EDGAR 10-K Filing

Company CIK: 1706524
Filing Year: 2022
Filename: 1706524_10-K_2022_0001493152-22-008018.json

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ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Item 1. Business
Background
urban-gro, Inc. (together with its wholly owned subsidiaries, collectively “urban-gro”, “we”, “us” or “the Company”) was originally formed on March 20, 2014, as a Colorado limited liability company. In March 2017, we converted to a Colorado corporation and exchanged shares of our common stock for every member interest issued and outstanding on the date of conversion. On October 29, 2020, we reincorporated as a Delaware corporation. On December 31, 2020, we effected a 1-for-6 reverse stock split with respect to our common stock. All information in this Report gives effect to this reverse stock split, including restating prior period reported amounts. On February 12, 2021, we completed an uplisting to the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol UGRO.
Overview
urban-gro is a leading architectural design, engineering and cultivation design services company focused on the sustainable commercial indoor horticulture market. We design and engineer indoor controlled environment agriculture (“CEA”) facilities, then integrate complex environmental equipment systems into those facilities, and provide ongoing maintenance, training, and support services. CEA is a market segment that is defined by type of facility, and has no correlation to the industry, or more specifically the crop being grown in the facility. The CEA segment is represented by any horticultural facility that is fully self-contained, and has a fully-controlled environment. There are three facility types that meet these qualifications:
i.
Indoor Facilities - new building; or the retrofit of an existing building;
ii.
Vertical Farms - a building with a smaller footprint that is built up vertically and we view this category as including modular container farms; and
iii.
Greenhouses - traditional and made out of a variety of translucent materials as to provide natural sunlight for the crop being grown.
While historically we have been focused on designing, engineering, and integrating equipment into indoor CEA facilities, of which some are ultimately used for the cultivation of plant-based medicines, we have expanded our reach within CEA across both facility type and crop type. The term “plant-based medicines” includes (i) a wide array of herbal supplements including but not limited to curcumin, saffron extract and ginger, (ii) cannabidiol (“CBD”) based therapeutics, (iii) cannabis based therapeutics and (iv) a host of medicines derived from plants such as caffeine, menthol, foxglove and others. We have also focused and expanded into the vertical farming CEA sub-segment, which is ultimately and predominantly used for the cultivation of a variety of crops including, but not limited to, leafy greens, herbs, cucumbers, peppers, and strawberries.
Through our work, we create high-performance indoor cultivation facilities for our clients to grow specialty crops, including leafy greens, vegetables, herbs, and cannabis. Our purpose-built, value-add approach to design, engineering, procurement, and equipment integration provides a single point of accountability across all aspects of indoor growing operations. We also help our clients achieve operational efficiency and economic advantages through a full spectrum of professional services and programs focused on facility optimization and environmental health which establish facilities that allow clients to manage, operate and perform at the highest level throughout their entire cultivation lifecycle once they are up and running.
Since commencing business in March 2014, we have introduced new equipment solutions, products and services to the CEA market, expanded our ongoing operations across North America, added CEA-focused design and engineering to our services portfolio, diversified into food-focused CEA, and have entered into several engagements in Europe, where we have opened urban-gro European Holdings BV based in the Netherlands to help shepherd those engagements.
The majority of our clients are commercial CEA cultivators. We believe one of the key points of our differentiation that clients value is the depth of experience of our employees and our Company. We currently employ 97 individuals. Approximately two-thirds of our employees are considered experts in their areas of focus, and our team includes Designers (Architects, Interior Designers, Cultivation Space Planners), Engineers (Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing, Controls, and Agricultural), Professional Engineers, and individuals with Masters Degrees in Plant Science, Horticulture, and Business Administration. As a company, we have worked on nearly 500 indoor CEA facilities, and believe that the experience of our team and Company provides clients with the confidence that will proactively keep them from making common costly mistakes during the build out process that impact operational stages. Our expertise translates into clients saving time, money, and resources through expertise that they can leverage without having to add headcount to their own operations. We provide this experience in addition to offering a platform of the highest quality equipment systems that can be integrated holistically into our clients’ facilities.
Our Services and Integrated Equipment Solutions
We aim to work with our clients from inception of their project in a way that provides value throughout the life of their facility. We are a trusted partner and advisor to our clients and offer a complete set of design, engineering and managed services complemented by a vetted suite of select cultivation equipment systems. Outlined below is an example of a complete project that demonstrate how we provide value to our clients.
Our indoor commercial cultivation solution offers an integrated suite of services and equipment systems that generally fall within the following categories:
● Service Solutions:
●
Design and Engineering Services
Engineering and Design Services - A comprehensive triad of services including:
i. Pre-Construction Services
ii. Cultivation Space Programming (“CSP”)
iii. Architectural Design
iv. Full-Facility Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing (“MEP”)
v. Integrated Cultivation Design (“ICD”)
● An ongoing service offering including:
i. Facility and Equipment Commissioning Services
ii. Gro-Care Crop and Asset Protection Services including Training Services, Equipment Maintenance Services, Crop Protection Program, and an Interactive Online Portal Hub for Gro-Care
● Integrated Equipment Solutions:
i Design, Source, and Integration of Complex Environmental Equipment Systems
ii Value-Added Reselling (“VAR”) of Cultivation Equipment Systems
iii Strategic Vendor Relationships with Premier Manufacturers
Service Solutions
Design and Engineering Services
As a leader in indoor CEA facilities, we provide our clients with service offerings that include architectural, interior, and engineering design as well as the operational stages of the facility. Our in-house architectural design, engineering and cultivation design services offering includes Pre-Construction, CSP, Architectural Design, Interior Design, MEP, and ICD.
● Pre-Construction Services include providing a forecast summary of what it will take to get a high-performance facility built, giving initial indication and detailed analysis of budget, timeline/schedule, and potential large decision impacts including value analysis and engineering options. The integration of Pre-Construction Services can expedite project delivery.
● CSP is an early-stage engagement with stakeholders that provides an optimized basis of design including the interaction of people, plants, and processes. The output of CSP provides an optimized analysis of spatial needs based on stipulated criteria and can accelerate construction and regulatory approval paths, save stakeholders money and time, and enable a process-driven decision-making approach.
● Architectural Design is the implementation of a defined process from development of vision to built environment. Architecture includes the integration and coordination of all project required disciplines such as civil, landscape, structural, mechanical and electrical engineering, plumbing, security, interior design, and other specialty disciplines. Our services are built around an integrated design process focused on the collaborative development of client-driven solutions. Specific to the CEA industry, our team’s understanding of the relationship between people, plants, and process helps clients maximize profits and efficiencies while minimizing capital investments, and operational and maintenance costs.
● Interior Design involves branding and development of the interior aesthetic vision. Our collaborative and integrated approach from our award-winning team begins with inspiration boards focused on understanding the client’s aesthetic desires. Interior design is holistic and thereby includes all aspects of the building interiors from full branding to the selection and design of all finishes and interior systems. Common discussions beyond aesthetics include the cost, durability, and maintainability of systems presented.
● MEP engineering design focuses on the entire building, not just the cultivation space, which in turn eliminates the “gap” between cultivation systems and the building systems. We provide engineered construction contract documents for mechanical, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (“HVAC”), plumbing and electrical systems required for the building permits necessary to obtain a Certificate of Occupancy. Our team evaluates client capabilities, needs, desires, and budget in development of recommended systems through a client-focused collaborative process culminating in the delivery of high-performance and low-maintenance systems.
● ICD creates cultivation space-focused design layouts that integrate climate control, fertigation, benching, air flow, and lighting. Our ICD team’s deep understanding of cultivation systems provides the foundation for ensuring optimal space utilization as they utilize an integrated and collaborative design process focused on understanding, vetting, and implementing the client’s vision. Products utilized in the ICD’s basis-of-design ensures the integration of high-quality systems and product performance. These detailed ICD plans are taken through the Construction Document stage and are leveraged by our clients to efficiently solicit contractor bids.
Our Service Offerings
gro-care is a highly differentiated service offering that provides a combination of facility commissioning and a crop and asset protection program through training, equipment maintenance, on-demand support, crop protection standard operating procedures (SOP)s, and a client-specific Operating Support System (OSS) that acts as an online hub for clients’ ongoing services. Combined, this solution focuses on the troubleshooting, tuning, and support of a myriad of cultivation systems and equipment while further providing guidance for client interactions with tradespeople working on HVAC, electrical, and plumbing in the facility on an ongoing basis.
Many of the current service options available to clients are isolated to vendors providing post-sale service for a single piece of equipment. Our service provides a cultivation-level view of the complex system made up by each piece of equipment, allowing for rapid installation, continuous process improvement, and greater revenue recognition for our clients
Facility and Equipment Commissioning Services. Today’s cultivation systems are custom designed and extremely complex. Our team of project managers and engineers supports the installation process by coordinating with a client’s engineers and stakeholders to avoid project bottlenecks while supporting construction trades. Our commissioning team ensures that the equipment is installed according to the design and operates per the defined manufacturer specifications.
gro-care Training Services. Complex cultivation systems encompass a multitude of variables and environment readings such as temperature, relative humidity, vapor pressure differential (VPD), electrical conductivity (EC), pH, network status, light status, photosynthetically active radiation, sunrise/sunset modules, CO2, HVAC status, fan status, vents (including windward and leeward), shades, network status and flow rates. In CEA there is a scarcity of skilled labor which impedes our clients’ ability to drive operating proficiency across their teams. Our engineering team uses a series of tools and processes to ensure clients are proactive in preventing equipment downtime, can operate all equipment and processes fluently, and have expert support in resolving potential issues. These services range from equipment standard operating procedure (“SOP”) libraries to staff training sessions. With a unique knowledgebase acquired from both our commissioning and training for a wide breadth of cultivation equipment, we provide our clients’ teams with the skills to minimize equipment downtime and optimize processes in their facilities.
gro-care Maintenance Services. Complex cultivation systems require specific and ongoing maintenance. Our team enables clients to perform this maintenance appropriately or even can perform the maintenance for them so that assets operate at their highest efficiency and any issues are encountered early.
gro-care Support Services When problems arise in a facility, our team is on-call to provide analysis, support, and even in-person visits to help make sure the issue is addressed prior to impacting any facility operations.
Program Overview and Pricing. We estimate that, on average and depending on the crop, CEA facilities can lose up to $10,000 per 1,000 square feet of canopy per day when offline - our gro-care Crop and Asset Protection services are centered around proactively minimizing this potential loss for a fraction of the cost. Our clients are best described as automation- and margin-focused and have an understanding of the importance of preventing downtime in their facilities.
Integrated Equipment Solutions
While our engineers play an integral part in the design of most of the complex equipment systems that are then integrated into a CEA facility, we also provide consultative reselling of more common solutions that we integrate into the overall design. For CEA, the environmental goal is to maintain a stable and consistent VPD according to the client’s priorities through environmental control of relative humidity and temperature during all stages of growth. There are four main variables in CEA that affect plant growth (and can impact VPD): (i) water and nutrients; (ii) environmental control; (iii) CO2; and (iv) lighting.
Design, Source, and Integration of Complex Environmental Equipment Systems
Complex Environment Systems for CEA include the integration of environmental controls, fertigation and irrigation distribution, a complete line of water treatment and wastewater reclamation systems, and purpose-built HVAC equipment systems.
The most significant variable of interest in a CEA facility is the control of the environment, which is accomplished through the integration of both environmental controls and the purpose-built HVAC system. Without proper design, the environmental control system is the most influential variable in terms of temperature and relative humidity control within an indoor agriculture space. With properly designed equipment, the environmental controls variable is less volatile, enabling efficient growing conditions.
Purpose-built HVAC equipment systems will provide a more stable environment, maximize plant health and yields, minimize crop loss, minimize utility costs, save on capital equipment, and maximize sustainability. Additionally, private studies of a partner comparing purpose-built HVAC environmental controls equipment to standard commercial HVAC and dehumidification, found increased crop yields with purpose-built equipment, which can include chilled water and DX systems.
VAR of Cultivation Equipment Systems
We act as an experienced VAR to our clients when selling vetted best-in-class commercial horticulture lighting solutions, rolling and automated container benching systems, specialty fans, and microbial mitigation and odor reduction systems. The acquired knowledge of how each of these systems work in combination with and in tangent to the overall ecosystem is a significant benefit that our engineers and product experts offer to our clients. Not only are many competing products reviewed in each category with the intention of vetting the best solution, we continually search out and review competing technologies to ensure that only the best-in-class equipment systems are integrated into our projects. As such, we believe it will be imperative to maintain and to continue to develop close relationships with both existing and new leading technology and manufacturing providers.
Today, we typically do not sell any cultivation equipment systems individually as a one-time sale. The majority of equipment sales are sold as part of a larger all-encompassing project solution that spans over a 12 to 18 month period and includes engineering design and the sale of both custom complex and more standard equipment systems.
Strategic Vendor Relationships with Premier Manufacturers
We work closely with leading technology and manufacturing providers to deliver an integrated solution designed to achieve the stated objectives of our clients. While we previously manufactured certain lighting products, we discontinued all manufacturing in 2019, although we continued to sell existing inventory through 2020. Today we are equipment agnostic - meaning we do not have any allegiance to any manufacturer - we offer the solution that will best fit the design and budget constraints of our clients and are happy to design, engineer, and integrate in whatever equipment fits the needs of our clients.
Revenues and Gross Profit Margins by Category. Service Revenues for engineering design services contracts can be hundreds of thousands of dollars, depending on the spectrum of services desired by the client and the size of the facility. Product Revenues for customized equipment systems can be millions of dollars, depending on the size of the cultivation facilities, the complexity and types of systems purchased by the client, and the number of systems purchased by the client. Sales of consumable products are typically of a recurring nature each month to a client and can be in the tens of thousands of dollars.
Targeted gross profit margins for each of the Company’s revenue categories are as follows:
● Architectural and Engineering design services - thirty to sixty percent;
● gro-care Crop and Asset Protection services - forty to sixty percent;
● Customized equipment systems - mid-teens to mid-thirty percent; and
● Consumable products revenues - high-teens to high-twenty percent.
Gross profit margins on engineering design services and customized equipment systems are highly dependent on the complexity and size of the project.
Our Clients
We primarily market and sell our products and services to CEA operators and facilitators in the United States and Canada. Our historical client base has been comprised of indoor commercial cultivators seeking to grow high-quality cannabis crops. Since launching the engineering and design division in 2018, we have designed and assisted in the build-out of 500+ projects for some of the largest independent and multi-state operators in both the United States and Canada. Although the cannabis market has been our historical target market and an unknown but substantial portion of all of our revenues to date have been generated from clients in the cannabis industry, we have been diversifying our client base by expanding our reach within food-focused vertical farming indoor CEA and maintaining non-CEA business lines from our architectural and engineering teams. The term “plant-based medicines” includes (i) a wide array of herbal supplements including but not limited to curcumin, saffron extract and ginger, (ii) CBD based therapeutics, (iii) cannabis-based therapeutics and (iv) a host of medicines derived from plans such as caffeine, menthol, foxglove and others. We are focusing on expanding to the vertical farming CEA sub-segment, which is ultimately and predominantly used for the cultivation of a variety of crops including, but not limited to, leafy greens, herbs, cucumbers, peppers, and strawberries, as well as continue our expansion into Europe to meet the demand for our solutions within the indoor CEA market.
Environment, Social, and Governance
We are continuously striving to develop, maintain, and build upon our environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) practices.
● Environment: As a leader in the CEA space, urban-gro has a continuing commitment to Environmental Sustainability in order to help form a better, healthier world for future generations. Utilizing the expertise of our employees, we create less waste, water consumption, and carbon emissions for over 500 facilities worldwide and counting. We believe we present a strong opportunity for the growing market of investors looking for profitable growth companies dedicated to providing a more sustainable world for generations to come. As technological advancement continues, we plan to work with our partners to create even more earth-friendly cultivation sites in our hopes of carbon neutrality.
● Social: We leverage our leadership position in the market as an opportunity to promote our corporate values of inclusion, innovation, and connection.
● Inclusion: Internally, we hire and promote underrepresented communities in STEM (science, technology, education, mathematics). Our project design and engineering teams reflect our commitment as demonstrated by leadership positions held by women across our project design, project management, and client engagement departments.
● Innovation: CEA is an industry that is rapidly advancing, testing, and adopting new technologies. Our corporate development team works closely with our project design and engineering teams to vet new products and ensure they align with our corporate responsibility needs.
● Connection: Through our outreach efforts across the world, we represent a company committed to the development and nurturing of a deeper understanding across all disciplines of CEA, food production, and being on the leading edge of emerging industry-related innovations.
○ Through our Client Appreciation Events at major tradeshows across North America, we raise awareness and funds for local charities. These events serve as opportunities for non-profits to bolster career opportunities, economic development, veteran health and housing, and other causes.
○ We have been a long-time supporter of HeroGrown, an organization that provides Veterans, First Responders, and their families with free access to benefit-rich CBD. Through “Operation CBD Drop,” HeroGrown provides an alternative to those struggling with addiction to deadly drugs prescribed for service-related injuries and psychological disorders.
○ We have been a supporter of Teens for Food Justice which is catalyzing a youth-led movement to end food insecurity in one generation through high-capacity, school-based hydroponic farming. We have even helped build out and commission their first in-classroom vertical farm in the Denver area located near our headquarters and have committed our team’s time to mentoring students and helping further TFFJ’s goals.
· Governance: We have three main approaches we utilize to guide us for a successful governance program to ensure that our stakeholders’ best interests are acted upon:
○ Board Composition: We have a strong and diverse board made up of leaders from a variety of fields that help guide our overall efforts.
○ National Cannabis Roundtable: We sit on the board of the National Cannabis Roundtable, an organization dedicated to sensible regulation, criminal justice reform, social equity and community reinvestment.
○ Audit Committee. Our Audit Committee is focused on internal controls and multi-discipline oversight enabled by its charter and structure.
Growth Strategy
Our employees and the application of their acquired knowledge is our most valuable asset as an organization. Our growth strategy involves leveraging this considerable strength as a basis for growth across three pillars of focus and exploration. These three pillars allow us to continue to provide value to our current and future clients:
1. Diversifying our Service Capabilities
2. Expansion of Geographical Reach
3. Expansion within the Commercial Horticulture Segment
1. Diversifying our Service Capabilities
We intend to be the global leading provider for purpose-built turnkey indoor CEA facilities. To that end, we will seek to diversify our service capabilities to enable that offering of providing value to clients through acting as a single point of responsibility in our turnkey approach. While we will continue to expand our services organically, we began this journey through the acquisition of Impact Engineering, Inc in 2019, the acquisition of 2WR+ Partners in 2021, and will continue to look for inorganic opportunities that propel us forward towards our vision. Examples of these opportunities include services that we do not currently have in-house that provide meaningful value to clients and also represent meaningful revenue gaps for us - amongst these are services like construction management, additional design-build engineering disciplines, and further niche-specific indoor CEA operational support. We believe that acting as a single point of responsibility as a provider for turnkey solutions, especially one with the depth and breadth of experience within indoor CEA facilities, we can get our clients to market more quickly and more efficiently than others. We have always aimed to provide the highest level of service and expertise to our clients from initial cultivation ideation to helping prior to go-live to proactively solve for issues that may arise once operations begin and continue at their facilities. We will continue to provide these elite service levels as we expand our service capabilities. In addition, where this diversification of service capabilities adds existing clients from non-CEA industry sectors, we will look to continue to compete and expand in those sectors, including medical, K12, industrial, commercial, hospitality, and CPG, while remaining focused on being the leader for indoor CEA.
2. Expansion of Geographical Reach
While we will continue to establish our end-to-end solution as the industry standard for CEA indoor cultivation, we intend to continue to focus on integrating our expertise and service offerings with the best available technologies to allow our clients to achieve operational superiority and profitability. While we believe that the U.S. market will experience continued strength, and this will represent significant growth opportunities for us, we also intend to continue our expansion and reach within Europe.
European Expansion - Historically, our business has found success with clients in the United States and Canada. While North America currently presents the dominant opportunity for indoor new build and retrofit CEA facilities, the European CEA market, especially in the vertical farming sub-segment, is rapidly expanding.
We first entered the European market in early 2020, through key partners who have brought us into opportunities as a value-added component to their own sales cycle. We have demonstrated the transferability of our expertise to the EU and have closed several deals to provide value-added solution services to European clients in several countries, including Switzerland, Northern Macedonia, Greece, Spain, England, and the Netherlands. Based on our due diligence, we believe that the most common facilities in demand in this market will mirror that of our niche - indoor, CEA, GMP-certified operations. We will look to capitalize on our current approach and expand our reach into Europe with our services and products through a staged and cost-efficient approach by first entering the market through our strong partnerships and leveraging our existing U.S.-based engineering expertise and overhead.
Approach to Market Expansion - Due to the rapid development of the European market and the lack of established companies experienced in the design, construction, and operations of indoor cultivation facilities, we will make a strategic and staged entry into the European market to ensure a sustainable use of resources and capital. The market entry will be designed around a three-phased approach:
● Phase One - Focus on establishing a client base and pipeline surrounding early license applicants and current license holders by providing facility and systems design for indoor projects with a focus on CSP.
● Phase Two - Building on established vendor relationships, integrate purpose-built custom environmental equipment systems from U.S. manufacturers into our European offering.
● Phase Three - Incorporate the development of the initial two phases combined with partnerships, joint ventures, expansion of service capabilities, and domestic manufacturing of equipment to provide a turn-key project solution offering in Europe.
We believe this three-phased approach, paired with the evolution of partnerships and domestic equipment manufacturing, will establish us as an experienced leader and solution provider in the design, engineering, and turn-key systems for the European indoor CEA market.
3. Expansion within the Commercial Horticulture Segment
Utilizing our in-house engineering capabilities and synergies, we confidently believe that we can efficiently expand our diversification to include working on projects in the CEA indoor vertical farming market segment in both the North American and European markets.
Global CEA Vertical Farming Segment - CEA vertical farm facilities for cultivation are typically indoor warehouse farms and plant factories that are in purpose-built or retrofitted facilities.
According to Bank of America Thematic Research, the global vertical farming market is estimated to reach $17 billion by 2025, with a compounded annual growth rate of 27.7% from 2020 to 2025. The market for non-container facilities-on which we already focus and have had success-is forecasted to grow even faster. This rate of growth forecast is buttressed by the fact that more and more food will be needed closer to where population resides, and CEA eliminates many of the risks of traditional agriculture, minimizing risk and allowing localities to be closer and control their food supply more readily.
Market Entry - Our end-to-end approach, solutions, and expertise are applicable for and valuable to clients creating high performance indoor vertical farms to cultivate high value crops such as leafy greens, micro-greens, herbs, peppers, or even floriculture. And our experience and expertise is highly transferable - while our experts’ backgrounds are predominantly built on a commercial horticulture foundation, our architects’ and engineers’ design expertise in indoor CEA also seamlessly flows through to indoor vertical farming facilities. The acquired expertise our team has in over 500 indoor CEA projects with the highest valued crop in the world allows us to understand how to successfully design high performance CEA facilities.
Our approach to entering this market has followed what we have done as we entered Europe - we continue to reinforce our core strengths as we expand into new markets through our partnerships. The first phase of entering this CEA market is through our leading design and engineering teams. Our teams have helped in the initial phases of Cultivation Space Planning (CSP) for indoor CEA vertical farm producers as well as helped existing producers identify and solve issues in their current facilities. As we find success here, we will look to continue to partner to accelerate our reach and begin to supply much of the equipment needed to build out a facility, and finally, after identifying and solving for any potential gaps, we will look to offer turn-key, end-to-end design, engineer, and build services for indoor CEA facilities.
Acquisition Strategy - While entering any new market can be challenging, we believe that our existing brand combined with the strength of our partnerships and expertise will allow us to capture a meaningful amount of this market through targeting the most sophisticated, well-funded producers who are in need of a partner that has a demonstrated history of success growing crops in this way.
To speed up our expansion plan, and with the intention of forming strategic relationships to assist in lead generation, we plan to place investments in or acquire horticulture-related positive cash flow entities at discounted prices based upon the synergistic upside available for both organizations.
Our Competition
While we feel that our complex end-to-end solution places us as a leader in the CEA segment, we do face competition from companies that offer some, but not all, portions of an all-encompassing facility package. Further, these companies often outsource to third parties for the integration and sale of equipment systems and products, particularly within the cannabis industry. We also compete with other smaller and mid-sized companies that focus primarily on either engineering design services or product sales. Within the services space, there are several product or services specific competitors that offer similar services, such as architectural design services, MEP services or basic fertigation design. Currently, we view our competition to be focused on equipment sales that are predominantly commodity “off-the-shelf” items like lighting and other cultivation staple products, both pre- and post-startup. This competition comes from traditional wholesale horticulture dealers, online retailers, and some manufacturers who sell direct.
Greenhouse manufacturers and European systems integrators may increasingly seek to offer comprehensive product and service solutions to compete with our integrated solution, but they are primarily focused on the greenhouse industry, and not on indoor CEA facilities. European systems integrators in particular are experienced and have a strong operating history in traditional horticulture and provide specialized, intensive, and large-scale solutions that revolve around greenhouse projects. Instead of competing with these integrators, we find ourselves working with them and combining synergies to work on projects together.
Further, although we frequently partner with direct manufacturers to deliver our customized solution, these manufacturers may seek to engage with clients directly to deliver their products. In addition, we sometimes compete with electrical contractors with respect to specific components of facility engineering and design.
As the cannabis market continues to mature and develop and legalization becomes more prevalent, we expect to see more competition from cannabis-focused agricultural product and service providers. Going forward, while we will continue to serve cannabis CEA producers, we will extend our focus to non-cannabis crops. These companies may have longer operating histories, greater name recognition, larger client bases and significantly greater financial, technical, sales and marketing resources. These competitors may adopt more aggressive pricing policies and make more attractive offers to existing and potential clients, employees, strategic partners, distribution channels and advertisers. Increased competition is likely to result in price reductions, reduced gross margins and a potential loss of market share.
Regulation
U.S. Regulations
While we do not generate any revenue from the direct sale of cannabis products, we have historically, and may continue to, offer our solutions to indoor cultivators that are engaged in various aspects of the cannabis industry. Marijuana is a Schedule I controlled substance and is illegal under federal law. Even in those states in which the use of marijuana has been legalized, its use remains a violation of federal laws.
A Schedule I controlled substance is defined as a substance that has no currently accepted medical use in the United States, a lack of safety for use under medical supervision and a high potential for abuse. The Department of Justice defines Schedule I controlled substances as “the most dangerous drugs of all the drug schedules with potentially severe psychological or physical dependence.” If the federal government decides to enforce the Controlled Substances Act with respect to marijuana, persons that are charged with distributing, possessing with intent to distribute, or growing marijuana could be subject to fines and terms of imprisonment, the maximum being life imprisonment and a $50 million fine. Any such change in the federal government’s enforcement of current federal laws could cause significant financial damage to us. While we do not intend to harvest, distribute or sell cannabis, we may be irreparably harmed by a change in enforcement by the federal or state governments.
Previously, the Obama administration took the position that it was not an efficient use of resources to direct federal law enforcement agencies to prosecute those lawfully abiding by state-designated laws allowing the use and distribution of medical marijuana. The Trump administration revised this policy but made no major changes in enforcement. Specifically, Attorney General Sessions vacated the Cole Memorandum in favor of deferral of any enforcement of federal regulation to the individual states’ Department of Justice or U.S. Attorney. However, certain other protections remain in place via budgetary element embedment (the Rohrabacher-Farr amendment, now referred to as the Rohrabacher-Blumenauer Amendment), which limits funding of any enforcement of anti-cannabis legislation. The Department of Justice has stated that it will continue to enforce the Controlled Substances Act with respect to marijuana to prevent:
● the distribution of marijuana to minors;
● criminal enterprises, gangs and cartels receiving revenue from the sale of marijuana;
● the diversion of marijuana from states where it is legal under state law to other states;
● state-authorized marijuana activity from being used as a cover or pretext for the trafficking of other illegal drugs or other illegal activity;
● violence and the use of firearms in the cultivation and distribution of marijuana;
● driving while impaired and the exacerbation of other adverse public health consequences associated with marijuana use;
● the growing of marijuana on public lands; and
● marijuana possession or use on federal property.
Since the use of marijuana is illegal under federal law, most federally chartered banks will not accept deposit funds from businesses involved with marijuana. Consequently, businesses involved in the marijuana industry generally bank with state-chartered banks and credit unions to provide banking to the industry.
Although cultivation and distribution of marijuana for medical use is permitted in many states, provided compliance with applicable state and local laws, rules, and regulations, marijuana is illegal under federal law. Strict enforcement of federal law regarding marijuana would likely result in a material adverse effects on our business and revenues. Though the cultivation and distribution of marijuana remains illegal under federal law, H.R. 83, enacted by Congress on December 16, 2014, provides that none of the funds made available to the DOJ pursuant to the 2015 Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act may be used to prevent states from implementing their own laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession, or cultivation of medical marijuana. While this appropriations measure continued from 2016 through 2020, and remains in effect, continued re-authorization cannot be guaranteed. If this appropriations rider is no longer in effect, the risk of federal enforcement and override of state marijuana laws would increase. However, state laws do not supersede the prohibitions set forth in the federal drug laws.
In order to participate in either the medical or adult use sides of the marijuana industry, all businesses and employees must obtain licenses from the state and, for businesses, local jurisdictions. In addition, all owners and employees must obtain an occupational license to be permitted to own or work in a facility. All applicants for licenses undergo a background investigation, including a criminal record check for all owners and employees.
Laws and regulations affecting the medical marijuana industry are constantly changing, which could detrimentally affect our proposed operations. Local, state and federal medical marijuana laws and regulations are broad in scope and subject to evolving interpretations, which could require us to incur substantial costs associated with compliance or alter our business plan. In addition, violations of these laws, or allegations of such violations, could disrupt our business and result in a material adverse effect on our operations. It is also possible that regulations may be enacted in the future that will be directly applicable to our business. We cannot predict the nature of any future laws, regulations, interpretations or applications, nor can we determine what effect additional governmental regulations or administrative policies and procedures, when and if promulgated, could have on our business.
Canadian Regulations
Summary of the Cannabis Act
On October 17, 2018, the Cannabis Act came into force as law with the effect of legalizing adult recreational use of cannabis across Canada. The Cannabis Act replaced the Access to Cannabis for Medicinal Purposes Regulations (“ACMPR”) and the Industrial Hemp Regulations, both of which came into force under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (Canada) (the “CDSA”), which previously permitted access to cannabis for medical purposes for only those Canadians who had been authorized to use cannabis by their health care practitioner. The ACMPR replaced the Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations (Canada) (the “MMPR”), which was implemented in June 2013. The MMPR replaced the Marihuana Medical Access Regulations (Canada) (the “MMAR”) which was implemented in 2001. The MMPR and MMAR were initial steps in the Government of Canada’s legislative path towards the eventual legalization and regulating recreational and medical cannabis.
The Cannabis Act permits the recreational adult use of cannabis and regulates the production, distribution and sale of cannabis and related oil extracts in Canada, for both recreational and medical purposes. Under the Cannabis Act, Canadians who are authorized by their health care practitioner to use medical cannabis have the option of purchasing cannabis from one of the producers licensed by Health Canada and are also able to register with Health Canada to produce a limited amount of cannabis for their own medical purposes or to designate an individual who is registered with Health Canada to produce cannabis on their behalf for personal medical purposes.
Pursuant to the Cannabis Act, subject to provincial regulations, individuals over the age of 18 are able to purchase fresh cannabis, dried cannabis, cannabis oil, and cannabis plants or seeds and are able to legally possess up to 30 grams of dried cannabis, or the equivalent amount in fresh cannabis or cannabis oil. The Cannabis Act also permits households to grow a maximum of four cannabis plants. This limit applies regardless of the number of adults that reside in the household. In addition, the Cannabis Act provides provincial and municipal governments the authority to prescribe regulations regarding retail and distribution, as well as the ability to alter some of the existing baseline requirements of the Cannabis Act, such as increasing the minimum age for purchase and consumption.
Provincial and territorial governments in Canada have made varying announcements on the proposed regulatory regimes for the distribution and sale of cannabis for adult-use purposes. For example, Québec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Yukon and the Northwest Territories have chosen the government-regulated model for distribution, whereas Saskatchewan and Newfoundland & Labrador have opted for a private sector approach. Alberta, Ontario, Manitoba, Nunavut and British Columbia have announced plans to pursue a hybrid approach of public and private sale and distribution.
In connection with the new framework for regulating cannabis in Canada, the federal government has introduced new penalties under the Criminal Code (Canada), including penalties for the illegal sale of cannabis, possession of cannabis over the prescribed limit, production of cannabis beyond personal cultivation limits, taking cannabis across the Canadian border, giving or selling cannabis to a youth and involving a youth to commit a cannabis-related offence.
On July 11, 2018, the Canadian federal government published regulations in the Canada Gazette to support the Cannabis Act, including the Cannabis Regulations, the new Industrial Hemp Regulations, along with proposed amendments to the Narcotic Control Regulations and certain regulations under the Food and Drugs Act (Canada). The Industrial Hemp Regulations and the Cannabis Regulations, among other things, outline the rules for the legal cultivation, processing, research, analytical testing, distribution, sale, importation and exportation of cannabis and hemp in Canada, including the various classes of licenses that can be granted, and set standards for cannabis and hemp products. The Industrial Hemp Regulations and the Cannabis Regulations include strict specifications for the plain packaging and labelling and analytical testing of all cannabis products as well as stringent physical and personnel security requirements for all federally licensed production sites. The Industrial Hemp Regulations and the Cannabis Regulations also maintain a distinct system for access to cannabis. With the Cannabis Act now in force, cannabis has ceased to be regulated under the CDSA and is instead regulated under the Cannabis Act, and both the ACMPR and the Industrial Hemp Regulations have been repealed effective October 17, 2018.
On June 7, 2018, Bill-C45 passed the third reading in the Senate with a number of amendments to the language of the Cannabis Act. More specifically, the Senate proposed:
● establishing a committee of the Senate and a committee of the House of Commons to undertake a comprehensive review of the administration and operation of the Cannabis Act;
● assisting provinces and territories to facilitate the development of workplace impairment policies;
● allowing provinces to place restrictions on the ability of individuals to engage in home cultivation;
● that law enforcement be provided with the appropriate tools and resources to address concerns about continued illicit production, diversion, and sale of cannabis to youth, including preventing the sharing of marihuana among young adults by rendering it a ticketable offense;
● that the prices set for cannabis products and the applicable taxes reflect the dual objective of minimizing the health dangers of cannabis consumption and undercutting the illicit market of cannabis;
● mandatory health warnings for cannabis products, including warnings about the danger of smoking cannabis, the danger of exposure to second-hand cannabis smoke, and the risks of combining cannabis and tobacco;
● testing procedures for THC content be standardized to ensure accurate measurement to better protect consumer health and safety;
● that forthcoming regulations for edible products and other forms of cannabis ensure that product packaging is child-resistant and does not appeal to young people, and that the type of available products should be strictly limited;
● adequate and ongoing funding for sustained, evidence-based cannabis education and prevention programs to provide Canadians, especially young Canadians, with knowledge about the health risks of cannabis use, including on-going research initiatives on the impact of cannabis use on the developing brain; and that the federal government commit to on-going educational initiatives to ensure youth are informed on the effects of cannabis use;
● to prohibit licensees under the Cannabis Act to distribute branded merchandise, such as t-shirts and baseball caps and imposing a moratorium on loosening the regulations on the branding, marketing, and promotion of cannabis for 10 years;
● to set aggressive targets, comparable to the successful Federal Tobacco Control Strategy, to reduce the number of youth and adult cannabis users; and
● to ensure that the Cannabis Tracking System be operational upon the coming-into-force of the Cannabis Act.
Security Clearances - The Cannabis Regulations require that certain people associated with cannabis licensees, including individuals occupying a “key position” directors, officers, large stockholders and individuals identified by the Minister of Health, must hold a valid security clearance issued by the Minister of Health. Officers and directors of a parent corporation must be security cleared.
Under the Cannabis Regulations, the Minister of Health may refuse to grant security clearances to individuals with associations to organized crime or with past convictions for, or an association with, drug trafficking, corruption or violent offences. Individuals who have histories of nonviolent, lower-risk criminal activity (for example, simple possession of cannabis, or small-scale cultivation of cannabis plants) are not precluded from participating in the legal cannabis industry, and the grant of security clearance to such individuals is at the discretion of the Minister of Health and such applications will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
Cannabis Tracking System - Under the Cannabis Act, the Minister of Health is authorized to establish and maintain a national cannabis tracking system. The Cannabis Regulations set out a national cannabis tracking system to track cannabis throughout the supply chain to help prevent diversion of cannabis into, and out of, the illicit market. The Cannabis Regulations also provides the Minister of Health with the authority to make a ministerial order that would require certain persons named in such order to report specific information about their authorized activities with cannabis, in the form and manner specified by the Minister of Health.
Cannabis Products - The Cannabis Regulations set out the requirements for the sale of cannabis products at the retail level permit the sale of dried cannabis, cannabis oil, fresh cannabis, cannabis plants, and cannabis seeds, including in such forms as “pre-rolled” and in capsules. The THC content and serving size of cannabis products is limited by the Cannabis Regulations. The sale of edibles containing cannabis and cannabis concentrates was not initially permitted, however the federal government anticipates that such products will be legalized within one year following the coming into force of the Cannabis Act.
Intellectual Property
The success of our business depends, in part, on our ability to maintain and protect our proprietary technologies, information, processes and know-how. We rely primarily on patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret laws in the U.S. and similar laws in other countries, confidentiality agreements and procedures and other contractual arrangements to protect our technology and confidential information. Our patents are limited to certain sensors that we obtain from third party manufacturers that do not contribute materially to our sales or profitability. Our trademarks are solely for branding purposes, although we no longer sell any goods or services under the Soleil brand. As of the date of this prospectus, the following summarizes the status of our registrations, pending applications, issued U.S. patents and one published U.S. patent application:
Trademarks
We have received the following trademark registrations:
Trademark
Jurisdiction
Registration Number
Registration Date
Status
URBAN-GRO
United States
October 07, 2014
Registered
URBAN-GRO
United Kingdom
January 19, 2018
Registered
URBAN-GRO
European Union
October 31, 2018
Registered
URBAN-GRO
WIPO
July 08, 2020
Registered
URBAN-GRO
United Kingdom
UK0081548013
July 08, 2020
Registered
SOLEIL
United States
May 23, 2017
Registered
SOLEIL
United Kingdom
March 09, 2018
Registered
SOLEIL
Canada
October 07, 2020
Registered
SOLEIL
European Union
September 11, 2018
Registered
SOLEIL
United Kingdom
UK00917391781
September 08, 2018
Registered
OPTI-DURA
United States
June 04, 2019
Registered
OPTI-DURA
Canada
TMA1070145
January 20, 2020
Registered
GRO-CARE
European Union
August 24, 2020
Registered
GRO-CARE
European Union
October 29, 2019
Registered
GRO-CARE
United Kingdom
UK00917391806
October 29, 2018
Registered
We have applied for and are awaiting receipt of the following trademark registrations:
Trademark
Jurisdiction
Application Number
Filing Date
Status
URBAN-GRO
Canada
November 13, 2018
Pending. Examination Completed.
URBAN-GRO
Canada (Madrid)
A0098111
July 08, 2020
Pending.
URBAN-GRO
European Union (Madrid)
A0098111
July 08, 2020
Pending. Examination Completed.
URBAN-GRO
United States
May 03, 2020
Pending.
URBAN-GRO
United States
January 11, 2022
Pending.
URBAN-GRO
United States
January 11, 2022
Pending.
GRO-CARE
United States
May 03, 2020
Pending.
GRO-CARE
WIPO
A0099548
August 24, 2020
Pending.
GRO-CARE
Canada (Madrid)
A0099548
August 24, 2020
Pending.
SOLEIL GIVES YOUR CROP A VOICE
United States
November 03, 2017
Abandoned.
SOLEIL GIVES YOUR PLANTS A VOICE
United States
November 03, 2017
Abandoned.
Patents
Title
Jurisdiction
Application Number
Filing Date
Patent Number and Issue Date
Status
Sensor bus architecture for modular sensor systems
United States
15/626,085
June 17, 2017
10,499,123
(December 3, 2019)
Issued
Expire in 2037
Modular sensor architecture for soil and water analysis at various depths from the surface
United States
15/626,079
June 17, 2017
10,405,069
(September 3, 2019)
Issued
Expire in 2037
Modular sensor architecture for soil and water analysis at various depths from the surface
United States
16/519,800
July 23, 2019
n/a
Published
We rely on trade secret protection and confidentiality agreements to safeguard our interests with respect to proprietary know-how that is not patentable and processes for which patents are difficult to enforce. We believe that many elements of our design and engineering processes involve proprietary know-how, technology or data that are not covered by patents or patent applications, including technical processes, test equipment designs, algorithms and procedures.
Our policy is for our employees to enter into confidentiality and proprietary information agreements with us to address intellectual property protection issues and require our employees to assign to us all of the inventions, designs and technologies they develop during the course of employment with us. However, we might not have entered into such agreements with all applicable personnel, and such agreements might not be self-executing. Moreover, such individuals could breach the terms of such agreements.
We attempt to protect our intellectual property via the deployment of non-disclosure agreements with both prospective clients and business partners as well as licensees. There are no assurances that these non-disclosure agreements will prevent a third party from infringing upon our rights.
Backlog Discussion
Our backlog as of December 31, 2021 was approximately $30 million, compared to an approximate value of $14.6 million on December 31, 2020. The current backlog consists of $25 million of equipment purchases and $5 million of services to be performed. For urban-gro, backlog is defined as signed contracts for which deposits have been received. Historically, the majority of our backlog has been retired and converted into revenue within two quarters.
Human Capital
Our employees are critical to our continued success. With approximately two-thirds of our employees considered experts, we view our employees and the depth and breadth of their experience and expertise as our competitive advantage. As such, we strive to provide an environment where urban-gro employees can have a fulfilling and productive career. We offer industry-leading employee benefits and programs to ensure the diverse needs of our employees and their families are met, including access to fantastic healthcare choices, continued growth opportunities for career development, and resources such as 401K plans and counseling to support their financial wellbeing.
Available Information
Our internet address is www.urban-gro.com and our investor relations website is located at ir.urban-gro.com. Our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports can be found on our investor relations website, free of charge, as soon as reasonably practical after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the SEC. Information contained on our website is not incorporated by reference into this Form 10-K. The SEC maintains a public website, www.sec.gov, which includes information about and the filings of issuers that file electronically with the SEC.

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ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Item 1A. Risk Factors
An investment in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the following risks and all of the other information contained in this report before deciding whether to invest in our common stock. If any of the following risks are realized, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected. In that event, the trading price of our common stock could decline and you could lose all or part of your investment in our common stock. Additional risks of which we are not presently aware or that we currently believe are immaterial may also harm our business and results of operations. Some statements in this report, including such statements in the following risk factors, constitute forward-looking statements. See the section entitled “Forward-Looking Statements.”
Risks Related to Our Operations
We have a relatively limited history of operations, a history of losses, and our future earnings, if any, and cash flows may be volatile, resulting in uncertainty about our prospects generally.
We were initially organized as a limited liability company in the State of Colorado on March 20, 2014. In March 2017, we converted into a corporation with the expectation of becoming a public reporting company.
Following is a summary of our recent historical operating performance:
● During the year ended December 31, 2021, we generated revenue of $62.1 million and incurred a net loss of $0.9 million.
● During the year ended December 31, 2020, we generated revenue of $25.8 million and incurred a net loss of $5.1 million.
● During the year ended December 31, 2019, we generated revenue of $24.2 million and incurred a net loss of $8.3 million.
● During the year ended December 31, 2018, we generated revenue of $20.1 million and incurred a net loss of $3.9 million.
Our lack of a significant history and the evolving nature of the market in which we operate make it likely that there are risks inherent to our business that are yet to be recognized by us or others, or not fully appreciated, and that could result in us suffering further losses. As a result of the foregoing, and concerns regarding the economic impact from COVID-19, an investment in our securities necessarily involves uncertainty about the stability of our operating results, cash flows and, ultimately, our prospects generally.
We had negative cash flow from operations for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020.
We had negative cash flow from operations of ($1.6) million for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021 and ($3.6) million for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020. To the extent that we have negative cash flow from operations in future periods, we may need to allocate a portion of our cash reserves to fund such negative cash flow. We may also be required to raise additional funds through the issuance of equity or debt securities. There can be no assurance that we will be able to generate positive cash flow from our operations, that additional capital or other types of financing will be available when needed or that these financings will be on terms favorable to us.
Our architecture, engineering and design services have been used and may continue to be contracted for use in emerging industries that may be subject to quickly changing and inconsistent laws, regulations, practices and perceptions.
Although the demand for our architecture, engineering and design services may be negatively impacted depending on how laws, regulations, administrative practices, judicial interpretations, and consumer perceptions develop, we cannot reasonably predict the nature of such developments or the effect, if any, that such developments could have on our business. We will continue to encounter risks and uncertainty relating to our operations that may be difficult to overcome. To do so, we believe it will be important to:
● Execute our business and marketing strategy successfully;
● Increase and diversify our client base;
● Extend our reach to include the global CEA marketplace;
● Extend our reach to use current services offering in the non-CEA marketplace;
● Meet client demand with quality, timely services;
● When appropriate, partner with affiliate marketing companies to explore demand;
● Leverage initial relationships with existing clients;
● Enhance the solutions that we offer and focus on continually improving customer service levels; and
● Attract, hire, motivate and retain qualified personnel.
We may continue to incur losses in the near future, which may impact our ability to implement our business strategy and adversely affect our financial condition.
While we are focused significantly on controlling our operating expenses by managing variable expenses, employee count, and marketing activities in order to become cash flow positive, these measures may adversely affect our future operating results if we are unable to support the business effectively. In turn, this would have a negative impact on our financial condition and potentially our share price.
We also cannot make any assurances that we will be profitable or generate sufficient profits from operations in the future. If our revenues do not continue to grow or our gross margins deteriorate substantially, we are likely to continue to experience losses in future periods. Collectively, this may impact our ability to implement our business strategy and adversely affect our financial condition. This potentially would have a negative impact on our share price.
We may become subject to additional regulation of CEA facilities.
Our engineering and design services are focused on facilities that grow a wide variety of crops that are subject to regulation by the United States Food and Drug Administration and other federal, state or foreign agencies. Changes to any regulations and laws that could complicate the engineering of these CEA facilities, such as waste water treatment and electricity-related mandates, make it possible that potential related enforcement could decrease the demand for our services, and in turn negatively impact our revenues and business opportunities.
Competition in our industry is intense.
There are many competitors in the horticulture industry, and in particular the cannabis industry, including many who offer somewhat categorically similar products and services as those offered by us. There can be no guarantees that in the future other companies will not enter this arena by developing products that are in direct competition with us. We anticipate the presence as well as entry of other companies in this market space and acknowledge that we may not be able to establish, or if established to maintain, a competitive advantage. Some of these companies may have longer operating histories, greater name recognition, larger client bases and significantly greater financial, technical, sales and marketing resources. This may allow them to respond more quickly than us to market opportunities. It may also allow them to devote greater resources to the marketing, promotion and sale of their products and/or services. These competitors may also adopt more aggressive pricing policies and make more attractive offers to existing and potential clients, employees, strategic partners, distribution channels and advertisers. Increased competition is likely to result in price reductions, reduced gross margins and a potential loss of market share.
The COVID-19 pandemic could continue to materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows and day-to-day operations.
The outbreak of COVID-19, a novel strain of coronavirus first identified in China, which has spread across the globe including the U.S., has had an adverse impact on our operations and financial condition. The response to this coronavirus by federal, state and local governments in the U.S. has resulted in significant market and business disruptions across many industries and affecting businesses of all sizes. This pandemic has also caused significant stock market volatility and further tightened capital access for most businesses. Given that the COVID-19 pandemic and its disruptions are of an unknown duration, they could have an adverse effect on our liquidity and profitability.
At the onset of the pandemic, it resulted in temporary delays in our projects, however, work on all such projects has resumed. Other factors related to this coronavirus that could negatively impact our ability to continue operations include the market demand for our products and services, our ability to service the needs of our clients and prospects, potential contract cancellations, project scope reductions and project delays, our ability to fulfill our current backlog, and the ability of our vendors to continue to provide us with product to fulfill our customers’ orders. In light of these extenuating circumstances, there is no assurance that we will be successful in growing and maintaining our business with our clients. If our clients or prospects are unable to obtain project financing and we are unable to increase revenues, or otherwise generate cash flows from operations, we will not be able to successfully execute on the various strategies and initiatives we have set forth in this Report to grow our business.
The ultimate magnitude of COVID-19, including the extent of its impact on our financial and operational results, which could be material, will depend on the length of time that the pandemic continues, its effect on the demand for our products and our supply chain, the effect of governmental regulations imposed in response to the pandemic, as well as uncertainty regarding all of the foregoing. We cannot at this time predict the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it could have a larger material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows beyond what is discussed within this Report.
We are dependent upon third-party suppliers of products we sell.
We are dependent on outside vendors for the products we sell. For the year ended December 31, 2021, two vendors, Argus Control Systems Limited (“Argus”), a provider of automated control systems, and Fluence Bioengineering, Inc. (“Fluence”), a provider of lighting systems, were particularly important to our integrated sales solutions. We use Fluence as one of the LED lighting systems options, and Argus as one of the environmental controls and fertigation systems options in our designs and then sell them to our clients as part of our overall package. While we believe that there are sufficient sources of supply available, if the third-party suppliers, such as Argus or Fluence, were to cease production or otherwise fail to supply us with products in sufficient quantities on a timely basis and we were unable to contract on acceptable terms for these products with alternative suppliers, our ability to sell these products would be materially adversely affected. If a sole source supplier was to go out of business, we may be unable to find a replacement for such source in a timely manner or at all. If a sole source supplier were to be acquired by a competitor, that competitor may elect not to sell to us in the future. Any inability to secure required products or to do so on appropriate terms could have a materially adverse impact on the business, financial condition, results of operations or prospects of urban-gro.
As indicated above, we continue to monitor the outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus. Should the outbreak continue to become more widespread, it could disrupt the businesses of our industry partners and third-party suppliers, which, in turn, could impact our ability to procure equipment and raw materials from them and thereby negatively impact the business, financial condition, results of operations or our prospects.
We have historically been dependent on a small number of clients for a substantial portion of our revenue. If we fail to retain or expand our client relationships, or if a significant client were to terminate its relationship with us or reduce its purchases, our revenue could decline significantly.
During the year ended December 31, 2021, one client represented 46% of total revenue. During the year ended December 31, 2020 the same client represented 25% of total revenue and another client represented 13% of total revenue. A substantial amount of the revenue derived from each of these separate clients were equipment sales. Although we have been able to successfully generate substantial sales to different clients over time, there can be no assurances that we will be able to continue to do this in the future. Our operating results for the foreseeable future could continue to depend on substantial sales to a small number of clients. Our clients have no purchase commitments and may cancel, change or delay purchases with little or no notice or penalty. As a result of this, our revenue could fluctuate materially and could be materially and disproportionately impacted by purchasing decisions of any significant client. There can be no assurances that clients who represented a substantial portion of our historical revenue will continue to purchase products from us in the future, which could cause our revenue to decline materially and negatively impact our financial condition and results of operations. If we are unable to diversify our client base, we will continue to be susceptible to risks associated with client concentration.
Our business is dependent on our clients obtaining appropriate licenses from various licensing agencies.
Our business is dependent on our clients obtaining appropriate licenses from various licensing agencies. There can be no assurance that any or all licenses necessary for our clients to operate their businesses will be obtained, retained or renewed. If a licensing body were to determine that one of our clients had violated applicable rules and regulations, there is a risk the license granted to that client could be revoked, which could adversely affect future sales to that client and our operations. There can be no assurance that our existing clients will be able to retain their licenses going forward, or that new licenses will be granted to existing and new market entrants.
System security risks, data protection breaches, cyber-attacks and systems integration issues could disrupt our internal operations or services provided to clients.
Experienced computer programmers and hackers may be able to penetrate our network security and misappropriate or compromise our confidential information or that of third parties, create system disruptions or cause shutdowns. Computer programmers and hackers also may be able to develop and deploy viruses, worms, and other malicious software programs that attack or otherwise exploit any security vulnerabilities of the products that we may sell in the future. Such disruptions could adversely impact our ability to fulfill orders and interrupt other processes. Delayed sales, lower profits, or lost clients resulting from these disruptions could adversely affect our financial results, stock price and reputation.
We may be unable to recoup the funds that were taken from us in fraudulent wire transfers or our expenses related to efforts to recover such funds.
While we have been advised by counsel that we have acted in good faith and followed appropriate policies and governance and that our bank is at fault, we may not be able to recoup the entire amount taken from us or related expenses with respect to the wire fraud described in Part I, Item 3, “Legal Proceedings.” Our attempts to recoup these funds could be very costly and could distract our management from focusing on operating our business. As of the date of this report, we have successfully recouped $0.9 million of the $5.1 million lost.
We may be forced to litigate to defend our intellectual property rights, or to defend against claims by third parties against urban-gro relating to intellectual property rights.
We may be forced to litigate to enforce or defend our intellectual property rights, to protect our trade secrets or to determine the validity and scope of other parties’ proprietary rights. Any such litigation could be very costly and could distract our management from focusing on operating our business. The existence and/or outcome of any such litigation could harm our business.
We may not be able to successfully identify, consummate or integrate acquisitions or to successfully manage the impacts of such transactions on our operations.
Part of our business strategy includes pursuing synergistic acquisitions. We have expanded, and plan to continue to expand, our business by making strategic acquisitions and regularly seeking suitable acquisition targets to enhance our growth. Material acquisitions, dispositions and other strategic transactions involve a number of risks, including: (i) the potential disruption of our ongoing business; (ii) the distraction of management away from the ongoing oversight of our existing business activities; (iii) incurring indebtedness; (iv) the anticipated benefits and cost savings of those transactions not being realized fully, or at all, or taking longer to realize than anticipated; (v) an increase in the scope and complexity of our operations; and (vi) the loss or reduction of control over certain of our assets.
The pursuit of acquisitions may pose certain risks to us. We may not be able to identify acquisition candidates that fit our criteria for growth and profitability. Even if we are able to identify such candidates, we may not be able to acquire them on terms or financing satisfactory to us. We will incur expenses and dedicate attention and resources associated with the review of acquisition opportunities, whether or not we consummate such acquisitions.
Additionally, even if we are able to acquire suitable targets on agreeable terms, we may not be able to successfully integrate their operations with ours. Achieving the anticipated benefits of any acquisition will depend in significant part upon whether we integrate such acquired businesses in an efficient and effective manner. We may not be able to achieve the anticipated operating and cost synergies or long-term strategic benefits of our acquisitions within the anticipated timing or at all. The benefits from any acquisition will be offset by the costs incurred in integrating the businesses and operations. We may also assume liabilities in connection with acquisitions to which we would not otherwise be exposed. An inability to realize any or all of the anticipated synergies or other benefits of an acquisition as well as any delays that may be encountered in the integration process, which may delay the timing of such synergies or other benefits, could have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Risks Related to the Cannabis Industry
To date, the majority of our revenues have come from providing architecture and engineering design services and selling equipment systems into facilities prior to the facility becoming operational. The majority of our revenues to date have been generated from clients that operate in the legal cannabis industry.
We are broadening our market reach beyond the legal cannabis industry and are placing a substantial sales effort on expansion into the rapidly growing non-cannabis CEA vertical farming segment. However, on a historic basis, the majority of our clients to whom we provide facility architecture and engineering design services and sell equipment systems prior to the facility becoming operational have primarily been in the legal cannabis industry. In addition to selling directly to these clients, we also sell our equipment solutions to third parties, such as general contractors and other intermediaries, like equipment leasing companies. The majority of these solutions have been resold into the legal cannabis industry.
Now that the non-cannabis CEA segment is gaining strong momentum, and since most all of the equipment systems that we sell originate in the general horticulture industry and are agnostic to the crop grown in the facility, we believe that the proportion of non-cannabis revenues will increase. However, a decrease in demand in the legal cannabis industry could have a material adverse effect on our revenues and the success of our business.
The cannabis industry is an emerging industry and has only been legalized in some states and remains illegal in others and under U.S. federal law, making it difficult to accurately forecast the demand for our solutions in this specific industry. Losing clients from this industry may have a material adverse effect on our revenues and the success of our business.
The cannabis industry is not mature in the United States and has only been legalized in some states and remains illegal in others and under U.S. federal law, making it difficult to accurately predict and forecast the demand for our solutions. If the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) did take action against the cannabis industry, those of our clients operating in the legal cannabis industry would be lost to us.
To analyze this risk, we are relying heavily upon the various U.S. federal governmental memos issued in the past (including the memorandum issued by the DOJ on October 19, 2009, known as the “Ogden Memorandum”, the memorandum issued by the DOJ on August 29, 2013, known as the “Cole Memorandum” and other guidance), to remain acceptable to those state and federal entities that regulate, enforce, or choose to defer enforcement of certain current regulations regarding cannabis and that the U.S. federal government will not change its attitude to those practitioners in the cannabis industry as long as they comply with their state and local jurisdictional rules and authorities.
The legal cannabis industry is not yet well-developed, and many aspects of this industry’s development and evolution cannot be accurately predicted, and therefore losing any clients may have a material adverse effect on our business. While we have attempted to identify our business risks in the legal cannabis industry, you should carefully consider that there are other risks that cannot be foreseen or are not described in this Report, which could materially and adversely affect our business and financial performance.
There is heightened scrutiny by Canadian regulatory authorities related to the cannabis industry.
Our existing operations in the United States, and any future operations or investments, may become the subject of heightened scrutiny by regulators and other authorities in Canada. As a result, we may be subject to significant direct and indirect interaction with public officials. No assurance can be provided that this heightened scrutiny will not in turn lead to the imposition of certain restrictions on our ability to operate or invest in the United States.
On February 8, 2018, following discussions with the Canadian Securities Administrators and recognized Canadian securities exchanges, the TMX Group announced the signing of the TMX Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) with Aequitas NEO Exchange Inc., the Canadian Securities Exchange (“CSE”), the Toronto Stock Exchange, and the TSXV. The TMX MOU outlines the parties’ understanding of Canada’s regulatory framework applicable to the rules, procedures, and regulatory oversight of the exchanges and CDS as it relates to issuers with cannabis-related activities in the United States. The MOU confirms, with respect to the clearing of listed securities, that CDS relies on the exchanges to review the conduct of listed issuers. As a result, there is no CDS ban on the clearing of securities of issuers with cannabis-related activities in the United States. However, there can be no guarantee that this approach to regulation will continue in the future. If such a ban were to be implemented at a time when our securities are listed on a stock exchange, it would have a material adverse effect on the ability of holders of our securities to make and settle trades. In particular, our securities would become highly illiquid until an alternative was implemented, and investors would have no ability to effect a trade of our securities through the facilities of the CSE.
As marijuana remains illegal under United States federal law, it is possible that we may have to stop providing products and services to companies who are engaged in marijuana cultivation and other marijuana-related activities.
Marijuana is currently classified as a Schedule I controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act and is illegal under United States federal law. It is illegal under United States federal law to grow, cultivate, sell or possess marijuana for any purpose or to assist or conspire with those who do so. Additionally, 21 U.S.C. 856 makes it illegal to “knowingly open, lease, rent, use, or maintain any place, whether permanently or temporarily, for the purpose of manufacturing, distributing, or using any controlled substance.” Even in those states in which the use of marijuana has been authorized under state law, its use remains a violation of federal law. Since federal law criminalizing the use of marijuana is not preempted by state laws that legalize its use, strict enforcement of federal law regarding marijuana would likely result in the inability of our clients that are involved in the cannabis industry to proceed with their operations, which would adversely affect our operations.
Our solutions are used by cannabis growers. While we are not aware of any threatened or current federal or state law enforcement actions against any supplier of equipment that might be used for cannabis growing, law enforcement authorities, in their attempt to regulate the illegal use of marijuana, may seek to bring an action or actions against us under the Controlled Substances Act for assisting or conspiring with persons engaged in the cultivation of marijuana.
There is also a risk that our activities could be deemed to be facilitating the selling or distribution of cannabis in violation of the Controlled Substances Act. Although federal authorities have not focused their resources on such tangential or secondary violations of the Controlled Substances Act, nor have they threatened to do so, with respect to the sale of equipment that might be used by cannabis cultivators, or with respect to any supplies marketed to participants in the medical and recreational cannabis industry, if the federal government were to change its practices, or were to expend its resources investigating and prosecuting providers of equipment that could be usable by participants in the medical or recreational cannabis industry, such actions could have a materially adverse effect on our operations, our clients that operate in the cannabis industry, or the sales of our products and services.
As a company with clients operating in the cannabis industry, we face many particular and evolving risks associated with that industry, including uncertainty of United States federal enforcement and the need to renew temporary safeguards.
On January 4, 2018, former Attorney General Sessions rescinded the previously issued memoranda (known as the Cole Memorandum) from the DOJ that had de-prioritized the enforcement of federal law against marijuana users and businesses that comply with state marijuana laws, adding uncertainty to the question of how the U.S. federal government will choose to enforce federal laws regarding marijuana. Former Attorney General Sessions issued a memorandum to all United States Attorneys in which the DOJ affirmatively rescinded the previous guidance as to marijuana enforcement, calling such guidance “unnecessary.” This one-page memorandum was vague in nature, stating that federal prosecutors should use established principles in setting their law enforcement priorities. Under previous administrations, the DOJ indicated that those users and suppliers of medical marijuana who complied with state laws, which required compliance with certain criteria, would not be prosecuted. As a result, it is now unclear if the DOJ will seek to enforce the Controlled Substances Act against those users and suppliers who comply with state marijuana laws.
Despite Attorney General Sessions’ rescission of the Cole Memorandum, the Department of the Treasury, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, has not rescinded the “FinCEN Memo” dated February 14, 2014, which de-prioritizes enforcement of the Bank Secrecy Act against financial institutions and marijuana related businesses which utilize them. This memorandum appears to be a standalone document and is presumptively still in effect. At any time, however, the Department of the Treasury, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, could elect to rescind the FinCEN Memo. This would make it more difficult for our clients and potential clients to access the U.S. banking systems and conduct financial transactions, which would adversely affect our operations.
In 2014, Congress passed a spending bill (“2015 Appropriations Bill”) containing a provision (“Appropriations Rider”) blocking federal funds and resources allocated under the 2015 Appropriations Bill from being used to “prevent such States from implementing their own State medical marijuana law.” The Appropriations Rider seemed to have prohibited the federal government from interfering with the ability of states to administer their medical marijuana laws, although it did not codify federal protections for medical marijuana patients and producers. Moreover, despite the Appropriations Rider, the Justice Department maintains that it can still prosecute violations of the federal marijuana ban and continue cases already in the courts. Additionally, the Appropriations Rider must be re-enacted every year. While it was continued in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021, and remains in effect, continued re-authorization of the Appropriations Rider cannot be guaranteed. If the Appropriation Rider is no longer in effect, the risk of federal enforcement and override of state marijuana laws would increase.
Further legislative development beneficial to our operations is not guaranteed.
Among other things, the business of our clients in the cannabis industry involves the cultivation, distribution, manufacture, storage, transportation and/or sale of cannabis products in compliance with applicable state law. The success of our business with respect to these clients depends on the continued development of the cannabis industry and the activity of commercial business and government regulatory agencies within the industry. The continued development of the cannabis industry is dependent upon continued legislative and regulatory authorization of cannabis at the state level and a continued laissez-faire approach by federal enforcement agencies. Any number of factors could slow or halt progress in this area. Further regulatory progress beneficial to the industry cannot be assured. While there may be ample public support for legislative action, numerous factors impact the legislative and regulatory process, including election results, scientific findings or general public events. Any one of these factors could slow or halt progressive legislation relating to cannabis and the current tolerance for the use of cannabis by consumers, which could adversely affect our operations.
The cannabis industry could face strong opposition from other industries.
We believe that established businesses in other industries may have a strong economic interest in opposing the development of the cannabis industry. Cannabis may be seen by companies in other industries as an attractive alternative to their products, including recreational marijuana as an alternative to alcohol, and medical marijuana as an alternative to various commercial pharmaceuticals. Many industries that could view the emerging cannabis industry as an economic threat are well established, with vast economic and United States federal and state lobbying resources. It is possible that companies within these industries could use their resources to attempt to slow or reverse legislation legalizing cannabis. Any inroads these companies make in halting or impeding legislative initiatives that would be beneficial to the cannabis industry could have a detrimental impact on our clients and, in turn on our operations.
The legality of marijuana could be reversed in one or more states.
The voters or legislatures of states in which marijuana has already been legalized could potentially repeal applicable laws which permit the operation of both medical and retail marijuana businesses. These actions might force us to cease operations in one or more states entirely.
Changing legislation and evolving interpretations of law, which could negatively impact our clients and, in turn, our operations.
Laws and regulations affecting the medical and adult-use marijuana industry are constantly changing, which could detrimentally affect our clients involved in that industry and, in turn, our operations. Local, state and federal marijuana laws and regulations are often broad in scope and subject to constant evolution and inconsistent interpretations, which could require our clients and ourselves to incur substantial costs associated with modification of operations to ensure compliance. In addition, violations of these laws, or allegations of such violations, could disrupt our clients’ business and result in a material adverse effect on our operations. In addition, it is possible that regulations may be enacted in the future that will limit the amount of cannabis growth or related products that our commercial clients are authorized to produce. We cannot predict the nature of any future laws, regulations, interpretations or applications, nor can we determine what effect additional governmental regulations or administrative policies and procedures, when and if promulgated, could have on our operations.
Regulatory scrutiny of the cannabis industry may negatively impact our ability to raise additional capital.
The business activities of certain of our clients rely on newly established and/or developing laws and regulations in multiple jurisdictions. These laws and regulations are rapidly evolving and subject to change with minimal notice. Regulatory changes may adversely affect our profitability or cause us to cease operations entirely. The cannabis industry may come under the scrutiny or further scrutiny by the United States Food and Drug Administration, the SEC, the DOJ, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority or other federal, state or nongovernmental regulatory authorities or self-regulatory organizations that supervise or regulate the production, distribution, sale or use of cannabis for medical or nonmedical purposes in the United States. It is impossible to determine the extent of the impact of any new laws, regulations or initiatives that may be proposed, or whether any proposals will become law. The regulatory uncertainty surrounding the industry that we service may adversely affect our business and operations, including without limitation, the costs to remain compliant with applicable laws and the impairment of our ability to raise additional capital.
Banking regulations could limit access to banking services.
Since the use of marijuana is illegal under federal law, federally chartered banks will not accept deposit funds from businesses involved with marijuana. Consequently, businesses involved in the cannabis industry often have trouble finding a bank willing to accept their business. The inability to open bank accounts may make it difficult for our clients in the cannabis industry to operate and their reliance on cash can result in a heightened risk of theft, which could harm their businesses and, in turn, harm our business. Additionally, some courts have denied marijuana-related businesses bankruptcy protection, thus, making it very difficult for lenders to recoup their investments, which may limit the willingness of banks to lend to our clients and to us.
A drop in the retail price of cannabis products may negatively impact our business.
The fluctuations in economic and market conditions that impact the prices of commercially grown cannabis, such as increases in the supply of cannabis and decreases in demand for cannabis, could have a negative impact on our clients that are cannabis producers, and therefore could negatively impact our business.
Our contracts may not be legally enforceable in the United States.
Many of our historic contracts, and those we may enter into in the future, relate to services that are ancillary to the cannabis industry and other activities that are not legal under U.S. federal law and under some state laws. As a result, we may face difficulties in enforcing our contracts in U.S. federal and certain state courts.
Risks Related to Ownership of Our Common Stock
Our stock price could be extremely volatile. As a result, you may not be able to resell your shares at or above the price you paid for them.
The market price of our common stock may be highly volatile and could be subject to wide fluctuations. Volatility in the market price of our common stock, as well as general economic, market or political conditions, may prevent you from being able to sell your shares at or above the price you paid for your shares and may otherwise negatively affect the liquidity of our common stock. You may experience a decrease, which could be substantial, in the value of your stock, including decreases unrelated to our operating performance or prospects, and you could lose part or all of your investment. The price of our common stock has been, and could continue to be, subject to wide fluctuations in response to a number of factors, including those described elsewhere in this Report and others such as:
● the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business and operations;
● our ability to generate revenues sufficient to achieve profitability and positive cash flow;
● competition in our industry and our ability to compete effectively;
● our ability to attract, recruit, retain and develop key personnel and qualified employees;
● reliance on significant clients and third-party suppliers;
● our ability to successfully identify and complete acquisitions and effectively integrate those acquisitions into our operations;
● our actual or anticipated operating and financial results, including how those results vary from the expectations of management, securities analysts and investors;
● changes in financial estimates or publication of research reports and recommendations by financial analysts or actions taken by rating agencies with respect to us or other industry participants;
● developments in our business or operations or our industry sectors generally;
● any future offerings by us of our common stock;
● any coordinated trading activities or large derivative positions in our common stock, for example, a “short squeeze” (a short squeeze occurs when a number of investors take a short position in a stock and have to buy the borrowed securities to close out the position at a time that other short sellers of the same security also want to close out their positions, resulting in a surge in stock prices, i.e., demand is greater than supply for the stock sold short);
● legislative or regulatory changes affecting our industry generally or our business and operations specifically;
● the operating and stock price performance of companies that investors consider to be comparable to us;
● announcements of strategic developments, acquisitions, restructurings, dispositions, financings and other material events by us or our competitors;
● actions by our current stockholders, including future sales of common shares by existing stockholders, including our directors and executive officers;
● proposed or final regulatory changes or developments;
● anticipated or pending regulatory investigations, proceedings, or litigation that may involve or affect us; and
● the other factors described under Part I, Item 1A “Risk Factors.”
In response to any one or more of these events, the market price of shares of our common stock could decrease significantly. In the past, securities class action litigation has often been initiated against companies following periods of volatility in their stock price. This type of litigation could result in substantial costs and divert our management’s attention and resources and could also require us to make substantial payments to satisfy judgments or to settle litigation.
You may be diluted by future issuances of preferred stock or additional common stock in connection with our incentive plans, acquisitions or otherwise; future sales of such shares in the public market, or the expectations that such sales may occur, could lower our stock price.
Our certificate of incorporation authorizes us to issue shares of our common stock and options, rights, warrants and appreciation rights relating to our common stock for the consideration and on the terms and conditions established by our Board of Directors (the “Board”) in its sole discretion. We could issue a significant number of shares of common stock in the future in connection with investments or acquisitions. Any of these issuances could dilute our existing stockholders, and such dilution could be significant. Moreover, such dilution could have a material adverse effect on the market price for the shares of our common stock.
The future issuance of shares of preferred stock with voting rights may adversely affect the voting power of the holders of shares of our common stock, either by diluting the voting power of our common stock if the preferred stock votes together with the common stock as a single class, or by giving the holders of any such preferred stock the right to block an action on which they have a separate class vote, even if the action were approved by the holders of our shares of our common stock.
The future issuance of shares of preferred stock with dividend or conversion rights, liquidation preferences or other economic terms favorable to the holders of preferred stock could adversely affect the market price for our common stock by making an investment in the common stock less attractive. For example, investors in the common stock may not wish to purchase common stock at a price above the conversion price of a series of convertible preferred stock because the holders of the preferred stock would effectively be entitled to purchase common stock at the lower conversion price, causing economic dilution to the holders of common stock.
We do not anticipate paying any cash dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future.
We currently intend to retain our future earnings, if any, for the foreseeable future, to fund the development and growth of our business. We do not intend to pay any dividends to holders of our common stock in the foreseeable future. Any decision to declare and pay dividends in the future will be made at the discretion of our Board taking into account various factors, including our business, operating results and financial condition, current and anticipated cash needs, plans for expansion, any legal or contractual limitations on our ability to pay dividends under our loan agreements or otherwise. As a result, if our Board does not declare and pay dividends, the capital appreciation in the price of our common stock, if any, will be your only source of gain on an investment in our common stock, and you may have to sell some or all of your common stock to generate cash flow from your investment.
If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports about our business, or if they downgrade their recommendations regarding our common stock, its trading price and volume could decline.
We expect the trading market for our common stock to be influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts publish about us, our business or our industry. If no additional securities or industry analysts commence coverage of our company, the trading price for our stock may be negatively impacted. If one or more of our covering analysts cease coverage of our company or fail to publish reports on us regularly, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause our stock price or trading volume to decline and our common stock to be less liquid. Moreover, if one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrades our stock or publishes inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, or if our results of operations do not meet their expectations, our stock price could decline.
Taking advantage of the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to “emerging growth companies” may make our common stock less attractive to investors.
We qualify as an “emerging growth company” as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, or JOBS Act. An emerging growth company may take advantage of certain reduced reporting and other requirements that are otherwise generally applicable to public companies, as described above. We currently intend to take advantage of each of these exemptions. We have elected not to opt out of such extended transition period, which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, we, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make a comparison of our financial statements with the financial statements of a public company that is not an emerging growth company, or the financial statements of an emerging growth company that has opted out of using the extended transition period, difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used. We could be an emerging growth company until December 31, 2023. We cannot predict if investors will find our common stock less attractive if we elect to rely on these exemptions, or if taking advantage of these exemptions would result in less active trading or more volatility in the price of our common stock.
Provisions of our certificate of incorporation and bylaws may delay or prevent a take-over that may not be in the best interests of our stockholders.
Provisions of our certificate of incorporation and bylaws may be deemed to have anti-takeover effects, which include when and by whom special meetings of our stockholders may be called, and may delay, defer or prevent a takeover attempt.
In addition, our certificate of incorporation authorizes the issuance of up to 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock with such rights and preferences determined from time to time by our Board. None of our preferred shares are currently issued or outstanding. Our Board may, without stockholder approval, issue additional preferred shares with dividends, liquidation, conversion, voting or other rights that could adversely affect the voting power or other rights of the holders of our common stock.
The requirements of being a public company may strain our resources, divert management’s attention and affect our ability to attract and retain executive management and qualified board members.
As a public company, we are subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Dodd-Frank Act, and other applicable securities rules and regulations. Compliance with these rules and regulations involves significant legal and financial compliance costs, may make some activities more difficult, time-consuming or costly and may increase demand on our systems and resources, particularly after we are no longer an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the JOBS Act. The Exchange Act requires, among other things, that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with respect to our business and operating results. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires, among other things, that we maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting. In order to maintain and, if required, improve our disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting to meet this standard, significant resources and management oversight may be required. As a result, management’s attention may be diverted from other business concerns, which could adversely affect our business and operating results. We may need to hire more employees in the future or engage outside consultants, which will increase our costs and expenses.
In addition, changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure are creating uncertainty for public companies, increasing legal and financial compliance costs and making some activities more time consuming. These laws, regulations and standards are subject to varying interpretations, in many cases due to their lack of specificity, and, as a result, their application in practice may evolve over time as new guidance is provided by regulatory and governing bodies. This could result in continuing uncertainty regarding compliance matters and higher costs necessitated by ongoing revisions to disclosure and governance practices. We intend to invest resources to comply with evolving laws, regulations and standards, and this investment may result in increased general and administrative expenses and a diversion of management’s time and attention from revenue-generating activities to compliance activities. If our efforts to comply with new laws, regulations and standards differ from the activities intended by regulatory or governing bodies due to ambiguities related to their application and practice, regulatory authorities may initiate legal proceedings against us, and our business may be adversely affected.
However, for as long as we remain an “emerging growth company,” we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to public companies that are not “emerging growth companies” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. We may take advantage of these reporting exemptions until we are no longer an “emerging growth company.” We would cease to be an “emerging growth company” upon the earliest of: (i) the last day of the fiscal year following the fifth anniversary of the first sale of our common stock under an effective Securities Act registration statement, which will occur on December 31, 2023; (ii) the first fiscal year after our annual gross revenues are $1.07 billion or more; (iii) the date on which we have, during the previous three-year period, issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt securities; or (iv) as of the end of any fiscal year in which the market value of the common stock held by non-affiliates exceeded $700 million as of the end of the second quarter of that fiscal year.
As a result of disclosure of information in this Report and in filings required of a public company, our business and financial condition are highly visible, which may result in threatened or actual litigation, including by competitors and other third parties. If such claims are successful, our business and operating results could be adversely affected, and even if the claims do not result in litigation or are resolved in our favor, these claims, and the time and resources necessary to resolve them, could divert the resources of our management and adversely affect our business and operating results.
We may be subject to additional regulatory burdens resulting from our public listing.
We are working with our legal, accounting and financial advisors to identify those areas in which changes should be made to our financial management control systems to manage our obligations as a public company listed on Nasdaq. These areas include corporate governance, corporate controls, disclosure controls and procedures and financial reporting and accounting systems. We have made, and will continue to make, changes in these and other areas, including our internal controls over financial reporting. However, we cannot assure holders of our common stock that these and other measures that we might take will be sufficient to allow us to satisfy our obligations as a public company listed on Nasdaq on a timely basis. In addition, compliance with reporting and other requirements applicable to public companies listed on Nasdaq will create additional costs for us and will require the time and attention of management. We cannot predict the amount of the additional costs that we might incur, the timing of such costs or the impact that management’s attention to these matters will have on our business.
General Risks
We are highly dependent on our management team, and the loss of our executive officers or other key employees could harm our ability to implement our strategies, impair our relationships with clients and adversely affect our business, results of operations and growth prospects.
Our success depends, in large degree, on the skills of our management team and our ability to retain, recruit and motivate key officers and employees. Our active senior executive leadership team, comprised of Bradley Nattrass, James Dennedy and Richard Akright, have significant experience, and their knowledge and relationships would be difficult to replace. Leadership changes will occur from time to time, and we cannot predict whether significant resignations will occur or whether we will be able to recruit additional qualified personnel. Competition for senior executives and skilled personnel in the horticulture industry is intense, which means the cost of hiring, paying incentives and retaining skilled personnel may continue to increase.
We need to continue to attract and retain key personnel and to recruit qualified individuals to succeed existing key personnel to ensure the continued growth and successful operation of our business. In addition, as a provider of custom-tailored horticulture solutions, we must attract and retain qualified personnel to continue to grow our business, and competition for such personnel can be intense. Our ability to effectively compete for senior executives and other qualified personnel by offering competitive compensation and benefit arrangements may be restricted by cash flow and other operational restraints. The loss of the services of any senior executive or other key personnel, or the inability to recruit and retain qualified personnel in the future, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations. In addition, to attract and retain personnel with appropriate skills and knowledge to support our business, we may offer a variety of benefits, which could reduce our earnings or have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.
Our insurance may not adequately cover our operating risk.
We have insurance to protect our assets, operations and employees. While we believe our insurance coverage addresses all material risks to which we are exposed and is adequate and customary in our current state of operations, such insurance is subject to coverage limits and exclusions and may not be available for the risks and hazards to which we are exposed. In addition, no assurance can be given that such insurance will be adequate to cover our liabilities or will be generally available in the future or, if available, that premiums will be commercially justifiable. If we were to incur substantial liability and such damages were not covered by insurance or were in excess of policy limits, or if we were to incur such liability at a time when we are not able to obtain liability insurance, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially adversely affected.
We may be exposed to currency fluctuations.
Although our revenues and expenses are expected to be predominantly denominated in United States dollars, we may be exposed to currency exchange fluctuations. Recent events in the global financial markets have been coupled with increased volatility in the currency markets. Fluctuations in the exchange rate between the U.S. dollar, the Canadian dollar, the Euro, the Swiss franc, and the currency of other regions in which we may operate may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results. We may, in the future, establish a program to hedge a portion of our foreign currency exposure with the objective of minimizing the impact of adverse foreign currency exchange movements. However, even if we develop a hedging program, there can be no assurance that it will effectively mitigate currency risks.
Changes in accounting standards and subjective assumptions, estimates and judgments by management related to complex accounting matters could significantly affect our financial results.
U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and related pronouncements, implementation guidelines and interpretations with regard to a wide variety of matters that are relevant to our business, such as, but not limited to, revenue recognition, stock-based compensation, trade promotions, and income taxes are highly complex and involve many subjective assumptions, estimates and judgments by our management. Changes to these rules or their interpretation or changes in underlying assumptions, estimates or judgments by our management could significantly change our reported results.
Our ability to maintain our reputation is critical to the success of our business, and the failure to do so may materially adversely affect our business and the value of our common stock.
Our reputation is a valuable component of our business. Threats to our reputation can come from many sources, including adverse sentiment about our industry generally, unethical practices, employee misconduct, failure to deliver minimum standards of service or quality, compliance deficiencies, and questionable or fraudulent activities of our clients. Negative publicity regarding our business, employees, or clients, with or without merit, may result in the loss of clients, investors and employees, costly litigation, a decline in revenues and increased governmental regulation. If our reputation is negatively affected, by the actions of our employees or otherwise, our business and, therefore, our operating results and the value of our common stock may be materially adversely affected.
The current political climate and military actions in Eastern Europe could result in disruption to our operations, especially as it relates to our European plans.
Expansion into Europe to meet the demand for our services could be disrupted by the ongoing military actions in Eastern Europe. If we are unable to continue our expansion into Europe, or our expansion requires greater capital than we have budgeted, our operating results and the value of our common stock may be materially adversely affected.

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ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
None.

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ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
Item 2. Properties
Our principal place of business is located at 1751 Panorama Point, Unit G, Lafayette, Colorado, 80026. This location is leased and consists of approximately 10,000 square feet, including approximately 3,500 of office space and 6,500 square feet of warehouse space.. Additionally, we have four other office leases in the United States. We currently do not own any property.

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ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
Item 3. Legal Proceedings
From time to time, we become involved in or are threatened with legal disputes. While most of these disputes are not likely to have a material effect on our business, financial condition, or operations, the following matters are deemed by the Company to be material either due to the costs of litigation or the potential negative impacts to the Company should these matters not be resolved in our favor:
● Crest Ventures, LLC - We have been sued in a putative breach of contract case in the District Court for Arapahoe County, Colorado. The allegations in the action are based on a claim that Crest Ventures, LLC is entitled to commission compensation on the February 2021 uplisting of our common stock to the Nasdaq Capital Market. We believe we have substantial defenses to the claim asserted in this lawsuit and intend to vigorously defend this action.
● Sunflower Bank - We have filed a lawsuit against Sunflower Bank related to fraudulent wire transfers of approximately $5,100,000 that were made from our accounts at Sunflower Bank in October 2021. As of the date of this Report, $875,950 of these funds have been returned to us. We are suing Sunflower Bank for the remaining $4,224,050 as we believe that Sunflower Bank failed to follow industry standard procedures designed to prevent such a theft and is therefore liable for the unrecovered balance. We expect Sunflower Bank, Sunflower Bank’s insurers, and/or our insurer to reimburse us for the remaining balance.

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ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURE
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
Not Applicable.
PART II

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ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY
Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Market Information
On February 17, 2021, we completed a public offering of 6,210,000 shares of our common stock, inclusive of the underwriters’ full overallotment, at $10.00 per share for total gross offering proceeds of $62,100,000. In connection with the offering, we received approval to list our common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “UGRO”. Prior to the offering, shares of our common stock were quoted on the OTC Markets Group, Inc. OTCQX Marketplace under the symbol “UGRO”. Although our shares were quoted on the OTCQX Marketplace from October 7, 2019 through February 11, 2021, because trading on the OTCQX Marketplace was infrequent and limited in volume, the prices at which such transactions occurred did not necessarily reflect the price that would have been paid for our common stock in a more liquid market.
The trading price of our common stock has been, and may continue to be, subject to wide price fluctuations in response to various factors, many of which are beyond our control, including those described in Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors.”
The following table sets forth the high and low closing bid price information for our common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market for the time periods indicated. Prior to February 12, 2021, our common stock was traded on the OTCQX Marketplace. Trading activity for our common stock on the OTCQX Marketplace can be found at www.otcmarkets.com.
Quarter Ended Low High
December 31, 2021 $ 8.78 $ 14.77
September 30, 2021 $ 8.51 $ 17.30
June 30, 2021 $ 6.75 $ 10.50
February 12 thru March 31, 2021 $ 6.90 $ 13.80
Holders
As of March 26, 2021, we had 6,846 holders of record for our Common Stock.
Dividend Policy
Since our inception, we have not paid any dividends on our common stock, and we currently expect that, for the foreseeable future, all earnings, if any, will be retained for use in the development and operation of our business. In the future, our Board may decide, at its discretion, whether dividends may be declared and paid to holders of our common stock.
Reports
We are subject to certain reporting requirements and furnish annual financial reports to our stockholders, certified by our independent accountants, and furnish unaudited quarterly financial reports in our quarterly reports filed electronically with the SEC. All reports and information filed by us can be found at the SEC website, www.sec.gov.
ReCENT SALES OF UNREGISTERED SECURTIES
During the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2021, we issued the following securities that were not registered under the Securities Act:
● On February 21, 2020, we entered into a letter agreement (the “Credit Agreement”) by and among us, as borrower, urban-gro Canada Technologies Inc. and Impact Engineering, Inc., as guarantors, the lenders party thereto, and Bridging Finance Inc., as administrative agent for the lenders (the “Agent”). As additional consideration for the entering into the Credit Agreement, we issued 83,333 shares of our common stock and warrants to purchase 20,746 shares of common stock with an exercise price of $14.46 per share to the Agent. We relied upon the exemption from registration provided by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act to issue the securities.
● On December 15, 2020, we signed a $1,854,500 convertible note (the “Notes”) bridge financing (the “Bridge Financing”). The Bridge Financing is a combination of $1,354,500 received on November 20, 2020, and an additional $500,000 received on December 15, 2020. The Bridge Financing was raised by a combination of our Board of Directors, our current investors and two new institutional funds. In connection with the Bridge Financing, an outstanding $1,000,000 promissory note and $4,500 interest accrued thereon was converted into a Note. The Notes were issued in reliance upon the exemption from registration under Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act. The Notes carried interest at the rate of 12% and were scheduled to mature on December 31, 2021. Pursuant to the mandatory conversion provisions therein, the Notes plus accrued interest of $53,725 were converted into 254,430 shares of common stock upon completion of the public offering described in more detail below.
Completion of Registered Public Offering
On February 11, 2021, the Company entered into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with ThinkEquity, a division of Fordham Financial Management, Inc. (the “Underwriter”), relating to the Company’s underwritten public offering of its common stock. Pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement, the Company agreed to sell 5,400,000 shares of Common Stock to the Underwriter at a public offering price of $10.00 per share, and granted the Underwriter a 45-day over-allotment option to purchase up to 810,000 additional shares of Common Stock, equivalent to 15% of the shares of Common Stock sold in the Offering (the “Option”), pursuant to the Company’s registration statement on Form S-1 (File Nos. 333-250120 and 333-253011) (the “Registration Statement”), under the Securities Act of 1933. The offering closed on February 17, 2021, and the Company sold 6,210,000 shares of Common Stock to the Underwriter for total gross proceeds of $62.1 million, which includes 810,000 shares sold upon the full exercise of the Option. After deducting the underwriting commissions, discounts, and offering expenses, the Company received net proceeds of approximately $57.4 million. On February 17, 2021, pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement, the Company issued the Warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 310,500 shares of Common Stock. The Warrants may be exercised beginning on August 11, 2021 until February 11, 2026. The initial exercise price of each Warrant is $12.50 per share, which represents 125% of the Offering Price. On February 19, 2021 we used $5.8 million of the net proceeds to repay outstanding under and terminated the Credit Agreement. We intend to use the remaining net proceeds to support our organic growth, to expand in the European CEA market and for other general corporate purposes, including to fund potential future investments and acquisitions of companies that we believe are complementary to our business and consistent with our growth strategy. Although we may, from time to time, evaluate potential strategic investments and acquisitions, we do not have any definitive agreements in place to make any such acquisitions at this current time. The expected use of net proceeds from the offering represents our intentions based upon our current plans and business conditions, which could change in the future as our plans and business conditions evolve and change. As a result, our management will have broad discretion over how these proceeds are used. The remaining net proceeds will be invested in short-term investments until needed for the uses described above.

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ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
Item 6. [RESERVED]

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ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis of our results of operations and financial condition should be read together with the financial statements and related notes and the other financial information included elsewhere in this Report. Such discussion and analysis reflects our historical results of operations and financial position. This discussion contains forward-looking statements based upon current expectations that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those set forth under “Risk Factors” and “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and elsewhere in this Report. All share and per share amounts presented herein have been restated to reflect the implementation of the 1-for-6 reverse stock split as if it had occurred at the beginning of the earliest period presented.
Overview AND HISTORY - See “Item 1. Business” for a further description of our History and Background
We are a leading engineering and design services company focused on the sustainable commercial indoor horticulture market. We engineer and design indoor CEA facilities and then integrate complex environmental equipment systems into those facilities.
We aim to work with our clients from inception of their project in a way that provides value throughout the life of their facility. We are a trusted partner and advisor to our clients and offer a complete set of engineering and managed services complemented by a vetted suite of select cultivation equipment systems. Outlined below is an example of a complete project with estimated time frames for each phase that demonstrate how we provide value to our clients for the life of their facility.
Our indoor commercial cultivation solution offers an integrated suite of services and equipment systems that generally fall within the following categories:
Service Solutions:
● Architecture, Engineering Design Services - A comprehensive triad of services including:
i. Architecture
ii. Cultivation Space Programming (“CSP”)
iii. Integrated Cultivation Design (“ICD”)
iv. Full-Facility Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing (“MEP”)
● gro-care® - A recurring revenue subscription-based managed service offering including:
i. Remote Monitoring, Reporting, Support, and Training Services
ii. Facility and Equipment Commissioning & Audit Services
iii. Environmental Sciences Groups’ (“ESG”) Compliance and Program Services
Integrated Equipment Solutions:
● Design, Source, and Integration of Complex Environmental Equipment Systems Including Purpose-Built Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (“HVAC”) solutions, Environmental Controls, Fertigation, and Irrigation Distribution.
● Value-Added Reselling (“VAR”) of Cultivation Equipment including a Complete line of Lighting, Fans and Rolling Benching Systems
● Strategic Vendor Relationships with Premier Manufacturers
The majority of our clients are commercial CEA cultivators. We believe one of the key points of our differentiation that our clients value is the depth of experience of our employees and our Company. We currently employ approximately 100 individuals. Approximately two-thirds of our employees are considered experts in their areas of focus, and our team includes Architects, Engineers (Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing, Controls, and Agricultural), Professional Engineers, horticulturalists and individuals with Masters Degrees in Plant Science and Business Administration. As a company, we have worked on more than 450 indoor CEA facilities, and believe that the experience of our team and Company provides clients with the confidence that we will proactively keep them from making common costly mistakes during the build out and operational stages. Our expertise translates into clients saving time, money, and resources, and provides them ongoing access to expertise that they can leverage without having to add headcount to their own operations. We provide this experience in addition to offering a platform of the highest quality equipment systems that can be integrated holistically into our clients’ facilities.
RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
Comparison of Results of Operations for the years ended December 31, 2021 compared to 2020
During the year ended December 31, 2021, we generated revenues of $62.1 million compared to revenues of $25.8 million during the year ended December 31, 2020, an increase of $36.3 million, or 140%. Equipment systems revenue increased $33.5 million primarily due to an increase in cultivation equipment sales, services revenue increased $3.1 million primarily due to the acquisition of the 2WR Entities, and consumable product sales decreased $0.3 million.
During the year ended December 31, 2021, cost of revenues was $47.4 million compared to $20.1 million during the year ended December 31, 2020, an increase of $27.2 million, or 135%. This increase is directly attributable to the increase in revenue indicated above.
Gross profit was $14.8 million (24% of revenue) during the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to $5.7 million (22% of revenue) during the year ended December 31, 2020. Gross profit as a percentage of revenues increased primarily due to an increase in higher margin services revenues.
Operating expenses increased by $6.4 million, or 77%, to $15.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to $8.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. This was due to a $6.4 million increase in general operating expenses, mainly due to an increase in salary, marketing, and travel expenses, in part related to the acquisition of the 2WR Entities.
Non-operating expense was $0.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to $2.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2020, a decrease of $1.6 million (71%). Interest expense, decreased by $1.2 million to $0.3 million compared to $1.5 million in the year ended December 31, 2020, due to the elimination of debt. For the years ended December 31, 2020, the Company recognized an impairment loss of $0.3 million related to the investment in Total Grow Control Holdings Inc. (“TGH”). The Company incurred a $0.2 million expense for contingent consideration from the acquisition of Impact Engineering, Inc. during the year ended December 31, 2020. The Company also recorded a foreign exchange loss of $0.4 million in the year ended December 31, 2020 due to the revaluation of our Canadian denominated debt.
As a result of the above, we incurred a net loss of $0.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, or a net loss per share of $0.09, compared to a net loss of $5.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2020, or a net loss per share of $1.06.
NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES
The Company uses the supplemental financial measure of Adjusted Earnings before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (“Adjusted EBITDA”) as a measure of our operating performance. Adjusted EBITDA is not calculated in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and it is not a substitute for other measures prescribed by GAAP such as net income (loss), income (loss) from operations, and cash flows from operating activities. We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income (loss) attributable to urban-gro, Inc., determined in accordance with GAAP, excluding the effects of certain operating and non-operating expenses including, but not limited to, interest expense, income taxes/benefit, depreciation of tangible assets, amortization of intangible assets, impairment of investments, unrealized exchange losses, debt forgiveness and extinguishment, stock-based compensation expense, acquisition costs, and other nonrecurring expenses that we do not believe reflect our core operating performance.
Our board of directors and management team focus on Adjusted EBITDA as a key performance and compensation measure. We believe that Adjusted EBITDA assists us in comparing our operating performance over various reporting periods because it removes from our operating results the impact of items that our management believes do not reflect our core operating performance.
The following table reconciles net loss attributable to the Company to Adjusted EBITDA for the periods presented:
Years Ended December 31,
Net Loss $ (875,667 ) $ (5,073,695 )
Interest expense 334,056 1,497,469
Interest expense - BCF 636,075 -
Depreciation and amortization 495,276 258,440
EBITDA $ 589,740 $ (3,317,786 )
Loss on extinguishment of debt 790,723 -
PPP loan forgiveness (1,032,316 ) -
Transaction related costs 238,495 -
One-time employee expense 125,000 -
Impairment loss - 310,000
Stock-based compensation 1,840,913 1,803,403
Unusual legal costs 126,246
-
Contingent consideration - purchase price - 155,000
Unrealized exchange loss - 397,292
Adjusted EBITDA $ 2,678,801 $ (652,091 )
Liquidity and Capital Resources
As of December 31, 2021, we had cash of $34.6, which represented an increase of $34.4 million from December 31, 2020. This increase in cash and cash equivalents is primarily due to the net proceeds received from our equity offering in February of 2021 of $57.4 million offset by $5.8 million of debt repayment, $7.7 million of treasury stock purchases, $5.1 million due to the fraudulent wire transfers initiated by an unauthorized third party, a cash investment of $2.5 million for XS Financial, and $5.5 million net cash payments made for the acquisition of the 2WR entities. The remaining change is due to a $3.6 million increase due to timing of deposits and prepayments to vendors during the year ended December 31, 2021.
Net cash used in operating activities was $1.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to $3.6 million used for the year ended December 31, 2020. Operating cash has been positively impacted from an increase in client deposits as demand for our services and equipment solutions increased in the year ended December 31, 2021. At December 31, 2021, we had $13.3 million in client deposits related to client orders, which compared favorably to client deposits of $4.9 million as of December 31, 2020. We require prepayments from clients before any design work is commenced and before any material is ordered from the vendor. These prepayments are booked to the client deposits liability account when received. Our standard policy is to collect the following before action is taken on a client order: 50% deposit; and the remaining 50% payment made prior to shipping. We expect client deposits to be relieved from the deposits account no longer than 12 months for each project. We do not have trade payable terms with most of our vendors and as a result, we are required to prepay a portion or all of the total order. At December 31, 2021, we had $6.0 million in accounts payable, compared to $0.7 million at December 31, 2020.
Net cash used in investing activities was $8.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to $0.2 million during the year ended December 31, 2020. Net cash used in investing activities for the year ended December 31, 2021 was primarily related to the $5.5 million incurred to acquire the 2WR entities and $2.5 million for the investment in XS Financial. Historically, cash has been used to increase our investments in strategic partnerships and to acquire property and equipment. We will continue to have ongoing needs to purchase property and equipment to maintain our operations. We had no material commitments for capital expenditures as of December 31, 2021.
Net cash provided by financing activities was $44.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to $3.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2020. Cash provided from financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2021 primarily related to $57.4 million in net proceeds received from the stock issuance related to the uplisting plus $0.4 million from the issuance of common stock, offset by $7.7 million used in the repurchase of common stock and $5.8 million related to the repayment of debt.
Gross debt, excluding operating leases, was $0.0 million and $8.4 million as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively. This represents a decrease in gross debt of $8.4 million due to the payoff of all debt instruments during the year ended December 31, 2021.
Inflation
Although our operations are influenced by general economic conditions, we do not believe that inflation had a material effect on our results of operations during the year ended December 31, 2021.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
The discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations are based upon our financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses, and related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. On an on-going basis, we evaluate our estimates based on historical experience and on various other assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions. See Note 2, Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, to the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements contained in this Report for a discussion of our significant accounting policies.
RECENTLY ISSUED ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS
From time to time, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) or other standards setting bodies issue new accounting pronouncements. Updates to the FASB’s Accounting Standard Codifications (“ASCs”) are communicated through issuance of an Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”). Unless otherwise discussed, we believe that the impact of recently issued guidance, whether adopted or to be adopted in the future, is not expected to have a material impact on our financial statements upon adoption.
In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, “Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments” (ASU 2016-13), creating ASC Topic 326 - Financial Instruments - Credit Losses. ASU 2016-13 is intended to improve financial reporting by requiring timelier recording of credit losses on financial assets measured at amortized cost basis (including, but not limited to loans), net investments in leases recognized as lessor and off-balance sheet credit exposures. ASU 2016-13 eliminates the probable initial recognition threshold under the current incurred loss methodology for recognizing credit losses. Instead, ASU 2016-13 requires the measurement of all expected credit losses for financial assets held at the reporting date based on historical experience, current conditions, and reasonable and supportable forecasts. The Company will continue to evaluate the extent of the impact of ASU 2016-13 on the Company’s financial position, results of operations and cash flows. With the release of ASU 2019-10, the Company will monitor this impact through the effective date for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2022.
In August 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board FASB issued ASU 2020-06-Debt-Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging-Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40)-Accounting for Convertible Instruments and Contracts in an Entity’s Own Equity. ASU 2020-06 simplifies accounting for convertible instruments by removing major separation models required under current GAAP. Consequently, more convertible debt instruments will be reported as a single liability instrument with no separate accounting for embedded conversion features. ASU 2020-06 removes certain settlement conditions that are required for equity contracts to qualify for the derivative scope exception, which will permit more equity contracts to qualify for it. ASU 2020-06 also simplifies the diluted net income per share calculation in certain areas. The new guidance is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2021, and early adoption is permitted for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2020, and interim periods within those fiscal years. The Company is currently evaluating the impact that this new guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements.
There are other various updates recently issued by the FASB, most of which represented technical corrections to the accounting literature or application to specific industries and are not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows.
Management has reviewed all other recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting pronouncements and do not believe the future adoption of any such pronouncements may be expected to cause a material impact on our financial condition or the results of our operations.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
We have not entered into any off-balance sheet arrangements that have or are reasonably likely to have a current or future effect on our financial condition, changes in financial condition, revenues or expenses, results of operations, liquidity, capital expenditures or capital resources and would be considered material to investors.

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ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
Item 7a. Quantitative And Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
As a smaller reporting company, we are not required to provide this information.

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ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
Item 8. Financial Statements And Supplementary Data
The financial statements and supplementary financial information required by this Item are set forth immediately following the signature page and are incorporated herein by reference.

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ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure
None

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ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures
Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Our management, with the participation of our CEO and CFO, has evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act as of the end of the period covered by this Report.
These controls are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the reports we file or submit pursuant to the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the rules and forms of the SEC, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our CEO and CFO to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.
Based on this evaluation, our CEO and CFO have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of December 31, 2021, at reasonable assurance levels.
We believe that our financial statements presented in this Report fairly present, in all material respects, our financial position, results of operations, and cash flows for all periods presented herein.
Our management, including our CEO and CFO, does not expect that our disclosure controls and procedures will prevent all error and all fraud. A control system, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the control system are met. The design of any system of controls is based in part upon certain assumptions about the likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future conditions. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, within our company have been detected. These inherent limitations include the realities that judgments in decision-making can be faulty, and that breakdown can occur because of simple error or mistake. In particular, many of our current processes rely upon manual reviews and processes to ensure that neither human error nor system weakness has resulted in erroneous reporting of financial data.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting during our fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, which were identified in conjunction with management’s evaluation required by paragraph (d) of Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 under the Exchange Act, that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
Management Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting
Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting as defined in Rule 13a-15(f) or 15d-15(f) promulgated under the Exchange Act. Those rules define internal control over financial reporting as a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and includes those policies and procedures that:
● Pertain to the maintenance of records that in reasonable detail accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the Company;
● Provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and the receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the Company; and
● Provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisitions, use or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.
Because of its inherent limitations, internal controls over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
Management assessed the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2021. In making this assessment, our management used the criteria established in Internal Control-Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).
This Report does not include an attestation report of our registered public accounting firm regarding internal control over financial reporting. Management’s report was not subject to attestation by our registered public accounting firm pursuant to temporary rules of the SEC that permit us to provide only management’s report in this Report.

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ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION
Item 9b. Other Information
None.

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ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Information concerning our directors and officers is incorporated by reference to our Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A to be filed with the SEC within 120 days after the end of our fiscal year.

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ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
Information concerning our directors and officers is incorporated by reference to our Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A to be filed with the SEC within 120 days after the end of our fiscal year.

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ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS
ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS
Information concerning our directors and officers is incorporated by reference to our Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A to be filed with the SEC within 120 days after the end of our fiscal year.

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ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE
Information concerning our directors and officers is incorporated by reference to our Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A to be filed with the SEC within 120 days after the end of our fiscal year.

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ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES
ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES
Information concerning our directors and officers is incorporated by reference to our Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A to be filed with the SEC within 120 days after the end of our fiscal year.
PART IV

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ITEM 15. EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES
Item 15. Exhibits, Financial Statements Schedules.
A list of financial statements filed herewith is contained is set forth on page of the financial statements that immediately follow the signature page of this Report and is incorporated by reference herein. The financial statement schedules have been omitted because they are not required, not applicable or the information has been included in our financial statements. The exhibits required by this Item are contained in the Exhibit Index beginning on the following page of this Annual Report on Form 10-K and are incorporated herein by reference.
EXHIBIT INDEX
Exhibit No.
Description
2.1
Stock Purchase Agreement
3.1
Certificate of Incorporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.3 to Form 8-K filed October 30, 2020).
3.2
Certificate of Amendment to Certificate of Incorporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Form 8-K filed January 5, 2021)
3.3
Bylaws (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.4 to Form 8-K filed October 30, 2020).
3.4
Amendment No. 1 to Bylaws (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Form 8-K filed January 12, 2021).
4.1
Description of urban-gro, Inc.’s Common Stock.
10.1
Employment Agreement by and between urban-gro, Inc. and James H. Dennedy, dated February 18, 2021
10.2
Intellectual Property Purchase and Assignment Agreement between Edyza, Inc. and Registrant (incorporated by reference to Form S-1 Registration Statement filed on May 18, 2018)
10.3
Business Lease between JW Properties, LLC and Registrant dated July 22, 2015 (incorporated by reference to Form S-1Registration Statement filed on May 18, 2018)
10.4
Commercial Lease Agreement between Bravo Lighting, LLC and Registration (incorporated by reference to Form S-1 Registration Statement filed on May 18, 2018)
10.5
Form of Common Stock Purchase Warrant issued to Michael Sandy Bank dated April 19, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Form S-1/A Registration Statement filed on July 11, 2018)
10.6
Redemption Agreement with Total Grow Holdings LLC dated January 24, 2020 (incorporated by referenced to Form 8-K filed on January 30, 2020)
Exhibit No.
Description
10.7*
Separation Agreement, dated as of March 20, 2020, by and between urban-gro, Inc. and Larry Dodson (incorporated by reference to Form 8-K filed on March 23, 2020)
10.8*
Form of Stock Option Agreement to be entered into on the Effective Date by and between urban-gro, Inc. and Larry Dodson (incorporated by reference to Form 8-K filed on March 23, 2020)
10.9*
urban-gro, Inc. 2019 Equity Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Form S-8 filed on August 27, 2019)
10.10*
Form of Deferred Shares Award Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.10 to Form 10-K filed on May 18, 2020).
10.11
Letter Agreement, dated February 21, 2020, by and among urban-gro, Inc., urban-gro Canada Technologies Inc., Impact Engineering, Inc., the lenders party thereto, and Bridging Finance Inc., as administrative agent for the lenders. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.11 to Form 10-K filed on May 18, 2020).
10.12
Promissory Note, dated October 18, 2018, between urban-gro, Inc. and Cloud9 Support Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.12 to Form 10-K filed on May 18, 2020).
10.13
Amendment to Promissory Note, dated May 20, 2019, between urban-gro, Inc. and Cloud9 Support Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.13 to Form 10-K filed on May 18, 2020).
10.14
Subordination Agreement, dated February 25, 2020, between urban-gro, Inc. and Cloud9 Support Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.14 to Form 10-K filed on May 18, 2020).
10.15
Promissory Note, dated February 21, 2020, between urban-gro, Inc. and Cloud9 Support Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.15 to Form 10-K filed on May 18, 2020).
10.16
First Amendment to Loan Agreement, dated as of September 4, 2020, by and among urban-gro, Inc., urban-gro Canada Technologies Inc., Impact Engineering, Inc. and Bridging Finance Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Form 10-Q filed on November 3, 2020).
10.17
Agreement, dated as of September 18, 2020, by and between urban-gro, Inc. and George (Bob) Pullar (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to Form 10-Q filed on November 3, 2020).
10.18*
Employment Agreement, dated as of July 1, 2020, by and between urban-gro, Inc. and Bradley Nattrass (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.18 to Form S-1 filed on November 16, 2020)
10.19*
Employment Agreement, dated as of July 1, 2020, by and between urban-gro, Inc. and Richard Akright (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.19 to Form S-1 filed on November 16, 2020)
10.20
Form of Amended and Restated Promissory Note (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Form 8-K filed on November 25, 2020).
10.21
Form of Amended and Restated Promissory Note (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to Form 8-K filed on November 25, 2020).
10.22
Form of Convertible Promissory Note (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to Form 8-K filed on November 25, 2020).
Exhibit No.
Description
10.23
Form of Convertible Promissory Note (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Form 8-K filed on December 18, 2020).
21.1
List of subsidiaries of the Registrant.
23.1
Consent of BF Borgers CPA P.C.
24.1
Power of Attorney (included on signature page).
31.1
Certification of Chief Executive Officer required by Rule 13a-14(a) under the Exchange Act
31.2
Certification of Chief Financial Officer required by Rule 13a-14(a) under the Exchange Act
Certification of Principal Executive, Financial and Accounting Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
101.INS
Inline XBRL Instance Document
101.SCH
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document
101.CAL
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document
101.DEF
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document
101.LAB
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document
101.PRE
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document
Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document)
* Denotes a management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.