Company: NGVC
Filing Date: 2025-12-11
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001437749-25-037556
Chunk: 828

Company: Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-12-11
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1
Chunk 828
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 addition, unexpected, prolonged delays in deliveries from vendors that ship directly to our stores or increases in transportation costs (including as a result of increased fuel costs) could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Further, labor shortages or work stoppages in the transportation industry, long-term disruptions to the national and international transportation infrastructure, reductions in capacity and industry-specific regulations such as hours-of-service rules that lead to delays or interruptions of deliveries could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.         

Higher wage and benefit costs could adversely affect our business.

Changes in federal and state minimum wage laws and other laws relating to employee benefits could cause us to incur additional wage and benefits costs. Increased labor costs brought about by changes in minimum wage laws, other regulations or prevailing market conditions could increase our expenses, which could have an adverse impact on our profitability, or decrease the number of employees we are able to employ, which could reduce customer service levels and therefore adversely impact sales. During fiscal year 2025, we invested in increased wages for our store Crew members and may be required to do so in the future.

Union activity among our Crew members or at third party transportation companies could disrupt our operations and harm our business.

The United Food and Commercial Workers Union (the UFCW) has previously sought to organize at certain of our stores from time to time, and we could face organizing activities at other of our locations in the future. While the number of our Crew members in any single store-specific collective bargaining unit would not be individually significant, the unionization of a significant portion of our workforce could result in work slowdowns, increase our labor costs and reduce the efficiency of our operations at affected locations, adversely affect our flexibility to run our business competitively, and otherwise have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Furthermore, our response to any union organizing efforts could adversely impact our reputation, adversely impact our relationship with our Crew members, expose us to legal and regulatory actions, or require us to incur additional costs to defend any such actions.

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Furthermore, independent third-party distribution and transportation companies deliver the majority of our merchandise to our stores and to our customers. Some of these third parties employ personnel represented by labor unions. Disruptions in the delivery of merchandise or work stoppages by employees of these third parties could delay the timely receipt of merchandise, which could result in reduced inventory levels and sales and a loss of customer loyalty, and adversely impact our profitability, financial condition, and results of operations