necessary key personnel could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Risks Related to Data and Information Systems
We collect, store, process, and use personal information and other customer data, which subjects us to legal obligations and laws and regulations related to data security and privacy, and any actual or perceived failure to meet those obligations could harm our business.
We collect, process, store, and use a wide variety of data from current and prospective customers, including personal information, such as home addresses, phone numbers and geolocation. Federal, state, and international laws and regulations governing data privacy, data protection, and e-commerce
transactions require us to safeguard our customers’ personal information.
Many jurisdictions continue to consider the need for greater regulation or reform to existing regulatory frameworks for data privacy and data protection. In the United States, all 50 states have now passed laws to regulate the actions that a business must take in the event of a data breach, such as prompt disclosure and notification to affected users and regulatory authorities. In addition to data breach notification laws, some states have also enacted statutes and rules governing the ways in which businesses may collect, use, and retain personal information, granting data privacy rights to certain individuals, or requiring businesses to reasonably protect certain types of personal information they hold or otherwise comply with certain data security requirements for personal information. One such example is the California Consumer Privacy Act which came into effect in 2020. The U.S. federal and state governments will likely continue to consider the need for greater regulation aimed at restricting certain uses of personal data. In the European Union (EU), the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into effect in 2018 and implemented stringent operational requirements for processors and controllers of personal data, including, for example, requiring expanded disclosures about how personal data is to be used, limitations on retention of information, mandatory data breach notifications, and higher standards for data controllers to demonstrate that they have obtained either valid consent or have another legal basis to justify their data processing activities. The GDPR provides that EU member states may make their own additional laws and regulations in relation to certain data processing activities, which could further limit our ability to use and share personal data and could require localized changes to our operating model. Recent legal developments in the EU have created complexity and uncertainty regarding transfers of personal information from the EU to “third countries,” especially the United States. For example, in 2020 the Court of Justice of the EU invalidated the EU-U.S.
Privacy Shield Framework (a mechanism for the transfer of personal information to the EU to the US) and made clear that reliance on standard contractual clauses (another mechanism for the transfer of personal information outside of the EU) alone may not be sufficient in all circumstances. In addition, after the United Kingdom, or UK, left the EU, the UK enacted the UK GDPR, which together with the amended UK Data Protection Act 2018 retains the GDPR in UK national law, but also creates complexity and uncertainty regarding transfers between the UK and the EU, which could further limit our ability to use and share personal data and require localized changes to our operating model. Other jurisdictions besides the United States, EU and UK also have laws governing data privacy and security, such as Brazil’s Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados (LGPD), or are considering the adoption of new laws. Furthermore, we may be required to disclose personal data pursuant to demands from individuals, privacy advocates, regulators, government agencies, and law enforcement agencies in various jurisdictions with conflicting privacy and security laws. This disclosure or refusal to disclose personal data may result in a breach of privacy and data protection policies, notices, laws, rules, court orders, and regulations and could result in proceedings or actions against us in the same or other jurisdictions, damage to our reputation and brand, and inability to provide our products and services to consumers in some jurisdictions.
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In order for us to maintain or become compliant with applicable laws as they come into effect, it may require substantial expenditures of resources to continually evaluate our policies and processes and adapt to new requirements that are or become applicable to us. Complying with any additional or new regulatory requirements on a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction
basis may impose significant burdens and costs on our operations or require us to alter our business practices. While we strive to materially comply with data protection laws and regulations applicable to us, any failure or perceived failure by us to comply with applicable data privacy laws and regulations, including in relation to the collection of necessary end-user
consents and providing end-users
with sufficient information with respect to our use of their personal data, may result in fines and penalties imposed by regulators. For example, under the GDPR and UK GDPR, significant fines may be assessed for non-compliance.
In addition, we could also face governmental enforcement actions (including enforcement orders requiring us to cease collecting or processing data in a certain way), litigation and/or adverse publicity. Proceedings against us — regulatory, civil or otherwise — could force us to spend money and devote resources in the defense or settlement of, and remediation related to, such proceedings. Additionally, our international business expansion could be adversely affected if existing or future laws and regulations are interpreted or enforced in a manner that is inconsistent with our current business practices or that requires changes to these practices. If these laws and regulations materially limit our ability to collect, transfer, and use user data, our ability to continue our current operations without modification, develop new services or features of the products and expand our user base may be impaired.
Any major disruption or failure of our information technology systems or websites, or our failure to successfully implement upgrades and new technology effectively, could adversely affect our business and operations.
Certain of our information technology systems are designed and maintained by us and are critical for the efficient functioning of our business, including the manufacture and distribution of our connected fitness products, online sales of our connected fitness products, and the ability of our customers to access content on our platform. Our rapid growth has, in certain instances, strained these systems. As we grow, we continue to implement modifications and upgrades to our systems, and these activities subject us to inherent costs and risks associated with replacing and upgrading these systems, including, but not limited to, impairment of our ability to fulfill customer orders and other disruptions in our business operations. Further, our system implementations may not result in productivity improvements at a level that outweighs the costs of implementation, or at all. If we fail to successfully implement modifications and upgrades or expand the functionality of our information technology systems, we could experience increased costs associated with diminished productivity and operating inefficiencies related to the flow of goods through our supply chain.
In addition, any unexpected technological interruptions to our systems or websites would disrupt our operations, including our ability to timely ship and track product orders, project inventory requirements, manage our supply chain, sell our connected fitness products online, provide services to our customers, and otherwise adequately serve our customers.
Nearly all of our revenue is generated over the internet via our websites, mobile applications and third-party OTT services and websites. The operation of our direct-to-consumer
e-commerce
business through our mobile applications and websites depends on our ability to maintain the efficient and uninterrupted operation of online order-taking and fulfillment operations. Any system interruptions or delays could prevent potential customers from purchasing our products.
Moreover, the ability of our customers to access the content on our platform could be diminished by a number of factors, including customers’ inability to access the internet, the failure of our network or software systems, security breaches, or variability in subscriber traffic for our platform. Platform failures would be most impactful if they occurred during peak platform use periods, which generally occur before and after standard work hours. During these peak periods, there are a significant number of customers concurrently accessing our platform and if we are unable to provide uninterrupted access, our customers’ perception of our platform’s reliability may be damaged, our revenue could be reduced, our reputation could be harmed, and we may be required to issue credits or refunds, or risk losing customers.
In the event we experience significant disruptions, we may be unable to repair our systems in an efficient and timely manner which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and operating results.
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If we are unable to maintain a good relationship with Apple, our business will suffer.
The Apple App Store is a key primary distribution platform for our Beachbody app. We expect to generate a significant portion of our revenue through the platform for the foreseeable future. Any deterioration in our relationship with Apple would harm our business and revenue.
We are subject to Apple’s standard terms and conditions for application developers, which govern the promotion, distribution and operation of applications on their platform.
Our business would be harmed if:
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Apple discontinues or limits access to its platform by us and other app developers;
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Apple removes app from their store; or
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Apple modifies its terms of service or other policies, including fees charged to, or other restrictions on, us or other application developers, or change how the personal information of its users is made available to application developers on their platform or shared by users from Apple’s strong brand recognition and large user base.
If Apple loses its market position or otherwise falls out of favor with Internet users, we would need to identify additional channels for distributing our app, which would consume substantial resources and may not be effective. In addition, Apple has broad discretion to change its terms of service and other policies with respect to us and other developers, and those changes may be unfavorable to us.
If we suffer a security breach or otherwise fail to properly maintain the confidentiality and integrity of our data, including customer credit card, debit card and bank account information, our reputation and business could be materially and adversely affected.
In the ordinary course of business, we collect and transmit customer and employee data, including credit and debit card numbers, bank account information, driver’s license numbers, dates of birth and other highly sensitive personally identifiable information. We also use vendors and, as a result, we manage a number of third-party contractors who have access to our confidential information, including third party vendors of IT and data security systems and services.
We could be subject to a cyber incident or other adverse event that threatens the confidentiality, integrity or availability of information resources, including intentional attacks or unintentional events where parties gain unauthorized access to systems to disrupt operations, corrupt data or steal confidential information about customers, vendors and employees. A number of retailers and other companies have recently experienced serious cyber incidents and breaches of their information technology systems. As our reliance on technology has increased, so have the risks posed to our systems, both internal and those we have outsourced. Despite our efforts and processes to prevent breaches, our products and services, as well as our servers, computer systems, and those of third parties that we use in our operations are vulnerable to cybersecurity risks, including cyber-attacks such as viruses and worms, phishing attacks, denial-of-service
attacks, physical or electronic break-ins,
third-party or employee theft or misuse, and similar disruptions from unauthorized tampering with our servers and computer systems or those of third parties that we use in our operations, which could lead to interruptions, delays, loss of critical data, unauthorized access to customer data, and loss of consumer confidence. In addition, we may be the target of email scams that attempt to acquire personal information or company assets.
Some of the data we collect or process is sensitive and could be an attractive target of a criminal attack by malicious third parties with a wide range of motives and expertise, including lone wolves, organized criminal groups, “hacktivists,” disgruntled current or former employees and others. Because we accept electronic forms of payment from customers, our business requires the collection and retention of customer data, including credit and debit card numbers and other personally identifiable information in various information systems that we maintain and in those maintained by third parties with whom we contract to provide credit card processing. We also maintain important internal company data, such as personally identifiable information about our employees and information relating to our operations. The integrity and protection of customer, distributor, and employee data are critical to us.
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Despite the security measures we have in place to comply with applicable laws and rules, our facilities and systems, and those of our third-party service providers (as well as their third-party service providers), may be vulnerable to security breaches, acts of cyber terrorism or sabotage, vandalism or theft, computer viruses, loss or corruption of data or programming or human errors or other similar events. Furthermore, the size and complexity of our information systems, and those of our third-party vendors (as well as their third-party service providers), make such systems potentially vulnerable to security breaches from inadvertent or intentional actions by our employees or vendors, or from attacks by malicious third parties. While we have agreements requiring our third-party service providers to use best practices for data security, we have no operational control over them. Because such attacks are increasing in sophistication and change frequently in nature, we and our third-party service providers may be unable to anticipate these attacks or implement adequate preventative measures, and any compromise of our systems, or those of our third-party vendors (as well as their third-party service providers), may not be discovered and remediated promptly. Changes in consumer behavior following a security breach or perceived security breach, act of cyber terrorism or sabotage, vandalism or theft, computer virus, loss or corruption of data or programming or human error or other similar event affecting a competitor, large retailer or financial institution may materially and adversely affect our business.
If our security and information systems, or those of our vendors, are compromised or if our employees fail to comply with these laws, regulations, or contract terms, and this information is obtained by unauthorized persons or used inappropriately, it could materially and adversely affect our reputation and could disrupt our operations and result in costly litigation, judgments, or penalties arising from violations of federal and state laws and payment card industry regulations, including those promulgated by industry groups, such as the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council, National Automated Clearing House Association, or NACHA, Canadian Payments Association and individual credit card issuers. Under laws, regulations and contractual obligations, a cyber incident could also require us to notify customers, employees or other groups of the incident or could result in adverse publicity, loss of sales and profits, or an increase in fees payable to third parties. We could also incur penalties or remediation and other costs that could materially and adversely affect the operation of our business and results of operations. We maintain insurance coverage to address cyber incidents, and have also implemented processes, procedures and controls to help mitigate these risks; however, these measures do not guarantee that our reputation and financial results will not be adversely affected by such an incident.
We rely heavily on information systems, and any material failure, interruption or weakness may prevent us from effectively operating our business and damage our reputation.
We increasingly rely on information systems, including our technology-enabled platform through which we distribute workouts to our consumer base, point-of-sale
processing systems and other information systems managed by third parties, to interact with our customers, billing information and other personally identifiable information, collection of cash, legal and regulatory compliance, management of our supply chain, accounting, staffing, payment of obligations, ACH transactions, credit and debit card transactions and other processes and procedures. Our ability to efficiently and effectively manage our business depends significantly on the reliability and capacity of these systems, and any potential failure of third parties to provide quality uninterrupted service is beyond our control.
Our operations depend upon our ability, and the ability of our third-party service providers (as well as their third-party service providers), to protect our computer equipment and systems against damage from physical theft, fire, power loss, telecommunications failure or other catastrophic events, as well as from internal and external security breaches, viruses, denial-of-service
attacks and other disruptions. The failure of these systems to operate effectively, stemming from maintenance problems, upgrading or transitioning to new platforms, expanding our systems as we grow, a breach in security or other unanticipated problems could result in interruptions to or delays in our business and customer service and reduce efficiency in our operations. In addition, the implementation of technology changes and upgrades to maintain current and integrate new systems may also cause service interruptions, operational delays due to the learning curve associated with using a new system, transaction processing errors and system conversion delays and may cause us to fail to comply with applicable laws. If our information systems, or those of our third-party service providers (as well as their third-party service providers), fail and our or our providers’ third-party back-up
or disaster recovery plans are not adequate to address such failures, our revenues and profits could be reduced, and the reputation of our brand and our business could be materially and adversely affected.
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Risks Related to Laws and Regulations
We face risks, such as unforeseen costs and potential liability in connection with content we produce, license and distribute through our content delivery platform.
As a producer and distributor of content, we face potential liability for negligence, copyright and trademark infringement, violations for rights of publicity, or other claims based on the nature and content of materials that we produce, license and distribute. We also may face potential liability for content used in promoting workouts and products, including marketing materials. We may decide to remove content from our workouts or to discontinue or alter our production of types of content if we believe such content might not be well received by our customers or could be damaging to our brand and business.
To the extent we do not accurately anticipate costs or mitigate risks, including for content that we obtain but ultimately does not appear in our products, or if we become liable for content we produce, license or distribute, our business may suffer. Litigation to defend these claims could be costly and the expenses and damages arising from any liability could harm our results of operations. We may not be indemnified against claims or costs of these types and we may not have insurance coverage for these types of claims.
Our nutritional products must comply with regulations of the Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, as well as state, local and applicable international regulations. Any non-compliance
with the FDA or other applicable regulations could harm our business.
Our products must comply with various FDA rules and regulations, including those regarding product manufacturing, marketing, food safety, required testing and appropriate labeling of our products. Conflicts between state and federal law regarding definitions of ingredients, as well as labeling requirements, may lead to non-compliance
with state and local regulations. For example, states may maintain narrower definitions of ingredients, as well as more stringent labeling requirements, of which we are unaware. Any non-compliance
at the state or local level could also adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Because we do not manufacture our products directly, we must rely on these manufacturers to maintain compliance with regulatory requirements. Although we require our contract manufacturers to be compliant, we do not have direct control over such facilities. Failure of our contract manufacturers to comply with applicable regulations could have an adverse effect on our business.
Changes in the legal and regulatory environment could limit our business activities, increase our operating costs, reduce demand for our products or result in litigation.
Elements of our businesses, including the production, storage, distribution, sale, advertising, marketing, labeling, health and safety practices, transportation and use of many of our products, and sale of automatically renewing subscriptions, are subject to various laws and regulations administered by federal, state and local governmental agencies in the United States, as well as the laws and regulations administered by government entities and agencies outside the United States in markets in which our products or components thereof (such as packaging) may be made, manufactured or sold. These laws and regulations and interpretations thereof may change, sometimes dramatically, as a result of a variety of factors, including political, economic or social events. Such changes may include changes in:
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food and drug laws (including FDA and international regulations);
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laws related to product labeling;
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advertising and marketing laws and practices;
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laws and programs restricting the sale and advertising of products;
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laws and programs aimed at reducing, restricting or eliminating ingredients present in our supplement products;
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laws and programs aimed at discouraging the consumption of products or ingredients or altering the package or portion size of our products;
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state consumer protection and disclosure laws;
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taxation requirements, including the imposition or proposed imposition of new or increased taxes or other limitations on the sale of our products; competition laws;
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anti-corruption laws, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, or FCPA, and the UK Bribery Act of 2010, or Bribery Act;
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economic sanctions and anti-boycott laws, including laws administered by the U.S. Department of Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control and the European Union;
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laws relating to export, re-export,
transfer, and import controls, including the Export Administration Regulations, the EU Dual Use Regulation, and the customs and import laws administered by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection;
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labor and employment laws;
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laws related to automatically renewing subscriptions and cancellation of such subscriptions;
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data collection and privacy laws; and
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environmental laws.
New laws, regulations or governmental policies and their related interpretations, or changes in any of the foregoing, including taxes or other limitations on the sale of our products, ingredients contained in our products or commodities used in the production of our products, may alter the environment in which we do business and, therefore, may impact our operating results or increase its costs or liabilities. In addition, if we fail to adhere to such laws and regulations, we could be subject to regulatory investigations, civil or criminal sanctions, as well as class action litigation, which has increased in its industry in recent years.
Our Coach network program could be found not to be in compliance with current or newly adopted laws or regulations in one or more markets, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
Our Coach network program is subject to a number of federal and state regulations administered by the Federal Trade Commission and various state agencies in the United States as well as regulations on direct selling in foreign markets administered by foreign agencies. We are subject to the risk that, in one or more markets, our Coach network program could be found not to be in compliance with applicable law or regulations. Regulations applicable to network marketing programs generally are directed at preventing fraudulent or deceptive schemes, often referred to as “pyramid” or “chain sales” schemes, by ensuring that product sales ultimately are made to consumers and that advancement within an organization is based on sales of the organization’s products rather than investments in the organization or other non-retail
sales-related criteria. The regulatory requirements concerning network marketing programs do not include “bright line” rules and are inherently fact-based, and thus, even in jurisdictions where we believe that our Coach network program is in full compliance with applicable laws or regulations governing network marketing programs, we are subject to the risk that these laws or regulations or the enforcement or interpretation of these laws and regulations by governmental agencies or courts can change. The failure of our Coach network program to comply with current or newly adopted regulations could have a material adverse effect on our business in a particular market or in general.
We are also subject to the risk of private party challenges to the legality of our Coach network program. The network marketing programs of other companies have been successfully challenged in the past. An adverse judicial determination with respect to our Coach network program, or in proceedings not involving us directly but which challenge the legality of network marketing systems, could have a material adverse effect on our business.
Our products or services offered as part of automatically renewing subscriptions or memberships could be found not to be in compliance with laws or regulations in one or more markets, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
Certain of our products and services include subscriptions and memberships that automatically renew unless cancelled by the subscribing consumer. There are a number of consumer-protection regulations at the state and federal level that govern how automatically renewing subscriptions are offered, including the types of notices that must be provided to consumers upon sign-up,
and the manner in which consumers are able to cancel such renewals. We are subject to the risk that, in one or more markets, our automatically renewing subscription products could be found not to be in compliance with applicable law or regulations. This could result in regulatory bodies or a private party bringing an action that challenges the legality of our subscription products. These actions, including those without merit, could result in us having to expend significant litigation costs to defend against such claims, incur penalties or pay damages as a result of legal judgments against us, or require us to change elements of our automatically renewing subscription products. Each of these could have a material adverse effect on our business.
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Changes in legislation or requirements related to EFT, or our failure to comply with existing or future regulations, may materially and adversely impact our business.
We derive a significant amount of revenue from auto-renewal arrangements incorporated within our programs, which require express consent from our customers to commence. Any changes in the laws, regulations or interpretations of the laws regarding auto-renewal arrangements, or increased enforcement of such laws and/or regulations, could adversely affect our ability to engage or retain customers and harm our financial condition and operating performance. Our business relies heavily on the fact that our subscriptions continue on a recurring basis after the completion of any initial term requirements, and compliance with these laws and regulations and similar requirements may be onerous and expensive. In addition, variances and inconsistencies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction may further increase the cost of compliance and doing business. States that have fitness membership statutes may be applicable to us and could provide harsh penalties for violations, including membership contracts being void or voidable. Our failure to comply fully with these rules or requirements may subject us to fines, higher transaction fees, penalties, damages and civil liability and may result in the loss of our ability to accept EFT payments, which would have a material adverse effect on our business and in turn our results of operations and financial condition. In addition, any such costs, which may arise in the future as a result of changes to the legislation and regulations or in their interpretation, could individually or in the aggregate cause us to change or limit our business practice, which may make our business model less attractive to our customers.
We are subject to a number of risks related to ACH, credit card and debit card payments we accept.
We accept payments through ACH, credit card and debit card transactions. For ACH, credit card and debit card payments, we pay interchange and other fees, which may increase over time. An increase in those fees would require us to either increase the prices we charge for our subscriptions, which could cause us to lose customers, or suffer an increase in our operating expenses, either of which could harm our operating results.
If we or any of our processing vendors have problems with our billing software, or the billing software malfunctions, it could have an adverse effect on our customer satisfaction and could cause one or more of the major credit card companies to disallow our continued use of their payment products. In addition, if our billing software fails to work properly and, as a result, we do not automatically charge our customers’ credit cards, debit cards or bank accounts on a timely basis or at all, we could lose subscription revenue, which would harm our operating results.
If we fail to adequately control fraudulent ACH, credit card and debit card transactions, we may face civil liability, diminished public perception of our security measures and significantly higher ACH, credit card and debit card related costs, each of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. The termination of our ability to process payments through ACH transactions or on any major credit or debit card would significantly impair our ability to operate our business.
As consumer behavior shifts to use emerging forms of payment, there may be an increased reluctance to use ACH or credit cards for membership dues and point of sale transactions which could result in decreased revenues as consumers choose to give their business to competition with more convenient forms of payment. We may need to expand our information systems to support newer and emerging forms of payment methods, which may be time-consuming and expensive and may not realize a return on our investment.
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We are subject to payment processing risk.
Our customers pay for our products and services using a variety of different payment methods, including credit and debit cards and gift cards. We rely on third parties to process payments. Acceptance and processing of these payment methods are subject to certain rules and regulations and require payment of interchange and other fees. To the extent there are disruptions in our payment processing systems, increases in payment processing fees, material changes in the payment ecosystem, such as large re-issuances
of payment cards, delays in receiving payments from payment processors, or changes to rules or regulations concerning payment processing, our revenue, operating expenses and results of operation could be adversely impacted. We leverage our third-party payment processors to bill customers on our behalf. If these third parties become unwilling or unable to continue processing payments on our behalf, we would have to find alternative methods of collecting payments, which could adversely impact customer acquisition and retention. In addition, from time to time, we encounter fraudulent use of payment methods, which could impact our results of operation and if not adequately controlled and managed could create negative consumer perceptions of our service.
We are subject to governmental export and import controls and economic sanctions laws that could subject us to liability and impair our ability to compete in international markets.
The United States and various foreign governments have imposed controls, export license requirements, and restrictions on the import or export of technologies. Our products may be subject to U.S. export controls, which may require submission of a product classification and annual or semi-annual reports. Compliance with applicable regulatory requirements regarding the export of our products and services may create delays in the introduction of our products and services in international markets, prevent our international customers from accessing our products and services, and, in some cases, prevent the export of our products and services to some countries altogether.
Furthermore, U.S. export control laws and economic sanctions prohibit the provision of products and services to countries, governments, and persons targeted by U.S. sanctions. Even though we take precautions to prevent our products from being provided to targets of U.S. sanctions, our products and services could be provided to those targets or provided by our customers. Any such provision could have negative consequences, including government investigations, penalties, reputational harm. Our failure to obtain required import or export approval for our products could harm our international and domestic sales and adversely affect our revenue.
We could be subject to future enforcement action with respect to compliance with governmental export and import controls and economic sanctions laws that result in penalties, costs, and restrictions on export privileges that could have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Failure to comply with anti-corruption and anti-money laundering laws, including the FCPA and similar laws associated with our activities outside of the United States, could subject us to penalties and other adverse consequences.
We operate a global business and may have direct or indirect interactions with officials and employees of government agencies or state-owned or affiliated entities. We are subject to the FCPA, the U.S. domestic bribery statute contained in 18 U.S.C. § 201, the U.S. Travel Act, the USA PATRIOT Act, the U.K. Bribery Act, and possibly other anti-bribery and anti-money laundering laws in countries in which we conduct activities. These laws that prohibit companies and their employees and third-party intermediaries from corruptly promising, authorizing, offering, or providing, directly or indirectly, improper payments or anything of value to foreign government officials, political parties, and private-sector recipients for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business, directing business to any person, or securing any advantage. In addition, U.S. public companies are required to maintain records that accurately and fairly represent their transactions and have an adequate system of internal accounting controls. In many foreign countries, including countries in which we may conduct business, it may be a local custom that businesses engage in practices that are prohibited by the FCPA or other applicable laws and regulations. We face significant risks if we or any of our directors, officers, employees, agents or other parties or representatives fail to comply with these laws and governmental authorities in the United States and elsewhere could seek to impose substantial civil and/or criminal fines and penalties which could have a material adverse effect on our business, reputation, results of operations and financial condition.
We have begun to implement an anti-corruption compliance program and policies, procedures and training designed to foster compliance with these laws; however, our employees, contractors, and agents, and companies to which we outsource some of our business operations, may take actions in violation of our policies or applicable law. Any such violation could have an adverse effect on our reputation, business, operating results and prospects.
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Any violation of the FCPA, other applicable anti-corruption laws, or anti-money laundering laws could result in whistleblower complaints, adverse media coverage, investigations, loss of export privileges, severe criminal or civil sanctions and, in the case of the FCPA, suspension or debarment from U.S. government contracts, any of which could have a materially adverse effect on our reputation, business, operating results, and prospects. In addition, responding to any enforcement action may result in a significant diversion of management’s attention and resources and significant defense costs and other professional fees.
Our intellectual property rights are valuable, and any inability to protect them could reduce the value of our products, services, and brand.
Our success depends in large part on our proprietary content and technology and our trademarks, copyrights, patents, trade secrets and other intellectual property rights. We rely on, and expect to continue to rely on, a combination of trademark, trade dress, domain name, copyright, trade secret and patent laws, as well as confidentiality and license agreements with our employees, contractors, consultants, and third parties with whom we have relationships, to establish and protect our brand and other intellectual property rights. However, our efforts to obtain and protect our intellectual property rights may not be sufficient or effective, and any of our intellectual property rights may be challenged, which could result in them being narrowed in scope or declared invalid or unenforceable. There can be no assurance that our intellectual property rights will be sufficient to protect against others offering products, services, or technologies that are substantially similar to ours and that compete with our business.
Effective protection of patents, trademarks, and domain names is expensive and can be difficult to maintain, both in terms of application and registration costs as well as the costs of defending and enforcing those rights. As we have grown, we have sought to obtain and protect our intellectual property rights in an increasing number of countries, a process that can be expensive and may not always be successful. For example, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and various foreign governmental patent agencies require compliance with a number of procedural requirements to complete the patent application process and to maintain issued patents, and noncompliance or non-payment
could result in abandonment or lapse of a patent or patent application, resulting in partial or complete loss of patent rights in a relevant jurisdiction. Further, intellectual property protection may not be available to us in every country in which our products and services are available. For example, some foreign countries have compulsory licensing laws under which a patent owner must grant licenses to third parties. In addition, many countries limit the enforceability of patents against third parties, including government agencies or government contractors. In these countries, patents may provide limited or no benefit.
In order to protect our brand and intellectual property rights, we may be required to spend significant resources to monitor and protect these rights. Enforcement actions and litigation brought to protect and enforce our intellectual property rights could be costly, time-consuming, and distracting to management and could result in the impairment or loss of portions of our intellectual property. Furthermore, our efforts to enforce our intellectual property rights may be met with defenses, counterclaims, and countersuits attacking the validity and enforceability of our intellectual property rights. Accordingly, we may not be able to prevent third parties from infringing upon or misappropriating our intellectual property. Our failure to secure, protect, and enforce our intellectual property rights could seriously damage our brand and our business.
We have been, and may in the future be, subject to claims that we infringed certain intellectual property rights of third parties, and such claims could result in costly litigation expenses or the loss of significant rights related to, among other things, our products and marketing activities, including as it relates to Myx stationary bike products.
There may be intellectual property rights held by others, including issued or pending patents, trademarks, and copyrights, and applications of the foregoing, that they allege cover significant aspects of our products, services, content, branding, or business methods. We have received in the past, and may receive in the future, communications from third parties, including practicing and non-practicing
entities, claiming that we may have infringed, misused, or otherwise misappropriated their intellectual property rights. Moreover, companies in the stationary bicycle space are frequent targets of entities seeking to enforce their rights in their intellectual property, or to otherwise profit from royalties in connection with grants of licenses in their intellectual property. These intellectual property claims include enforcement of a broad variety of patents that cover various elements of stationary bicycle products.
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Defending against intellectual property infringement claims may result in costly litigation expenses and diversion of technical and management personnel. It also may result in our inability to use certain technologies, content, branding, or business methods found to be in violation of another party’s rights. As a result of a dispute, we may have to develop non-infringing
technology, enter into royalty or licensing agreements, revise our marketing activities, cease the sale of certain products, or take other actions to resolve the claims that would result in additional cost and expense to our business. Any of these results could materially adversely affect our ability to compete and our business, results of operations, and financial condition.
Our subscriber engagement on mobile devices depends upon effective operation with mobile operating systems, networks, and standards that we do not control.
A growing portion of our customers access our platform through Openfit/Beachbody on Demand, or BOD, and there is no guarantee that popular mobile devices will continue to support Openfit/BOD or that mobile device users will use Openfit/BOD rather than competing products. We are dependent on the interoperability of Openfit/BOD with popular mobile operating systems that we do not control, such as Android and iOS, and any changes in such systems that degrade the functionality of our digital offering or give preferential treatment to competitors could adversely affect our platform’s usage on mobile devices. Additionally, in order to deliver high-quality mobile content, it is important that our digital offering is designed effectively and works well with a range of mobile technologies, systems, networks, and standards that we do not control. We may not be successful in developing relationships with key participants in the mobile industry or in developing products that operate effectively with these technologies, systems, networks, or standards. In the event that it is more difficult for our customers to access and use our platform on their mobile devices or customers find our mobile offerings do not effectively meet their needs, our competitors develop products and services that are perceived to operate more effectively on mobile devices, or if our customers choose not to access or use our platform on their mobile devices or use mobile products that do not offer access to our platform, our subscriber growth and subscriber engagement could be adversely impacted.
In addition, a portion of our customers access our products through over-the-top
(“OTT”) services such as AppleTV and Roku. These OTT services are managed by third parties that we do not control, and any changes in such systems or services that degrade the functionality of our digital offering or give preferential treatment to competitors could adversely affect our platform’s usage through these services.
Myx may be subject to warranty claims that could result in significant direct or indirect costs, or Myx could experience greater returns than expected, either of which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and operating results.
Our Myx platform generally provides a minimum 12-month
limited warranty on all of our bikes. The occurrence of any material defects in our products could make it liable for damages and warranty claims in excess of our current reserves, which could result in an adverse effect on our business prospects, liquidity, financial condition, and cash flows if warranty claims were to materially exceed anticipated levels. In addition, we could incur significant costs to correct any defects, warranty claims, or other problems, including costs related to product recalls. Any negative publicity related to the perceived quality and safety of its products could affect our brand image, decrease consumer and subscriber confidence and demand, and adversely affect our financial condition and operating results. Also, while its warranty is limited to repairs and returns, warranty claims may result in litigation, the occurrence of which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and operating results.
Risks Related to Ownership of Our Common Stock
Our management team has limited experience managing a public company.
Most members of our management team have limited experience managing a publicly traded company, interacting with public company investors, and complying with the increasingly complex laws pertaining to public companies. Our management team may not successfully or efficiently manage our transition to being a public company subject to significant regulatory oversight and reporting obligations under the federal securities laws and the continuous scrutiny of securities analysts and investors. These new obligations and constituents will require significant attention from our senior management and could divert their attention away from the day-to-day
management of our business, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
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Our internal controls over financial reporting may not be effective and our independent registered public accounting firm may not be able to certify as to their effectiveness, which could have a significant and adverse effect on our business and reputation.
We are required to comply with the SEC’s rules implementing Sections 302 and 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which require management to certify financial and other information in our quarterly and annual reports and provide an annual management report on the effectiveness of controls over financial reporting. As an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the JOBS Act, our independent registered public accounting firm will not be required to formally attest to the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 until the date we are no longer an emerging growth company. At such time, our independent registered public accounting firm may issue a report that is adverse in the event that it is not satisfied with the level at which our controls are documented, designed or operating.
Further, we may need to undertake various actions, such as implementing additional internal controls and procedures and hiring additional accounting or internal audit staff. Testing and maintaining internal controls can divert our management’s attention from other matters that are important to the operation of our business. If we identify material weaknesses in our internal controls over financial reporting or are unable to comply with the requirements of Section 404 or assert that our internal controls over financial reporting is effective, or if our independent registered public accounting firm is unable to express an opinion as to the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our common stock could be negatively affected, and we could become subject to investigations by the SEC or other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources.
If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports about our business, if they adversely change their recommendations regarding our shares or if our results of operations do not meet their expectations, our share price and trading volume could decline.
The trading market for our common stock is influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts publish about us or our business. We do not have any control over these analysts. Securities and industry analysts do not currently, and may never, publish research on us. If no securities or industry analysts commence coverage of us, the trading price of our shares would likely be negatively impacted. In the event securities or industry analysts initiated coverage, and one or more of these analysts cease coverage of us or fail to publish reports on us regularly, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause our share price or trading volume to decline. Moreover, if one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrade our stock, or if our results of operations do not meet their expectations, our share price could decline.
As a public company, we are subject to additional laws, regulations and stock exchange listing standards, which imposes additional costs on us and may strain our resources and divert our management’s attention.
As a company with publicly-traded securities, we are subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, the listing requirements of the NYSE and other applicable securities laws and regulations. These rules and regulations require the adoption of additional controls and procedures and disclosure, corporate governance and other practices thereby significantly increasing our legal, financial and other compliance costs. These obligations also make other aspects of our business more difficult, time-consuming or costly and increase demand on our personnel, systems and other resources. Furthermore, as a public company our business and financial condition is more visible, which we believe may give some of our competitors who may not be similarly required to disclose this type of information a competitive advantage. In addition to these added costs and burdens, if we are unable to satisfy our obligations as a public company, we could be subject to delisting of our common stock, fines, sanctions, other regulatory actions and civil litigation, any of which could negatively affect the price of our common stock.
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Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware is the exclusive forum for substantially all disputes between us and our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers or employees.
Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the sole and exclusive forum, to the fullest extent permitted by law, for (1) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (2) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers, employees or agents or our stockholders, (3) any action asserting a claim against us or any director or officer arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL, (4) any action to interpret, apply, enforce or determine the validity of our Proposed Charter or Bylaws, or (5) any other action asserting a claim that is governed by the internal affairs doctrine shall be the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware or federal court located within the State of Delaware if the Court of Chancery does not have jurisdiction, in all cases subject to the court’s having jurisdiction over indispensable parties named as defendants. A complaint asserting a cause of action under the Securities Act may be brought in state or federal court. With respect to the Exchange Act only claims brought derivatively under the Exchange Act would be subject to the forum selection clause described above. The enforceability of similar choice of forum provisions in other companies’ certificates of incorporation and bylaws has been challenged in legal proceedings, and it is possible that, in connection with any action, a court could find the choice of forum provisions contained in our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Amended and Restated Bylaws to be inapplicable or unenforceable in such action. Although we believe these provisions benefit us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law for the specified types of actions and proceedings, the provisions may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against us or our directors and officers. Alternatively, if a court were to find the choice of forum provision contained in our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Amended and Restated Bylaws to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions, which could harm our business, financial condition and operating results. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in our shares of capital stock shall be deemed to have notice of and consented to this exclusive forum provision but will not be deemed to have waived our compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.
Our ability to raise capital in the future may be limited.
Our business and operations may consume resources faster than we anticipate. In the future, we may need to raise additional funds through the issuance of new equity securities, debt or a combination of both. However, the lapse or waiver of any lock up restrictions or any sale or perception of a possible sale by our stockholders, and any related decline in the market price of our common stock, could impair our ability to raise capital. Separately, additional financing may not be available on favorable terms, or at all. If adequate funds are not available on acceptable terms, we may be unable to fund our capital requirements. If we issue new debt securities, the debt holders would have rights senior to common stockholders to make claims on our assets, and the terms of any debt could restrict our operations, including our ability to pay dividends on our common stock. If we issue additional equity securities, existing stockholders will experience dilution, and the new equity securities could have rights senior to those of our common stock. Because our decision to issue securities in any future offering will depend on market conditions and other factors beyond our control, we cannot predict or estimate the amount, timing or nature of our future offerings. Thus, our stockholders bear the risk of our future securities offerings reducing the market price of our common stock and diluting their interest.
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General Risk Factors
Our quarterly operating results and other operating metrics may fluctuate from quarter to quarter, which makes these metrics difficult to predict.
Our quarterly operating results and other operating metrics have fluctuated in the past and may continue to fluctuate from quarter to quarter. As a result, you should not rely on our past quarterly operating results as indicators of future performance. You should take into account the risks and uncertainties frequently encountered by companies in rapidly evolving markets. Our financial condition and operating results in any given quarter can be influenced by numerous factors, many of which we are unable to predict or are outside of our control, including:
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the continued market acceptance of, and the growth of the connected fitness and wellness market;
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our ability to maintain and attract new customers;
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our development and improvement of the quality of the subscriber experience, including, enhancing existing and creating new content, services, nutritional supplements, technology, and features;
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the continued development and upgrading of our technology platform;
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the timing and success of new product, service, feature, and content introductions by us or our competitors or any other change in the competitive landscape of our market;
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pricing pressure as a result of competition or otherwise;
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delays or disruptions in our supply chain;
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errors in our forecasting of the demand for our products and services, which could lead to lower revenue or increased costs, or both;
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increases in marketing, sales, and other operating expenses that we may incur to grow and expand our operations and to remain competitive;
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the continued maintenance and expansion of last mile delivery and maintenance services for our fitness products;
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successful expansion into international markets;
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seasonal fluctuations in subscriptions and usage of fitness products by our customers, each of which may change as our products and services evolve or as our business grows;
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the diversification and growth of our revenue sources;
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our ability to maintain gross margins and operating margins;
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constraints on the availability of consumer financing or increased down payment requirements to finance purchases of our integrated fitness products;
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system failures or breaches of security or privacy;
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adverse litigation judgments, settlements, or other litigation-related costs, including content costs for past use;
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changes in the legislative or regulatory environment, including with respect to privacy, consumer product safety, and advertising, or enforcement by government regulators, including fines, orders, or consent decrees;
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fluctuations in currency exchange rates and changes in the proportion of our revenue and expenses denominated in foreign currencies;
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changes in our effective tax rate;
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changes in accounting standards, policies, guidance, interpretations, or principles; and
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changes in business or macroeconomic conditions, including lower consumer confidence, recessionary conditions, increased unemployment rates, or stagnant or declining wages.
Any one of the factors above or the cumulative effect of some of the factors above may result in significant fluctuations in our operating results.
The variability and unpredictability of our quarterly operating results or other operating metrics could result in our failure to meet our expectations or those of analysts that cover us or investors with respect to revenue or other operating results for a particular period. If we fail to meet or exceed such expectations, the market price of our common stock could fall substantially, and we could face costly lawsuits, including securities class action suits.
Changes in U.S. tax law may have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations and affect the U.S. federal tax considerations of the purchase, ownership and disposition of the common stock.
Potential tax reforms in the U.S. may result in significant changes in the rules governing United States federal income taxation. Such changes may have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Such changes may also affect the U.S. federal tax considerations of the purchase, ownership and disposition of our common stock.
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We may be subject to obligations to collect and remit sales tax and other taxes, and we may be subject to tax liability for past sales, which could adversely harm our business.
State and local jurisdictions have differing rules and regulations governing sales, use, value added and other taxes, and these rules and regulations are subject to varying interpretations that may change over time. In particular, the applicability of such taxes to our trainings in various jurisdictions is unclear. While we do not believe we are currently required to collect and remit sales or similar taxes on our trainings in any jurisdiction in which we are not collecting such tax, we could face the possibility of tax assessments and audits. A successful assertion that we should be collecting sales, use, value added or other taxes on our trainings in those jurisdictions where we do not do so or have not historically done so could result in substantial tax liabilities and related penalties for past sales, discourage customers from purchasing our services or otherwise harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We are affected by extensive laws, governmental regulations, administrative determinations, court decisions and similar constraints both domestically and abroad.
In both domestic and foreign markets, the formulation, manufacturing, packaging, labeling, distribution, importation, exportation, licensing, sale and storage of our products are affected by extensive laws, governmental regulations, administrative determinations, court decisions and similar constraints. Such laws, regulations and other constraints may exist at the federal, state or local levels in the United States and at all levels of government in foreign jurisdictions. There can be no assurance that we or our distributors are in compliance with all of these regulations. Our failure or our distributors’ failure to comply with these regulations or new regulations could lead to the imposition of significant penalties or claims and could have a material adverse effect on our business. In addition, the adoption of new regulations or changes in the interpretations of existing regulations may result in significant compliance costs or discontinuation of product sales and may adversely affect the marketing of our products, resulting in significant loss of sales revenues.
Regulations related to conflict minerals may cause us to incur additional expenses and could limit the supply and increase the costs of certain metals used in the manufacturing of our products.
We are subject to requirements under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, which will require us to conduct due diligence on and disclose whether or not our products contain conflict minerals. The implementation of these requirements could adversely affect the sourcing, availability, and pricing of the materials used in the manufacture of components used in our products. In addition, we will incur additional costs to comply with the disclosure requirements, including costs related to conducting diligence procedures to determine the sources of minerals that may be used or necessary to the production of our products and, if applicable, potential changes to products, processes, or sources of supply as a consequence of such due diligence activities. It is also possible that we may face reputational harm if we determine that certain of our products contain minerals not determined to be conflict free or if we are unable to alter our products, processes, or sources of supply to avoid such materials.
The requirements of being a public company, including maintaining adequate internal control over our financial and management systems, may strain our resources, divert management’s attention, and affect our ability to attract and retain executive management and qualified board members.
As a public company we will incur significant legal, accounting, and other expenses that we did not incur as a private company. We will be subject to reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the rules subsequently implemented by the SEC, the rules and regulations of the listing standards of the NYSE, and other applicable securities rules and regulations. Compliance with these rules and regulations will likely strain our financial and management systems, internal controls, and employees.
The Exchange Act requires, among other things, that we file annual, quarterly, and current reports with respect to our business and operating results. Moreover, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires, among other things, that we maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures, and internal control, over financial reporting. In order to maintain and, if required, improve our disclosure controls and procedures, and internal control over, financial reporting to meet this standard, significant resources and management oversight may be required. If we have material weaknesses or deficiencies in our
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internal control over financial reporting, we may not detect errors on a timely basis and our consolidated financial statements may be materially misstated. Effective internal control is necessary for us to produce reliable financial reports and is important to prevent fraud.
In addition, we will be required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act when we cease to be an emerging growth company. We expect to incur significant expenses and devote substantial management effort toward ensuring compliance with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. As a result of the complexity involved in complying with the rules and regulations applicable to public companies, our management’s attention may be diverted from other business concerns, which could harm our business, operating results, and financial condition. Although we have already engaged additional resources to assist us in complying with these requirements, our finance team is small and we may need to hire more employees in the future, or engage outside consultants, which will increase our operating expenses.
We also expect that being a public company and complying with applicable rules and regulations will make it more expensive for us to obtain director and officer liability insurance, and we may be required to incur substantially higher costs to obtain and maintain the same or similar coverage. These factors could also make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified members of our board of directors and qualified executive officers.
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Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds.
Except as disclosed in our Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on July 1, 2021, there were no sales of unregistered equity securities during the six months ended June 30, 2021.
Text extracted from the filing as submitted to EDGAR. Formatting, tables and exhibits are simplified for reading; the original document is authoritative for anything you rely on.