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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

For the quarterly period ended June 30, 2015

OR

For the transition period from                   to                   

Commission File Number 1-15589

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (402) 331-3727

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files)   Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer”, “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act) Yes o No x

The Registrant had 615,822 shares of its $.01 par value common stock outstanding as of July 13, 2015.

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Form 10-Q

3rd Quarter

INDEX

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PART I — FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1.      Financial Statements

AMCON Distributing Company and Subsidiaries

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

June 30, 2015 and September 30, 2014

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated unaudited financial statements.

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AMCON Distributing Company and Subsidiaries

Condensed Consolidated Unaudited Statements of Operations

for the three and nine months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated unaudited financial statements.

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AMCON Distributing Company and Subsidiaries

Condensed Consolidated Unaudited Statements of Cash Flows

for the nine months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated unaudited financial statements.

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The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated unaudited financial statements.

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AMCON Distributing Company and Subsidiaries

Notes to Condensed Consolidated Unaudited Financial Statements

1. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION

AMCON Distributing Company and Subsidiaries (“AMCON” or the “Company”) operate two business segments:

·            Our wholesale distribution segment (“Wholesale Segment”) distributes consumer products in the Central, Rocky Mountain, and Southern regions of the United States. Additionally, our Wholesale Segment provides a full range of programs and services to assist our customers in managing their business and profitability.

·            Our retail health food segment (“Retail Segment”) operates sixteen health food retail stores located throughout the Midwest and Florida.

WHOLESALE SEGMENT

Our Wholesale Segment is one of the largest wholesale distributors in the United States serving approximately 4,500 retail outlets including convenience stores, grocery stores, liquor stores, drug stores, and tobacco shops. We currently distribute over 16,000 different consumer products, including cigarettes and tobacco products, candy and other confectionery, beverages, groceries, paper products, health and beauty care products, frozen and chilled products and institutional foodservice products. Convenience stores represent our largest customer category.  In September 2014, Convenience Store News ranked us as the sixth (6th) largest convenience store distributor in the United States based on annual sales.

Our wholesale business offers retailers the ability to take advantage of manufacturer and Company sponsored sales and marketing programs, merchandising and product category management services, and the use of information systems and data services that are focused on minimizing retailers’ investment in inventory, while seeking to maximize their sales and profits. In addition, our wholesale distributing capabilities provide valuable services to both manufacturers of consumer products and convenience retailers. Manufacturers benefit from our broad retail coverage, inventory management, efficiency in processing small orders, and frequency of deliveries. Convenience retailers benefit from our distribution capabilities by gaining access to a broad product line, optimizing inventory, merchandising expertise, information systems, and accessing trade credit.

Our Wholesale Segment operates six distribution centers located in Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Tennessee. These distribution centers, combined with cross dock facilities, include approximately 641,000 square feet of permanent floor space. Our principal suppliers include Altria, RJ Reynolds, Commonwealth Brands, Lorillard, Hershey, Kellogg’s, Kraft, and Mars. We also market private label lines of water, candy products, batteries, and other products. We do not maintain long-term purchase contracts with our suppliers.

RETAIL SEGMENT

Our Retail Segment is a specialty retailer of natural/organic groceries and dietary supplements which focuses on providing high quality products at affordable prices, with an exceptional level of customer service and nutritional consultation. All of the products carried in our stores must meet strict quality and ingredient guidelines, and include offerings such as gluten-free and antibiotic-free groceries and meat products, as well as products containing no artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, or partially hydrogenated oils. We design our retail sites in an efficient and flexible small-store format, which emphasizes a high energy and shopper-friendly environment.

We operate within the natural products retail industry, which is a subset of the large and stable U.S. grocery industry. This industry includes conventional, natural, gourmet and specialty food markets, mass and discount retailers, warehouse clubs, health food stores, dietary supplement retailers, drug stores, farmers markets, mail order and online retailers, and multi-level marketers. According to The Natural Foods Merchandiser, a leading industry trade publication, retail sales in the natural foods industry exceeded $89 billion during the 2013 calendar year.

Our Retail Segment operates sixteen retail health food stores as Chamberlin’s Market & Café and Akin’s Natural Foods Market. These stores carry over 32,000 different national and regionally branded and private label products including high-quality natural, organic, and specialty foods consisting of produce, baked goods, frozen foods, nutritional supplements, personal care items, and general merchandise. Chamberlin’s, which was established in 1935, operates six stores in and around Orlando, Florida. Akin’s, which was also established in 1935, has a total of ten locations in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.

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FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The Company’s fiscal year ends on September 30. The results for the interim period included with this Quarterly Report may not be indicative of the results which could be expected for the entire fiscal year. All significant intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in consolidation. Certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in our annual financial statements prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) have been condensed or omitted. In the opinion of management, the accompanying condensed consolidated unaudited financial statements (“financial statements”) contain all adjustments necessary to fairly present the financial information included herein, such as adjustments consisting of normal recurring items. The Company believes that although the disclosures contained herein are adequate to prevent the information presented from being misleading, these financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s annual audited consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2014, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Form 10-K. For purposes of this report, unless the context indicates otherwise, all references to “we”, “us”, “our”, the “Company”, and “AMCON” shall mean AMCON Distributing Company and its subsidiaries. Additionally, the three month fiscal periods ended June 30, 2015 and June 30, 2014 have been referred to throughout this quarterly report as Q3 2015 and Q3 2014, respectively. The fiscal balance sheet dates as of June 30, 2015, June 30, 2014, and September 30, 2014 have been referred to as June 2015, June 2014, and September 2014, respectively.

RECENTLY ISSUED ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS

In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2014-09, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers.” This ASU supersedes the revenue recognition requirements in “Accounting Standard Codification 605 - Revenue Recognition” and most industry-specific guidance. The standard requires that entities recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which a company expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. This ASU is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, and for interim periods within those fiscal years. The Company is currently assessing the impact of the adoption of ASU 2014-09 on its financial position, results of operations, and cash flow.

2. CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK

The Company has two series of convertible preferred stock outstanding at June 2015 as identified in the following table:

The Series A Convertible Preferred Stock (“Series A”) and Series B Convertible Preferred Stock (“Series B”), (collectively, the “Preferred Stock”), are convertible at any time by the holders into a number of shares of AMCON common stock equal to the number of preferred shares being converted multiplied by a fraction equal to $25.00 divided by the conversion price. The conversion prices for the Preferred Stock are subject to customary adjustments in the event of stock splits, stock dividends, and certain other distributions on the Common Stock. Cumulative dividends for the Preferred Stock are payable in arrears, when, and if declared by the Board of Directors, on March 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31 of each year.

In the event of a liquidation of the Company, the holders of the Preferred Stock would be entitled to receive the liquidation preference plus any accrued and unpaid dividends prior to the distribution of any amount to the holders of the Common Stock. The shares of Preferred Stock are optionally redeemable by the Company beginning on various dates, as listed in the above table, at redemption prices equal to 112% of the liquidation preference. The redemption prices decrease 1% annually thereafter until the redemption price equals the liquidation preference, after which date it remains the liquidation preference. The Preferred Stock is redeemable at the liquidation value and at the option of the holder.  The Series A Preferred Stock and 8,000 shares of the Series B Preferred Stock are owned by Mr. Christopher Atayan, AMCON’s Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board.  The Series B Preferred Stockholders have the right to elect one member of our Board of Directors, pursuant to the voting rights in the Certificate of Designation creating the Series B.  Mr. Atayan was first nominated and elected to this seat in 2004.

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3. INVENTORIES

At June 2015, inventories consisted of finished goods and are stated at the lower of cost determined on a First-in, First-out (“FIFO”) basis, or market. The wholesale distribution and retail health food segment inventories consist of finished products purchased in bulk quantities to be redistributed to the Company’s customers or sold at retail. Finished goods included total reserves of approximately $1.0 million at June 2015 and $0.9 million at September 2014. These reserves include the Company’s obsolescence allowance, which reflects estimated unsalable or non-refundable inventory based upon an evaluation of slow moving and discontinued products.

4. GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS

Goodwill by reporting segment of the Company consisted of the following:

Other intangible assets of the Company consisted of the following:

Goodwill, trademarks and tradenames are considered to have indefinite useful lives and therefore no amortization has been taken on these assets. At June 2015, identifiable intangible assets considered to have finite lives were represented by customer relationships and the value of a non-competition agreement acquired as part of acquisitions. The customer relationships are being amortized over eight years and the value of the non-competition agreement is being amortized over five years. These intangible assets are evaluated for accelerated attrition or amortization adjustments if warranted.  Amortization expense related to these assets was $0.1 million and $0.3 million for the three and nine month periods ended June 2015, respectively, and $0.1 million and $0.3 million for the three and nine month periods ended June 2014, respectively.

Estimated future amortization expense related to identifiable intangible assets with finite lives is as follows at June 2015:

(1) Represents amortization for the remaining three months of Fiscal 2015.

5. DIVIDENDS

The Company paid cash dividends on its common stock and convertible preferred stock totaling $0.2 million and $0.5 million for the three and nine month periods ended June 2015, respectively, and $0.2 million and $0.5 million for the three and nine month periods ended June 2014, respectively.

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6. EARNINGS PER SHARE

Basic earnings per share available to common shareholders is calculated by dividing net income less preferred stock dividend requirements by the weighted average common shares outstanding for each period. Diluted earnings per share available to common shareholders is calculated by dividing income from operations less preferred stock dividend requirements (when anti-dilutive) by the sum of the weighted average common shares outstanding and the weighted average dilutive options, using the treasury stock method.

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7. DEBT

The Company primarily finances its operations through a credit facility agreement (the “Facility”) and long term debt agreements with banks. The Facility is provided through Bank of America acting as the senior agent and with BMO Harris Bank participating in a loan syndication.  The Facility included the following significant terms at June 2015:

·                  A July 2018 maturity date without a penalty for prepayment.

·                  $70.0 million revolving credit limit.

·                  Loan accordion allowing the Company to increase the size of the credit facility agreement by $25.0 million.

·                  A provision providing an additional $10.0 million of credit advances for certain inventory purchases.

·                  Evergreen renewal clause automatically renewing the agreement for one year unless either the borrower or lender provides written notice terminating the agreement at least 90 days prior to the end of any original or renewal term of the agreement.

·                  The Facility bears interest at either the bank’s prime rate, or at LIBOR plus 125 - 175 basis points depending on certain credit facility utilization measures, at the election of the Company.

·                  Lending limits subject to accounts receivable and inventory limitations.

·                  An unused commitment fee equal to one-quarter of one percent (1/4%) per annum on the difference between the maximum loan limit and average monthly borrowings.

·                  Secured by collateral including all of the Company’s equipment, intangibles, inventories, and accounts receivable.

·                  A financial covenant requiring a fixed charge coverage ratio of at least 1.0 as measured by the previous twelve month period then ended only if excess availability falls below 10% of the maximum loan limit as defined in the credit agreement.  The Company’s availability has not fallen below 10% of the maximum loan limit and the Company’s fixed charge coverage ratio is over 1.0.

·                  Provides that the Company may not pay dividends on its common stock in excess of $1.00 per share on an annual basis.  There is, however, no limit on common stock dividends if certain excess availability measurements have been maintained for the thirty day period immediately prior to the payment of any such dividends or distributions and if immediately after giving effect to any such dividend or distribution payments the Company has a fixed charge coverage ratio of at least 1.10 to 1.0 as defined in the credit facility agreement.

Cross Default and Co-Terminus Provisions

The Company’s owned real estate in Bismarck, ND, Quincy, IL, and Rapid City, SD, is financed through a term loan with BMO Harris, NA (“BMO”) which is also a participant lender on the Company’s revolving line of credit. The BMO loan contains cross default provisions which cause the loan with BMO to be considered in default if the loans where BMO is the lender, including the revolving credit facility, is in default. There were no such cross defaults as of June 2015. In addition, the BMO loan contains co-terminus provisions which require all loans with BMO to be paid in full if any of the loans are paid in full prior to the end of their specified terms.

Other

AMCON has issued a letter of credit in the amount of approximately $0.4 million to its workers’ compensation insurance carrier as part of its self-insured loss control program.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

The Company does not have any off-balance sheet arrangements.

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8. EQUITY-BASED INCENTIVE AWARDS

Omnibus Plan

The Company has two Omnibus Incentive Plans, the 2007 Omnibus Plan and 2014 Omnibus Plan (collectively “the Omnibus Plans”), which provide for equity incentives to employees. Each Omnibus Plan was designed with the intent of encouraging employees to acquire a vested interest in the growth and performance of the Company. The Omnibus Plans together permit the issuance of up to 225,000 shares of the Company’s common stock in the form of stock options, restricted stock awards, restricted stock units, performance share awards as well as awards such as stock appreciation rights, performance units, performance shares, bonus shares, and dividend share awards payable in the form of common stock or cash. The number of shares issuable under the Omnibus Plans is subject to customary adjustments in the event of stock splits, stock dividends, and certain other distributions on the Company’s common stock.  At June 2015, awards with respect to a total of 161,588 shares, net of forfeitures, had been awarded pursuant to the Omnibus Plans and awards with respect to another 63,412 shares may be awarded under the Omnibus Plans.

Stock Options

The stock options issued by the Company expire ten years from the grant date and include graded vesting schedules ranging between three and five years. Stock options issued and outstanding at June 2015 are summarized as follows:

Restricted Stock Units

At June 2015, nonvested restricted stock units awarded pursuant to the Company’s Omnibus Plans were as follows:

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There is no direct cost to the recipients of the restricted stock units, except for any applicable taxes. The recipients of the restricted stock units are entitled to the customary adjustments in the event of stock splits, stock dividends, and certain other distributions on the Company’s common stock. All cash dividends and/or distributions payable to restricted stock recipients will be held in escrow until all the conditions of vesting have been met.

The restricted stock units provide that the recipients can elect, at their option, to receive either common stock in the Company, or a cash settlement based upon the closing price of the Company’s shares, at the time of vesting. Based on these award provisions, the compensation expense recorded in the Company’s Condensed Statement of Operations reflects the straight-line amortized fair value based on the period end closing price.

All Equity-Based Awards (stock options and restricted stock units)

Net income before income taxes included compensation expense related to the amortization of all equity-based compensation awards of $0.3 million and $0.9 million for the three and nine months ended June 2015, respectively, and $0.3 million and $1.0 million for the three and nine months ended June 2014, respectively.  Total unamortized compensation expense related to these awards at June 2015 was approximately $1.7 million.

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9. BUSINESS SEGMENTS

AMCON has two reportable business segments: the wholesale distribution of consumer products and the retail sale of health and natural food products. The retail health food stores’ operations are aggregated to comprise the Retail Segment because such operations have similar economic characteristics, as well as similar characteristics with respect to the nature of products sold, the type and class of customers for the health food products and the methods used to sell the products. Included in the “Other” column are intercompany eliminations, and assets held and charges incurred by our holding company. The segments are evaluated on revenues, gross margins, operating income (loss), and income before taxes.

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Item 2.      Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, including the Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and other sections, contains forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties and which reflect management’s current beliefs and estimates of future economic circumstances, industry conditions, company performance and financial results. Forward-looking statements include information concerning the possible or assumed future results of operations of the Company and those statements preceded by, followed by or that include the words “future,” “position,” “anticipate(s),” “expect,” “believe(s),” “see,” “plan,” “further improve,” “outlook,” “should” or similar expressions. For these statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or results. They involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions.

You should understand that the following important factors, in addition to those discussed elsewhere in this document, could affect the future results of the Company and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in our forward-looking statements:

·      increasing competition in our wholesale segment,

·      increases in state and federal excise taxes on cigarette and tobacco products,

·      the increasing demand and sales of electronic cigarettes and vapors through specialty shops and over the internet,

·      higher commodity prices which could impact food ingredient costs for many of the products we sell,

·      regulation of cigarette and tobacco products by the FDA, in addition to existing state and federal regulations by other agencies,

·      potential bans or restrictions imposed by the FDA on the manufacture, distribution, and sale of certain cigarette and tobacco products,

·      increases in fuel prices,

·      increases in manufacturer prices,

·      increases in inventory carrying costs and customer credit risk,

·      changes in promotional and incentive programs offered by manufacturers,

·      demand for the Company’s products, particularly cigarette and tobacco products,

·      risks associated with opening new retail stores,

·      increasing competition in our retail health food segment,

·      the expansion of large and well capitalized national and regional health food retail store chains,

·      management periodically reviews market conditions and the demand for various assets that may lead to acquisitions, divestitures, new business ventures, or efforts to expand, each which carry integration and execution risk,

·      increasing health care costs and the potential impact on discretionary consumer spending,

·      changes in laws and regulations and ongoing compliance with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act,

·      decreased availability of capital resources,

·      domestic regulatory and legislative risks,

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·      poor weather conditions,

·      consolidation trends within the convenience store, wholesale distribution, and retail health food industries,

·      natural disasters and domestic unrest,

·      other risks over which the Company has little or no control, and any other factors not identified herein

Changes in these factors could result in significantly different results. Consequently, future results may differ from management’s expectations. Moreover, past financial performance should not be considered a reliable indicator of future performance. Any forward-looking statement contained herein is made as of the date of this document. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or correct any of these forward-looking statements in the future to reflect changed assumptions, the occurrence of material events or changes in future operating results, financial conditions or business over time.

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING ESTIMATES

Certain accounting estimates used in the preparation of the Company’s financial statements require us to make judgments and estimates and the financial results we report may vary depending on how we make these judgments and estimates. Our critical accounting estimates are set forth in our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2014, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. There have been no significant changes with respect to these policies during the nine months ended June 2015.

THIRD FISCAL QUARTER 2015 (Q3 2015)

The following discussion and analysis includes the Company’s results of operations for the three and nine months ended June 2015 and June 2014.

Wholesale Segment

Our Wholesale Segment is one of the largest wholesale distributors in the United States serving approximately 4,500 retail outlets including convenience stores, grocery stores, liquor stores, drug stores, and tobacco shops. We currently distribute over 16,000 different consumer products, including cigarettes and tobacco products, candy and other confectionery, beverages, groceries, paper products, health and beauty care products, frozen and chilled products and institutional foodservice products.  Convenience stores represent our largest customer category. In September 2014, Convenience Store News ranked us as the sixth (6th) largest convenience store distributor in the United States based on annual sales.

Our wholesale business offers retailers the ability to take advantage of manufacturer and Company sponsored sales and marketing programs, merchandising and product category management services, and the use of information systems and data services that are focused on minimizing retailers’ investment in inventory, while seeking to maximize their sales and profits. In addition, our wholesale distributing capabilities provide valuable services to both manufacturers of consumer products and convenience retailers. Manufacturers benefit from our broad retail coverage, inventory management, efficiency in processing small orders, and frequency of deliveries. Convenience retailers benefit from our distribution capabilities by gaining access to a broad product line, optimizing inventory, merchandising expertise, information systems, and accessing trade credit.

Our Wholesale Segment operates six distribution centers located in Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Tennessee. These distribution centers, combined with cross dock facilities, include approximately 641,000 square feet of permanent floor space. Our principal suppliers include Altria, RJ Reynolds, Commonwealth Brands, Lorillard, Hershey, Kellogg’s, Kraft, and Mars. We also market private label lines of water, candy products, batteries, film, and other products.  We do not maintain long-term purchase contracts with our suppliers.

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Retail Segment

Our Retail Segment is a specialty retailer of natural/organic groceries and dietary supplements which focuses on providing high quality products at affordable prices, with an exceptional level of customer service and nutritional consultation. All of the products carried in our stores must meet strict quality and ingredient guidelines, and include offerings such as gluten-free and antibiotic-free groceries and meat products, as well as products containing no artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, or partially hydrogenated oils. We design our retail sites in an efficient and flexible small-store format, which emphasizes a high energy and shopper-friendly environment.

We operate within the natural products retail industry, which is a subset of the large and stable U.S. grocery industry. This industry includes conventional, natural, gourmet and specialty food markets, mass and discount retailers, warehouse clubs, health food stores, dietary supplement retailers, drug stores, farmers markets, mail order and online retailers, and multi-level marketers. According to The Natural Foods Merchandiser, a leading industry trade publication, retail sales in the natural foods industry exceeded $89 billion during the 2013 calendar year.

Our Retail Segment operates sixteen retail health food stores as Chamberlin’s Market & Café and Akin’s Natural Foods Market. These stores carry over 32,000 different national and regionally branded and private label products including high-quality natural, organic, and specialty foods consisting of produce, baked goods, frozen foods, nutritional supplements, personal care items, and general merchandise. Chamberlin’s, which was established in 1935, operates six stores in and around Orlando, Florida. Akin’s, which was also established in 1935, has a total of ten locations in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.

Business Update — Wholesale Segment

Competition in the marketplace remains brisk as various other retail sales channels such as drug stores, dollar stores, and quick-service restaurants continue to pursue many of the same customers traditionally serviced by convenience stores. At the distributor level, industry-wide gross margins remain pressured as full service distributors and distributors who merely provide logistics services (i.e. doorstep deliveries) compete for market share. In response to “price-only” competition, we promote a wide range of customizable solutions and programs which can be tailored to specific customers depending on their size, region, size, and needs.

We are closely watching a number of ongoing trends within the industry: 1) the increasing reliance on technology at both the distributor and convenience store level and 2) the increasing demand for fresh/hot foodservice offerings. It is likely that the capital intensive nature of providing these services will largely fall on distributors and over time may force many smaller distributors from the market, presenting potential consolidation opportunities.  For our Company in particular, we continue to make targeted investments in a number of areas including technology applications and the expansion of our temperature controlled trucking fleet.

Over the medium to long term, we remain focused on a number of initiatives to help us further monetize different aspects of our business. Strategic and opportunistic acquisitions will also remain an important part of our long term value creation strategy.  As always, managing our business in a low risk fashion remains a top priority.

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Business Update — Retail Segment

The growing demand for natural products has attracted a wide range of well financed competitors. The operating environment for our retail health food segment is highly competitive as regional and national retailers such as Whole Foods Market, Trader Joe’s, Sprouts Farmers Market, Natural Grocers, Vitamin Shoppe, and General Nutrition Center (“GNC”) have all engaged in aggressive new store expansion strategies, often opening new retail sites in close proximity to our existing stores. Additionally, the purchase of consumer health products over the internet continues to grow and compete with brick and mortar retailers.