MYE Myers Industries Inc

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1293 South Main Street — Akron, Ohio 44301

March 21, 2022

Dear Fellow Shareholders,

It is a privilege to work on behalf of Myers Industries’ shareholders as its Chairman of the Board. I am writing to update you on our work throughout the past year.

It has been two years since Mike McGaugh joined Myers as our new CEO in March 2020. Despite the enormously difficult business and human circumstances posed by the continued worldwide COVID pandemic, Mike and the Myers management team have performed admirably. The Board remains unanimously aligned with Mike’s strategic vision, which the Company publicly unveiled in late 2020. As we expressed at that time, our goal is to grow Myers, both organically via commercial excellence and through M&A by pursuing bolt-on acquisitions in value-added plastics. To that end, late in 2020, we purchased Elkhart Plastics, which was our first significant acquisition in some time. In August 2021, we followed up that acquisition by purchasing Trilogy Plastics of Alliance, Ohio. We continue to expect both of these acquisitions--which are in our "core competency"--will be financially accretive to our shareholders. Thanks both to Myers' management and the acquired management teams of Jack Welter at Elkhart and Stephen Osborn at Trilogy, our integration is going extraordinarily well. As a board and management team, we held multi-day strategy meetings last Fall to further refine our strategies. We continue to have a robust pipeline of potential acquisitions, and pledge that such purchases will remain in our core competency and deliver what we believe to be long-term value to you, our shareholders.

As part of our strategic vision, we have made tangible progress toward our goal of integrating the Company’s various divisions into “One Myers.” This internal integration is well underway. Our divisions are coming together as one – they are thinking and acting like a single, larger, integrated company. As a result, our commercial opportunities have grown remarkably. This is demonstrated by last year's organic growth of more than 28%, which is a very nice contrast to -6% and -10% in each of the prior two years.

In addition to commercial advantages presented by “One Myers,” the Company has also benefitted from the scale and capability of a larger enterprise. Despite the headwinds of rapid and large cost pressures during the year (for instance, raw material costs increased about $60 million) we were able to increase prices on a Company-wide basis. This would not have been possible under our previous decentralized basis. A "One Myers" mentality also benefits the Company and its shareholders due to our human capital. Under the leadership of our new Vice President of Human Resources Lorelei Evans, we have instituted succession planning and development planning for over 200 employees. We believe that our compensation system has appropriately focused management on stakeholder alignment, especially since long-term incentive compensation is now better aligned with shareholder returns by adding relative total shareholder return as a modifier and by shifting 75% of the CEO’s long term incentive opportunity to a performance-based award.

Despite the “Zoom environment” that became commonplace for everyone for much of the last two years, the board was fully engaged during 2021. There were seven board meetings and a total of twelve committee meetings. We also returned to "in person" meetings in the latter part of the year, culminating in the multi-day strategy meeting mentioned earlier.

As a board, we continue to emphasize "board refreshment." Seven of our nine director nominees have served for six years or less and last year we welcomed new Chairs for each of our three Committees (two of which are chaired by women). More than one-third of the independent directors on this year's slate are women, and we also have diverse representation. On the management team, one-third are women, and over one-half of the management level hires and promotions have been diverse candidates, which is a substantial increase since Mike became CEO.

At this year's Annual Meeting, Bob Stefanko will be retiring from the board. Bob has been the longest-serving director (since 2007), but has also been one of the hardest working and most conscientious directors. As a long time Audit Chair and careful observer of the Company's finances, Bob will be sorely missed by the board and your Chairman.

The board continually looks at "pro shareholder" governance matters, having recently proactively instituted proxy access and last year receiving shareholder approval of our proposal to institute “majority voting,” which we believe is another measure making the board and management more accountable to shareholders. We are pleased to report that ISS has given us its top possible "Governance Grade."

With regard to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Matters, we recently formed a working committee with management to focus on this topic, led by director Bill Foley and have amended the charter of our Corporate Governance Committee to include that committee’s oversight of ESG matters. We recognize the importance of sustainability, a diverse workforce, and a commitment to our communities. Myers is now a member of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, a global coalition focused on the removal of plastic waste from the environment. Our proxy statement includes our ESG initiatives. We believe our business has a positive impact on the environment and we are in the process of communicating this point to our stakeholder groups. These important ESG matters are reported to the Board on a regular basis.

For the sixth consecutive year, we reached out to all shareholders owning more than 1% of Myers’ outstanding shares, offering to meet on governance matters. We contacted shareholders representing about seventy-five percent of total outstanding shares. We were gratified by the results of the “say on pay” vote at last year’s annual meeting, with more than 99% of the total shares voted being in favor of the proposal. We also received over 95% shareholder approval of the Company’s 2021 Long-Term Incentive Plan.

During 2021, the total return (including dividends) for Myers’ stock was -1.1%, compared to +28.7% for the S&P 500. Although this is disappointing in the short term, we do not believe that any single year is an appropriate gauge of long-term performance and we remain very confident about the long-term prospects for the Company. Indeed, members of the board and management, including Mike, have purchased Company stock in the open market over the past year.

As always, we welcome feedback from our shareholders. Shareholders may send communication by email to governance@myersind.com or by mail or courier delivery addressed as follows: Board of Directors (or Committee Chair, Board Member, or Non-Management Directors, as the case may require), c/o Secretary, Myers Industries, Inc. 1293 Main Street South, Akron, Ohio, 44301, as outlined more completely in our Communication Procedures for Interested Parties and Shareholders available on the Company’s website, www.myersindustries.com

Your board remains very active and engaged, and we begin 2022 firmly committed to building long-term shareholder value at Myers. We thank you for your support of the Company and your continued confidence in our efforts on your behalf.

************

Dear Shareholders,

The Board of Directors of Myers Industries, Inc. (“Myers Industries” or the “Company”) has fixed the close of business on March 4, 2022, as the record date for the determination of shareholders entitled to notice of and to vote at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be held on April 28, 2022 (the “Annual Meeting”). This Proxy Statement, together with the related proxy card and our 2021 Annual Report to Shareholders, is being mailed to our shareholders on or about March 21, 2022. To be sure that your shares are properly represented at the Annual Meeting, whether or not you intend to attend the Annual Meeting via the live webcast or in person, please complete and return the enclosed proxy card, or follow the instructions to vote by telephone or internet, as soon as possible.

If you have any questions or need assistance in voting your shares, please contact our Investor Relations Department at (330) 761-6212.

Akron, Ohio

March 21, 2022

We also made significant progress towards executing our long-term roadmap and broader “One Myers” strategy, including:

We are aligned and centered on our True North, our mission, which is: to transform our Material Handling Segment into a high-growth business that is a true innovator of plastic solutions, while we also continue to grow and optimize our Distribution Segment.

The Company uses certain non-GAAP measures in this Proxy Statement. Adjusted operating income, adjusted earnings per share, and adjusted EBITDA are non-GAAP financial measures and are intended to serve as a supplement to results provided in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. Myers Industries believes that such information provides an additional measurement and consistent historical comparison of the Company’s performance. A reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures is available in Appendix A to this Proxy Statement.

At Myers Industries, protecting the health and safety of our team members, our families and our communities are of the upmost importance to us. We took aggressive action to help prevent the spread of the virus in our workplaces. At the same time, we continued to address the ongoing needs of our business so that we could continue to provide our customers with the essential products they require.

In 2021, due to the ongoing pandemic, we continued to maintain multiple measures to promote safety in our facilities and protect our team members, including:

We appreciate each of our team members for continuing to support our customers and deliver exceptionally strong results during this difficult time.

PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY(CONTINUED)

Myers Industries has an experienced and effective Board focused on shareholder value creation. The Board is proposed to be comprised of 9 members, all of whom, other than Mr. McGaugh, are independent. The charts below highlight the nominated Board’s composition and experience.

 

 

PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY(CONTINUED)

One of our key priorities is conducting robust engagement with our shareholders in order to provide transparency into our business and determine which issues are important to our shareholders. Participants in our engagement programs include executive management, members of the Board and Investor Relations personnel. Our methods of engagement include:

We believe engaging in shareholder outreach is an important element of strong corporate governance. In 2021, in continuation of the Company’s shareholder outreach efforts that began in 2016, members of our Board and executive management acted on this belief and contacted the top 13 shareholders who own 1% or greater of outstanding shares and represent collectively approximately 75% of total shares outstanding. Focus areas included:

The Company values the input received from these discussions with shareholders. Following these conversations, the Company has continued to emphasize the importance of safety in our operations and has continued its focus on enhancing sustainable business practices and incorporating environmental consciousness throughout our operations. Additionally, the Compensation and Management Development Committee of the Company (“CMD Committee”) regularly evaluates the Company’s compensation programs and considers shareholder input as part of their evaluation.

At any time during the year, shareholders may access our Annual Report, Proxy Statement, financial presentations, and corporate governance guidelines at www.myersindustries.com.

Shareholders may contact any director, committee of the Board, non-management director or the Board through the following:

via U.S. Mail at:

c/o Secretary

Myers Industries, Inc.

1293 South Main Street

Akron, Ohio 44301

via e-mail at:

A toll-free hotline has also been established if an interested party wishes to contact a director, a committee of the Board, a non-management director or the Board by phone. The number is (877) 285-4145 and is available worldwide 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY(CONTINUED)

PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY(CONTINUED)

 

The Board is committed to maintaining sound corporate governance and a compensation structure that promotes the best interests of our shareholders.

The Company has adopted “Corporate Governance Guidelines” and a “Code of Business Conduct and Ethics” for the Company’s directors, officers and employees. Each of our corporate governance policies is available on the “Corporate Governance” page accessed from the “Investor Relations” page of our website at www.myersindustries.com.

We consider the opinions expressed by shareholders through their votes, periodic meetings and other communications and believe that shareholder engagement leads to enhanced governance practices. In 2016, we implemented a proactive investor outreach program which includes contacting shareholders who own 1% or more of our outstanding shares. In 2021, the Company and members of the Board continued to conduct considerable shareholder outreach, through which we requested input from our 13 largest institutional investors and other shareholders collectively holding approximately 75% of our outstanding shares. Following this outreach, we received feedback and questions on additional corporate governance matters, further changes to management, and other items of shareholder interest. We value shareholder views and insights and expect to continue to dialogue with our shareholders.

In accordance with best governance practices, all of our directors are elected annually.

In connection with the Board’s determination regarding the independence of each non-management director and nominee, the Board considered any transactions, relationships and arrangements as required by our independence guidelines. In particular, the Board considered the following relationships:

In 2020, the Company added Section 13 to Article I of our Regulations to include proxy access provisions for certain shareholder nominations of directors. The provision provides proxy access for certain director nominations (i) of up to the greater of two persons or 20% of the number of directors on our current Board, (ii) by a shareholder or by a group of not more than 20 shareholders, (iii) owning at least three percent of the outstanding shares of common stock of the Company continuously for at least three years, (iv) pursuant to notice received no earlier than 120 days and no later than 90 days before the anniversary of the previous year’s Annual Meeting of Shareholders, and (v) containing information required by Section 13 of our Regulations.

The Company has adopted a policy that the maximum number of public company boards on which a non-CEO director may sit is five (including our Board) and the maximum number of public company boards on which a CEO director may sit is three (including our Board).

The Board annually reviews the Company’s strategic plan, which addresses, among other things, the Company’s risks and opportunities. Certain areas of oversight are delegated to the relevant Committees of the Board and the Committees regularly report back on their deliberations. This oversight is enabled by reporting processes that are designed to provide visibility to the Board about the identification, assessment, monitoring and management of enterprise-wide risks. Management annually conducts enterprise-wide risk assessments of the Company and each of its business segments and regularly updates the Board on the Company’s processes relating to enterprise risk management (ERM). The focus of management’s assessment includes a review of strategic, financial, operational, compliance, cybersecurity, reputational and technology (IT) objectives and risks for the Company. In addition:

Each committee also considers the reputational risk implicated by the oversight responsibilities described above.

In connection with the ERM updates it receives from management on an annual basis, the Board reviews cybersecurity risks and objectives, including the Company’s programs to monitor, identify and mitigate cybersecurity risks. The Company’s Director of IT reports to the Board on cybersecurity and IT matters annually as well as on an as-needed basis each quarter. In 2021, we engaged a cybersecurity incident response firm on retainer.

The Company conducts annual internal testing and maintains security measures designed to prevent and mitigate the risk of cybersecurity attacks, including 24x7 intrusion detection monitoring and multi-factor authentication on the Company’s devices and its human resources applications. As a part of its security measures, the Company provides routine training to its employees through its internal learning management system to raise cybersecurity awareness and promote best practices. We also engaged KnowBe4 and launched weekly cybersecurity email tips for all of our employees.

The Company maintains a Clawback Policy that provides for the recoupment of certain incentive compensation in the event of an accounting restatement resulting from material noncompliance (whether or not based upon misconduct) with financial reporting requirements under the federal securities laws. The Clawback Policy is administered by the CMD Committee and applies to current and former executive officers and such other employees who may from time to time be deemed subject to the policy by the CMD Committee.

Our Board, in coordination with the Governance Committee, oversees succession planning for the CEO and other officers of the Company. As part of its succession planning oversight, the Board reviews the executive leadership team’s experience, skills, competence and potential, to help assess which executives have the ability to develop the attributes that the Board believes are necessary to lead and execute the Company's strategic vision.

The Company maintains Stock Ownership Guidelines under which officers designated as executive officers and non-employee directors are expected to hold a specified amount of our common stock. These expectations are as follows:

The executive officers and non-employee directors have five years from the date they become subject to the guidelines to attain the ownership requirement. Our Stock Ownership Guidelines are available on the “Corporate Governance” page accessed from the “Investor Relations” page of the Company’s website at www.myersindustries.com.

The Company prohibits directors, officers and employees from engaging in any hedging or pledging transactions with respect to Company shares.

The Company’s Board Member Recruiting Guidelines outline the process for nominating potential director candidates for consideration by the Governance Committee. These recruiting guidelines are available on the “Corporate Governance” page accessed from the “Investor Relations” page of the Company’s website at www.myersindustries.com.

The Board has a policy requiring the independent directors, both as to the Board and Committees, to meet regularly in executive session without any management personnel or employee directors present. During 2021, the Board and each Committee met regularly in executive session at each meeting of the Board, Audit Committee, CMD Committee, and Governance Committee.

The Chair of each Committee of the Board acted as the Presiding Director for each Committee executive session.

The Audit Committee maintains procedures, including a worldwide telephone and web-based “hotline,” which allows employees and interested parties to report any financial or other concerns anonymously. The Company maintains the hotline for receiving, retaining and addressing complaints from any interested party regarding accounting, internal accounting controls and auditing matters, and procedures for the anonymous submission of these concerns. The hotline is maintained by an independent third party and is available worldwide, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The hotline is available by phone by dialing from an outside line in the United States at 1-877-285-4145; Canada at 1-833-604-0812; and Central America at 800-1785 (at the English prompt dial 833-604-0812) or by Internet at www.myersindustries.ethicspoint.com where you will be prompted to answer a series of questions and submit a report by selecting the country in which you are located and the country in which the violation took place under “To Make a Report”. All reports made through the hotline are directed to the Chairman of the Audit Committee and the Secretary. We do not permit any retaliation of any kind against any person who submits a complaint or concern under these procedures.

We have a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, which incorporates a Code of Ethical Conduct for the Finance Officers and Finance Department Personnel, which embodies our commitment to ethical and legal business practices, as well as satisfying the NYSE requirements to implement and maintain such policies. The Board expects all of our officers, directors and other members of our workforce to act ethically at all times. These policies are available on the “Corporate Governance” page accessed from the “Investor Relations” page on our website at www.myersindustries.com.

The Board and each Committee of the Board conduct annual self-assessments to assist in determining whether the Board and its Committees are functioning effectively. In 2018, 2020, and 2021, the self-assessments were conducted with the assistance of outside counsel and the results were reviewed with individual directors, each Committee, and the Board. In 2019, evaluations were conducted by an independent consultant and feedback was provided to individual directors, each Committee, and the Board. The Board intends to utilize this independent consultant process every third calendar year.

Our Board provides the following methods for interested parties and shareholders to send communications to a director, to a Committee of the Board, to the non-management directors, or to the Board.

Interested parties may send written communications by e-mail to governance@myersind.com or by mail or courier delivery addressed as follows:

Board of Directors (or Committee Chairman, Director or Non-Management Directors, as the case may be)

c/o Secretary

Myers Industries, Inc.

1293 South Main Street

Akron, Ohio 44301

All communications directed to the “Board of Directors” or to the “Non-Management Directors” will be forwarded unopened or unread to the Chairman of the Governance Committee. The Chairman of the Committee in turn determines whether the communications should be forwarded to the appropriate members of the Board and, if so, forwards them accordingly. For communications addressed to a particular director or the Chairman of a particular Committee of the Board, however, the Secretary will forward those communications, unopened or unread, directly to the person or Committee Chairman in question.

Any interested party may also contact a director, a Committee of the Board, the non-management directors, or the Board through the Company’s toll-free hotline at (877) 285-4145 or via the internet at myersindustries.ethicspoint.com.

Our approach to corporate responsibility is grounded in our commitment to the environment, to protecting our employees and the communities where we operate and to good corporate governance practices which directly impact our performance and value. We organize our efforts under three sustainability pillars of People, Products, and Planet to help guide our work and manage material ESG impacts.

In 2019, the Company instituted an internal ESG Committee to develop and oversee our long-term sustainable business practices. The team is responsible for establishing key metrics, goals, and reporting standards across the Company. We continued to make progress in 2021 to better understand the areas of impact, energy consumption, and supply chain management. This included issuance and disclosure of our Supplier Code of Conduct and Human Rights Policy. We continued to support our people by continuing to strengthen employee health, safety, and wellness efforts, including continuing to protect our team while we navigate the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

We continue to enhance and track the sustainability benefits of our products. The plastic containers that we manufacture are reusable, and, at the end of their service life, they can be recovered, recycled, and reprocessed into new products. In 2021, we improved our ability to track the amount of recycled and regrind materials that are used in our manufacturing process. In 2022, we are continuing to explore ways of increasing regrind content into our products.

To develop a robust and impactful environmental social and governance (ESG) program, in 2021 we launched an ESG materiality assessment to gain a better understanding of the areas where the company can have the greatest impact and what topics presented the greatest ESG risks and opportunities. This effort provided insight on what the Company needs to manage, develop policies for, and disclose progress. The company utilized the Sustainable Accounting Standards Board (SASB) and other internationally recognized ESG frameworks to identify material topics. The assessment included stakeholder engagement with both internal leadership and external partners to help to establish Myers’ material topics.

As part of this process, we also categorized our topics into three ESG pillars of People, Products and Planet, around which we will organize our ESG programming and reporting.

 

Going forward, we seek to review and ensure we have strong management and governance processes in place to effectively manage and report on the significant topics identified in the ESG materiality assessment, along with other critical topics to our business, operations, and reputation.

In 2022, we will be publishing our first ESG Report disclosing our progress on advancing our ESG impacts across the enterprise. This report seeks to disclose impacts and progress on the material topics identified in our ESG materiality assessment and outline plans for future progress. We anticipate publishing this report in the second quarter of 2022 and will provide additional insight into how we are managing our impacts on People, Products, and the Planet.

We believe good corporate governance is at the heart of running a successful organization. It improves performance and promotes trust with our key stakeholders.

Board governance highlights:

Each of the foregoing nominees is recommended by the Governance Committee. The Governance Committee believes that each of the nominees possesses certain key attributes that are believed to be important for an effective Board.

Until 2020, Mr. Foley served as Executive Chairman and a director of Libbey, Inc. (“Libbey”). Mr. Foley formerly served as Libbey’s Chief Executive Officer until March 31, 2019. Libbey’s business was and remains highly reliant on the foodservice industry. The COVID-19 pandemic caused Libbey to experience immediate and drastic reductions in revenue which, as a “non-essential” business, resulted in shut downs of all six of Libbey’s global manufacturing facilities. On June 1, 2020, Libbey and its direct and indirect domestic subsidiaries commenced voluntary cases under Chapter 11 of the United States Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, which were jointly administered under the caption In re: Libbey Glass Inc., et al., Case No. 20-11439 (LSS). Libbey filed a proposed First Amended Joint Plan of Reorganization (“Plan”) which was confirmed by the Bankruptcy Court on October 20, 2020. On November 5, 2020, pursuant to the Plan, Libbey (i) assigned the majority of its assets to a subsidiary which assumed all of Libbey’s obligations and liabilities in connection therewith; and (ii) contributed 100% of the equity in the subsidiary to Libbey Holdings Inc., an entity newly formed by Libbey, in exchange for 100 shares of common stock of Libbey Holdings. The Plan became effective on November 13, 2020 and Libbey and the other debtors emerged from the Chapter 11 cases. As a result of the Plan becoming effective, all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Libbey and all other equity rights in the Company were cancelled. Libbey’s common stock may continue to be quoted on the OTC Pink marketplace, but under the terms of the Plan, the common stock has no underlying asset value, and Libbey filed a Form 15 with the SEC deregistering the company’s common stock on November 16, 2020.

There are, and during the past ten years there have been, no other legal proceedings material to an evaluation of the ability of any director, nominee, or executive officer of the Company to act in such capacity or concerning his or her integrity. There are no family relationships among any of the directors, director nominees and executive officers.

The Board and Myers express our deep appreciation for the service and guidance provided by Robert A. Stefanko during his service as a director since 2007 until the 2022 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.

The Board of Directors recommends that you vote “FOR” each of the director nominees listed above.

The Governance Committee reviews and evaluates individuals for nomination to stand for election as a director who are recommended to the Committee: in writing by any of our shareholders or by our current or past directors, executive officers, or identified by professional search firms retained by the Governance Committee.

The Company’s Board Member Recruiting Guidelines outline the process for the Governance Committee to recruit and evaluate potential director candidates. These guidelines are available on the “Corporate Governance” page accessed from the “Investor Relations” page of the Company’s website at www.myersindustries.com. In considering these potential candidates for nomination to stand for election, the Governance Committee will consider:

The Governance Committee endeavors to select nominees that contribute unique skills and professional experiences in order to advance the performance of the Board and establish a well-rounded Board with diverse views that reflect the interests of our shareholders. The Governance Committee considers diversity as one of a number of factors in identifying nominees for directors; however, there is no formal policy in this regard. The Governance Committee views diversity broadly to include diversity of experience, skills and viewpoint, in addition to traditional concepts of diversity such as race and gender.

When considering an individual candidate’s suitability for the Board, the Governance Committee will evaluate each individual on a case-by-case basis. The Governance Committee does not prescribe minimum qualifications or standards for directors; however, the Committee looks for directors who have personal characteristics, educational backgrounds and relevant experience that would be expected to help further the goals of the Company. In addition, the Governance Committee will review the extent of the candidate’s demonstrated excellence and success in his or her chosen business, profession, or other career and the skills and talents that the candidate would be expected to add to the Board. The Governance Committee may choose, in individual cases, to conduct interviews with the candidate and/or contact references, business associates, other members of boards on which the candidate serves or other appropriate persons to obtain additional information. The Governance Committee will make its determinations on whether to nominate an individual candidate based on the Board’s then-current needs, the merits of that candidate and the qualifications of other available candidates.

The Governance Committee will consider individuals for nomination to stand for election as a director who are recommended to it in writing by any of our shareholders that strictly follow the below procedures. Shareholders making recommendations for directors must:

In accordance with our Amended and Restated Code of Regulations, a shareholder may directly nominate a candidate for election as a director of the Company only if written notice of such intention is received by the Secretary not less than 90 days nor more than 120 days prior to the one year anniversary date of the immediately preceding Annual Meeting of shareholders. In the event that the Annual Meeting is called for a date that is not within 30 days before or after such anniversary date, notice by a shareholder, in order to be timely, must be received no later than the close of business on the tenth day following the day on which notice of the date of the Annual Meeting was mailed or public disclosure of the date of the Annual Meeting was made, whichever first occurs. A shareholder wishing to directly nominate an individual to serve as a director must follow the procedure outlined in Article I, Section 12 of our Amended and Restated Code of Regulations, titled “Advance Notice of Director Nomination” and then send a signed letter of nomination to the following address: Corporate Governance Committee, c/o Secretary, Myers Industries, Inc., 1293 South Main Street, Akron, Ohio 44301. Our Amended and Restated Code of Regulations is available on the “Corporate Governance” page accessed from the “Investor Relations” page of the Company’s website at www.myersindustries.com.

In accordance with our Amended and Restated Code of Regulations, a shareholder may also request that the Company include in its proxy statement in which it solicits proxies with respect to the election of directors at an Annual Meeting of shareholders, any person nominated for election (a “Shareholder Nominee”) to the Board by a shareholder or by a group of not more than 20 Shareholders that (i) satisfies the requirements of Section 13 of our Regulations (such individual shareholder or shareholder group, including each member thereof, to the extent the context requires, an “Eligible Shareholder”), and (ii) expressly requests in the notice required by such Section 13 to have the Shareholder Nominee included in the Company’s proxy materials pursuant to such Section 13. The information that the Company will include in its proxy statement is the information provided by the Eligible Shareholder to the secretary of the Company concerning the Shareholder Nominee and the Eligible Shareholder that is required to be disclosed in the Company’s proxy statement by the regulations promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and if the Eligible Shareholder so elects, a written statement, not to exceed 500 words, in support of the Shareholder Nominee’s candidacy (the “Statement”). The Company may omit from its proxy materials any information or Statement (or portion thereof) that it, in good faith, believes would violate any applicable law or regulation. The Company will not be required pursuant to Section 13 to include any information regarding a Shareholder Nominee in its proxy materials for any meeting of Shareholders for which any person is engaging in a solicitation within the meaning of Rule 14a-1(l) under the Exchange Act in support of the election of any individual as a director at such meeting other than Shareholder Nominees or nominees of the Board.

The Company will be required to include information regarding a Shareholder Nominee in its proxy materials with respect to an Annual Meeting only if the notice of the nomination relating to the Shareholder Nominee is delivered to, or mailed to and received by, the secretary of the Company no earlier than 120 days and no later than 90 days before the anniversary of the date of the previous year’s Annual Meeting of Shareholders; provided, however, that if the Company did not hold an Annual Meeting during the previous year, or if the date of the Annual Meeting has changed by more than 30 calendar days from the previous year’s date, or if the Company is holding a Special Meeting of shareholders or conducting an election of directors by written consent in lieu of an Annual Meeting, then the Eligible Shareholder must deliver the notice a reasonable time before the Company issues its proxy materials, as specified by the Company in a Current Report on Form 8-K filed pursuant to Item 5.08.

The maximum number of Shareholder Nominees nominated by all Eligible Shareholders that the Company shall be required to include in its proxy materials with respect to an Annual Meeting generally shall not exceed the greater of (i) two, or (ii) 20% of the total number of members of the Company’s Board rounded to the closest whole number below 20%.

There were a total of seven regularly scheduled and special meetings of the Board in 2021. During 2021, all directors attended at least 75% of the aggregate total number of the meetings of the Board and committees on which they served. Due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, all of our then directors and then nominees attended our 2021 Annual Meeting virtually via the internet. Although we do not have a formal policy requiring directors to attend the Annual Meeting, our directors are encouraged to attend, and to do so in person when permissible.

In addition to the standing Audit, CMD, and Governance Committees, from time to time the Board has established, and may establish in the future, special committees to address particular matters.

The Audit Committee assists our Board in the oversight and integrity of our financial statements, ensures our structure meets legal and regulatory requirements, and oversees our internal auditing functions, controls, and procedures. The Board determined that based on their extensive financial background and expertise, F. Jack Liebau, Jr., Lori Lutey and Robert A. Stefanko met the criteria of an “audit committee financial expert” under SEC rules. None of our Audit Committee members serve on more than two other public company audit committees.

Audit Committee Functions:

See the Audit Committee Report on page 53 for further information regarding the Audit Committee’s activities.

The CMD Committee administers our executive compensation programs and determines, either as a committee or together with the other independent board members, annual base salaries and incentive compensation awards for our executive officers.

CMD Committee Functions:

The Governance Committee assists the Board in developing and implementing corporate governance guidelines, identifying potential director candidates, determining the size and composition of our Board and its committees, and evaluating the overall effectiveness of our Board.

Governance Committee Functions:

The Board has adopted written charters for each of the Audit Committee, the CMD Committee, and the Governance Committee. Each committee reviews and evaluates the adequacy of its charter at least annually and recommends any proposed changes to the Board for approval. Each of the written charters and policies of the Committees are available on the “Corporate Governance” page accessed from the “Investor Relations” page of the Company’s website at www.myersindustries.com.

The cash portions of the retainers established commencing July 1, 2021 for our non-employee directors’ annual, committee member, and committee chair service is set forth below.

The following table shows the compensation paid to our non-employee directors for their service during 2021.

The CMD Committee is responsible for overseeing our executive compensation plans and policies, administering our equity plans, and approving all compensation for our NEOs.

The CMD Committee believes that the Company’s NEOs should be paid in a manner that attracts the best-available talent, drives performance, encourages an appropriate sensitivity to risk, and encourages and rewards increases in shareholder value. This philosophy is achieved through the Company’s base salary, annual bonus opportunity, long-term incentive plan and other benefits, which are described in greater detail in this Proxy Statement. Myers Industries’ NEOs are compensated in a manner consistent with the Company’s strategy, competitive practice, sound compensation governance principles, and shareholder interests.

The CMD Committee’s goals are to:

The Company’s compensation program is designed to compensate the Company’s NEOs in a manner consistent with the Company’s near and long-term strategic vision. The Company’s compensation program seeks to achieve this through the mixture of base pay, short and long-term incentives, and the provision of other benefits. Base pay and other benefits provide appropriate compensation to attract and retain talent. Short-term incentives are tied to the achievement of Company growth with targets intended to advance the long-term strategic vision of the Company. Long-term incentives provide executives with an ownership stake in the Company (emphasizing the “act like owners” principle of the Company) and help drive long-term shareholder value creation. In 2021, our long-term incentives comprised at target from 65% to 220% of each NEOs’ base compensation and primarily comprised of performance-based equity awards. Further, our 2021 performance-based long-term incentive awards were based on the Company’s three-year cumulative adjusted EBITDA, subject to a relative TSR modifier, which are performance metrics that support achievement of the Company’s operating strategies.

In a year marked by an ongoing global pandemic, unprecedented raw material inflation, labor shortages, and supply chain challenges, we delivered strong financial performance and value for our shareholders, including:

We also made significant progress towards executing our long-term roadmap and broader “One Myers” strategy, including:

We are aligned and centered on our True North, our mission, which is: to transform our Material Handling Segment into a high-growth business that is a true innovator of plastic solutions, while we also continue to grow and optimize our Distribution Segment.

The Company uses certain non-GAAP measures in this Proxy Statement. Adjusted operating income, adjusted earnings per share, and adjusted EBITDA are non-GAAP financial measures and are intended to serve as a supplement to results provided in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. Myers Industries believes that such information provides an additional measurement and consistent historical comparison of the Company’s performance. A reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures is available in Appendix A to this Proxy Statement.

Our executive compensation program consists of elements (base salary, annual bonus, long-term incentives and benefits) designed to provide an integrated and competitive total pay package. A majority of the compensation package for NEOs is performance-based and the metrics are focused on paying for growth.

We believe in linking pay for performance. The following graphs illustrate the percentages of total target direct compensation of our CEO and CFO attributable to base salary, target bonus, and target long-term incentives. The percentages are based on annualized targets although Ms. Robinson’s service did not commence until February 1, 2021 and she did not assume the role of CFO until March 15, 2021.

 

The Company believes its practices are consistent with the practices of a company of its size, reflect best practices regarding the governance of executive pay programs and reflect the executive pay program’s objectives of delivering competitive and appropriate pay aligned with our shareholders’ interests.

The CMD Committee refers to market data to benchmark and help establish pay opportunities for the NEOs that are competitive for a company of our size in our industry, and for the role and experience of the individual executive. The CMD Committee generally considers a range around the market median when establishing compensation levels for the NEOs.

As part of its annual review and consideration of the benchmarking process used to assess the Company’s pay levels and pay programs for its executives, the CMD Committee and its independent compensation consultant conduct an executive compensation market analysis that draws from third-party compensation surveys and publicly available data for a group of peer companies (“Compensation Peer Group”). The CMD Committee annually reviews the Compensation Peer Group, with input from the Committee’s independent compensation consultant, to evaluate whether the composition of the group remains relevant for the ensuing calendar year, with consideration of certain quantitative and qualitative criteria, including: (1) companies within approximately 50% to 200% of the Company’s revenue, (2) companies operating within the Company’s industries and end-markets, and (3) companies with similar focus and/or business complexity. Our CMD Committee regards the Company’s comparison to these companies only as reference points because finding direct publicly-traded peers within the lower end of our revenue range is difficult. Our CMD Committee does not seek to establish any specific benchmark in reference to these companies or to require changes in our executive compensation to match changes in these companies’ compensation.

The following companies comprised the Compensation Peer Group for executive compensation benchmarking purposes in 2021:

Based on the annual evaluation of the Compensation Peer Group conducted in late 2021, the CMD Committee determined to add several companies as being size and industry comparatively more appropriate and eliminate certain companies due to business relevance as auto aftermarket companies or due to becoming significantly undersized relative to the Company (due to recent Company acquisitions and anticipated related revenue growth). Accordingly, the following companies have been adopted to comprise the Compensation Peer Group for executive compensation benchmarking purposes in 2022: