2014 Annual Information Form
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Annual Information Form For the year ended December 28, 2013 March 26, 2014 TABLE OF CONTENTS GLOSSARY OF TERMS ........................................................................................................................................................ 1 EXPLANATORY NOTES ...................................................................................................................................................... 2 FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS .............................................................................................................................. 2 DISCUSSION ON CERTAIN NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES .......................................................................... 3 System sales of cafés ........................................................................................................................................ 3 Same café sales ................................................................................................................................................. 4 EBITDA ............................................................................................................................................................. 4 CORPORATE STRUCTURE ................................................................................................................................................. 4 Name, address and jurisdiction of formation .............................................................................................. 4 GENERAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE BUSINESS ............................................................................................................ 4 Establishment of the Second Cup Income Fund ......................................................................................... 4 Acquisition of Second Cup ............................................................................................................................. 5 Conversion to a corporate structure ............................................................................................................. 5 BUSINESS OF SECOND CUP .............................................................................................................................................. 5 General .............................................................................................................................................................. 5 What is specialty coffee? ................................................................................................................................. 5 History .............................................................................................................................................................. 6 Competitive conditions ................................................................................................................................... 6 The Second Cup café system .......................................................................................................................... 6 Products ............................................................................................................................................................ 9 Sales ................................................................................................................................................................. 11 Advertising and marketing .......................................................................................................................... 12 Purchasing and distribution......................................................................................................................... 12 Franchise operations ..................................................................................................................................... 14 The Second Cup marks ................................................................................................................................. 18 Employees ...................................................................................................................................................... 19 Government regulation ................................................................................................................................ 19 Credit facilities ............................................................................................................................................... 19 RISK FACTORS .................................................................................................................................................................... 20 Risks related to the business of Second Cup .............................................................................................. 20 Risk related to the structure of the Company ............................................................................................ 24 DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STRUCTURE .................................................................................................................... 25 Common shares ............................................................................................................................................. 25 DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS ................................................................................................................................ 25 Dividend policy ............................................................................................................................................. 25 Cash dividends .............................................................................................................................................. 26 DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS ........................................................................................................................................... 26 Directors .......................................................................................................................................................... 26 Officers ............................................................................................................................................................ 29 Existing or potential conflicts of interest .................................................................................................... 30 Audit Committee ........................................................................................................................................... 30 Insider reporting ............................................................................................................................................ 32 MARKET FOR SECURITIES .............................................................................................................................................. 32 Trading price and volume ............................................................................................................................ 32 LEGAL PROCEEDINGS ..................................................................................................................................................... 32 INTERESTS OF MANAGEMENT AND OTHERS IN MATERIAL TRANSACTIONS .............................................. 32 TRANSFER AGENT AND REGISTRAR ........................................................................................................................... 32 MATERIAL CONTRACTS ................................................................................................................................................. 33 EXPERTS ............................................................................................................................................................................... 33 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ....................................................................................................................................... 33 Schedule A – Charter of the Audit Committee ................................................................................................................ 34 ( i ) GLOSSARY OF TERMS In addition to the other terms defined in this Annual Information Form, the following terms are used frequently and are defined below. Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in this Annual Information Form to any agreement, instrument, indenture, declaration or other document will be deemed to be a reference to that agreement, instrument, indenture or other document, as amended, supplemented and restated from time to time. “affiliate ” means, in respect of a person or company, another person or company that would be considered to be an “affiliated entity” in respect of such person or company for the purposes of Ontario Securities Commission Rule 45- 501, as amended or replaced from time to time. “associate ” has the meaning ascribed to it in the Securities Act. “Bank ” means The Bank of Nova Scotia. “Coffee Central ” means the general support network provided by the Company’s head office. “EBITDA ” means earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization. “Fund ” means Second Cup Income Fund or Second Cup Royalty Income Fund. “Gross Revenue ” as it relates to both Company-operated cafés and franchised cafés means the total of all sales and other income whatsoever, from whatever source (whether it be of a retail, wholesale or other nature), derived from operating a Second Cup café or any other business activity whatsoever at the Second Cup café,