On Holding (ONON) 20-F2021 FY Annual report (foreign)

Unless otherwise indicated or the context otherwise requires, all references in this Annual Report on Form 20-F ("Annual Report") to the terms “On,” “On Holding AG,” the “Company,” “we,” “our,” “ours,” “us” or similar terms refer to On Holding AG, including its consolidated subsidiaries. References to our “extended founder team” or our “executive officers” are to (i) our “co-founders,” which consists of (a) our co-founders and executive co-chairmen, David Allemann and Caspar Coppetti, and (b) our co-founder and executive director Olivier Bernhard, (ii) our chief financial officer and co-chief executive officer, Martin Hoffmann, and (iii) our co-chief executive officer, Marc Maurer.

All references to “U.S. dollars,” “dollars” or “USD” are to the lawful currency of the United States of America. All references to “CHF” or “Swiss francs” are to the lawful currency of Switzerland. In this Annual Report, amounts that are converted from CHF to U.S. dollars are converted at an exchange rate of USD 1.09 per CHF, the exchange rate as of December 31, 2021.

We maintain our books and records in Swiss francs and prepare our consolidated financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IFRS”).

We have made rounding adjustments to some of the figures included in this Annual Report Accordingly, numerical figures, including percentages shown as totals in some tables may not be an arithmetic aggregation of the figures that preceded them. With respect to financial information set out in this Annual Report, a dash (“—”) signifies that the relevant figure is not available or not applicable, while a zero (“0.0”) signifies that the relevant figure is available but is or has been rounded to zero.

We own various trademark registrations and applications, and unregistered trademarks, including On, On Running, Run On Clouds, CloudTec, Speedboard, Helion, Missiongrip, Cyclon, Cloud, Cloudflow, Cloudswift, Cloud X, Cloudstratus, Cloudrock, Cloud Terry, Cloudnova, Cloudneo, Cyclon, CleanCloud, Cloudaway, Cloudultra, Dream On., among others, and our other registered and common law trade names, trademarks and service marks, including our corporate logo. Solely for convenience, some of the trademarks, service marks and trade names referred to in this Annual Report are listed without the ® and ™ symbols, but we will assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, rights to such trademarks, service marks and trade names.

This Annual Report contains statements that constitute forward-looking statements. Many of the forward-looking statements contained in this Annual Report can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “expect,” “should,” “plan,” “intend,” “estimate” and “potential,” among others.

Forward-looking statements appear in a number of places in this Annual Report and include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our intent, belief or current expectations. Forward-looking statements are based on our management’s beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to our management. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results

Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we do not undertake any obligation to update them in light of new information or future developments or to release publicly any revisions to these statements in order to reflect later events or circumstances or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Not applicable.

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The “On” name, our claims (such as “Running on Clouds”), our product or technical-related trademarks (such as “Cloud,” “Cloudsurfer,” “Cloudswift,” and “CloudTec,” among others), our designs and technical patents (such as the “Speedboard”) and our premium performance brand image are integral to our business, and to the implementation of our strategies for expanding our business. We believe that the brand image we have cultivated has significantly contributed to the success of our business and is critical to maintaining and expanding our customer base. Maintaining and enhancing our premium brand may require us to make substantial investments in areas such as product design, intellectual property (such as patents and trademarks), marketing, operations, community relations, employee training and our wholesale and DTC channels, such as investments in additional distribution partnerships, the opening of new physical and e-commerce stores and other e-commerce projects, and these investments may not be successful.

We anticipate that, as our business expands into new markets and new product categories, maintaining and enhancing our brand may become difficult and require expending significant resources. If these or similar efforts in the future are not successful, our brand may be adversely impacted. Even if such efforts are commercially successful, they may dilute our image in our core running market. Conversely, as we penetrate these new markets and our brand becomes more widely available, it could potentially detract from the appeal stemming from the relative novelty and scarcity of our brand. Our brand may be adversely affected if our public image or reputation is tarnished by negative publicity, which may occur due to quality issues relating to our production in China or Vietnam, or our use of certain raw materials or product-related environmental concerns. Furthermore, our exposure to social media platforms may accelerate and aggravate such negative publicity. In addition, ineffective marketing, product diversion to unauthorized distribution channels, product defects, counterfeit products, unfair labor practices and failure or legal limitations to protect the intellectual property rights in our brand are some of the potential threats to the strength of our brand, and those and other factors could diminish consumer confidence in us. Maintaining and enhancing our brand will depend largely on our ability to be a leader in premium performance footwear, the apparel and accessories industry and to continue to offer a range of high-quality products to our customers, which we may not execute successfully. Any of these factors could harm our sales, profitability, financial condition or the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

A key element of our growth strategy is innovation, product development and expansion of our product offerings into new product categories. However, we may be unsuccessful in designing products that meet our customers’ expectations for our brand or that are attractive to new customers. If we are unable to anticipate customer preferences or industry changes, or if we are unable to modify our products on a timely basis or expand effectively into new product categories, we may lose customers. As of December 31, 2021, our products are available at approximately 8,700 retail stores across more than 50 countries. As we expand into new geographic markets, consumers in these new markets may be less compelled by our brand image and may not be willing to pay a higher price to purchase our premium functional products as compared to traditional footwear, apparel and accessories. Our operating results would also suffer if our investments and innovations do not anticipate the needs of our customers, are not appropriately timed with market opportunities or are not effectively brought to market.

Our core values, which include developing high-quality products in a socially and environmentally responsible manner, are an important component of our brand image, which makes our reputation sensitive to allegations of unethical or improper business practices, whether real or perceived. Parties active in promoting ethical business practices, in addition to evaluating the substance of companies’ practices, also often scrutinize companies’ transparency as to such practices and the policies and procedures they use to ensure compliance by their suppliers and other business partners. Prior to our initial public offering ("IPO") we were a private company, and so do not have extensive experience in assembling and disclosing information on such matters as required for public companies or as may be expected by such parties. Moreover, we do not expect as a general matter to publicly disclose information that we deem competitively sensitive, except as required by law. If we do not meet the transparency standards expected by parties active in promoting ethical business practices, we may be subject to negative publicity, regardless of whether the actual labor and other business practices adhered to by us and our independent manufacturers satisfy substantive expectations of ethical business practices. In addition, we may fail to, or only partially, achieve our sustainability and environmental commitments, which could also result in negative publicity. Such negative publicity could be accelerated through social media channels and harm our reputation, brand image, business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

While we are conscious and strategic with our choices of our business partners and require, as part of our supply contract, compliance with our Supplier Code of Conduct and our standards, we do not control our manufacturing suppliers or their business practices. Accordingly, we cannot guarantee their compliance with our guidelines or applicable laws. A failure by our suppliers to comply with such requirements could, in turn, lead to reduced sales by us as the result of recalls or adverse consumer reactions, damage to our brand or cause us to seek alternative suppliers, which could increase our costs and result in delayed delivery of our products, product shortages or other disruptions of our operations.

In addition, certain jurisdictions in which we sell have various regulations related to manufacturing processes and the chemical content of our products, including their component parts. Monitoring compliance by our contract manufacturing and other suppliers is complex, and we are reliant on their compliance reporting in order to comply with regulations applicable to our products. We may be subject to investigations, enforcement proceedings or claims arising from our supplier’s actual or alleged noncompliance with regulations and statutes and/or to claims relating to alleged personal injury, such as California’s Proposition 65. The expectations of NGOs, consumers or any other third parties regarding social and environmentally responsible business practices continually evolve and may be substantially more demanding than applicable legal requirements. Socially and environmentally responsible business practices are also driven in part by legal and political developments and by diverse groups active in publicizing and organizing public responses to perceived ethical shortcomings, which can quickly lead to negative publicity and boycotts. Accordingly, we cannot predict how such regulations or expectations might develop in the future and cannot be certain that our guidelines or current practices would satisfy all parties who are active in monitoring our products or other business practices worldwide. Our exposure on social media platforms may accelerate and aggravate such negative publicity and boycott risks not only related to potential non-compliance, but also related to geopolitical developments and related controversial public discussions, such as the current discussions regarding brands sourcing their products from China, which NGOs and others requesting to boycott due to China’s handling of minorities. Also, China has previously placed pressure and obstacles on international companies who criticize Chinese politics, and may continue to do so in the future. A failure by our suppliers to comply with such requirements could, in turn, lead to reduced sales by us as the result of recalls or adverse consumer reactions, damage to our brand or cause us to seek alternative suppliers, which could

We rely principally on grassroots marketing efforts to advertise our brand. These efforts include working with select premium brand partners, such as our co-entrepreneur, Roger Federer, and local athletes chosen by us, who we refer to as our ambassadors. Our ambassadors assist us by introducing our brand and culture to the communities around our stores. Our grassroots marketing efforts must be tailored to each particular market, which may require substantial ongoing attention and resources. For instance, we must successfully identify suitable ambassadors in each of our new and existing markets. Our future growth and profitability and the vibrancy of our premium brand, particularly among running communities, will depend in part upon the effectiveness and efficiency of these grassroots marketing efforts.

An element of our marketing strategy has been to create a link in the consumer market between our products and professional and Olympic athletes, such as with Roger Federer and various athletes around the world, and we face additional risks as a result. If we lose our celebrity endorsers, or if our celebrity endorsers engage in activities that damage our reputation (whether actual or perceived), our brand and our business could be adversely impacted. We have also developed sponsorship agreements with a variety of athletes. However, as competition in the footwear, apparel and accessories industry has increased, the costs associated with athlete sponsorships, including the costs of obtaining and retaining these sponsorships and agreements, have varied and at times increased greatly. If we are unable to maintain our current association with athletes, or to do so at a reasonable cost, we could lose the reputational benefit associated with such partnerships, and we may be required to modify and substantially increase our marketing investments. In addition, because certain sporting events were largely cancelled or delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, and future plans for these events remain uncertain, we may not realize the expected benefits of these relationships. Moreover, a failure to continue to correctly identify promising public figures to use and endorse our products or a failure to enter into cost-effective endorsement arrangements with prominent public figures could adversely affect our brand, sales and profitability.

Because we have not historically made extensive use of traditional advertising channels, such as print or television advertisements, to build our brand, if our grassroots marketing efforts or sports marketing sponsorships are not successful, there may be no immediately available alternative marketing channel for us to build awareness of our products in a manner that will be successful. This may impair our ability to successfully integrate new stores into the surrounding communities, to expand into new markets at all or to maintain the strength or distinctiveness of our brand in our existing markets. In addition, if our grassroots marketing efforts are unsuccessful and we are required to use traditional advertising channels in our overall marketing strategy, then we will incur additional expense associated with the transition to and operation of a traditional advertising channel, and we may not have the financial or other resources needed to do so successfully. Failure to successfully market our products and brand in new and existing markets could harm our premium brand, business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Our future success depends, in large part, on our ability to implement our growth strategies, including expanding our product offerings to earn more share of customers’ closets, continuing to engage in customer acquisition and retention efforts that drive long-term customer relationships and continuing to grow our business. Our ability to implement these growth strategies depends, among other things, on our ability to:

We may not be able to successfully implement our growth strategies and may need to change them. If we fail to implement our growth strategies or if we invest resources in a growth strategy that ultimately proves unsuccessful, our business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares may be materially and adversely affected.

Our business is not currently diversified and consists primarily of designing and distributing footwear, apparel and accessories. In 2021, our main product category across all seasons, our footwear, was made up of over 30 styles and comprised a significant majority of our sales. Consumer preferences often change rapidly, and demand for our products is substantially dependent on our ability to attract customers who are willing to pay a higher price for our premium products. We believe there are a number of factors that may affect the demand for our products, including:

In addition, we believe that continued increases in sales of footwear, apparel and accessories will largely depend on customers continuing to demand technical superiority from their premium products. If the number of customers demanding footwear, apparel and accessories does not continue to increase, or if our customers are not convinced that our footwear, apparel and accessories are more functional, stylish or technically superior than other footwear, apparel and accessories alternatives, we may not achieve the level of sales necessary to support new growth platforms and our ability to grow our business will be severely impaired, and our business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares may be adversely impacted.

We believe that continued increases in sales of footwear, apparel and accessories will largely depend on customers continuing to demand footwear, apparel and accessories designed for specific athletic pursuits such as running. If the number of customers demanding footwear, apparel and accessories does not continue to increase, the trend of increased focus on health and wellness or the associated growth in exercise subsides, the appeal of high- technology footwear, apparel and accessories diminishes, the style of our athletic and technical footwear, apparel and accessories falls out of fashion with customers or customers engaging in athletic pursuits are not convinced that our footwear, apparel and accessories are a better choice than traditional alternatives, our ability to innovate and grow our business will be severely impaired, and our business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares may be adversely impacted.

We have generated net losses in the past and may incur net losses in the future.

Our future growth depends, to a considerable extent, on our efforts to expand our markets and also on our success in entering new markets throughout the world that we deem attractive. While our headquarters are in Switzerland, we sell our footwear, apparel and accessories globally. For the year ended December 31, 2021, 56.5%, 35.9% and 5.9% of our sales were to customers in North America, Europe and Asia, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2020, 48.9%, 44.1% and 5.4% of our sales were to customers in North America, Europe and Asia, respectively. We also have limited

Our marketing and promotional programs, by focusing on the premium experience our products provide, are important in capturing the interest of consumers and attracting them to our products and encouraging purchases by consumers. If we fail to successfully develop and implement marketing, advertising and promotional strategies in new and existing markets, we may be unable to achieve and maintain brand awareness and consumer traffic to our sites or stores may be reduced.

We believe that much of the growth in our customer base to date has originated from our marketing strategy, including social media and other digital marketing efforts. For example, we maintain Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, WeChat, Weibo and YouTube accounts. If we are unable to cost-effectively use social media platforms as marketing tools, our ability to acquire new customers and our business and financial condition may suffer. Unauthorized or inappropriate use of our social media channels could result in harmful publicity or negative consumer experiences, which could have an adverse impact on the effectiveness of our marketing in these channels. In addition, substantial negative commentary by others on social media platforms could have an adverse impact on our ability to successfully connect with consumers. In addition, if our customers believe we have failed to live up to our stated goals (whether real or perceived), including those related to ESG matters, they may use social media platforms to cause reputational damage to our brand and business. Furthermore, as laws and regulations rapidly evolve to govern the use of these platforms, the failure by us, our employees or third parties acting at our direction to comply with applicable laws and regulations could subject us to regulatory investigations, lawsuits, including class actions, liability, fines or other penalties. Moreover, if digital advertising platforms increase advertising expenses or change their policies in a manner that is inconsistent with our marketing strategy, our expenses may increase and the effectiveness of our digital advertising strategy may be diminished, and our growth through our DTC channels may be harmed as a result. Furthermore, an increase in the use of social media platforms for product promotion and marketing may cause an increase in our burden to monitor compliance of such platforms, and increase the risk that such materials could contain problematic product or marketing claims in violation of applicable regulations. These and other risks could adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Our approach to identifying locations for our stores and premium products typically favors street locations and lifestyle centers. As a result, our stores are typically located near retailers or fitness facilities that we believe are consistent with our customers’ lifestyle choices. Our net sales, business and results of operations at these stores are derived, in part, from the volume of foot traffic in these locations. Store locations may become unsuitable due to, and our sales volume, customer traffic and profitability generally may be harmed by, among other things:

Changes in areas around our store locations that result in reductions in customer foot traffic or otherwise render the locations unsuitable could cause our sales, business and results of operations to be less than expected. While we currently sell our products through a limited number of stores that are owned and operated by us, we plan to open additional stores in the future. If our net sales, business and results of operations through stores owned and operated by us increase in the future, the risks described above may be exacerbated and may adversely affect our financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Innovation is at the core of our business, and we must continue to invest in research and development in connection with the innovation, patents and design of our footwear, apparel and accessories in order to attract and retain consumers. If we are unable to anticipate consumer preferences or industry changes, or if we are unable to modify our products on a timely basis, we may lose customers or become subject to greater pricing pressures. Our operating results would also suffer if our innovations and designs do not respond to the needs and demands of our customers, are not appropriately timed with market opportunities or are not effectively brought to market. Any failure on our part to innovate and design new products or modify existing products will harm our brand image and could result in a decrease in our net sales and an increase in our inventory levels. In addition, we may not be able to generate sufficient consumer interest in our athletic and technical apparel and accessories to remain competitive.

In particular, technical innovation, our unique designs and quality control in the design and manufacturing process of athletic and technical footwear, apparel and accessories is essential to the commercial success of our products. Research and development play a key role in technical innovation. We rely upon specialists in the fields of biomechanics, chemistry, exercise physiology, engineering, digital technologies, industrial design, sustainability and related fields, as well as research and advisory boards made up of athletes, coaches, trainers, equipment managers, orthopedists, podiatrists and other

In addition to our DTC strategy and the expansion of our geographic footprint, we plan to grow our business by innovating and expanding our product offerings. The principal risks to our ability to successfully carry out our plans to expand our product offering include:

Moreover, our ability to successfully carry out our plans to expand our product offerings may be affected by economic and competitive conditions, changes in consumer spending patterns and changes in consumer preferences and styles. These plans could be abandoned, could cost more than anticipated, could impact the quality of our products and could divert resources from other areas of our business, any of which could negatively impact our competitive position, reduce our net sales and profitability or negatively impact the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

The market for footwear, apparel and accessories is highly fragmented and extremely competitive. We compete directly against wholesalers and direct retailers of footwear, apparel and accessories. Because of the fragmented nature of the marketplace, we also compete with other apparel sellers, including those who do not specialize in footwear, apparel and accessories. Many of our competitors have significant competitive advantages, including longer operating histories, larger and broader customer bases, more established relationships with a broader set of suppliers, greater brand recognition and greater financial, technological and engineering resources, research and development, store development, marketing, distribution and other resources than we do. We may face intense pressure with respect to competition for key customer accounts and distribution channels. Because of the highly competitive nature of our industry, we may face increased pressure from our competitors to lower our prices for our products, which may adversely impact consumer demand for our products, our brand image, our realized margins, our net sales and results of operations. Furthermore, we believe that our key customers face intense competition from other department stores, sporting goods stores, retail specialty stores, and online retailers, among others, which could negatively impact the financial stability of their businesses and their ability to conduct business with us. These factors may result in a loss of our

As our business has expanded, our competitors have imitated, and will likely continue to imitate, our premium product designs and branding, which could harm our business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares. Also, any theft, piracy or leaking, such as through industrial espionage, of our technologies, materials or trade secrets could cause harm to our brand and business. Competitors who flood the market with products seeking to imitate our products could divert sales and dilute the value of our brand. Continued sales of competing products by our competitors could harm our brand and adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations. While we rely on a variety of intellectual property laws and procedures to protect our competitive position, intellectual property protection has its limitations. For more information, please see “—Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property and Information Technology—If we are unable to obtain, maintain, protect and enforce our intellectual property rights for the products we develop, or if the scope of our intellectual property protection is not sufficiently broad, others may be able to develop and commercialize products substantially similar to ours, and our business may be adversely affected."

We may be adversely affected by the financial health of our retail partners and customers.

We extend credit to our retail partners based on an assessment of a customer’s financial condition, generally without requiring collateral. To assist in the scheduling of production and the shipping of our products, we offer certain customers the opportunity to place orders five to six months ahead of delivery under our futures ordering program. These advance orders may be canceled under certain conditions, and the risk of cancellation may increase when dealing with financially unstable retailers or retailers struggling with economic uncertainty. In the past, some customers have experienced financial difficulties, including bankruptcies, which have had an adverse effect on our sales, our ability to collect on receivables and our financial condition. In addition, we and our retail partners could face risks from a decline in the overall level of consumer retail spending, and a weak retail environment could impact customer traffic in the stores of our retail partners and also adversely affect our net sales. Moreover, traditional brick-and-mortar retail channels have experienced low growth or declines in recent years and recent trends have increased permanent and temporary store closures. Recent years have also seen shifts in consumer preferences and purchasing practices, which may increase the difficulty for us to retain and grow our customer base. If and when the retail economy weakens or as consumer behavior shifts, retailers may be more cautious with orders. A slowing or changing economy in our key markets could adversely affect the financial health of our customers, which in turn could have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. In addition, product sales are dependent in part on high-quality merchandising and an appealing retail environment to attract consumers, which requires continuing investments by retailers. Retailers that experience financial difficulties may fail to make such investments or delay them, resulting in lower sales and orders for our products. These and other risks could adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Many factors affect the level of consumer spending for discretionary items such as our footwear, apparel and accessories. These factors include general business conditions, interest and tax rates, the availability of consumer credit and consumer confidence in future economic conditions.

Consumer purchases of discretionary items, such as our premium footwear, apparel and accessories, tend to decline during recessionary periods when disposable income is lower, and during

The COVID-19 pandemic and related government, private sector, and individual consumer responsive actions have adversely affected, and may continue to adversely affect our business operations, the operations of our suppliers and other business partners, store traffic, employee availability, and our financial condition, liquidity and cash flow.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization and has spread across the globe. Related government and private sector responsive actions have significantly affected our business operations and those of our suppliers and other business partners, and will likely continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

We have in the past and we continue to be adversely impacted by business disruptions related to COVID-19, including disruptions to sourcing, our supply chain, our manufacturing facilities and our distribution facilities. For example, in 2020 and 2021, the COVID-19 pandemic caused operations in certain of our suppliers’ facilities to be disrupted or temporarily suspended, certain of our warehouses to experience disruptions or operate at reduced capacity, and further caused us to delay our plans to expand our footwear supplier base beyond Vietnam. In addition, in the fall of 2021 a surge of COVID-19 cases in certain countries, such as Vietnam where all of our footwear was produced in 2021 and a number of our suppliers’ manufacturing facilities are located, has resulted in ongoing mandatory closures of such facilities, as well as significant impediments to local freight operations due to restrictive measures introduced by the Vietnamese government and, as a result, disruptions to our supply chain and business operations. Although manufacturing facilities in Vietnam all came into operations in early November and additional production capacity has been secured in 2022 with new factory partners in Indonesia, additional restrictions could arise in the future and could impact further any worker and capacity shortage, global freight disruptions and cost inflation. We expect that these disruptions will continue to adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations into 2022 and 2023.

The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have also negatively impacted many of our business partners, such as the retail stores and distributors that sell our products, and are likely to continue to adversely impact some or all of such partners for the foreseeable future. Any of the foregoing could lead to their or our financial distress or bankruptcy. Moreover, the negative implications of COVID-19, including from responses to the pandemic, may not be predictable and may negatively impact our business and operations, including in ways that we do not currently anticipate. For example, certain unemployment programs instituted by governments caused our operations to experience a workforce shortage and increased costs, and similar unpredictable results of COVID-19 may cause adverse changes to our business, financial condition, results of operation and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

The spread of COVID-19 and its various mutations of the virus (e.g. Delta, Omicron and other variants) has caused public health officials to impose restrictions and recommend precautions to mitigate the spread of the virus, especially when congregating in heavily populated areas, such as malls and fitness centers. Throughout 2020 and the early part of 2021, a majority of our retail partners closed stores. At other locations, including our first flagship store in New York City which we opened in December 2020 and in our stores in China, we have implemented precautionary measures in line with guidance from local authorities. These measures include restrictions such as limitations on the number of guests allowed in our stores at any single time, minimum physical distancing requirements and limited operating hours. We do not know how the measures recommended by local authorities or implemented

Further resurgences in COVID-19 cases could cause additional restrictions, including temporarily closing all or some of our or our retailers’ stores again. There is uncertainty over the impact of COVID-19 on the U.S., Swiss, and global economies, consumer willingness to visit stores, malls, and fitness centers and employee willingness to staff stores once they reopen. There is also uncertainty regarding potential long-term changes to consumer shopping behavior and preferences and whether consumer demand will recover when restrictions are lifted.

We have expanded our operations rapidly since our inception in 2010 and we have limited operating experience at our current size. We opened the first store with our retail partners in Switzerland in 2010 and the first store through retail partners in the United States in 2013. The first retail store owned and operated by us opened in late 2019 in China, followed by our flagship location in New York City in late 2020. We have experienced substantial growth in our net sales from our inception through 2021.

Our substantial growth to date has placed a significant strain on our management systems and resources. If our operations continue to grow, of which there can be no assurance, we will be required to continue to expand our sales and marketing, product development and distribution functions, to upgrade our management information systems and other processes, and to obtain more space for our expanding administrative support and other headquarters personnel. Moreover, our new innovations may require either new or different infrastructure, different relationships or processes. Our continued growth could increase the strain on our resources, and we could experience serious operating difficulties, including difficulties in hiring, training and managing an increasing number of employees, difficulties in obtaining sufficient raw materials and manufacturing capacity to produce our products, and delays in production and shipments. These difficulties would likely result in the erosion of our brand image and lead to a decrease in net sales, income from operations and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Our growth strategy involves the continued expansion of our DTC channel, including our own retail stores and e-commerce platform, which may present risks and challenges with which we have limited experience.

We currently operate our online store in over 60 countries, which are serviced by our wholesale channel as well, and are planning to expand our e-commerce platform to other geographies. Existing and additional countries may impose different and evolving laws governing the operation and marketing of e-commerce websites, as well as the collection, storage and use of information on consumers interacting with those websites. We may incur additional costs and operational challenges in complying with these laws, and differences in these laws may cause us to operate our businesses differently in different territories. If so, we may incur additional costs and may not fully realize the investment in our international expansion. We are also exposed to the risk of fraudulent domains or websites pretending to sell our products, when they are in reality phishing sites or imitator domains, and we might be unable to stop those sites from operating in due time, or permanently due to regulatory or factual constraints.

To ensure adequate inventory supply, we and our retail partners forecast inventory needs, which are subject to seasonal and quarterly variations, and are also subject to variation as a result of broader economic and social trends. Like our competitors, we have an extended design, development, manufacturing and logistics process, which involves the initial design and development of our products, the purchase of raw materials, the accumulation and subsequent sale of inventories, and the collection of the resulting accounts receivable. This production cycle requires us to incur significant expenses relating to the design, development, manufacturing, distributing and marketing of our products, including product development costs for new products, in advance of the realization of any net sales from the sale of our products, and results in significant liquidity requirements and working capital fluctuations throughout our fiscal year. Because the production cycle typically involves long lead times, which requires us to make manufacturing decisions several months in advance of an anticipated purchasing decision by the consumer, it is challenging for us to estimate and manage our inventory and working capital requirements, and as such challenges have been, and could in the future be, exacerbated by global supply chain issues. If we fail to accurately forecast demand or our inventory and working capital requirements, we may experience excess inventory levels or a shortage of product to deliver to our retail partners and through our DTC channels. In addition, our retail partners may fail to accurately forecast the

If we underestimate the demand for our products, we may not be able to produce products to meet our retail partner requirements, and this could result in delays in the shipment of our products and our failure to satisfy demand, as well as damage to our reputation and retail partner relationships. If our retail partners underestimate the demand for our products, they may not have enough products on hand to satisfy demand in a timely fashion and sales opportunities may be lost. If we or our retail partners overestimate the demand for our products, we or our retail partners could face inventory levels in excess of demand, which could result in inventory write-downs or write-offs and the sale of excess inventory at discounted prices, which would harm our gross margins and our brand management efforts. In addition, these and other factors, including failures to accurately predict the level of demand for our products, could cause a decline in net sales and harm our business, operating results, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Our growth will depend in part on our ability to successfully open and operate new stores owned by us or convince third-parties to sell our premium products on our behalf. Our ability to successfully open and operate new stores depends on many factors, including, among others, our ability to:

Successful new store openings may also be affected by our ability to initiate our grassroots marketing efforts in advance of opening stores in geographies we had not previously operated in. We typically rely on our grassroots marketing efforts to build awareness of our brand and demand for our products. Our grassroots marketing efforts are often lengthy and must be tailored to each new market based on our emerging understanding of the market. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that we will be able to successfully implement our grassroots marketing efforts in a particular market in a timely manner, if at all. Additionally, we may be unsuccessful in identifying new markets where our footwear, apparel and accessories and other products and brand image will be accepted or the performance of our stores will be considered successful. Furthermore, we will encounter pre-operating costs and we may encounter initial losses while new stores commence operations.

We are subject to risks associated with leasing retail and distribution, office and warehouse space subject to long-term and non-cancelable leases.

We lease all of our stores under operating leases and our inability to secure appropriate real estate or lease terms could impact our ability to grow.

Our leases generally have initial terms of between five and ten years, and generally can be extended in five-year increments, if at all. We generally cannot unilaterally terminate these leases at an earlier time. If an existing or new store is not profitable, and we decide to close it, we may nonetheless be committed to perform our obligations under the applicable lease including, among other things, paying the base rent for the balance of the lease term.

Similarly, we may be committed to perform our obligations under the applicable leases even if current locations of our stores become unattractive as demographic patterns change, or if we have to close stores due to governmental orders in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic. We also have long-term leases for office space and retail distribution locations that we are not currently using at full capacity due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the increased numbers of employees working remotely. If the current remote working trend extends beyond the end of the pandemic, we may be committed to perform our obligations under our leases for office space and distribution locations that we do not need, which may adversely affect our financial condition. Moreover, as our operations expand, we may be unable to find additional office space to accommodate our needs. In addition, as each of our leases expire, we may fail to negotiate renewals, either on commercially acceptable terms or at all, which could require us to close stores in desirable locations. We also lease all of our distribution centers and our inability to secure appropriate real estate or lease terms could impact our ability to deliver our products to the market.

We have agreements with our suppliers that are on a purchase order basis and typically rely on inventory forecasts to help determine our quantities for purchase orders. We are highly dependent upon our suppliers, several of them being the sole source for certain components of our footwear and apparel and various of our suppliers being concentrated in a single country. We have experienced significant disruptions as a result of ongoing global supply chain issues and there can be no assurance that there will not be a further disruption in the supply of fabrics, other subcomponents or raw materials from current sources or, in the event of a disruption, that we would be able to locate alternative suppliers of materials of comparable quality at an acceptable price, or at all. Identifying a suitable supplier is a resource-intensive process that requires us to become satisfied with their quality control, responsiveness and service, financial stability and labor and other ethical practices. In addition, any indirect supply chain disruptions due to the recent military conflict in Ukraine may further complicate existing supply chain constraints. Interruption of supplies from any of the Company’s suppliers, or the loss of one or more key suppliers, could have a negative effect on the Company’s business and operating results. Any delays, interruption or increased costs in the supply of fabric and other subcomponents or manufacture of our products have in the past and could in the future have an adverse effect on our ability to meet customer demand for our products and result in lower net sales and operating income both in the short and long term, which could in turn negatively impact our business, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

The fabrics and other subcomponents used by our suppliers and manufacturers are made of raw materials, including virgin and recycled petrol-based and bio-based polyester, polyamide and ethylene vinyl acetate, rubber and organic cotton. Significant raw material price fluctuations, such as oil prices, or shortages in such raw materials could adversely impact our cost of goods sold. We are also subject to risks from price fluctuations due to our storage capacity restrictions at our warehouses for the raw materials that our suppliers and manufacturers use for production. In addition, all our manufacturers are subject to government regulations related to wage rates, and therefore the labor costs to produce our products may fluctuate. The cost of transporting our products for distribution and sale is also subject to fluctuation due in large part to the price of oil, but such costs are also exposed to geopolitical and climate change issues that may disrupt our and global supply chains, including from geopolitical conditions such as the military conflict in Ukraine and resulting sanctions imposed by the U.S. and other countries. Because most of our products are manufactured abroad, our products must be transported by third parties over large geographical distances and an increase in the price of oil can significantly increase costs.

Manufacturing delays or unexpected transportation delays can also cause us to rely more heavily on airfreight to achieve timely delivery to our customers, which significantly increases freight costs and impacts our carbon-dioxide reduction targets negatively. Price fluctuations, raw material inventory capacity restrictions and extended lead times in our supply chains reduce our ability to react to variances in our inventory forecasts and limit our operational flexibility. Our goal to reduce the carbon dioxide-footprint of our company may cause us to forgo airfreight transport completely, or may result in

Our financial success is dependent on our retail partners continuing to carry our products and the success of these partners. A substantial amount of our sales are made through our retail partners, either directly or indirectly, who may decide to emphasize products from our competitors, to redeploy their retail floor space to other product categories, or to take other actions that reduce their purchases of our products. We do not have long-term contracts with any of our retail partners, and sales to our retail partners are generally on an order-by-order basis and are subject to rights of cancellation and rescheduling by the partner. If we cannot fill our retail partners’ orders in a timely manner, the sales of our products and our relationships with those partners may suffer, and this could have a material adverse effect on our ability to grow our product lines and our results of operations.

Although we believe that our business relationships with our retail partners are satisfactory, we cannot assure you that these business relationships will continue to generate satisfactory sales in the future. If any of our major retail partners experiences a significant downturn in their business or fails to remain committed to our products or brand, then these partners may reduce or discontinue purchases from us, which could adversely impact our business.

Many of our retail partners compete with each other, and if they perceive that we are offering their competitors better pricing and support, they may reduce purchases of our products. In addition, we compete directly with our retail partners by selling our products to consumers through our DTC channel. If our retail partners believe that our DTC channel diverts sales from their stores, this may weaken our relationships with our partners and cause them to reduce purchases of our products. In addition, if we fail to accurately identify the needs of our partners, our partners fail to accept new products or product line expansions or attribute premium value to our new or existing products or product line expansions relative to competing products or if we fail to obtain shelf space from our retail partners (whether by our competitors introducing new products or otherwise), our sales, business, results of operations and financial condition may be adversely impacted.

Almost all of our manufacturing and raw material suppliers are located outside the United States. In addition, we work with select third-party distributors, especially in the initial stages of expansion for highly complicated products and in new markets, and because we ultimately do not control those third parties, we are subject to additional risks at a results of such relationships. In 2021 all of our footwear products was produced in Vietnam.

Moreover, in 2021 approximately 25% of our apparel and accessories products were manufactured in China, with the remainder being produced in Vietnam and Europe. All of our products are manufactured by third party manufacturers. As a result of our international suppliers, we are subject to risks associated with doing business in multiple jurisdictions, including:

We also face risks from potential employment shortages for our supply operations as potential employees in certain geographies, including Vietnam, pursue opportunities outside of our and our suppliers’ industries. Any potential employment shortages may increase costs for our supplier and manufacturing partners and may limit our ability to scale our warehouse and factory operations efficiently. Increased costs in production may limit our profitability and may adversely impact our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We do not manufacture our products or the raw materials and rely instead on third-party suppliers and contract manufacturers. Many of the specialty fabrics used in our products are technically advanced textile products developed by third parties and may be available, in the short-term, from only one or a very limited number of sources. For example, our engineered warp knitting textiles, which are included in many of our products, are supplied to the manufacturers we use by a few major producers in Vietnam, such as Paiho Group. In 2021, all of our products were produced by less than 20 manufacturing suppliers. In addition, in 2021, all of our footwear products were manufactured in Vietnam, and some of our apparel styles were purchased from only a single manufacturer. These factors increase the risk of supply disruption, cost inflation, and our efforts to expand our supplier base may fail or be delayed. For example, while we intended in 2020 to commence footwear production in Indonesia, this project was temporarily postponed due to COVID-19, with production only commencing in early 2022.

If we experience significant increased demand, or need to replace an existing manufacturer, there can be no assurance that additional supplies of fabrics, other subcomponents or raw materials or additional manufacturing capacity will be available when required on terms that are acceptable to us, or at all, or that any supplier or manufacturer would allocate sufficient capacity to us in order to meet our requirements or fill our orders in a timely manner. We allocate production orders among our suppliers based on the contractor’s capability, capacity and cost, but there is no assurance that we will be able to utilize capable contractors that have capacity at reasonable costs. Even if we are able to expand existing or find new manufacturing or fabric and other subcomponent sources, we may encounter delays in production and added costs as a result of the time it takes to train our suppliers and manufacturers in our methods, products and quality control standards. Delays related to supplier changes could also arise due to an increase in shipping times if new suppliers are located farther away from our markets or from other participants in our supply chain. Any delays, interruption or increased costs in the supply of fabric and other subcomponents or manufacturing of our products could have an adverse effect on our ability to meet customer demand for our products and result in lower net sales and income from operations, both in the short and long term. For example, the accident in the Suez Canal in 2021 delayed

In addition, there can be no assurance that our suppliers and manufacturers will continue to provide fabrics, other subcomponents and raw materials or manufacture products that are consistent with our standards. We have occasionally received, and may in the future continue to receive, shipments of products that fail to conform to our quality control standards. In that event, unless we are able to obtain replacement products in a timely manner, we risk the loss of net sales resulting from the inability to sell those products and related increased administrative and shipping costs. Further, as we continue our journey to eliminate petroleum-based materials, there is an increased use of recycled materials and other innovative new and sustainable materials. For example, our 100% recyclable Cyclon shoe is made with over 50% bio-based material derived from castor beans. The use of innovative and sustainable materials without a long history of manufacture by our third-party suppliers increases the risk of higher manufacturing costs or that products that are manufactured may not be consistent with our standards.

As part of our growth strategy, we plan to expand our distribution network and sales of our products into new locations outside of the United States and the EU. Our successful expansion and operation of new stores outside the United States and the EU will depend on our ability to find suitable partners and to successfully implement and manage joint relationships. In 2021, we had distribution agreements with 25 partners distributing to 40 markets. Failure to find sufficient or capable partners in a particular geographic regions may delay the rollout of our products in that area. If we are unable to find suitable partners through distribution relationships, our growth strategy will suffer and our net sales, results of operations and the price of our Class A ordinary shares could be harmed.

Our success is substantially dependent on the continued service of our senior management, including our co-founders David Allemann, Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti and our co-CEOs Marc Maurer and Martin Hoffmann. The loss of the services of our senior management could make it more difficult to successfully operate our business and achieve our business goals. We also may be unable to retain existing management, technical, sales and client support personnel that are critical to our success, which could harm our customer and employee relationships, result in loss of key information, expertise or know-how or cause us to incur unanticipated recruitment, training and other costs, which could in turn harm our business, operating results, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Laws and regulations on executive compensation, including legislation in our home country, Switzerland, may restrict our ability to attract, motivate and retain the required level of qualified personnel. In Switzerland, legislation affecting public companies is in force that, among other things, (i) imposes an annual binding shareholders’ “say on pay” vote with respect to the compensation of our executive committee and board of directors, (ii) generally prohibits severance, advances, transaction premiums and similar payments to members of our executive committee and board of directors, and (iii) requires companies to specify certain compensation-related matters in their articles of association, thus requiring them to be approved by a shareholders’ vote.

We have not obtained key person life insurance policies on any members of our senior management team. As a result, we would not be protected against the associated financial loss if we were to lose the services of members of our senior management team.

If we are unable to attract, assimilate and retain new team members, we may not be able to grow or successfully operate our business.

Our success has largely been the result of significant contributions by our employees/team members, including members of our current senior management and product design teams. However, to be successful in continuing to grow our business, we will need to continue to attract, assimilate, retain and motivate highly talented individuals with a diverse range of skills and experience. Competition for employees in our industry is intense and we have from time-to-time experienced difficulty in attracting the personnel necessary to support the growth of our business, and we may experience similar difficulties in the future. Moreover, we have experienced challenges obtaining work permits for potential employees, including in Switzerland and the EU, which have continued following the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the EU (“Brexit”), and this trend may continue. These problems could be further exacerbated as we embark on our strategy of significantly expanding our business in the United States and elsewhere over the next few years. In addition, if we fail to mitigate labor disputes, fail to properly hire and dismiss employees as needed or fail to comply with labor laws, which differ by location and jurisdiction and are rapidly changing, our risk of litigation may increase, which would cause us to incur additional costs. If we are unable to attract, assimilate and retain additional employees with the necessary skills, we may not be able to grow or successfully operate our business, and our business, results of operation, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares might be may be adversely impacted.

Virtually all of our athletic and premium footwear, apparel and accessories are manufactured outside of the United States, and a significant amount of our products are sold outside of the United States. Accordingly, we are subject to the risks generally associated with global trade and doing business abroad, which include foreign laws and regulations, varying consumer preferences across geographic regions, political unrest, disruptions or delays in cross-border shipments and changes in economic conditions in countries in which our products are manufactured or where we sell products. This includes, for example, the uncertainty surrounding the effect of Brexit, including changes to the legal and regulatory framework that apply to the United Kingdom and its relationship with the EU, as well as new and proposed changes affecting tax laws and trade policy in the United States and elsewhere, as further described below under “—Risks Related to Our Financial, Accounting and Tax Matters—We could be subject to changes in tax laws, tax regulations and tax treaties, including their interpretation and application, in Switzerland, the United States or any other country in which we operate, which could result in additional tax liabilities or increased volatility in our effective tax rate” and “—Risks Related to Legal and Regulatory Compliance—Changes to trade policies, tariffs and import/export regulations in the United States, EU and other jurisdictions, or our failure to comply with such regulations, may have a material adverse effect on our reputation, business, financial condition and results of operations.” There could be legislative actions limiting outsourcing manufacturing and production activities to foreign jurisdictions, including through tariffs or penalties on goods manufactured outside the United States, which may require us to change the way we conduct business and adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

In addition, disease outbreaks, including the current COVID-19 pandemic, terrorist acts and political or military conflict have increased the risks of doing business abroad. These factors, among others, could affect our ability to manufacture products or procure materials, our ability to import products, our ability to sell products in international markets and our cost of doing business. If any of these or other factors make the conduct of business in a particular country undesirable or impractical, our business and financial results could be adversely affected. In addition, many of our imported products are subject to duties, tariffs or quotas that affect the cost and quantity of various types of goods imported into the United States and other countries. Any country in which our products are

Furthermore, we are subject to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act as well as the anti-corruption laws of other countries in which we operate. Although we implement policies and procedures designed to promote compliance with these laws, our employees, contractors and agents, as well as those companies to which we outsource certain of our business operations, may take actions in violation of our policies or such laws. Any such violation could result in sanctions or other penalties and have an adverse effect on our reputation, business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

We distribute our products to customers directly from the factory and through distribution centers located throughout the world. Our ability to meet customer expectations, manage inventory, complete sales and achieve objectives for operating efficiencies and growth, depends on the proper operation of our distribution facilities, the development or expansion of additional distribution capabilities and the timely performance of services by third parties, including those involved in shipping product to and from our distribution facilities. In addition, our property damage, business interruption and other insurance policies may not adequately protect us from adverse effects caused by significant disruptions to our distribution facilities. Any negative impacts to our distribution facilities could result in an adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

As a prominent Swiss brand, geopolitical events that involve Switzerland may have an impact on our business and share price. In addition, our brand and Swiss heritage may be detrimental to the company in the context of geopolitical disputes aimed at Switzerland or actors or situations with significant actual or perceived connection to Switzerland. We sell a significant portion of our products to customers outside of Switzerland and changes, potential changes or uncertainties in regulatory and economic conditions or laws and policies governing foreign trade, manufacturing, and development and investment in the territories and countries where we operate, could adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition.

The February 2022 invasion of Ukraine by the Russian military has significantly amplified existing geopolitical tensions among Russia, Ukraine, Europe, the West and China.

We cannot predict how the war in Ukraine will evolve, but any escalation or expansion of the conflict into other countries, particularly in Europe, would exacerbate geopolitical tensions and could lead to political and/or economic response from the U.S., the E.U. and other countries, which may adversely impact economic conditions. In particular, Russia’s military incursion and the resulting sanctions could also adversely affect global energy and financial markets and thus could adversely impact our operations and the price of our Class A ordinary shares. The extent and duration of the military action, the response thereto, including resulting sanctions, and resulting future market disruptions, are impossible to predict, but could be significant. Additionally, any such disruptions, resulting sanctions or other actions (including cyberattacks) may magnify the impact of other risks factors discussed in this Annual Report.

Climate change and environmental risks such as extreme weather conditions and natural disasters could negatively impact our operating results and financial condition. Additionally, the operations of many of our suppliers and third-party manufacturers are subject to additional environmental risks, such as those related to emissions and water, that are beyond our control and that could harm our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Extreme weather conditions in the areas in which our retail stores, suppliers, manufacturers, customers, distribution centers, headquarters and vendors are located could adversely affect our operating results and financial condition. Moreover, natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes and tsunamis, whether occurring in the United States or abroad, and their related consequences and effects, including energy shortages and public health issues, have in the past temporarily disrupted, and could in the future disrupt, our operations, the operations of our vendors, manufacturers and other suppliers or have in the past and could result in economic instability without recourse on insurance coverage that may negatively impact our operating results and financial condition. In particular, if a natural disaster were to occur in an area in which we or our suppliers, manufacturers, customers, warehouses or distribution centers and vendors are located, our continued success would depend, in part, on the safety and availability of the relevant personnel and facilities and proper functioning of our or third parties’ computer, telecommunication and other systems and operations. In addition, a severe weather event could have an adverse impact on consumer spending, which could in turn result in a decrease in sales of our products. Further, climate change may increase both the frequency and severity of extreme weather conditions and natural disasters, which may affect our business operations, either in a particular region or globally, as well as the activities of our third-party vendors and other suppliers, manufacturers and customers. In addition, the physical changes prompted by climate change could result in changes in regulations or consumer preferences, which could in turn affect our business, operating results and financial condition. Further, if we are unable to find alternative suppliers, replace capacity at key manufacturing or distribution locations or quickly repair damage to our IT systems or supply systems, we could be late in delivering, or be unable to deliver, products to our customers. These events could result in reputational damage, lost sales, cancellation charges or markdowns, all of which could have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

All of our products are manufactured by third party manufacturers. While we are conscious and strategic with our choices of our business partners and require, as part of our supply contract, compliance with our Supplier Code of Conduct and our standards, we do not control our manufacturing suppliers or their business practices. Accordingly, we cannot guarantee their compliance with our guidelines (e.g. emissions, wastewater, or harmful chemical management) or applicable laws. A failure by our suppliers to comply with such requirements could, in turn, lead to fines, penalties or litigation, reduced sales by us as the result of recalls or adverse consumer reactions, damage to our brand and reputation or cause us to seek alternative suppliers, which could increase our costs and result in delayed delivery of our products, product shortages or other disruptions of our operations.

We are committed to CO2 reduction targets that are approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). All our top suppliers (Tier 1) are listed on our website and have committed to our Restricted Substance List (RSL) policy which restricts the use of harmful chemicals. The process of manufacturing footwear and apparel is water-intensive and we work with our factory suppliers to ensure full compliance with water discharge regulations. As of May 2021, all our top factories (Tier 1) factories had a valid wastewater discharge permit.

For example, we rely heavily upon our trademarks and related domain names and distinctive logos to market our premium brand and to build and maintain brand loyalty and recognition. Without adequate protection for our trademarks and trade names, we will not be able to build name recognition in our markets of interest and our business may be adversely affected. Effective trademark protection may not be available or may not be sought in every country in which our products are made available, and contractual disputes may affect the use of marks governed by private contract. Our registered or unregistered trademarks or trade names may be challenged, infringed, circumvented, declared generic or determined to be dilutive of or infringing on other trademarks, or may lapse. Further, at times, competitors may adopt trade names or trademarks similar to ours, thereby impeding our ability to build brand identity and possibly leading to market confusion. In addition, there could be potential trade name or trademark infringement claims brought by owners of other trademarks or trademarks that incorporate variations of our registered or unregistered trademarks or trade names. We have in the past entered, and may in the future enter, into trademark co-existence agreements to settle such claims. Such agreements may restrict the ways in which we are permitted to obtain, maintain, protect and enforce certain trademark rights. Over the long term, if we are unable to establish name recognition based on our trademarks and trade names, then we may not be able to compete effectively and our business may be adversely affected. Similarly, not every variation of a domain name may be available or be registered, even if available. The occurrence of any of these events could result in the erosion of our brand and limit our ability to market our brand using our various domain names, as well as impede our ability to effectively compete against competitors with similar products or technologies.

Additionally, we rely on patent laws for the protection of our Sole, CloudTec, upper, Speedboard and lacing technologies. Any patents that may issue in the future from our pending or future patent applications may not provide us with competitive advantages, may be of limited territorial reach and may be held invalid or unenforceable if successfully challenged by third parties, which may lead to increased competition to our business, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. Certain of our patents are due to expire in the near future, and as our patents expire, the scope of our patent protection will be reduced for certain of our patented technology in those jurisdictions where such protection has existed, which may reduce or eliminate any competitive advantage afforded by our patent portfolio for products utilizing the protected technology or application in those jurisdictions. Additionally, certain of our patents are limited to certain jurisdictions and do not cover all of our key markets. As a result, our patent portfolio may not provide us with sufficient rights to exclude others from commercializing products similar or identical to ours. Furthermore, the issuance of a patent is not conclusive as to its inventorship, scope, validity or

Any successful third-party challenge to our patents could result in the unenforceability or invalidity of such patents, which may lead to increased competition to our business, which could harm our business. In addition, if the breadth or strength of protection provided by our patents and patent applications is threatened, regardless of the outcome, it could dissuade companies from collaborating with us to license, develop or commercialize current or future products.

We also rely on agreements under which we contract to own, or license rights to use, intellectual property developed by employees, contractors and other third parties. While we seek to enter into agreements with all of our employees who develop intellectual property during their employment to assign the rights in such intellectual property to us, we may fail to enter into such agreements with all relevant employees, such agreements may be breached or may not be self-executing, and we may be subject to claims that our employees have misappropriated the trade secrets or other intellectual property or proprietary rights of their former employers or other third parties.

In addition, while we generally enter into confidentiality, intellectual property assignment and non-compete agreements with our employees and third parties, as applicable, to protect our trade secrets, know-how, business strategy and other proprietary information, such confidentiality agreements could be breached and our proprietary information could be disclosed, and we may not be able to obtain adequate remedies for such breaches. These agreements also may not provide meaningful protection for our trade secrets and know-how related to our products in the event of unauthorized use or disclosure or other breaches of the agreements, and we may not be able to prevent such unauthorized disclosure, which could adversely impact our ability to establish or maintain a competitive advantage in the market. If we are required to assert our rights against such parties, it could result in significant cost and distraction. Depending on the parties involved in such a breach, the available remedies may not provide adequate compensation for the value of the proprietary information disclosed to a third party.

We cannot guarantee that our efforts to obtain and maintain intellectual property rights are adequate, that we have secured, or will be able to secure, appropriate permissions or protections for all of the intellectual property rights we use or rely on. Furthermore, even if we are able to obtain any intellectual property rights, any such intellectual property rights may be challenged, invalidated, circumvented, infringed, misappropriated or otherwise violated. Any challenge to our intellectual property rights could result in them being narrowed in scope or declared invalid or unenforceable. In addition, other parties may also independently develop products and technologies that are substantially similar or superior to ours and we may not be able to stop such parties from using such independently developed products or technologies from competing with us. If we fail to obtain and maintain our intellectual property rights adequately, we may lose an important advantage in the markets in which we compete.

Intellectual property rights in certain elements of our products and manufacturing technology are owned or controlled by our suppliers and are generally not unique to us. Our ability to obtain intellectual property protection for our products is therefore limited. As a result, our current and future competitors are able to manufacture and sell products with performance characteristics, designs and styling similar to our products. Because many of our competitors have significantly greater financial, distribution, marketing, and other resources than we do, they may be able to manufacture and sell products based on ours at lower prices than we can. If our competitors sell products similar to ours at lower prices, our financial results could suffer.

Our intellectual property rights and the enforcement or defense of such rights may be affected by developments or uncertainty in laws and regulations relating to intellectual property rights. Some of our brands, trademarks and logos might not be sufficiently distinctive for robust legal protection. Moreover, many companies have encountered significant problems in protecting and defending intellectual property rights in foreign jurisdictions. The legal systems of certain countries, particularly certain developing countries, do not favor the enforcement of patents, design rights, trademarks, trade secrets and other intellectual property protection, which could make it difficult for us to stop the infringement, misappropriation or other violation of our intellectual property or marketing of competing products in violation of our intellectual property rights generally. Proceedings to enforce our patent rights in foreign jurisdictions could result in substantial costs and divert our efforts and attention from other aspects of our business, could put our patents at risk of being invalidated or interpreted narrowly and our patent applications at risk of not issuing and could provoke third parties to assert claims against us.

Over time we may increase our investment in protecting our intellectual property through additional patent, trademark and other intellectual property filings, which could be expensive and time consuming. Effective patent, trademark, trade secret, design right, copyright and other intellectual property protection is expensive to develop and maintain, both in terms of initial and ongoing registration requirements and the costs of defending our rights. Even so, these measures may not be sufficient to offer us meaningful protection. Furthermore, monitoring unauthorized use of our intellectual property is difficult and costly. From time to time, we seek to analyze our competitors’ products, and may in the future seek to enforce our rights against potential infringement, misappropriation or other violation. However, the steps we have taken to protect our intellectual property rights may not be adequate to prevent infringement, misappropriation or other violations of our intellectual property. We may not be able to detect unauthorized use of, or take appropriate steps to enforce, our intellectual property rights, or pursue all counterfeiters who may seek to benefit from our brand. Any inability to meaningfully protect our intellectual property rights could result in harm to our ability to compete and reduce demand for our products. Moreover, our failure to develop and properly manage new intellectual property could adversely affect our market positions, business opportunities and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Third parties may initiate legal proceedings alleging that we are infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating their intellectual property rights, the outcome of which would be uncertain and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our commercial success depends on our avoiding infringement, misappropriation or other violations of the intellectual property rights of third parties. As we face increasing competition, and to the extent we gain greater public recognition, the possibility of intellectual property rights claims against us grows. Any claim or litigation alleging that we have infringed, misappropriated or otherwise violated intellectual property rights of third parties, with or without merit, and whether or not settled out of court or determined in our favor, could be time consuming and costly to address and resolve, and could divert the time and attention of our management and technical personnel. Such claims may be made by third parties seeking to obtain a competitive advantage, including non-practicing entities or individuals with no relevant product sales, and, therefore, our own issued and pending patents, registered designs, registered trademarks and other intellectual property rights may provide little or no deterrence to these rights holders in bringing intellectual property rights claims against us. Additionally, some third parties have substantially greater human and financial resources than we do and are able to sustain the costs and workload of complex intellectual property litigation to a greater degree and for longer periods of time than we could. The outcome of any litigation is inherently uncertain, and there can be no assurances that favorable final outcomes will be obtained in all cases. In addition, third parties may seek, and we may become subject to, preliminary or provisional rulings in the course of any such litigation, including potential preliminary injunctions requiring us to change our products or even cease the commercialization of our products entirely.

We may decide to settle such lawsuits and disputes on terms that are unfavorable to us. Similarly, if any litigation to which we are a party is resolved adversely, we may be subject to an unfavorable judgment that may not be reversed upon appeal, including being subject to a permanent injunction and being required to pay substantial monetary damages, including treble damages and attorneys’ fees, if we are found to have willfully infringed a party’s intellectual property rights. The terms of such a settlement or judgment may require us to cease some or all of our operations or pay substantial amounts to the other party. Even if we have an agreement to indemnify us against such costs, the indemnifying party may be unable or unwilling to uphold its contractual obligations. Further, our liability insurance may not cover potential claims of this type adequately or at all. In addition, we may have to seek a license to continue practices found to be in violation of a third party’s rights. If we are required, or choose to enter into royalty or licensing arrangements, such arrangements may not be available on reasonable terms, or at all, and may significantly increase our operating costs and expenses. Such arrangements may also only be available on a non-exclusive basis, such that third parties, including our competitors, could have access to use the same intellectual property to compete with us. We may also have to redesign our products so they do not infringe, misappropriate or otherwise violate third-party intellectual property rights, which may not be possible or may require substantial monetary expenditures and time, during which our products may not be available for commercialization or use. If we cannot redesign our products in a non-infringing manner or obtain a license for any allegedly infringing aspect of our business, we would be forced to limit our products and may be unable to compete effectively.

In addition, in any intellectual property proceeding against us or that we assert against a third party, there could be public announcements of the results of hearings, motions or other interim proceedings or developments, and if securities analysts or investors perceive these results to be negative, it could have a material adverse effect on the price of our Class A ordinary shares. Such litigation or proceedings could substantially increase our expenses and reduce the resources available for development activities or any future sales, marketing or distribution activities. Furthermore, because of the substantial amount of discovery required in connection with intellectual property litigation, there is a risk that some of our confidential information could be compromised by disclosure during this type of litigation. Any of the foregoing, and any unfavorable resolution of such disputes and litigation, could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

We license intellectual property rights from third-party owners. If we fail to comply with our obligations in any current or future agreements under which we license intellectual property rights from third parties or otherwise experience disruptions to our business relationships with our licensors, we could lose license rights that are important to our business.

We are and may become party to license agreements with third parties to obtain the rights to certain brands or to allow commercialization of our products. Such agreements may impose numerous obligations, such as development, payment, royalty, sublicensing, insurance, enforcement and other obligations on us in order to maintain the licenses. In spite of our best efforts, our licensors might conclude that we have materially breached such license agreements and might therefore terminate the license agreements, thereby removing or limiting our ability to use certain brands or develop and commercialize products covered by these license agreements. For example, we do not own “THE ROGER” brand and are dependent on a license from Tenro AG for certain trademarks and other rights related to Roger Federer’s name, image and likeness. If our license agreement with Tenro AG were to terminate for any reason, we may be required to cease the development, advertisement, promotion and sale of certain of our products. Any termination of our licenses could result in the loss of significant rights and could harm our ability to commercialize our products, which could have a material adverse effect on our sales, profitability or financial condition.

If we do not prevail in such disputes, we may lose any or all of our rights under such license agreements, experience significant delays in the development and commercialization of our products and technologies, or incur liability for damages, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business prospects, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, we may seek to obtain additional licenses from our licensors, and, in connection with obtaining such licenses, we may agree to amend our existing licenses in a manner that may be more favorable to the applicable licensor, including by agreeing to terms that could enable third parties, including our competitors, to receive licenses to a portion of the intellectual property that is subject to our existing licenses and to compete with our products.

In addition, the agreements under which we may license intellectual property from third parties are likely to be complex, and certain provisions in such agreements may be susceptible to multiple interpretations. The resolution of any contract interpretation disagreement that may arise could narrow what we believe to be the scope of our rights to the relevant intellectual property, or increase what we believe to be our financial or other obligations under the relevant agreement, either of which could have a material adverse effect on our sales, business, financial condition or results of operations.

Our business involves the storage and transmission of a significant amount of personal, confidential, and sensitive information, including the personal information of our customers and employees, credit card information, information relating to customer preferences, and our proprietary financial, operational and strategic information. The protection of this information is vitally important to us as the loss, theft, misuse, unauthorized disclosure, or unauthorized access of such information could lead to significant reputational or competitive harm, result in litigation involving us or our business partners, expose us to regulatory proceedings, and cause us to incur substantial liabilities, fines, penalties, or expenses. As a result, we believe our future success and growth depends, in part, on the ability of our key business processes and systems, including our IT and global communication systems, to prevent the theft, loss, misuse, unauthorized disclosure, or unauthorized access of this personal, confidential, and sensitive information, and to respond quickly and effectively if data security incidents do occur.

The frequency, intensity, and sophistication of cyber-attacks, ransom-ware attacks, and other data security incidents has significantly increased in recent years and, as with many other businesses, we have experienced, and are continually at risk of being subject to, such attacks and incidents. Due to the increased risk of these types of attacks and incidents, we expend significant resources on IT and data security tools, measures, and processes designed to protect our IT systems, as well as the personal, confidential, or sensitive information stored on or transmitted through those systems, and to ensure an effective response to any cyber-attack or data security incident. Despite the implementation of preventative and detective security controls, our IT systems are vulnerable to damage or interruption from a variety of sources, including telecommunications or network failures or interruptions, system malfunction, natural disasters, epidemics, malicious human acts, terrorism and war. Our ability to effectively manage and maintain our inventory and to ship products to customers on a timely basis depends significantly on the reliability of our IT systems. We also use these systems to process financial information and results of operations for internal reporting purposes and to comply with regulatory financial reporting, legal and tax requirements. IT systems provided by third parties, such as Microsoft and Salesforce, may also be difficult to integrate with other tools due to their complexity, resulting in high data inconsistency and incompatibility.

Our IT systems are additionally vulnerable to physical or electronic break-ins, security breaches from inadvertent or intentional actions by our employees, third-party service providers, contractors, consultants, business partners, and/or other third parties, from cyber-attacks by malicious third parties (including the deployment of harmful malware, ransomware, denial-of-service attacks, social engineering, and other means to affect service reliability and threaten the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information), or other data security incidents. These risks may be exacerbated in the remote work environment. In addition, because the techniques used to obtain unauthorized access to IT systems are constantly evolving and becoming more sophisticated, may not be recognized until launched, and can originate from a wide variety of sources, including outside groups such as external service providers, organized crime affiliates, terrorist organizations, or hostile foreign governments or agencies, we may be unable to anticipate all types of security threats or implement adequate preventive measures in response.

Cyber-attacks or data security incidents could remain undetected for an extended period, which could potentially result in significant harm to our systems, as well as unauthorized access to the information stored on and transmitted by our systems. Even when a security breach is detected, the full extent of the breach may not be determined immediately. The costs to us to mitigate network security

If any of these events were to occur, it could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations and result in harm to our reputation and the price of our Class A ordinary shares. Furthermore, we do not currently maintain a disaster recovery or business continuity plan to address such disruptions and we may not be able to adequately continue our business or return to operability within a reasonable period of time in the case of such an occurrence. Recovery of our IT systems may be additionally hampered where we have outsourced the operation of IT and data storage to third parties.

In addition, if a cyber-attack or other data incident results in the loss, theft, misuse, unauthorized disclosure, or unauthorized access of personal, confidential, or sensitive information belonging to our customers, suppliers, or employees, it could put us at a competitive disadvantage, result in the deterioration of our customers’ confidence in our brand, cause our suppliers to reconsider their relationship with our company or impose more onerous contractual provisions and subject us to potential litigation, liability, fines and penalties. For example, we could be subject to regulatory or other actions pursuant to domestic and international privacy laws, including regulations such as the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”), the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) in the EU and Swiss data protection laws. This could result in costly investigations and litigation, civil or criminal penalties, operational changes, and negative publicity that could adversely affect our reputation, as well as our results of operations and financial condition. For more information regarding risks related to our data privacy and security practices, see “—Changes in laws or regulations relating to data privacy and security, or any actual or perceived failure by us to comply with such laws and regulations, or contractual or other obligations relating to data privacy and security, could lead to government enforcement actions (which could include civil or criminal penalties), private litigation or adverse publicity and could have a material adverse effect on our reputation, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.”

We are also reliant on the security practices of our third-party service providers, which may be outside of our direct control. The services provided by these third parties are subject to the same risk of outages, other failures and security breaches described above. If these third parties fail to adhere to adequate security practices, or experience a breach of their systems, the data of our employees, customers and business associates may be improperly accessed, used or disclosed. In addition, our providers have broad discretion to change and interpret the terms of service and other policies with respect to us, and those actions may be unfavorable to our business operations. Our providers may also take actions beyond our control that could harm our business, including discontinuing or limiting our access to one or more services, increasing pricing terms, terminating or seeking to terminate our contractual relationship altogether, or altering how we are able to process data in a way that is unfavorable or costly to us. Although we expect that we could obtain similar services from other third parties, if our arrangements with our current providers were terminated, we could experience interruptions in our business, as well as delays and additional expenses in arranging for alternative cloud infrastructure services. Any loss or interruption to our IT systems or the services provided by third parties could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, due to the recent Russia-Ukraine conflict, there have been publicized threats to increase hacking activity against the critical infrastructure of any nation or organization that retaliates against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. Any such increase in such attacks on our third-party service providers or other systems could adversely affect our network systems or other operations. We have measures in place that are designed to detect and respond to such cyber-attacks and data security incidents, but there can be no assurance that our efforts will prevent or detect such cyber-attacks and data security incidents.

We are, and may increasingly become, subject to various laws, directives, industry standards and regulations, as well as contractual obligations, relating to data privacy and security in the jurisdictions in which we operate. The regulatory environment related to data privacy and security is increasingly rigorous, with new and constantly changing requirements applicable to our business, and enforcement practices are likely to remain uncertain for the foreseeable future. These laws and regulations may be interpreted and applied differently over time and from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and it is possible that they will be interpreted and applied in ways that may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.

In the United States, various federal and state regulators, including governmental agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission, have adopted, or are considering adopting, laws and regulations concerning personal information and data security and have prioritized privacy and information security violations for enforcement actions. Certain state laws may be more stringent or broader in scope, or offer greater individual rights, with respect to personal information than federal, international or other state laws, and such laws may differ from each other, all of which may complicate compliance efforts. For example, the CCPA, which increases privacy rights for California residents and imposes obligations on companies that process their personal information, went into effect on January 1, 2020. Among other things, the CCPA requires covered companies to provide new disclosures to California consumers and provide such consumers new data protection and privacy rights, including the ability to opt out of certain data-sharing arrangements of personal information, and the ability to access and delete personal information. The CCPA provides for civil penalties for violations, as well as a private right of action for certain data breaches that result in the loss of personal information. This private right of action may increase the likelihood of, and risks associated with, data

We are also subject to international laws, regulations and standards in many jurisdictions, which apply broadly to the collection, use, retention, security, disclosure, transfer and other processing of personal information. For example, the GDPR, which became effective in May 2018, greatly increased the European Commission’s jurisdictional reach of its laws and adds a broad array of requirements for handling personal data. EU member states are tasked under the GDPR to enact, and have enacted, certain implementing legislation that adds to or further interprets the GDPR requirements and potentially extends our obligations and potential liability for failing to meet such obligations. The GDPR, together with national legislation, regulations and guidelines of the EU member states and the United Kingdom governing the processing of personal data, imposes strict obligations and restrictions on the ability to collect, use, retain, protect, disclose, transfer and otherwise process personal data. In particular, the GDPR includes obligations and restrictions concerning data transparency and consent, the overall rights of individuals to whom the personal data relates, the transfer of personal data out of the European Economic Area (“EEA”) or the United Kingdom, security breach notifications and the security and confidentiality of personal data. The GDPR authorizes fines for certain violations of up to 4% of global annual net sales or €20 million, whichever is greater. Recent legal developments in the EU have created further complexity and uncertainty regarding transfers of personal data from the EEA and the United Kingdom to the United States. Most recently, in July 2020, the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) invalidated the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework (“Privacy Shield”) under which personal data could be transferred from the EEA to the United States. While the CJEU upheld the adequacy of standard contractual clauses, a standard form of contract approved by the European Commission as an adequate personal data transfer mechanism and potential alternative to the Privacy Shield, it made clear that reliance on them alone may not necessarily be sufficient in all circumstances. Further, the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the EU has created uncertainty with regard to data protection regulation in the United Kingdom. As of January 1, 2021, we are also subject to the UK GDPR and UK Data Protection Act of 2018, which retains the GDPR in the United Kingdom’s national law. These recent developments will require us to review and amend the legal mechanisms by which we make or receive personal data transfers. As supervisory authorities issue further guidance on personal data export mechanisms, including circumstances where the standard contractual clauses and other mechanisms cannot be used, or start taking enforcement action, we could suffer additional costs, complaints or regulatory investigations or fines, or if we are otherwise unable to transfer personal data between and among countries and regions in which we operate, it could affect the manner in which we do business, the geographical location or segregation of our relevant operations, and could adversely affect our financial results.

The Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection, or DPA, also applies to the collection and processing of personal data by companies located in Switzerland, or in certain circumstances, by companies

All of these evolving compliance and operational requirements impose significant costs, such as costs related to organizational changes, implementing additional protection technologies, training associates and engaging consultants, which are likely to increase over time. In addition, such requirements may require us to modify our data processing practices and policies, distract management or divert resources from other initiatives and projects, all of which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows. Any failure or perceived failure by us to comply with any applicable federal, state or similar foreign laws and regulations relating to data privacy and security could result in damage to our reputation and our relationship with our customers, as well as proceedings or litigation by governmental agencies or customers, including class action privacy litigation in certain jurisdictions, which could subject us to significant fines, sanctions, awards, penalties or judgments, any of which could result in costly investigations and litigation, civil or criminal penalties, operational changes, and negative publicity that could adversely affect our reputation, as well as our results of operations and financial condition.

It is critical to our success that retailers, consumers and potential new customers within the countries we operate in are able to access our online services at all times. We operate on a combination of shared and individual, central or local IT systems and solutions. Any failure of either central or local IT systems and functions may disrupt the efficiency and functioning of all our operations. Updates or changes in the software or hardware technology may lead to failures of communication between our platforms and customers in the course of the order transmission or other processes. We therefore rely on a large number of IT systems, such as local network and internet coverage, to manage the entire process, from the placing of and payment for orders online by customers to the receipt of and confirmation of those orders by our backend systems, which creates significant complexity and negatively affects our ability to scale our business and realize cost savings.

We have made substantial investments into the development of our IT systems, which form the back bone of our business operations. Due to the complexity of these IT systems, we cannot rule out that they may cause or contribute to failures in the order transmission process or may prove less efficient than anticipated. In addition, a failure of any individual network carrier, IT system or IT provider would impact our ability to receive and transmit orders or to accept payment for orders. The efficient operation and scalability of our own IT systems and third-party IT systems is therefore critical to maintain operations.

We have previously experienced service disruptions, and in the future, we may experience further service disruptions, outages, or other performance problems due to a variety of factors, including infrastructure changes, human or software errors, capacity constraints due to an overwhelming number of users accessing our platform simultaneously, and fraud, denial-of-service attacks or cyber-attacks. In some instances, we may not be able to identify the cause or causes of these performance problems within an acceptable period of time. It may become increasingly difficult to maintain and improve the availability of our platform, especially during peak usage times and as customer traffic increases. If our online marketplace is unavailable when users attempt to access it or does not load as quickly as customers expect, they may seek other services, and may not return to our online marketplace as often in the future, or at all. This would harm our ability to attract customers and decrease the frequency with which customers use our online marketplace. We expect to continue to make significant investments to maintain and improve the availability of our online marketplace and to enable rapid releases of new products. To the extent that we do not effectively address capacity constraints, respond adequately to service disruptions, upgrade our systems as needed or continually develop our technology and network

Furthermore, if we are unable to satisfy our obligations as a public company, we could be subject to delisting of our Class A ordinary shares, fines, sanctions and other regulatory action and potentially civil litigation, which could adversely impact our business, results of operation, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

From time to time, we may invest in technology, business infrastructure, new businesses, product offering and manufacturing innovation and expansion of existing businesses, such as our DTC operations, which require substantial cash investments and management attention. We believe cost-effective investments are essential to business growth and profitability; however, significant investments are subject to typical risks and uncertainties inherent in developing a new business or expanding an existing business. The failure of any significant investment to provide expected returns or profitability could adversely impact our financial results and results of operation, and divert our management’s attention from more profitable business operations.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with IFRS accounting principles requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances at the time of the estimate, as provided in “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects - E. Critical Accounting Estimates.” The results of these estimates form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets, liabilities and equity, and the amount of net sales and expenses that are not readily apparent from other sources. Significant assumptions and estimates used in preparing our consolidated financial statements include those related to revenue recognition, trade receivables allowance, leases, intangible assets, share-based compensation, employee benefits, provisions and taxes. Our operating results may be adversely affected if our assumptions change or if actual circumstances differ from those in our assumptions, which could cause our operating results to fall below the expectations of securities analysts and investors, resulting in a decline in the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. Internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements in accordance with IFRS.

As described in "Item 15. Controls and Procedures" of this Annual report, management has concluded that we have a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting. A material weakness is a deficiency, or combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the Company’s annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected and corrected on a timely basis.

This material weakness did not result in a material misstatement in our financial statements; however, if we are unable to remediate this material weakness or if other material weaknesses are detected in the future, any such material weakness could result in misstatements of our account balances or disclosures that would result in material misstatements of our financial statements that would not be prevented or detected. We may incur significant costs in connection with remediating this material weakness.

In accordance with the provisions of the JOBS Act, we and our independent registered public accounting firm were not required to, and did not, perform an evaluation of our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2021 in accordance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We cannot assure you that we will be able to successfully remediate the material weakness described above. Even if we successfully remediate such material weakness, we cannot assure you that we will not suffer from this or other material weaknesses in the future.

Reporting obligations as a public company and our anticipated growth have placed and are likely to continue to place a considerable strain on our financial and management systems, processes and controls, as well as on our personnel. In addition, following our first year as a public company, we will be required to document and test our internal controls over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act so that our management can certify the effectiveness of our internal controls. As a result, we will be required to continue to improve our financial and managerial controls, reporting systems and procedures, to incur substantial expenses to test our systems and to make such improvements and to hire additional personnel. If our management is unable to certify the effectiveness of our internal controls or if additional material weaknesses in our internal controls are identified, we could be subject to regulatory scrutiny and a loss of public confidence, which could harm our business and cause a decline in the price of our Class A ordinary shares. In addition, if we do not maintain adequate financial and management personnel, processes and controls, we may not be able to accurately report our financial performance on a timely basis, which could cause a decline in the price of our Class A ordinary shares and harm our ability to raise capital. Failure to accurately report our financial performance on a timely basis could also jeopardize our continued listing on the NYSE or any other exchange on which our Class A ordinary shares may be listed. Delisting of our Class A ordinary shares from any exchange would reduce the liquidity of the market for our Class A ordinary shares, which would reduce the price of our Class A ordinary shares and increase the volatility of our share price.

A control system, no matter how well designed and implemented, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the control system’s objectives will be met. 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. Due to the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues within an organization are detected. If we cannot provide reliable financial reports or prevent fraud, our reputation and operating results could be materially adversely affected, which could also cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information, which in turn could result in a reduction in the trading price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates could harm our net sales, results of operations and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

The reporting currency for our consolidated financial statements is the Swiss franc. Because we recognize net sales in the United States in U.S. dollars, if the U.S. dollar weakens against the Swiss franc, it would have a negative impact on our net sales and operating results upon translation of those results into Swiss francs for the purposes of financial statement consolidation. We may face similar risks in other foreign jurisdictions where sales are recognized in foreign currencies such as Euro and others. Although we engage in short-term hedging transactions for a large portion of our foreign currency-denominated cash flows to mitigate foreign exchange risks, depending upon changes in future currency rates, such gains or losses could have a significant, and potentially adverse, effect on our results of operations. Foreign exchange variations (including the value of the Swiss franc relative to the U.S. dollar) have been significant in the past and current foreign exchange rates may not be indicative of future exchange rates.

Our earnings per share are reported in Swiss francs, and accordingly may be translated into U.S. dollars by analysts or our investors. As a result, the value of an investment in our Class A ordinary shares to a U.S. shareholder will fluctuate as the U.S. dollar rises and falls against the Swiss franc. Our decision to declare a dividend depends on results of operations reported in Swiss francs. As a result, U.S. and other shareholders seeking U.S. dollar total returns, including increases in the price of our Class A ordinary shares and dividends paid, are subject to foreign exchange risk as the U.S. dollar rises and falls against the Swiss franc.

We could be subject to changes in tax laws, tax regulations and tax treaties, including their interpretation and application, in Switzerland, the United States or any other country in which we operate, which could result in additional tax liabilities or increased volatility in our effective tax rate.

We are subject to the tax laws in Switzerland, the United States and numerous other jurisdictions. Current economic and political conditions make tax laws, tax regulations and tax treaties, including their interpretation and application, in any jurisdiction subject to significant change. We earn a substantial portion of our income in countries around the world and are subject to the tax laws of those jurisdictions. A number of the jurisdictions in which we operate have recently reformed or changed their tax laws, regulations and tax treaties, such as the anti-tax avoidance directive adopted by the member states of the EU, and many jurisdictions are considering other proposals to reform or change their tax laws, regulations and tax treaties, including minimum tax and tax-avoidance proposals being considered in connection with the OECD’s project on base erosion and profit shifting, and proposals in the United States. The adoption or implementation of these proposals could significantly impact how we are taxed on our earnings from operations in these jurisdictions. Although we cannot predict whether or in what form these proposals will be adopted, several of the proposals considered, if enacted into law, could have an adverse impact on our income tax expense and cash flows. Portions of our operations are subject to a reduced tax rate or are free of tax under various tax holidays and rulings. We also utilize tax rulings and other agreements to obtain certainty in treatment of certain tax matters. These holidays and rulings expire in whole or in part from time to time and may be extended when certain conditions are met or terminated if certain conditions are not met. The impact of any changes in conditions would be the loss of certainty in treatment thus potentially impacting our effective income tax rate.

In addition, due to the Swiss corporate tax law reform that took effect on January 1, 2020, all Swiss cantons, including the Canton of Zurich, have abolished previously existing cantonal tax privileges. Therefore, since January 1, 2020, we are subject to standard cantonal taxation. The standard effective corporate tax rate in Zurich, Canton of Zurich, may change from time to time. The standard

Adverse outcomes resulting from examination of our income or other tax returns could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

We are subject to the examination of our tax returns by tax authorities in Switzerland, the United States and numerous other jurisdictions. We regularly assess the likelihood of an adverse outcome resulting from these examinations to determine the adequacy of its provision for income taxes. Although we believe our tax provisions are adequate, the final determination of tax audits and any related disputes could be materially different from our historical income tax provisions and accruals. The results of audits or related disputes could have an adverse effect on our financial statements for the period or periods for which the applicable final determinations are made. For example, we and our subsidiaries are engaged in a number of intercompany transactions across multiple tax jurisdictions. Although we believe that our transfer pricing policies and positions are correct under current law and we have clearly reflected the economics of these transactions and the proper local transfer pricing documentation is in place, tax authorities may propose and sustain adjustments that could result in changes that may result in material additional tax liabilities and impact our mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates. These factors could have a negative impact on our business, results of operation, financial condition and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

Under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code, we will be a PFIC for any taxable year in which, after the application of certain look-through rules with respect to our subsidiaries, either (i) 75% or more of our gross income consists of passive income or (ii) 50% or more of the average quarterly value of our assets consists of assets that produce, or are held for the production of, passive income (including cash). Passive income includes, among other things, dividends, interest, certain non-active rents and royalties, and capital gains. Based on the market price of our Class A ordinary shares during 2021 and the composition of our income and assets, including goodwill, we believe we were not a PFIC for our 2021 taxable year. However, the determination of whether we are a PFIC is a fact-intensive determination that must be made on an annual basis applying principles and methodologies that are in some circumstances unclear, and whether we were a PFIC in 2021 is uncertain in several respects. Moreover, our PFIC status for any taxable year will depend on the composition of our income and assets and the value of our assets from time to time (which may be determined, in part, by reference to the market price of our Class A ordinary shares, which may fluctuate substantially over time). Accordingly, there can be no assurance that we will not be a PFIC for any future taxable year.

Certain adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences could apply to U.S. investors if we are treated as a PFIC for any taxable year during which such investors hold our Class A ordinary shares. For further discussion, see "Taxation - U.S. Tax Considerations."

Changes in U.S., EU or international social, political, regulatory and economic conditions could impact our business, financial condition, results of operations and the price of our Class A ordinary shares. In particular, political and economic instability, geopolitical conflicts, political unrest, civil strife, terrorist activity, acts of war, public corruption, expropriation and other economic or political uncertainties in the United States or internationally could interrupt and negatively affect the sale of our products or other business operations. Any negative sentiment toward the United States, Switzerland or toward any country where we operate, sell or have our products manufactured as a result of any such changes could also adversely affect our business.

In addition, changes in laws and policies governing foreign trade, manufacturing, development and investment in the territories or countries where we currently sell our products or conduct our business could adversely affect our business. The previous U.S. presidential administration instituted or proposed changes in trade policies that include the negotiation or termination of trade agreements, the imposition of higher tariffs on imports into the United States, economic sanctions on individuals, corporations or countries, and other government regulations affecting trade between the United States and other countries where we conduct our business. Brexit may also adversely impact our business, including through additional duties on the importation of our products into the United Kingdom from the EU or through shipping delays. It may be time consuming and expensive for us to alter our business operations in order to adapt to or comply with any such changes.

Changes or proposed changes in the trade policies of the United States, the European Economic Area or any of its member states or other jurisdictions may result in restrictions and economic disincentives on international trade. Tariffs and other changes in U.S. and other trade policies have in the past and could in the future trigger retaliatory actions by affected countries, and certain foreign governments have instituted or are considering imposing retaliatory measures on certain U.S. goods. Further, any emerging protectionist or nationalist trends either in the United States, the European Economic Area or any of its member states or in other countries could affect the trade environment. We, similar to many other multinational corporations, do a significant amount of business that would be impacted by changes to the trade policies of the United States and other countries (including governmental action related to tariffs, international trade agreements, or economic sanctions). Such changes have the potential to adversely impact the U.S. economy or certain sectors thereof or the economy of another country in which we conduct operations, our industry and the global demand for our products, and as a result, could have negative impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

We collect, process, maintain and use data, including sensitive information on individuals, available to us through online activities and other customer interactions in our business. Our current and future marketing programs may depend on our ability to collect, maintain and use this information, and our ability to do so is subject to evolving international, U.S., Swiss, EU and other laws and enforcement trends. We strive to comply with all applicable laws and other legal obligations relating to privacy, data protection and customer protection, including those relating to the use of data for marketing purposes. It is possible, however, that these requirements may be interpreted and applied belatedly or in a manner that is inconsistent from one jurisdiction to another, may conflict with other rules, may conflict with our

Certain of our marketing practices rely upon e-mail to communicate with consumers on our behalf. We may face risk if our use of e-mail is found to violate applicable laws. We post our privacy policy and practices concerning the use and disclosure of user data on our websites. Any failure by us to comply with our posted privacy policy or other privacy-related laws and regulations could result in proceedings that could potentially harm our business. In addition, as data privacy and marketing laws change, we may run late on implementation, or incur additional costs to ensure we remain in compliance. If applicable data privacy and marketing laws become more restrictive at the international, federal or state levels, our compliance costs may increase, our ability to effectively engage customers through personalized marketing may decrease, our investment in our e-commerce platform may not be fully realized, our opportunities for growth may be curtailed by our compliance burden and our potential reputational harm or liability for security breaches may increase.

Our business requires compliance with many laws and regulations, including, but not limited to, labor and employment, product safety, labelling, sales and other taxes, customs, and consumer protection laws and ordinances that regulate our industry generally or govern the production, importation, promotion and sale of merchandise, and the operation of warehouse facilities. For example, various jurisdictions worldwide have laws and regulations that aim to protect consumers, including by prohibiting advertising or marketing practices that may be deemed misleading or deceptive. Failure to comply with any laws or regulations could subject us to lawsuits and other proceedings, and could also lead to damage awards, fines and penalties. We may become involved in a number of legal proceedings and audits, including, but not limited to, government and agency investigations, and consumer, employment, tort and other litigation. In addition, we could become subject to potential antitrust claims, which may relate to anti-competitive behavior, pricing pressures on our distribution partners or other allegations. The outcome of some of these legal proceedings, audits and other contingencies could require us to take, or refrain from taking, actions that could harm our operations or require us to pay substantial amounts of money, harming our financial condition. Additionally, defending against these lawsuits and proceedings may be necessary, which could result in substantial costs and diversion of management’s attention and resources, harming our financial condition. There can be no assurance that any pending or future legal or regulatory proceedings and audits will not harm our business, financial condition, reputation, results of operations and the price of our Class A ordinary shares.

While each of our shares carries one vote in our general meeting of shareholders, irrespective of the par value of the shares, our Class A ordinary shares have a par value of CHF 0.10 and Class B voting rights shares have a par value of CHF 0.01. As a result, on a capital-invested basis, each Class B voting rights share has ten times the voting power of each Class A ordinary share. Given the increased voting power of our Class B voting rights shares, members of our extended founder team, who are our only Class B shareholders, hold approximately 23.7% of total combined voting power of our outstanding shares as at February 28, 2022. In addition, entitlements to dividends and other distributions are also

Our dual class structure may result in a lower or more volatile market price of our Class A ordinary shares or in adverse publicity or other adverse consequences. For example, certain index providers have announced restrictions on including companies with dual or multiple class share structures in certain of their indexes. S&P Dow Jones, MSCI and FTSE Russell have announced changes to their eligibility criteria for inclusion of shares of public companies on certain indices, including the S&P 500. These changes exclude companies with multiple classes of ordinary shares from being added to these indices. In addition, several stockholder advisory firms have announced their opposition to the use of dual or multiple class structures. As a result, the dual class structure of our shares may prevent the inclusion of our Class A ordinary shares in these indices and mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and other investment vehicles that attempt to passively track these indices will not invest in our stock. Our dual-class structure may cause stockholder advisory firms to publish negative commentary about our corporate governance practices or otherwise seek to cause us to change our capital structure. Any such exclusion from indices could result in a less active trading market for our Class A ordinary shares and depress the valuations of publicly traded companies excluded from the indices compared to those of similar companies that are included. Any actions or publications by stockholder advisory firms critical of our corporate governance practices or capital structure could also adversely affect the value of our Class A ordinary shares.

We qualify as a foreign private issuer under the Exchange Act and therefore we are not required to comply with all of the periodic disclosure and current reporting requirements of the Exchange Act applicable to U.S. domestic issuers. In order to maintain our current status as a foreign private issuer a majority of our outstanding voting securities must be either directly or indirectly owned of record by nonresidents of the United States and either of the following criteria are met (i) a majority of our

The corporate governance rules of the NYSE require listed companies to have, among other things, a majority of independent directors and independent director oversight of executive compensation, nomination of directors and corporate governance matters. As a foreign private issuer, we are permitted to, and we do, follow home country practice in lieu of the above requirements. As long as we rely on the foreign private issuer exemption to certain of the NYSE corporate governance standards, a majority of the directors on our board of directors are not required to be independent directors, our compensation committee is not required to be composed entirely of independent directors and director nominations are not required to be made, or recommended to our full board of directors, by our independent directors or by a nominations committee that consists entirely of independent directors. Therefore, our board of directors’ approach to governance may be different from that of a board of directors consisting of a majority of independent directors, and, as a result, the management oversight of our company may be more limited than if we were subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance standards. We are also subject to certain reduced disclosure obligations as a result of being a foreign private issuer. As such, investors will not have access to the same information as for similar companies that are not foreign private issuers.

In the event we no longer qualify as a foreign private issuer, we intend to rely on the “controlled company” exemption under the NYSE corporate governance rules. A “controlled company” under the NYSE corporate governance rules is a company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by an individual, group or another company. Our extended founder team controls a majority of the combined voting power of our outstanding shares, making us a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE corporate governance rules. As a controlled company, we would be eligible to, and, in the event we no longer qualify as a foreign private issuer, we intend to, elect not to comply with certain requirements of the NYSE corporate governance standards, including (i) the requirement that a majority of the board of directors consist of independent directors, (ii) the requirement that we have a compensation committee that is composed entirely of independent directors and (iii) the requirement that our director nominations be made, or recommended to our full board of directors, by our independent directors or by a nominations committee that consists entirely of independent directors.

We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the JOBS Act, and we intend to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other 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(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We cannot predict if investors will find our Class A ordinary shares less attractive because we will rely on these exemptions, including reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation. If some investors find our Class A ordinary shares less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our Class A ordinary shares and our share price may be more volatile.

In addition, Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an “emerging growth company” can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) for complying with new or revised accounting standards. In other words, an “emerging growth company” can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. However, this transition period is only applicable under U.S. GAAP. As a result, we will adopt new or revised accounting standards on the relevant dates on which adoption of such standards is required or permitted by the International Accounting Standards Board.

In addition, for as long as we are an “emerging growth company”, our independent registered public accounting firm will not be required to attest to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We could be an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the financial year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of our IPO, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least USD 1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our Class A ordinary shares held by non-affiliates exceeds USD 700 million as of the last day of the second financial quarter of such financial year, and (2) the date on which we have issued more than USD 1.0 billion in non-convertible debt during the prior three-year period. Although we expect to lose our status as an emerging growth company as a result of meeting the conditions of a large accelerated filer as of the end of our fiscal year ended in 2022, we cannot be certain if the current reduced disclosure requirements applicable to emerging growth companies will make our Class A ordinary shares less attractive to investors.

We have never declared or paid any cash dividends on our share capital, and we do not intend to pay any cash dividends in the foreseeable future.

Any future proposals at our shareholders’ meeting to pay dividends in the future will be at the discretion of our board of directors after taking into account various factors, including our business prospects, cash requirements, financial performance and new product development and subject to approval by the general meeting of shareholders. In addition, payment of future dividends is subject to certain limitations pursuant to Swiss law. See “Item 10. Additional Information - Memorandum and Articles of Association - Dividend Rights.” Accordingly, you may need to rely on sales of our Class A ordinary shares after price appreciation, which may never occur, as the only way to realize any future gains on your investment.

The trading market for our Class A ordinary shares relies in part on the research and reports that industry or securities analysts publish about us or our business. If one or more of the analysts covering our business downgrade their evaluations of our Class A ordinary shares or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, the price of our Class A ordinary shares could decline. In addition, if our operating results fail to meet analyst forecasts, the price of our Class A ordinary shares would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease to cover our Class A ordinary shares, we could lose visibility in the market for our stock, which in turn could cause the price of our Class A ordinary shares to decline.

We are a Swiss corporation. Our corporate affairs are governed by our articles of association and by the laws governing companies, including listed companies, incorporated in Switzerland. The rights of our shareholders and the responsibilities of members of our board of directors may be different from the rights and obligations of shareholders and directors of companies governed by the laws of the United States. In the performance of its duties, our board of directors is required by Swiss law to consider the interests of our Company, and may also have regard to the interests of our shareholders, our employees and other stakeholders, in all cases with due observation of the principles of reasonableness and fairness. It is possible that some of these parties will have interests that are different from, or in addition to, your interests as a shareholder. Swiss corporate law limits the ability of our shareholders to challenge in court resolutions made or other actions taken by our board of directors.

Our shareholders generally are not permitted to file a suit to reverse a decision or an action taken by our board of directors, but are instead only permitted to seek damages for breaches of fiduciary duty. As a matter of Swiss law, shareholder claims against a member of our board of directors for breach of fiduciary duty would have to be brought in the competent courts in Zurich, Switzerland, or where the relevant member of our board of directors is domiciled. In addition, under Swiss law, any claims by our shareholders against us must be brought exclusively in the competent courts in Zurich, Switzerland. U.S.-style class actions and derivative actions are not available under Swiss law. A further summary of applicable Swiss corporate law is included in this Annual Report, see “Item 10. Additional Information - Memorandum and Articles of Association.” There can be no assurance that Swiss law will not change in the future, the occurrence of which could adversely affect the rights of our shareholders, or that Swiss law will protect our shareholders in a similar fashion as under U.S. corporate law principles.

Our shares are not listed in Switzerland, our home jurisdiction. As a result, our shareholders will not benefit from certain provisions of Swiss law that are designed to protect shareholders in a public takeover offer or a change-of-control transaction.

Because our Class A ordinary shares are listed exclusively on the NYSE and not in Switzerland, our shareholders will not benefit from the protection afforded by certain provisions of Swiss law that are designed to protect shareholders in the event of a public takeover offer or a change-of-control transaction. For example, Article 120 of the Swiss Financial Market Infrastructure Act and its implementing provisions require investors to disclose their interest in our company if they reach, exceed or fall below certain ownership thresholds. Similarly, the Swiss takeover regime imposes a duty on any person or group of persons who acquires more than one-third of a company’s voting rights to make a mandatory offer for all of the company’s outstanding listed equity securities. In addition, the Swiss takeover regime imposes certain restrictions and obligations on bidders in a voluntary public takeover offer that are designed to protect shareholders. However, these protections are applicable only to issuers that list their equity securities in Switzerland, and because our Class A ordinary shares are listed exclusively on the NYSE, they will not be applicable to us. Furthermore, since Swiss law restricts our ability to implement rights plans or U.S.-style “poison pills,” our ability to resist an unsolicited takeover attempt or to protect minority shareholders in the event of a change-of-control transaction may be limited. Therefore, our shareholders may not be protected to the same degree in a public takeover offer or a change-of-control transaction as are shareholders in a Swiss company listed in Switzerland.

We are a corporation organized and incorporated under the laws of Switzerland with registered office and domicile in Zurich, Switzerland, and the majority of our assets are located within Switzerland. Moreover, a number of our directors and executive officers are not residents of the United States, and all or a substantial portion of the assets of such persons are or may be located outside the United States. As a result, investors may not be able to effect service of process within the United States upon the Company or upon such persons, or to enforce judgments obtained against the Company or such persons in U.S. courts, including judgments in actions predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the federal securities laws of the United States. There is doubt that a lawsuit based upon United States federal or state securities laws could be brought in an original action in Switzerland and that a judgment of a U.S. court based upon United States securities laws would be enforced in Switzerland.

The United States and Switzerland currently do not have a treaty providing for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgments, other than arbitration awards, in civil and commercial matters. Consequently, a final judgment for payment given by a court in the United States, whether or not predicated solely upon U.S. securities laws, may not be enforceable in Switzerland.

All our products are engineered in Switzerland, and our in-house research and development teams work on the innovation, engineering, design, development and testing of our products. Our shoe, apparel and accessories products are designed primarily for specific athletic use, although a significant amount of our products are also adopted for casual or leisure purposes. We place considerable emphasis on technological innovation for performance, including our proprietary CloudTec, Helion superfoam and Speedboard technologies, and high-quality construction in the development and design of our footwear and apparel. Our focus is on sourcing renewable raw materials. Our products use sustainable materials such as recycled polyesters and polyamide, organic cotton, vegan leather and PFAS-free membranes. Our sustainability focus is showcased through our 100% recyclable Cyclon shoe, made with over 50% bio-based material derived from castor beans. Cyclon is only available through an innovative monthly subscription model whereby the shoe is returned at the end of the subscription and recycled. Through its ground-breaking design and subscription model, Cyclon has already won the 2021 ISPO Award for Product of the Year and Sustainability Achievement. Our general categories of footwear include:

Our performance apparel and accessories cover the above-mentioned categories and are sold predominantly through the same marketing and distribution channels as our athletic footwear. Our apparel and accessories, similar to our footwear, are designed primarily for athletic use and also demonstrate our commitment to performance innovation and high-quality construction.

We do not own or operate any manufacturing facilities, and all of our products are supplied by third parties. We work with a select group of approximately 16 suppliers, five of which produced approximately 85% of our products in 2021. All of our footwear was produced by seven suppliers in Vietnam across 12 different production sites, while our apparel and accessories were sourced from nine different suppliers across various countries including China, Vietnam, Portugal, Germany, Lithuania, and Turkey.

In order to mitigate supplier concentration risks, we continuously seek out alternative suppliers and manufacturers when possible and develop contingency plans for responding to disruptions. For key shoe models, like the Cloud, we use at least two suppliers to minimize supply risk and to promote competition among suppliers on the basis of cost and quality. In the third and fourth quarters of 2021 we experienced temporary disruptions in our supply chain as a result of COVID-19. Refer to "Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects" and "Item 3. Key Information - Risk Factors" for further information.

We purchase from our primary suppliers on a purchase order basis informed by capacity forecasts we prepare, and have non-exclusive purchase commitments based on our purchase orders for certain amounts of goods, work-in-progress and components. We measure supplier performance through various performance indicators, including on-time delivery, quality, sustainability and other criteria, on a monthly basis. Suppliers are categorized according to their skills and capabilities, and we allocate products and volume based on their business performance and capabilities. Under our supplier agreements, our suppliers must follow our established product design specifications and quality assurance programs to meet our demanding production standards. Production and quality control staff in each country from which we source products monitor manufacturing at supplier facilities in order to correct any issues prior to shipment of the final product. We require all suppliers who manufacture our products to comply with our Supplier Code of Conduct relating to working conditions as well as certain environmental, employment and sourcing practices. We have worked to develop preferred relationships

We sell our products through our wholesale and DTC channels. In 2021 and 2020 our wholesale channel accounted for 61.9% and 62.3% of our net sales, respectively and our DTC channel contributed 38.1% and 37.7% of our net sales, respectively. Retail partners are carefully selected across the wholesale channels (including select third-party online only platforms), based on their compatibility with our premium brand, positioning in the market and industry expertise. Within DTC, we limit distribution exclusively to our own e-commerce website as well as our owned and operated retail stores. Within China, we also consider our distribution through Tmall and JD.com as DTC.

Our e-commerce rollout is complemented by our own retail stores in premium high-traffic locations. We opened our first retail flagship store in New York City in 2020. We opened our first smaller format, mall-based store in China in December 2019 and have since opened additional seven, smaller format stores in China. Going forward, we plan to open a limited number of additional retail flagship stores in other major metropolitan centers as well as athletic destinations where we believe they can operate profitably and create further brand momentum. This unfiltered window into our brand will allow us to develop a closer relationship with our customers through exclusive experiences, feature our full product offering, retain pricing control and drive net sales growth across both channels.

Competition in the shoe, apparel and accessories industry is principally on the basis of brand image and recognition, product quality, innovation, design, sustainability, distribution and price. We believe that we successfully compete on the basis of our premium brand image, our focus on running and our technical product innovation. We are also differentiated by our commitment to community-based grassroots marketing which allows us to increase brand awareness and strengthen customer loyalty.

The market for shoe, apparel and accessories is highly competitive and fragmented. It includes increasing competition from established companies who are expanding their production and marketing of performance products, as well as from frequent new entrants to the market. We are in direct competition with wholesalers and direct sellers of athletic footwear and apparel, such as Nike, Inc., adidas AG, which includes the adidas and Reebok brands, and Under Armour, Inc., Brooks Sports Inc., Hoka One One (Deckers Outdoor Corporation), Asics, New Balance, Lululemon, Patagonia, Arcteryx, Anta Group and Li Ning. We believe that having been able to break into the competitive set of top 5 running brands in the biggest running markets the United States, Germany and Japan, provides a platform for future growth and positions us well against certain of our competitors.

Our long-term commercial success is connected to our ability to obtain and maintain intellectual property protection for our brand, products and technology, defend and enforce our intellectual property rights, preserve the confidentiality of our trade secrets, operate our business without infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating the intellectual property or proprietary rights of third parties and prevent third parties from infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating our intellectual property rights. We seek to protect our investments made into the development of our products, technology, brand and design by relying on a combination of trademarks, patents, designs, copyrights, trade secrets, know-how, non-disclosure agreements, confidentiality agreements, invention assignment agreements, development agreements and other contractual rights.

We use registered trademarks on nearly all of our products and believe having distinctive marks that are readily identifiable is an important factor in creating a market for our goods, in identifying our brands, and in distinguishing our goods from the goods of others. As of December 31, 2021, we own approximately 378 trademark registrations in 38 different jurisdictions. We consider On, the On logo, On Running, Cloudtec, Cloud and Cyclon to be among our most valuable assets. The current registrations of these trademarks are effective for varying periods of time and may be renewed periodically, provided that we, as the registered owner, comply with all applicable renewal requirements including, where necessary, the continued use of the trademarks in connection with similar goods and services.

We file for, own and maintain numerous U.S. and foreign utility and design patents relating to components, technologies, materials, features, functionality, and industrial and aesthetic designs used in and for the manufacture of various of our products. Assuming payment of all appropriate maintenance, renewal, annuity or other governmental fees, these issued patents and utility models, and any patents granted from such applications, if issued, are expected to expire between November 30, 2022 and January 29, 2042, without taking potential patent term extensions or adjustments into account. We continually review our development efforts to assess the existence and patentability of new intellectual property. The term of individual patents depends upon the legal term for patents in the countries in which they are granted. In most countries, including the United States, the patent term is 20 years from the earliest claimed filing date of a non-provisional patent application in the applicable country. In the United States, a patent’s term may, in certain cases, be lengthened by patent term adjustment, which compensates a patentee for administrative delays by the United States Patent and Trademark Office in examining and granting a patent. It may also be shortened if a patent is terminally disclaimed over a commonly owned patent or a patent naming a common inventor and having an earlier expiration date. We cannot be sure that our pending patent applications that we have filed or may file in the future will result in issued patents in any jurisdiction, and we can give no assurance that any patents that have

Moreover, we rely, in part, on trade secrets to protect aspects of our business that are not amenable to, or that we do not consider appropriate for, patent protection. However, trade secrets can be difficult to protect. While we take steps to protect and preserve our trade secrets and our know-how, unpatented technology and other proprietary information, including by entering into intellectual property assignment agreements, non-compete agreements and confidentiality agreements and by maintaining physical security of our premises and physical and electronic security of our information technology systems, such measures can be breached, and we may not have adequate remedies for any such breach. In addition, our trade secrets may otherwise become known or be independently discovered by competitors. As a result, we may not be able to meaningfully protect our trade secrets. For more information regarding the risks related to our intellectual property, please see “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property and Information Technology.”

Historically, prior to the fourth quarter of 2021 we experienced higher net sales in the third and fourth quarters of the fiscal year compared to other quarters. This was due in large part to the phasing of our product seasons, with spring-summer season going from November to May and fall-winter season going from July to October, as well as seasonal holiday demand. However, beginning in January 2022 we introduced new product seasons with spring-summer season going from January to June and fall-winter season going from July to December. As a result of the introduction of the new product seasons, we launched our spring-summer product season in January 2022 instead of November 2021. As a result, there can be no guarantee that the historical trend described above will continue in the future.

Our business activities are global and are subject to various federal, cantonal, local, and foreign laws, rules and regulations. For example, substantially all of our import operations are subject to complex trade and customs laws, regulations and tax requirements such as sanctions orders or tariffs set by governments through mutual agreements or unilateral actions. In addition, the countries in which our products are manufactured or imported may from time to time impose additional duties, tariffs or other restrictions on our imports or adversely modify existing restrictions. Changes in tax policy or trade regulations, or the imposition of new tariffs on imported products, could have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations. Compliance with these laws, rules and regulations has not had, and is not expected to have, a material effect on our capital expenditures, results of operations and competitive position as compared to prior periods, and we do not currently anticipate material capital expenditures for environmental control facilities. For more information on the potential impacts of government regulations affecting our business, see "Item 3D—Risk Factors".

The following chart reflects our simplified organizational structure presenting certain legal entities which are, directly or indirectly, 100% owned by On Holding AG (including the jurisdiction of formation or incorporation of the various entities).

The following discussion on our operating and financial review and prospects should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements, including the notes thereto, included elsewhere in this Annual Report (see “Item 18. Financial Statements”).

On is a premium performance sports brand rooted in technology, design and sustainability that has built a passionate global community of fans across more than 60 countries. We focus on providing a premium product experience to customers wherever they are and our brand resonates with our loyal customers around the world.

We believe our Swiss heritage and our focus on innovating at the cutting edge of performance, design and sustainability differentiates us from other sports brands. We are committed to creating premium products that deliver strong performance. Our relentless culture of innovation has driven us to repeatedly introduce numerous groundbreaking technologies that are designed to change the experience of running and create continuous excitement for our fans as we bring new products to market. Building off our heritage of supporting the runner, we have applied our expertise to creating performance products for a broader set of global consumers who use them in everyday life, expanding our product range beyond Performance Running to Performance Outdoor and Performance All Day.

Despite supply chain challenges faced by the industry in the third and fourth quarters of 2021 and the unrelated change in product seasonality lowering sales in the fourth quarter, On successfully executed on its growth strategies and increased net sales for 2021 by 70.4% to CHF 724.6 million compared to 2020. This growth was driven by increased consumer demand for our brand across all sales channels, product categories and geographic regions, particularly North America.

We continued to expand our wholesale channel beyond specialty running stores. Our products are now available in some of the most reputable general sporting, outdoor, fashion and lifestyle retailers

With our community and brand awareness growing globally, we have continued to organically scale our DTC channel through e-commerce. Our DTC channel as a whole, which includes our e-commerce sites, a flagship store in New York City and eight retail stores in China, represented 38.1% of net sales in 2021.

All products purchased as of 2021 were no longer subject to a sourcing fee as a result On's successful completion of the insourcing of product development from an external sourcing agent in 2020. As of August 2020, On has benefited from the established free trade agreement between the EU and Vietnam. These factors had a positive impact on our gross margin for 2021. This increase in margin was partially offset with increased use of airfreight due to supply chain disruptions.

As of September 15, 2021 we successfully completed our IPO which draws a new starting line to deliver on On’s growth strategies and mission. The gross proceeds from the IPO were CHF 652.5 million (USD 702.2 million) before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions, fees and expenses. As a public company, we granted share-based compensation awards to our extended founder team, other members of senior management and to certain other employees to incentivize individuals based on their impact and contribution to On. This includes the Founders' Grant Plan which was given to all employees and those that joined On at least six months prior to the IPO. We recognized a share-based compensation charge of CHF 198.5 million for 2021 compared to CHF 54.8 million in 2020.

For information regarding governmental policies that could affect our operations, see "Item 4B — Business Overview — Government Regulations".

As a result, supply chain challenges in the form of production disruptions in Vietnam and inflationary cost pressures on labor and freight caused by COVID-19 has impacted our financial performance. The production shortages in Vietnam combined with a general increase in global demand for freight has resulted in increases to sea and airfreight rates. Further, labor shortages resulting from U.S. warehouse workers preferring to claim unemployment benefits provided by the U.S. government as part of the COVID-19 stimulus package as resulted in labor expense increases.

We continue to monitor the ongoing impacts of COVID-19 and proactively take actions as appropriate. Continued disruptions across international supply chains, including factory closures, port congestion, labor shortages and increased logistics costs, may materially impact our net sales, net income and Adjusted EBITDA outlook for 2022.

The following table summarizes certain key operating measures for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, and for the three-months ended December 31, 2021 and 2020. See “—Results of Operations” for additional details and for the comparison discussions between the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 and the three-month periods ended December 31, 2021 and 2020.

(1)    Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA Margin, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted Basic EPS, and Adjusted Diluted EPS are Non-IFRS measures. See “Use of Non-IFRS Measures” for a description of these measures and a reconciliation to the nearest IFRS measure.

(2)    Original share numbers have been multiplied by 1,250 to give effect to the Share Capital Reorganization. See "Capital management - Share capital reorganization and IPO" for additional information.

Net sales for 2021 increased by CHF 299.3 million, or 70.4%, compared to 2020.

Net sales generated by the wholesale sales channel for 2021 increased by CHF 184.0 million, or 69.5%, to CHF 448.8 million, compared to CHF 264.8 million in 2020. This was attributable to increased brand awareness driving growth in the volume of products sold to new and existing wholesale customers as well as strong recovery in demand from retailers in 2021 after the COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in most markets. Net sales generated by the wholesale sales channel as a percentage of net sales decreased to 61.9% for the year ended December 31, 2021, from 62.3% for the year ended December 31, 2020 due to a shift of net sales from the fourth quarter of 2021 to the first quarter of 2022 to reflect a change in the timing of the launch of our spring-summer season products.

The following table presents net sales by geographic region (based on the location of the counterparty):

Net sales increased across all product groups. The increase in net sales for shoes in 2021 compared to 2020 was partly driven by updated product releases for our Cloudswift, Cloudflyer and CloudX shoes in Performance Running, and by the launch of the Roger, Cloudboom Echo, Cloudstratus, and Cloudultra shoes. Apparel continues to be the fastest growing product category, delivering 130.8% growth against the same period in 2020, and representing 5.0% of total net sales. Continued expansion into outdoor and all day active wear alongside a successful running range has supported this growth.

Cost of sales for 2021 increased by CHF 100.1 million, or 51.6%, to CHF 294.3 million, compared to CHF 194.2 million in 2020. Gross profit was CHF 430.3 million in 2021, representing a gross margin of 59.4%, compared with CHF 231.1 million in 2020, representing a gross margin of 54.3%. The increase in gross margin was primarily driven by duplicate expenses during 2020 in relation to building up our in-house sourcing organization while finalizing payments to former external sourcing agencies; lower customs expenses due to the new free trade agreement between Vietnam and Europe; and partially offset by increased airfreight in the fourth quarter to mitigate the temporary impact from the COVID-related factory closures.

SG&A expenses for 2021 increased by CHF 323.2 million, or 130.2%, to CHF 571.4 million, compared to CHF 248.2 million in 2020. Excluding share-based compensation, SG&A expenses as a percentage of net sales increased to 51.5% in 2021 from 45.5% in 2020.

SG&A expenses were also impacted by the following factors:

Depreciation and amortization expenses for 2021 increased by CHF 19.3 million, or 159.81%, to CHF 31.4 million, compared to CHF 12.1 million in 2020. The increase was primarily attributable to depreciation and amortization of continued investment into IT (specifically our new global ERP system), own retail stores, and global corporate offices.

Financial expenses for 2021 increased by CHF 2.6 million, or 280.4%, to CHF 3.6 million, compared to CHF 0.9 million in 2020 due to increased interest expense associated with leases. Net foreign exchange expense for 2021 increased by CHF 8.5 million to CHF 14.9 million, compared to CHF 6.4 million in 2020 due to fluctuation in the CHF/USD exchange rate exposure.

Income taxes for 2021 increased by CHF 7.6 million, or 245.1%, to CHF 10.6 million, compared to CHF 3.1 million in 2020. Our effective income tax rate was 6.7% for 2021, compared to 12.6% in

Net sales generated by the wholesale sales channel for the three-month period ended December 31, 2021 increased by CHF 30.0 million, or 39.3%, to CHF 106.4 million, compared to CHF 76.3 million for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020. This was primarily driven by an increase in net sales volumes within new and existing wholesale customer stores and growth in new specialty running,

Cost of sales during the three-month period ended December 31, 2021 increased by CHF 19.3 million, or 32.1%, to CHF 79.3 million, compared to CHF 60.0 million during the three-month period ended December 31, 2020. Gross profit was CHF 111.8 million for the three-month period ended December 31, 2021, representing a gross margin of 58.5%, compared with CHF 64.3 million for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020, representing a gross margin of 51.7%. The increase in gross margin was primarily driven by an increased share of net sales through the DTC channel, reduction in sourcing costs and lower customs expenses due to the new free trade agreement between Vietnam and Europe, partially offset by increased use of airfreight in connection with the COVID-19 disruptions to the supply chain.