Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers
Herschel Segal retired as a member of the Board of Directors (the “Board”) effective September 14, 2021. Mr. Siegel’s retirement was not due to any matter relating to the Company’s operations, policies or practices. Mr. Segal will remain as Strategic Advisor to the Company, as disclosed in the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on December 21, 2020. On September 14, 2021, the Board appointed Jane Silverstone Segal as Chair of the Board.
Ms. Silverstone, age 68, is a seasoned retail industry executive with over four decades of experience. Previously, she was the Chief Executive Officer of Canadian clothing retailer Le Chateau Inc. from 2006 until October 2020, including as Chair of the Board of Directors from 2008 to 2020. Ms. Silverstone is the founder of successful children’s store Oink Oink, located in Westmount, Quebec. Passionate about nature and the environment, she worked as a park naturalist for five years in national parks across Canada and is also a longstanding patron of the David Suzuki Foundation. Ms. Silverstone holds a Bachelor of Arts from McGill University, Montreal, Québec, and a civil law degree from Université de Montréal, Montreal, Québec.
Ms. Silverstone is eligible to receive compensation as outlined in the Company’s director compensation policy described in the Company’s Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 30, 2021, filed with the SEC on April 30, 2021. Pursuant to this policy, the Company’s outside directors are eligible to receive an annual cash retainer based on their general service on the Board and additional cash retainers for participation or serving as chairperson of certain committees of the Board. The Company’s directors are also eligible to receive annual equity awards under the Company’s 2015 Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan. In connection with his election, Ms. Silverstone entered into the Company’s standard indemnification agreement for directors and officers.
Ms. Silverstone’s spouse, Herschel Segal, is the former Chairman of the Board of the Company and the owner of Rainy Day Investments Ltd. (“RDI”). RDI controls approximately 46% of the outstanding shares of the Company and Ms. Silverstone serves as an executive of RDI. Ms. Silverstone’s daughter, Sarah Segal, is the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Brand Officer of the Company. Ms. Segal also controls Oink Oink Candy Inc. (“SQUISH Candies”).
During the second quarter of 2019, the Company entered into a secured loan agreement, as amended September 13, 2019 with SQUISH Candies, as borrower, and RDI, as guarantor pursuant to which the Company agreed to lend to SQUISH Candies up to $2.0 million. During the first quarter of 2020, the loan was fully repaid.
Cautionary Forward-Looking Statements
This Current Report on Form 8-K includes statements that express our opinions, expectations, beliefs, plans or assumptions regarding future events or future results and there are, or may be deemed to be, “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the “Act”). The following cautionary statements are being made pursuant to the provisions of the Act and with the intention of obtaining the benefits of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Act. These forward-looking statements can generally be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the terms “believes”, “expects”, “may”, “will”, “should”, “approximately”, “intends”, “plans”, “estimates” or “anticipates” or, in each case, their negatives or other variations or comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements include all matters that are not historical facts and include statements regarding our intentions, beliefs or current expectations concerning, among other things, our restructuring plan, the COVID-19 pandemic, our strategy of transitioning to e-commerce and wholesale sales, future sales through our e-commerce and wholesale channels, the closing of certain of our retail stores, future lease liabilities, our results of operations, financial condition, liquidity and prospects, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global macroeconomic environment, and our ability to avoid the delisting of the Company’s common stock by Nasdaq or our inability to maintain compliance with Nasdaq listing requirements.
While we believe these opinions and expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, such forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions about us, including the risk factors set forth in our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 30, 2021, filed with the SEC on April 30, 2021, in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three-month period ended May 1, 2021, filed with the SEC on June 15, 2021, and in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three and six-month periods ended July 31, 2021, filed with the SEC on September 14, 2021.
These statements are based upon information available to us as of the date of this Current Report on Form 8-K, and while we believe such information forms a reasonable basis for such statements, such information may be limited or incomplete, and our statements should not be read to indicate that we have conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all potentially-available relevant information. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, investors are cautioned not to unduly rely upon these statements.
Except as required under federal securities laws and the rules and regulations of the SEC, we do not have any intention to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances arising after the date of this Current Report on Form 8-K, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.