Yeti Holdings (YETI) Risk Analysis

Our products expose us to product recall and warranty liability claims if the products we manufacture, sell, or design actually or allegedly fail to perform as expected. Although we extensively and rigorously test new and enhanced products, there can be no assurance we will be able to detect, prevent, or fix all defects. Under certain circumstances, the United States Consumer Products Safety Commission, other relevant global regulatory authorities, or other country, state, or city laws (in existence now or in the future) could require us to repurchase or recall one or more of our products. Any mandatory or voluntarily repurchase or recall of our products, as well as any related monetary judgment, fine, or other penalty, could be costly and damaging to our reputation and may result in large quantities of finished products that we would not be able to sell. For example, in 2023 we initiated a global stop sale and voluntary recalls of our Hopper M30 Soft Cooler, Hopper M20 Soft Backpack Cooler, and SideKick Dry gear case. These actions subjected us to substantial costs, including product recall remedies, legal and advisory fees, and recall-related logistics costs. Further, if we are unable to develop a product solution for any potential safety concern associated with a product recall, we may not be able to sell the redesigned products for a significant period of time, if ever, and may face substantial costs associated with the development of such features and implementation of the recalls. In addition to potential recall impacts, the occurrence of any material defects in our products could expose us to liability for warranty claims, which could be in excess of our current reserves, and if our warranty reserves are inadequate to cover future warranty claims on our products, our financial condition and operating results may be harmed. We also face exposure to product liability claims and unusual or significant litigation in the event that one of our products is alleged to have resulted in personal injury, property damage, or other adverse effects. In addition to the risk of monetary judgments or other penalties that may result from product liability claims, such claims could result in negative publicity that could harm our reputation in the marketplace, adversely impact our brand, or result in an increase in the cost of producing our products. As a result, these types of claims could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition.

We continually assess, and re-engineer as needed, our supply chain management, technology, and business processes to support our expanding scale. Our global expansion plans require significant investment of capital and human resources, the adaptation and evolution of many business processes and technology, and the attention of many employees who would otherwise be focused on other aspects of our business. In particular, inadequate implementation of new technology or execution of modifications or upgrades to existing technology, or poor organizational change management could harm ongoing business operations or impede new business capabilities. While executing on such technology initiatives, we need to manage key business functions globally with platforms and process at scale; ensure responsiveness, resiliency and business continuity; adopt emerging technologies; and maintain readiness to withstand and recover from cybersecurity and information technology threats. If our globalization efforts fail to produce planned efficiencies, or are not managed effectively, we may experience excess inventories, inventory shortage, late deliveries, lost sales, or increased costs. Any business disruption arising from our globalization efforts, or our failure to effectively execute our global expansion plans, could harm our results of operations and financial condition.

The price and availability of key components used to manufacture our products, including polyethylene, polyurethane foam, stainless-steel, polyester fabric, zippers, and other plastic materials and coatings, as well as manufacturing equipment and molds, may fluctuate significantly. In addition, the cost of labor at our third-party contract manufacturers and third-party logistics providers could increase significantly. Additionally, the cost of logistics and transportation fluctuates due to a number of factors, including the price of oil, available capacity, market demand, and geopolitical events. Global political conditions, threatened or actual acts of war or terrorism, instability or other disruptions in areas such as the South China Sea, the Middle East, South America and Europe, and trade, economic or other disagreements among nations, can significantly affect, and recently have significantly affected, transportation times and costs. Any fluctuations in the cost and availability of any of our raw materials or other sourcing or transportation costs related to our raw materials or products could harm our gross margins and our ability to meet customer demand.

We believe that our future growth depends not only on continuing to reach our existing retail partners and customers but also on continuing to broaden our retail partner and customer base. The growth of our business will depend, in part, on our ability to continue to expand our retail partner and customer bases in the United States, as well as in international markets, including Canada, Australia, Europe, and Asia. In these international markets, we face challenges that are at times different from those we encounter in the United States, including competitive, merchandising, distribution, hiring, and other difficulties. We may also encounter difficulties in attracting customers due to a lack of consumer familiarity with, or acceptance of, our brand, or a resistance to paying for premium products, particularly in international markets. We continue to evaluate and invest in sales and marketing efforts and other strategies to expand the customer base for our products, but we may not be successful. If we are not successful, our business and results of operations may be harmed.

Our business depends on our ability to source and distribute products in a timely manner. However, we cannot control all of the factors that might affect the timely and effective procurement of our products from our third-party contract manufacturers and the delivery of our products to our retail partners and customers. We utilize global third-party logistics providers to warehouse and distribute finished products from our distribution facilities in Memphis, Tennessee, Salt Lake City, Utah, and Sumner, Washington to support our domestic operations, and in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, the Netherlands, and Vietnam to support our international operations. Our reliance on a limited number of geographical locations for our distribution centers makes us more vulnerable to natural disasters, weather-related disruptions, accidents, system failures, public health emergencies, or other unforeseen events that could delay or impair our ability to fulfill retailer orders and/or ship merchandise purchased on our website, which could harm our sales. We import our products and rely on the timely and free flow of goods through open and operational ports from our suppliers and manufacturers. Accordingly, we are subject to certain risks associated with our third-party contract manufacturers' and carriers' ability to provide products and services to meet our requirements, including labor disputes, union organizing activity, inclement weather, public health crises, and increased transportation costs. Such events could result in delayed or canceled orders by customers, unanticipated inventory accumulation or shortages, and harm to our business, results of operations, and financial condition. We are also vulnerable to risks associated with products manufactured abroad, including, among other things: (a) risks of damage, destruction, or confiscation of products while in transit to our distribution centers; and (b) transportation and other delays in shipments, including as a result of heightened security screening, port congestion, container and labor shortages, and inspection processes or other port-of-entry limitations or restrictions. Global events may also impact the import of our products. For example, in response to ongoing geopolitical conflicts, certain governments have, and may again in the future, implement sanctions, seizures of assets, or export control measures, which could result in higher costs, inventory shortages, or both. In addition, geopolitical conflicts near key global shipping areas may disrupt shipping routes, causing delays and increased freight costs. Although we have continued to experience such effects with respect to the ongoing conflict in the Red Sea, such effects have not materially impacted our business to date. In order to meet demand for a product, we have chosen in the past, and may choose in the future, to arrange for additional quantities of the product, if available, to be delivered through air freight, which is significantly more expensive than standard shipping by sea and, consequently, adversely impacts our gross margins. In addition, we rely upon independent land-based and air freight carriers for product shipments from our distribution centers to our retail partners and customers who purchase through our DTC channel. We may not be able to obtain sufficient freight capacity on a timely basis or at favorable shipping rates and, therefore, may not be able to receive products from suppliers or deliver products to retail partners or customers in a timely and cost-effective manner. Failure to procure our products from our third-party contract manufacturers and deliver merchandise to our retail partners and DTC channel in a timely, effective, and economically viable manner could reduce our sales and gross margins, damage our brand, and harm our business.

Continued expansion into markets outside the United States, including Canada, Australia, Europe and Asia, is one of our key long-term strategies for the future growth of our business. There are, however, significant costs and risks inherent in selling our products in international markets, including: (a) failure to effectively translate and establish our core brand identity, particularly in markets with a less-established heritage of outdoor and recreational activities; (b) time and difficulty in building a widespread network of retail partners; (c) increased shipping and distribution costs, which could increase our expenses and reduce our margins; (d) potentially lower margins in some regions; (e) longer collection cycles in some regions; (f) increased competition from local providers of similar products; (g) compliance with fragmented and rapidly evolving foreign laws and regulations, including regarding taxes, duties, consumer protection, product safety, privacy, and digital marketing; (h) establishing and maintaining effective internal controls at foreign locations and the associated increased costs; (i) increased counterfeiting and the uncertainty of protection for intellectual property rights in some countries and practical difficulties of enforcing rights abroad; (j) compliance with anti-bribery, anti-corruption, sanctions, and anti-money laundering laws, such as the FCPA, the Bribery Act, and OFAC regulations, by us, our employees, and our business partners; (k) currency exchange rate fluctuations and related effects on our results of operations; (l) economic weakness, including inflation, or political instability in foreign economies and markets; (m) compliance with tax, employment, immigration, and labor laws for employees living or traveling abroad; (n) workforce uncertainty in countries where labor unrest is more common than in the United States; (o) business interruptions resulting from geopolitical actions, including war and terrorism, natural disasters, including earthquakes, typhoons, floods, and fires, public health emergencies, including the outbreak of a pandemic or other public health crisis; (p) the imposition of tariffs on products that we import into international markets that could make such products more expensive compared to those of our competitors; (q) that our ability to expand internationally could be impacted by the intellectual property rights of third parties that conflict with or are superior to ours; (r) backlash against American brands in international markets; and (s) other costs and risks of doing business internationally. In addition, stakeholder and regulatory expectations for supply chain transparency and traceability, including documentation of origin, materials, and labor practices, may be costly and complex to implement. We may be unable to fully trace all inputs through multi-tier supply chains, which could increase the risk of shipment detentions, penalties, or reputational harm if any supplier is alleged to be non-compliant. These and other factors could harm our international operations and, consequently, harm our business, results of operations, and financial condition. Further, we may incur significant operating expenses as a result of our planned international expansion, and it may not be successful. In our expansion efforts we at times encounter obstacles we did not face in the our existing markets, including cultural and linguistic differences, differences in regulatory environments, labor practices and market practices, difficulties in keeping abreast of market, business and technical developments, and preferences of foreign customers. Consumer demand and behavior, as well as tastes and purchasing trends, also often differ internationally. As a result, we may not be able to successfully penetrate or operate in new markets, or our sales in new markets or the margins on those sales may not be in line with those we anticipate. We also at times encounter challenges due to limited brand recognition, leading to delayed or limited acceptance of our products by customers in these markets and increased marketing and customer acquisition costs to establish our brand. Accordingly, if we are unable to successfully expand internationally or manage the complexity of our global operations, we may not achieve the expected benefits of this expansion and our financial condition and results of operations could be harmed.

Public health crises, including pandemics, epidemics, or infectious disease outbreaks, and related required or voluntary measures to limit transmission could cause, business slowdowns or shutdowns in affected areas and significant disruption in the financial markets both globally and in the United States. The emergence of a pandemic, epidemic, or infectious disease outbreak could, among other things, lead to: - temporary retail store closures or reduced operating hours and/or decreased retail traffic;- disruptions at our distribution centers, third-party manufacturing partners and other vendors, due to illness-related facility closures, or measures taken by federal, state or local governments to reduce the spread of illness, reductions in operating hours, labor shortages, and real time changes in operating procedures, including for additional cleaning and disinfection procedures; and - significant disruption of global financial markets that could adversely affect our ability to access capital in the future. For example, a future public health crisis could lead to constraints across domestic and international supply chains, such as port congestion, transportation delays, and labor and container shortages, that affect product flow and availability, and could increase demand for e-commerce in ways that strain fulfillment operations and small-parcel networks, potentially causing delivery delays. The emergence of a pandemic, epidemic or infectious disease outbreak, including any required or voluntary actions to help limit the spread of illness, could impact our ability to carry out our business and could materially adversely impact global economic conditions, our business, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition. Such events could materially increase our costs, negatively impact our sales and damage our results of operations and liquidity, possibly to a significant degree. The extent of the impact of such events on our business and financial results cannot be predicted.

Most of our imported products are subject to tariffs, duties, indirect taxes, quotas and non-tariff trade barriers, any of which may limit the quantity of products that we may import into the United States and other countries or may impact the cost of such products. To maximize opportunities, we rely on free trade agreements and other supply chain initiatives, and, as a result, we are subject to government regulations and restrictions with respect to our cross-border activity. Additionally, we are subject to government regulations relating to importation activities, including related to U.S. Customs and Border Protection ("CBP") withhold release orders. The imposition of additional tariffs, taxes, duties and quotas, the withdrawal from or the material modification to trade agreements, retaliatory actions from other countries, failure to report or inaccuracies in processing transactions with CBP and/or if CBP detains shipments of our goods pursuant to a withhold release order could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, a change in available exemptions, an increase in tariffs on countries where our products are manufactured, or retaliatory actions from other countries could constrain our supply chain and raise the cost of our products. During 2025, the U.S. government implemented incremental tariffs on imports from many countries. Most of our products are produced in countries that were subject to these tariffs. As a result, in 2025, the cost to import our products into the United States increased, which had a material negative impact on our gross margins and results of operations in 2025. On February 20, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Power Act (the "IEEPA Decision"). There remains significant uncertainty regarding the implementation of the IEEPA Decision, including the processes that will govern refund claims, the timing of any potential refunds, and the ultimate amounts, if any, that we may recover. In addition, immediately following the IEEPA Decision, the U.S. government initiated new tariffs under alternative authorities, resulting in continued tariff exposure for many of our products. There remains significant uncertainty regarding the duration and scope of these newly initiated tariffs, whether the U.S. government will pursue additional trade actions or impose further tariffs, and the impact of such conditions on our business. Any such uncertainties and developments could materially affect our business or financial results. Tariffs have potential tangential economic impacts that may also harm our business. If businesses are forced to raise their prices in response to tariffs or other factors, higher prices for consumers may lead to a decrease in disposable consumer income and reduced consumer demand for many types of products, including ours. Demand for our products could also be harmed if the indirect impacts of tariffs cause a recession and there is a decrease in consumer discretionary spending. Given the uncertainty regarding the scope and duration of the current and potential tariffs, as well as the potential for additional trade actions by the United States or other countries, the ultimate impact on our business and results of operations is uncertain but could continue to be material or worsen.

Third parties have sued us and may in the future sue us for alleged infringement of their proprietary rights. The party claiming infringement might have greater resources than we do to pursue its claims, and we have been, and may in the future be, forced to incur substantial costs and devote significant management resources to defend against such litigation, even if the claims are meritless and even if we ultimately prevail. If the party claiming infringement were to prevail, we could be forced to modify or discontinue our products, pay significant damages, or enter into expensive royalty or licensing arrangements with the prevailing party. In addition, any payments we are required to make, and any injunction we are required to comply with as a result of such infringement, could harm our reputation and financial results.

We depend on our information technology systems, as well as those of third parties, to design and develop new products, process financial and accounting information, manage inventory and our supply chain, operate our websites, host and manage our services, support our remote-working employees, store data, process transactions, respond to user inquiries, and conduct and manage various other operational activities. Any of these information technology systems could fail or experience a service interruption for a number of reasons, including cybersecurity threats, system failures, design defects, or failure to maintain or upgrade information technology systems. Although we have taken steps to protect the security of our information technology systems and the data maintained in those systems, we have, from time to time, experienced cybersecurity threats to our data and systems, including malware, phishing, and attempts to exploit vulnerabilities in third-party software and services on which we rely. It is possible that our safety and security measures will not prevent our systems from functioning improperly or becoming damaged. It is also possible that our safety and security measures will not prevent the improper access or disclosure of personally identifiable information such as in the event of a cybersecurity incident. Incidents may include social engineering or impersonation of authorized users, efforts to discover and exploit design flaws, bugs, security vulnerabilities or security weaknesses, intentional or unintentional acts by employees or other insiders with access privileges, intentional acts of vandalism or fraud by third parties or sabotage. Our use of AI and our use of products and services from third parties that use AI as well as our expansion into countries with weaker data protection standards, may increase the risks of such incidents. In some instances, efforts to correct vulnerabilities or prevent incidents have in the past reduced, and may in the future reduce, the functionality or performance of our information technology, which could negatively impact our business. Cybersecurity incidents can also be caused by ransomware, distributed denial-of-service attacks, worms, and other malicious software programs or other attacks. Such incidents could be caused by the covert introduction of malware to our information technology systems and the use of techniques or processes that change frequently. The intrusions may be disguised, difficult to detect, or designed to remain dormant until a triggering event, and may continue undetected for an extended period of time. In addition, some of our suppliers, vendors, service providers, cloud solution providers and customers have in the past experienced, and may in the future experience, such incidents, which could in turn disrupt our business. While we maintain cybersecurity insurance, such insurance policies may not cover any or all of the resulting financial losses. Any material disruption or slowdown of our systems or those of third parties that we depend upon could cause information, including data related to orders, to be lost or delayed. Such loss or delay of information could result in delays in the delivery of products to retailers and customers. We could also lose sales, which could in turn reduce demand for our products, harm our brand and reputation, and cause our sales to decline. In addition to disruptions due to cybersecurity incidents, we may experience such disruptions due to significant increases in user volume, system failures, design defects or failure to maintain or upgrade information technology systems. We periodically implement modifications and upgrades to our systems, including making changes to legacy systems, replacing legacy systems with successor systems with new functionality, automating processes and acquiring new systems with new functionality. While we invest in developments to our technology and systems, there is a risk that our investments may not ultimately result in the rate of return we expect. Furthermore, remediation and repair of any failure, problem or breach of our key information systems could require significant capital investments. In addition, the implementation of new information technology systems or any remediation of our key information systems often require investment of capital and human resources, the re-engineering of business processes, and the attention of many employees who would otherwise be focused on other areas of our business. Further, if we experience any significant disruption to our financial information systems that we are unable to mitigate, we could lose sales and profits, experience reputational damage, or our ability to timely report our financial results could be impacted, which could negatively impact our stock price. As part of our normal business activities, we collect, store, process, and use certain information that is confidential, proprietary or otherwise sensitive, including personal information of consumers, customers, suppliers, service providers and employees. Our customers' personal information may include names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, payment card data, and payment account information, as well as other information. We share some of this information with certain third parties who assist us with business matters. Moreover, the success of our operations depends upon the secure transmission of confidential, proprietary or otherwise sensitive data, including personal information, over networks. Any unauthorized access or data acquisition, despite security measures in place to protect such information, or other failure on the part of us or third parties to maintain the security of such data could result in business disruption, damage to our reputation, financial obligations to third parties, legal obligations, fines, penalties, regulatory proceedings and private litigation with potentially large costs. Such unauthorized access or data acquisition could also result in deterioration in confidence in our Company and other competitive disadvantages, and thus could have a material adverse effect on our business. Depending on the nature of the information compromised, we may also have obligations to notify users, law enforcement, government entities, or payment companies about the incident and may need to provide some form of remedy, such as refunds, for the individuals affected by the incident. Privacy laws, rules, and regulations are constantly evolving in the United States and abroad and sometimes are inconsistent from one jurisdiction to another. Further, as we expand internationally, we are subject to additional privacy rules, such as the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation, many of which are significantly more stringent than those in the United States. Complying with these evolving obligations is costly, and any failure to comply could give rise to unwanted media attention and other negative publicity, damage our customer and consumer relationships and reputation, and result in lost sales, fines, or lawsuits, and may harm our business.

The focus of, and levels of concern from, federal, state and local governments, non-governmental organizations and our customers, consumers and investors regarding climate change and other environmental matters continue to evolve. New governmental requirements or changing consumer preferences could negatively impact our ability to obtain raw materials or increase our acquisition and compliance costs, which could make our products more costly, less attractive to consumers than other competitive products or reduce consumer demand. We could also lose revenue if our consumers change brands or our customers move business from us because we have not complied with their preferences and investors may choose not to invest in our securities if we do not comply with their business expectations. Significant changes in weather patterns, including an increase in the frequency, severity and duration of extreme weather conditions and natural disasters, could also directly impact our business. Physical risks related to these events could disrupt the operation of our supply chain and the productivity of our manufacturers, increase our production costs, impose capacity restraints or impact the types of products that consumers purchase. These events could also compound adverse economic conditions and impact consumer confidence and discretionary spending. As a result, the physical effects of climate change could have a long-term adverse impact on our business and results of operations.