Culp (CULP) Risk Factors

We rely significantly on operations in distant locations, especially China. In addition, we have been purchasing a significant share of our products and raw materials from offshore sources, particularly Asia and Turkey. At the same time, our domestic manufacturing capacity for the upholstery fabrics segment continues to decline. These changes have caused us to rely on an extended supply chain and on a larger number of suppliers that we do not control, subjecting us to greater risks of delay or disruption. In addition, operations and sourcing in foreign areas are subject to the risk of changing local governmental rules, taxes, changes in import rules or customs, import restrictions, tariffs, shipping rates, potential political unrest and instability, coronavirus or other pandemic-related closure rules, or other threats that could disrupt or increase the costs of operating in foreign areas or sourcing products overseas. Any of the risks associated with foreign operations and sources could cause unanticipated increases in operating costs or disruptions in business, which could have a negative impact on our ultimate financial results. Recently, a confluence of factors has caused disruptions to international shipping, increasing costs and delaying shipments. Attacks on ships entering the Red Sea en route to the Suez Canal, an important waterway for vessels moving between Asia and the United States, by Houthi rebels in Yemen has forced ships to take longer routes. In addition, labor disputes at major ports and railways throughout the world, along with weather-related disruptions, such as droughts in Panama reducing capacity in the Panama Canal, have further impacted the global supply chain. These factors began to affect the availability of containers and space for shipments from our China operations beginning in the second half of fiscal 2024, and shipping costs have been rising since that time. Additionally, the change in global routes due to the Suez and Panama Canal disruptions has caused transit times to be extended by approximately two weeks. If any of these or other factors were to worsen, we may be unable to timely ship our products or receive the materials we need to produce our products, or our shipping costs may further increase. We may be unable to pass along such costs to our customers, or may have difficulty meeting our customers' demands, each of which may materially and adversely affect our results of operations. In addition, with respect to sourcing products and raw materials from third-party suppliers in China, our ability to timely or successfully import such products or those made with such raw materials may be adversely affected by changes in U.S. laws. For example, certain recently enacted laws and regulations impose a presumptive ban on the import of goods to the U.S. that are made, wholly or in part, in certain defined areas or by certain restricted persons or entities. These laws and regulations specifically target cotton and the apparel and textile industries as high-priority sectors for enforcement. None of our Chinese suppliers are located in the region targeted or are identified as restricted entities under these laws and regulations, and we prohibit our suppliers from doing business with or sourcing inputs from any company or entity that is in the region targeted or that restricted under U.S. or other applicable law. However, as a result of these laws and regulations, products we import into the U.S. could be held for inspection by U.S. customs and border patrol based on a suspicion of noncompliance. During fiscal 2023 and early in fiscal 2024, we were subjected to a limited number of such detentions and were successful in submitting satisfactory supply chain evidence to result in the release of all such detained goods. These detentions did not resulted in any material impact on our business, supply chain, customer relationships, or reputation, and we did not have any further detentions in fiscal 2024. However, future detentions could result in unexpected (i) delays or rejections of products scheduled for delivery to us, which could in turn affect the timing or our ability to deliver products to our customers; (ii) supply chain disruptions and increased operating costs; (iii) damage to our customer relationships; and/or (iv) negative publicity that harms our reputation, any of which could have a material impact on our business and negatively affect our ultimate financial results.

We depend upon outside suppliers for most of our raw material needs, and we rely upon outside suppliers for component materials such as yarn, unfinished fabrics, and cut and sewn upholstery kits and mattress covers, as well as for certain services such as finishing and weaving. Fluctuations in the price, availability, and quality of these goods and services have had, and could continue to have, a negative effect on our production costs and ability to meet the demands of our customers, which can affect our ability to generate sales and earnings. In many cases, we are not able to pass through increased costs of raw materials or increased production costs to our customers through price increases. In particular, many of our basic raw materials are petrochemical products or are produced from such products. For this reason, our material costs are especially sensitive to changes in prices for petrochemicals and the underlying price of oil. Increases in prices for oil, petrochemical products or other raw materials and services provided by outside suppliers can significantly increase our costs and negatively affect our profit margins and earnings. Rising oil prices, a higher demand environment, and labor shortages during fiscal 2022 caused raw material prices to increase, particularly during the second half of the year. During fiscal 2023 and fiscal 2024, the cost of raw materials declined due to lower oil prices and slowing global demand, but the higher costs and lower availability of labor remained challenging in both years. While the cost of raw materials and labor costs were relatively stable during fiscal 2024, the factors listed above, among other factors, may drive future increases in raw material prices, which may harm our results of operation.

Our domestic and foreign operations are subject to risks of unsettled political conditions, civil unrest or instability in countries in which we operate, natural or man-made disasters, acts of war, and terrorism. As an example, we maintain an active production facility in Ouanaminthe, Haiti. Severe political instability in Haiti, along with recent natural disasters, has created a crisis in the country, subjecting our operations there to heightened risk. While operations at our production facility have not been directly affected, ongoing political and civil unrest in Haiti could cause manufacturing disruptions at our Haiti facility. In addition, public health concerns and pandemics have in the past, and may again disrupt our business. For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, we temporarily shut down certain of our facilities, as did certain of our sourcing partners and customers, which prevented us from shipping goods in both our residential upholstery fabrics business and our sewn mattress cover business. Moreover, the effects of climate change and actions taken to combat climate change could exacerbate these risks, including by increasing the likelihood and severity of extreme weather events. Civil instability, public health concerns, natural disasters, acts of war, terrorism or other adverse events could cause disruption at our manufacturing or distribution facilities, or at the facilities of our suppliers and distribution channels. The materialization of any of these risks could result in additional expense to us, limit our supply of necessary goods and raw materials, and otherwise affect our ability to meet the needs of our customers, and our results of operations may be materially adversely affected as a result.

Changes in the value of the U.S. dollar versus other currencies can affect our financial results because a significant portion of our operations are located outside the United States. We manage various operating activities at the local level and net sales, costs, assets and liabilities are denominated in both the local currency and the U.S. dollar. Our results of operations and assets and liabilities are reported in U.S. dollars and thus will fluctuate with changes in applicable exchange rates, affecting our reported results and the comparability of our results of operations and cash flows between periods. Further, strengthening of the U.S. dollar against other currencies could make our products less competitive on the basis of price in markets outside the United States, and strengthening of currencies in Canada and China could have a negative impact on our sales of products produced in those places.

We currently have several customers that account for a substantial portion of our sales. In the mattress fabrics segment, several large bedding manufacturers have large market shares and comprise a significant portion of our mattress fabric sales, with Serta Simmons Holdings, LLC and its subcontractors accounting for approximately 13% of consolidated net sales in fiscal 2024. In the upholstery fabrics segment, La-Z-Boy Incorporated accounted for approximately 12% of consolidated net sales during fiscal 2024, and several other large furniture manufacturers comprised a significant portion of sales. A business failure or other significant financial difficulty by one or more of our major customers, or the loss of one or more of these customers, could cause a significant loss in sales, an adverse effect on our earnings, and difficulty in collection of our trade accounts receivable. For example, in recent years, two of our major customers associated with our mattress fabrics segment filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. Although we did not record any credit losses and have received payment in full regarding all outstanding accounts receivable with respect to each of these customers, a business failure or loss of either such customer and its affiliates, or a business failure or loss of one or more other major customers, could cause a decrease in our sales and an adverse effect on our earnings. Unforeseen events may adversely affect our customers, causing them to delay, or cease, payments to us. For example, during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, some customers experienced cash flow challenges and requested extended payment terms. While we perform credit evaluations of our customers, those evaluations may not prevent uncollectible trade accounts receivable. Credit evaluations involve significant management diligence and judgment, especially in the current environment. If more customers than we anticipate experience liquidity issues, if payments are not received on a timely basis, or if a customer declares bankruptcy, we may have difficulty collecting amounts owed to us by these customers, which could adversely affect our sales, earnings, financial condition, and liquidity.