Company: CRWS
Filing Date: 2025-06-27
Form Type: DEF 14A
Source: 0001437749-25-021381
Chunk: 29

Company: CROWN CRAFTS INC
Filing Date: 2025-06-27
Form: DEF 14A
Chunk 29
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 (i) reviewed independence of FW Cook as contemplated by the Compensation Committee’s charter and applicable rules of Nasdaq and the SEC; and (ii) affirmatively determined that FW Cook qualifies as independent under the applicable rules and that FW Cook’s work for the Compensation Committee did not raise any conflicts of interest. FW Cook has not provided any services to the Company other than services for the Compensation Committee.

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During the course of its engagement, FW Cook met informally with the Compensation Committee Chair and attended meetings of the Compensation Committee, including executive sessions from time to time without any members of management present. The Compensation Committee authorized FW Cook to interact with management on behalf of the Compensation Committee as needed in connection with advising the Compensation Committee.

With respect to the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024 (the “fiscal year 2024”), FW Cook reviewed and assessed the target pay opportunities of our named executive officers from a competitive standpoint using third-party general industry survey data, which was size-adjusted to reflect the corporate and business unit revenue responsibility of each named executive officer. FW Cook endeavored to identify a peer group of similarly-sized, publicly traded competitors; however, FW Cook determined that a reliable peer group could not be identified.

In connection with its assessment, FW Cook reviewed the following elements of compensation: (i) base salary, (ii) target total cash compensation, which is equal to base salary plus target short-term incentive opportunity (“Target TCC”); and (iii) target total direct compensation, which is Target TCC plus the target long-term incentive opportunity (“Target TDC”). In March 2024, FW Cook presented to the Compensation Committee an analysis of projected fiscal year 2025 base salary, target short-term incentive opportunities (as a percentage of base salary), Target TCC, annual target long-term incentive awards and annual Target TDC for our named executive officers benchmarked against the 25, median and 75 percentiles of similar positions in the third-party general industry survey data. This benchmarking analysis reflected that: (i) each of Ms. Elliott and Mr. Demarest was below the market 25th percentile with respect to each of base salary, Target TCC and Target TDC; and (ii) Ms. Sheridan was within the competitive range of the market median with respect to each of base salary, Target TCC and Target TDC.

Based upon the Compensation Committee’s assessment of the named executive officer’s overall performance and the Compensation Committee’s evaluation of the benchmarking