RMCF Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Inc

NOTES TO INTERIM (UNAUDITED) CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

NOTE 1 – NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION

Nature of Operations

The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Inc., a Delaware corporation, its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Inc. (a Colorado corporation), Aspen Leaf Yogurt, LLC (“ALY”), and U-Swirl International, Inc. (“U-Swirl”), and its 46%-owned subsidiary, U-Swirl, Inc. (“SWRL”) (collectively, the “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our”).

The Company is an international franchisor, confectionery manufacturer and retail operator. Founded in 1981, the Company is headquartered in Durango, Colorado and manufactures an extensive line of premium chocolate candies and other confectionery products. U-Swirl franchises and operates self-serve frozen yogurt cafés. The Company also sells its candy in selected locations outside of its system of retail stores and through ecommerce channels, and licenses the use of its brand with certain consumer products.

U-Swirl operates self-serve frozen yogurt cafés under the names “U-Swirl,” “Yogurtini,” “CherryBerry,” “Yogli Mogli Frozen Yogurt,” “Fuzzy Peach Frozen Yogurt,” “Let’s Yo!” and “Aspen Leaf Yogurt.”

The Company’s revenues are currently derived from three principal sources: sales to franchisees and others of chocolates and other confectionery products manufactured by the Company; the collection of initial franchise fees and royalties from franchisees’ sales; and sales at Company-owned stores of chocolates, frozen yogurt, and other confectionery products.

In FY 2020 and early FY 2021 we entered into a long-term strategic alliance and ecommerce agreements, respectively, with Edible Arrangements®, LLC and its affiliates (“Edible”), whereby it is intended that we would become the exclusive provider of certain branded chocolate products to Edible, its affiliates and its franchisees. Under the strategic alliance, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory branded products are intended to be available for purchase both on Edible’s website as well as through over 1,000 franchised Edible locations nationwide. In addition, due to Edible’s significant e-commerce expertise and scale, we have also executed an ecommerce licensing agreement with Edible, whereby Edible is expected to sell a wide variety of chocolates, candies and other confectionery products produced by the Company or its franchisees through Edible’s websites. There is no assurance that the strategic alliance and ecommerce agreements will be deployed into our operations and to our satisfaction, or that we will achieve the expected full benefits from these agreements. During the nine months ended November 30, 2021, certain disagreements arose between RMCF and Edible related to the strategic alliance and ecommerce agreements resulting in continuing discussions, the result of which are not currently determinable.  Purchases by Edible during the three and nine months ended November 30, 2021 were approximately $413,400 and $1.2 million, or 4.9% and 5.0% of the Company’s revenues, respectively. Purchases by Edible during the three and nine months ended November 30, 2020 were approximately $1.2 million and $2.1 million, or 16.3% and 13.9% of the Company’s revenues, respectively. There can be no assurance historical revenue levels will be indicative of future revenues.

The following table summarizes the number of stores operating under the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory brand and frozen yogurt cafés as of November 30, 2021:

During FY 2021 the Company initiated formal legal proceedings against Immaculate Confections (“IC”), the operator of RMCF locations in Canada. In its complaint, the Company alleged, among other things, that IC has utilized the Company’s trademarks and other intellectual property without authority to do so and that IC has been unjustly enriched by their use of the Company’s trademarks and intellectual property.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE FACTORY, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO INTERIM (UNAUDITED) CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

In June 2021 a court order was issued declaring the original 1991 Development Agreement for Canada between RMCF and IC had expired. In September 2021, the Company and IC reached a Settlement Agreement (the “IC Agreement”) whereby the parties agreed to a six months negotiation period to explore alternative solutions. During the six-month period, IC will continue to operate locations as Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. The IC Agreement contains provisions that would require IC to de-identify its locations if a solution is not reached. As of the date of this filing, IC operates 49 locations in Canada. During the nine months ended November 30, 2021 the Company recognized approximately $116,800 of factory revenue from locations operated by IC in Canada compared with no revenue recognized from locations operated by IC in Canada during the nine months ended November 30, 2020.

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared by the Company, without audit, and reflect all adjustments which are, in the opinion of management, necessary for a fair statement of the results for the interim periods presented. The consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) for interim financial reporting and Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) regulations. Certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been condensed or omitted pursuant to such rules and regulations. In the opinion of management, the consolidated financial statements reflect all adjustments (of a normal and recurring nature) which are necessary for a fair presentation of the financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the interim periods presented. The results of operations for the nine months ended November 30, 2021 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the entire fiscal year.

These consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited financial statements and notes thereto included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended February 28, 2021, as amended by Amendment No. 1 on Form 10-K/A filed on June 28, 2021. The year-end balance sheet data was derived from audited financial statements, but does not include all disclosures required by accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Subsequent Events

Management evaluated all activity of the Company through the issue date of the financial statements and concluded that no subsequent events have occurred that would require recognition or disclosure in the financial statements.

COVID-19 Update

As discussed in more detail throughout this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the nine months ended November 30, 2021 (this “Quarterly Report”), we have experienced significant business disruptions resulting from efforts to contain the rapid spread of the novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”), including the vast mandated self-quarantines of customers throughout the United States and internationally. During the year ended February 28, 2021 nearly all of the Company-owned and franchise stores were directly and negatively impacted by public health measures taken in response to COVID-19, with nearly all locations experiencing reduced operations as a result of, among other things, modified business hours and store and mall closures. As a result, franchisees and licensees were not ordering products for their stores in line with historical amounts. This trend has negatively impacted, and may continue to negatively impact, among other things, factory sales, retail sales and royalty and marketing fees. Beginning in May 2020, most stores previously closed for much of March 2020 and April 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, began to re-open. During the year ended February 28, 2021, approximately 53 stores closed and have not re-opened and the future of these locations is uncertain. That is a closure rate significantly higher than historical levels. As of the date of this report, most stores have met or exceeded pre-COVID-19 sales levels, however, many retail environments have continued to be adversely impacted by changes to consumer behavior as a result of COVID-19. Most stores re-opened subject to various local health restrictions and often with reduced operations. Strong consumer spending and other macro-economic trends as well as the roll out of vaccines and relaxing of most local health restrictions have resulted in significant increases in sales at our franchise stores during the nine months ended November 30, 2021. Our ability to meet the increase in franchise store demand has been partially constrained by labor and supply chain constraints. We are unsure how the emergence of COVID-19 variants, such as Delta and Omicron, will impact the positive recovery trends.

In addition, as previously announced on May 11, 2020, the Board of Directors has suspended future quarterly dividends until the Board of Directors determines that resumption of dividend payments is in the best interest of the Company and our stockholders.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Except for the recent accounting pronouncements described below, other recent accounting pronouncements are not expected to have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE FACTORY, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO INTERIM (UNAUDITED) CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

In June 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2016-13, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments. ASU 2016-13 significantly changes the impairment model for most financial assets and certain other instruments. ASU 2016-13 will require immediate recognition of estimated credit losses expected to occur over the remaining life of many financial assets, which will generally result in earlier recognition of allowances for credit losses on loans and other financial instruments. ASU 2016-13 is effective for the Company's fiscal year beginning March 1, 2023 and subsequent interim periods. The Company is currently evaluating the impact the adoption of ASU 2016-13 will have on the Company's consolidated financial statements.

NOTE 3 –REVENUE FROM CONTRACTS WITH CUSTOMERS

The Company recognizes revenue from contracts with its customers in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification® (“ASC”) 606, which provides that revenues are recognized when control of promised goods or services is transferred to a customer in an amount that reflects the consideration expected to be received for those goods or services. The Company generally receives a fee associated with the Franchise Agreement or License Agreement (collectively “Customer Contracts”) at the time that the Customer Contract is entered. These Customer Contracts have a term of up to 20 years, however the majority of Customer Contracts have a term of 10 years. During the term of the Customer Contract, the Company is obligated to many performance obligations that the Company has not determined are distinct. The resulting treatment of revenue from Customer Contracts is that the revenue is recognized proportionately over the life of the Customer Contract.

Initial Franchise Fees, License Fees, Transfer Fees and Renewal Fees

In accordance with ASC 606, the initial franchise services are not distinct from the continuing rights or services offered during the term of the franchise agreement, and are treated as a single performance obligation. Initial franchise fees are being recognized as the Company satisfies the performance obligation over the term of the franchise agreement, which is generally 10 years.

The following table summarizes contract liabilities as of November 30, 2021 and November 30, 2020:

At November 30, 2021, annual revenue expected to be recognized in the future, related to performance obligations that are not yet fully satisfied, are estimated to be the following:

ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE FACTORY, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO INTERIM (UNAUDITED) CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Gift Cards

The Company’s franchisees sell gift cards, which do not have expiration dates or non-usage fees. The proceeds from the sale of gift cards by the franchisees are accumulated by the Company and paid out to the franchisees upon customer redemption. ASC 606 requires the use of the “proportionate” method for recognizing breakage. Under the guidance of ASC 606 the Company recognizes breakage from gift cards when the gift card is redeemed by the customer or the Company determines the likelihood of the gift card being redeemed by the customer is remote (“gift card breakage”). The determination of the gift card breakage rate is based upon Company-specific historical redemption patterns.

Factory Sales of Confectionary Items, Retail Sales and Royalty and Marketing Fees

Confectionary items sold to the Company’s franchisees, others and its Company-owned stores sales are recognized at the time of the underlying sale and are presented net of sales taxes and discounts. Royalties and marketing fees from franchised or licensed locations, which are based on a percent of sales and recognized at the time the sales occur.

NOTE 4 – DISAGGREGATION OF REVENUE         

The following table presents disaggregated revenue by method of recognition and segment:

ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE FACTORY, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO INTERIM (UNAUDITED) CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE FACTORY, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO INTERIM (UNAUDITED) CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Depreciation expense related to property and equipment totaled $177,909 and $541,887 during the three and nine months ended November 30, 2021 compared to $189,522 and $576,128 during the three and nine months ended November 30, 2020, respectively.

Amortization expense related to intangible assets totaled $120,873 and $363,085 during the three and nine months ended November 30, 2021 compared to $137,050 and $428,411 during the three and nine months ended November 30, 2020, respectively.

At November 30, 2021, annual amortization of intangible assets, based upon the Company’s existing intangible assets and current useful lives, is estimated to be the following:

NOTE 8 – IMPAIRMENT OF LONG-LIVED AND INTANGIBLE ASSETS

We assess the potential impairment of our long-lived assets on an annual basis or whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying value of the assets or asset group may not be recoverable. Due to the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our operations, we determined it was necessary to perform an interim test of our long-lived assets during the three months ended May 31, 2020. Based on the results of these assessments, we recorded $545,000 of expense. This expense is presented within general and administrative expense on the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

Certain interim tests conducted during the three months ended May 31, 2020 did not indicate a need for impairment. Franchise rights, store design, manufacturing segment goodwill and franchising goodwill tests succeeded during the interim period. We believe we have made reasonable estimates and judgements, however, further COVID-19 related impacts could cause interim testing to be performed in future periods and further impairments recorded if testing of impairment is not successful in future periods.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE FACTORY, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO INTERIM (UNAUDITED) CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The assessment of our goodwill, trademark and long-lived asset fair values includes many assumptions that are subject to risk and uncertainties. The primary assumptions, which are all Level 3 inputs of the fair value hierarchy (inputs to the valuation methodology that are unobservable and significant to the fair value measurement), used in our impairment testing consist of:

During the nine months ended November 30, 2020 costs associated with the impairment of long-lived and intangible assets consisted of the following:

During the nine months ended November 30, 2021 the Company did not identify any triggering events and there were no costs associated with the impairment of long-lived assets during the nine months ended November 30, 2021.

NOTE 9 – LINE OF CREDIT AND LONG-TERM DEBT

Paycheck Protection Program

During the year ended February 28, 2021 the Company received promissory notes pursuant to the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”), under the recently enacted Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (the “SBA Loans”). The Company received total proceeds of $1.5 million from SBA Loans. During the three months ended November 30, 2020, approximately $108,000 of the original loan proceeds was forgiven by the SBA and during the three months ended February 28, 2021 the remaining approximately $1.4 million of the original loan proceeds was forgiven.

Revolving Credit Line

The Company has a $5.0 million credit line for general corporate and working capital purposes, of which $5.0 million was available for borrowing (subject to certain borrowing base limitations) as of November 30, 2021. The credit line is secured by substantially all of the Company’s assets, except retail store assets. Interest on borrowings is at Daily Simple SOFR plus 2.37% (2.4% at November 30, 2021). Additionally, the line of credit is subject to various financial ratio and leverage covenants. At November 30, 2021, the Company was in compliance with all such covenants. The credit line is subject to renewal in September 2022.

NOTE 10 – STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

Cash Dividend

The Company paid a quarterly cash dividend of $0.12 per share of common stock on March 13, 2020 to stockholders of record on February 28, 2020.

As previously announced on May 11, 2020, the Board of Directors suspended the Company’s fiscal year 2021 first quarter cash dividend payment to preserve cash and provide additional flexibility in the current environment as a result of the economic impact of COVID-19. Furthermore, the Board of Directors has suspended future quarterly dividends until the Board of Directors determines that resumption of dividend payments is in the best interest of the Company and its stockholders.

Future declarations of dividends will depend on, among other things, the Company's results of operations, financial condition, capital requirements, and on such other factors as the Company's Board of Directors may in its discretion consider relevant and in the best long-term interest of the Company’s stockholders.

On October 2, 2021, the Board of Directors approved the redemption of all the outstanding preferred stock purchase rights (the “Rights”) granted pursuant to the Rights Agreement, dated March 1, 2015, between the Company and Computershare Trust Company, N.A., as Rights Agent (as amended, the “Rights Agreement”), commonly referred to as a “poison pill.” Immediately upon the action of the Board of Directors to approve the redemption of the Rights, the right to exercise the Rights terminated, which effectively terminated the Rights Agreement. Pursuant to the Rights Agreement, the Rights were redeemed at a redemption price of $0.01 per Right. As a result, the Company paid an aggregate amount of $61,276 to shareholders in October 2021 to redeem the Rights.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE FACTORY, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO INTERIM (UNAUDITED) CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Stock Repurchases

On July 15, 2014, the Company publicly announced a plan to repurchase up to $3.0 million of its common stock in the open market or in private transactions, whenever deemed appropriate by management. As of November 30, 2021, approximately $638,000 remains available under the repurchase plan for further stock repurchases.

Warrants

In consideration of Edible entering into the exclusive supplier agreement and the performance of its obligations therein, on December 20, 2019, the Company issued Edible a warrant (the “Warrant”) to purchase up to 960,677 shares of the Company’s common stock (the “Warrant Shares”) at an exercise price of $8.76 per share. The Warrant Shares vest in annual tranches in varying amounts following each contract year under the exclusive supplier agreement, subject to, and only upon, Edible’s achievement of certain revenue thresholds on an annual or cumulative five-year basis in connection with its performance under the exclusive supplier agreement. The Warrant expires six months after the final and conclusive determination of revenue thresholds for the fifth contract year and the cumulative revenue determination in accordance with the terms of the Warrant.

The Company determined that the grant date fair value of the warrants was de minimis and did not record any amount in consideration of the warrants. The Company utilized a Monte Carlo model for purposes of determining the grant date fair value.

Stock-Based Compensation

Under the Company’s 2007 Equity Incentive Plan (as amended and restated) (the “2007 Plan”), the Company may authorize and grant stock awards to employees, non-employee directors and certain other eligible participants, including stock options, restricted stock and restricted stock units.

The Company recognized $677,370 and $946,994 of stock-based compensation expense during the three- and nine-month periods ended November 30, 2021, respectively, compared to $112,199 and $399,636 during the three- and nine-month periods ended November 30, 2020, respectively. Compensation costs related to stock-based compensation are generally amortized over the vesting period of the stock awards.

The following table summarizes restricted stock unit activity during the nine months ended November 30, 2021 and 2020:

The Company issued 26,058 restricted stock units to non-employee directors during the three months ended November 30, 2021 and issued 9,000 unrestricted shares to non-employee directors during the nine months ended November 30, 2021 compared to no shares issued during the three and nine months ended November 30, 2020. In connection with these non-employee director stock issuances, the Company recognized $55,373 and $101,983 during the three and nine months ended November 30, 2021, respectively, compared to $0 of non-employee director stock-based compensation expense during the three and nine months ended November 30, 2020.

During the three- and nine-month periods ended November 30, 2021, the Company recognized $621,997 and $845,011, respectively, of stock-based compensation expense related to employee restricted stock unit grants. The restricted stock unit grants generally vest in equal annual or quarterly installments over a period of five to six years. During the nine-month periods ended November 30, 2021 and 2020, 117,470 and 51,393 restricted stock units vested and were issued as common stock, respectively. Total unrecognized compensation expense of non-vested, non-forfeited restricted stock units granted as of November 30, 2021 was $913,096, which is expected to be recognized over the weighted-average period of 2.40 years.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE FACTORY, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO INTERIM (UNAUDITED) CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

During the three months ended November 30, 2021 the Company accelerated 66,667 restricted stock units and recognized accelerated expense of $525,000. These restricted stock units were scheduled to vest through March 2025. The acceleration of the restricted stock units was the result of an agreement entered into by the Company and Mr. Merryman, the Company’s Chief Financial Officer and Interim Chief Executive Officer. See Notes 13 and 15 for additional information on costs associated with the contested solicitation of proxies, change in control severance payments, and the acceleration of restricted stock unit vesting.

The Company has no outstanding stock options as of November 30, 2021.

NOTE 11 – EARNINGS PER SHARE

Basic earnings per share is calculated using the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding. Diluted earnings per share reflects the potential dilution that could occur from common shares issuable through the settlement of restricted stock units. Restricted stock units become dilutive within the period granted and remain dilutive until the units vest and are issued as common stock.

The weighted-average number of shares outstanding used in the computation of diluted earnings per share does not include outstanding common shares issuable if their effect would be anti-dilutive. During the nine months ended November 30, 2021, 960,677 shares of common stock warrants and 160,951 shares of issuable common stock were excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per share because their effect would have been anti-dilutive. During the nine months ended November 30, 2020, 960,677 shares of common stock warrants and 219,596 shares of issuable common stock were excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per share because their effect would have been anti-dilutive.

NOTE 12 – LEASING ARRANGEMENTS

The Company conducts its retail operations in facilities leased under non-cancelable operating leases of up to ten years. Certain leases contain renewal options for between five and ten additional years at increased monthly rentals. Some of the leases provide for contingent rentals based on sales in excess of predetermined base levels. All of the Company’s leases are classified as operating leases.

The Company acts as primary lessee of some franchised store premises, which the Company then subleases to franchisees, but the majority of existing locations are leased by the franchisee directly. Currently, there are not indications that the Company will be required to make any payments on behalf of franchisees.

In some instances, the Company has leased space for its Company-owned locations that are now occupied by franchisees. When the Company-owned location was sold or transferred, the store was subleased to the franchisee who is responsible for the monthly rent and other obligations under the lease.

The Company also leases trucking equipment and warehouse space in support of its manufacturing operations. Expense associated with trucking and warehouse leases is included in cost of sales on the consolidated statements of operations.

The Company accounts for payments related to lease liabilities on a straight-line basis over the lease term. During the nine months ended November 30, 2021 and 2020, lease expense recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Income was $582,344 and $630,871, respectively.

The lease liability reflects the present value of the Company’s estimated future minimum lease payments over the life of its leases. This includes known escalations and renewal option periods reasonably assured of being exercised. Typically, renewal options are considered reasonably assured of being exercised if the sales performance of the location remains strong. Therefore, the Right of Use Asset and Lease Liability include an assumption on renewal options that have not yet been exercised by the Company, and are not currently a future obligation. The Company has separated non-lease components from lease components in the recognition of the Asset and Liability except in instances where such costs were not practical to separate. To the extent that occupancy costs, such as site maintenance, are included in the Asset and Liability, the impact is immaterial. For franchised locations, the related occupancy costs including property taxes, insurance and site maintenance are generally required to be paid by the franchisees as part of the franchise arrangement. In addition, the Company is the lessee under non-store related leases such as storage facilities and trucking equipment. For leases where the implicit rate is not readily determinable, the Company uses an incremental borrowing rate to calculate the lease liability that represents an estimate of the interest rate the Company would incur to borrow on a collateralized basis over the term of a lease. The weighted average discount rate used for operating leases was 3.1% as of November 30, 2021. The total estimated future minimum lease payments is $2.1 million.

During the nine months ended November 30, 2021, the Company entered into lease amendments to extend the terms of leases for certain Company-owned locations. These lease amendments resulted in the Company recognizing a present value of future lease liability of $475,908 based upon a total lease liability of $504,946. The Company did not enter into any lease agreements or amendments during the nine months ended November 30, 2020.

NOTE 13 – COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Employment Agreement Payments upon a Change in Control

We have entered into employment agreements with certain of our executives which contain, among other things, "change in control" severance provisions. The employment agreements generally provide that, if the Company or the executive terminates the executive's employment under circumstances constituting a "triggering termination," the executive will be entitled to receive, among other benefits, 2.99 times the sum of (i) the executive's annual salary and (ii) the lesser of (a) two times the bonus that would be payable to the executive for the bonus period in which the change in control occurred or (b) 25% of the executive's annual salary. The executive will also receive an additional payment of $18,000, which represents the estimated cost to the executive of obtaining accident, health, dental, disability and life insurance coverage for the 18-month period following the expiration of COBRA coverage. Additionally, all of the named executive officer’s unvested restricted stock units will immediately vest and become exercisable and payable.

A “change in control,” as used in these employment agreements, generally means a change in the control of the Company following any number of events, but specifically a proxy contest in which our Board of Directors prior to the transaction constitutes less than a majority of our Board of Directors after the transaction or the members of our Board of Directors during any consecutive two-year period who at the beginning of such period constituted the Board of Directors cease to be the majority of the Board of Directors at the conclusion of that period. We have determined that a change in control has taken place. A “triggering termination” generally occurs when an executive is terminated during a specified period preceding a change in control of us, or if the executive or the Company terminates the executive’s employment under circumstances constituting a triggering termination during a specified period after a change in control. A triggering termination may also include a voluntary termination under certain scenarios.

As a result of the changes in our Board of Directors, the Company may be liable to each executive for change in control payments contingent upon a triggering termination event. As of November 30, 2021 the amount of the cash severance payments and benefits contingent upon a triggering termination event are estimated to be approximately $859,000 and the acceleration of unvested restricted stock units with an unrecognized expense of approximately $128,000. The Company may further be liable for outplacement services obligations, consulting fees, and certain tax consequences associated with severance payments, benefits payments and stock awards. These additional obligations may have a material impact on the liability of the Company upon a triggering termination.

Purchase Contracts

The Company frequently enters into purchase contracts of between six to eighteen months for chocolate and certain nuts. These contracts permit the Company to purchase the specified commodity at a fixed price on an as-needed basis during the term of the contract. Because prices for these products may fluctuate, the Company may benefit if prices rise during the terms of these contracts, but it may be required to pay above-market prices if prices fall and it is unable to renegotiate the terms of the contract. As of November 30, 2021, the Company was contracted for approximately $64,000 of raw materials under such agreements. The Company has designated these contracts as normal under the normal purchase and sale exception under the accounting standards for derivatives. These contracts are not entered into for speculative purposes.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE FACTORY, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO INTERIM (UNAUDITED) CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

NOTE 14 – OPERATING SEGMENTS

The Company classifies its business interests into five reportable segments: Franchising, Manufacturing, Retail Stores, U-Swirl operations and Other. The accounting policies of the segments are the same as those described in the summary of significant accounting policies in Note 1 to these consolidated financial statements and Note 1 to the Company’s consolidated financial statements included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended February 28, 2021, as amended by Amendment No. 1 on Form 10-K/A filed on June 28, 2021. The Company evaluates performance and allocates resources based on operating contribution, which excludes unallocated corporate general and administrative costs and income tax expense or benefit. The Company’s reportable segments are strategic businesses that utilize common merchandising, distribution and marketing functions, as well as common information systems and corporate administration. All inter-segment sales prices are market based. Each segment is managed separately because of the differences in required infrastructure and the difference in products and services:

NOTE 15 – CONTESTED SOLICITATION OF PROXIES AND CHANGE IN CONTROL PAYMENTS

Contested Solicitation of Proxies

During the three and nine months ended November 30, 2021, the Company incurred substantial costs associated with a stockholder’s contested solicitation of proxies in connection with its 2021 annual meeting of stockholders. During the three and nine months ended November 30, 2021, the Company incurred approximately $800,000 and $1.7 million, respectively, of costs associated with the contested solicitation of proxies, compared with no comparable costs incurred in the three and nine months ended November 30, 2020. These costs are recognized as general and administrative expense in the Consolidated Statement of Operations.

Employment Agreement Payments upon a Change in Control

As described above in Note 13, we have entered into employment agreements with certain of our executives, which contain, among other things, "change in control" severance provisions.

As previously announced, Bryan J. Merryman agreed to voluntarily step down as President and Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) of the Company upon the hiring of a new President and CEO for the Company. The Company is actively engaged in the search for a new CEO to succeed Mr. Merryman who will continue until such time in the capacity of interim CEO.

In connection therewith, the Company and Mr. Merryman entered into a letter agreement dated November 8, 2021 (the “Letter Agreement”), effective November 3, 2021 (the “Effective Date”), amending that certain Second Restated Employment Agreement, dated as of February 26, 2019, by and between the Company and Mr. Merryman (the “Current Employment agreement”). Pursuant to the Letter Agreement, among other things, Mr. Merryman will (i) continue as Chief Financial Officer of the Company, and (ii) until the Company hires a new President and CEO, as the interim President and CEO of the Company. Except as specifically set forth in the Letter Agreement, all the terms and provisions of the Current Employment Agreement remain unmodified and in full force and effect. In addition, on November 3, 2021, the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors recommended, and the Board of Directors unanimously approved, the acceleration of vesting of approximately 66,667 unvested restricted stock units previously granted to Mr. Merryman, such that the restricted stock units are fully vested as of November 3, 2021 (the “RSU Acceleration”).

As a result of this Letter Agreement the Company incurred the following costs during the three and nine months ended November 30, 2021:

These costs are recognized as general and administrative expense in the Consolidated Statement of Operations.