UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

(Mark One)

For the fiscal year ended December 27, 2020

OR

Commission file number 001-38250

FAT Brands Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

9720 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 500

Beverly Hills, CA 90212

(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

(310) 319-1850

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes [  ] No [X]

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Act. Yes [  ] No [X]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes [X] No [  ]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes [X] No [  ]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. [X]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. [  ]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Exchange Act Rule 12b-2). Yes [  ] No [X]

The aggregate market value of voting common stock held by non-affiliated stockholders as of June 28, 2020 was approximately $13,424,000.

As of March 26, 2021, there were 12,029,264 shares of common stock outstanding.

FAT BRANDS INC.

FORM 10-K

INDEX

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements contained herein and certain statements contained in future filings by the Company with the SEC may not be based on historical facts and are “Forward-Looking Statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this Form 10-K may be forward-looking statements. Statements regarding our future results of operations and financial position, business strategy and plans and objectives of management for future operations, including, among others, statements regarding expected new franchisees, brands, store openings and future capital expenditures are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expects,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “could,” “intends,” “targets,” “projects,” “contemplates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “potential” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions.

Forward-looking statements are subject to significant business, economic and competitive risks, uncertainties and contingencies including, but not limited to, the impact of the current novel coronavirus pandemic (“COVID-19”), many of which are difficult to predict and beyond our control, which could cause our actual results to differ materially from the results expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. These and other risks, uncertainties and contingencies are described in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including under “Item 1A. Risk Factors”, and the other reports that we file with the SEC from time to time.

These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this Form 10-K. Except as may be required by law, the Company does not undertake, and specifically disclaims any obligation, to publicly release the results of any revisions that may be made to any Forward-Looking Statements to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances after the date of such statements.

The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with the Financial Statements of FAT Brands Inc. and the notes thereto included elsewhere in this filing. References in this filing to “the Company,” “we,” “our,” and “us” refer to FAT Brands Inc. and its subsidiaries unless the context indicates otherwise.

PART I

ITEM 1. BUSINESS

Business Overview

FAT Brands Inc. is a leading multi-brand restaurant franchising company that develops, markets and acquires primarily quick-service, fast casual and casual dining restaurant concepts around the world. Organized in March 2017 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Fog Cutter Capital Group, Inc. (“FCCG”), we completed our initial public offering on October 20, 2017 and issued additional shares of common stock representing 20 percent of our ownership upon completion of the offering. During the fourth quarter of 2020, we completed a transaction in which FCCG merged into a wholly owned subsidiary of ours, and we became the parent company of FCCG.

As a franchisor, we generally do not own or operate restaurant locations, but rather generate revenue by charging franchisees an initial franchise fee as well as ongoing royalties. We believe that this “asset light” franchisor model provides the opportunity for strong profit margins and an attractive free cash flow profile while minimizing restaurant operating company risk, such as long-term real estate commitments or capital investments. Our scalable management platform enables us to add new stores and restaurant concepts to our portfolio with minimal incremental corporate overhead cost, while taking advantage of significant corporate overhead synergies. The acquisition of additional brands and restaurant concepts as well as expansion of our existing brands are key elements of our growth strategy.

As of December 27, 2020, we were the owner and franchisor of the following restaurant brands:

Fatburger. Founded in Los Angeles, California in 1947, Fatburger (The Last Great Hamburger Stand) has, throughout its history, maintained its reputation as an iconic, all-American, Hollywood favorite hamburger restaurant serving a variety of freshly made-to-order, customizable, big, juicy, and tasty Fatburgers, Turkeyburgers, Chicken Sandwiches, Impossible™ Burgers, Veggieburgers, French fries, onion rings, soft-drinks and milkshakes. With a legacy spanning over 70 years, Fatburger’s dedication to superior quality inspires robust loyalty amongst its customer base and has long appealed to American cultural and social leaders. We have counted many celebrities and athletes as past franchisees and customers, and we believe this prestige has been a principal driver of the brand’s strong growth. Fatburger offers a premier dining experience, demonstrating the same dedication to serving gourmet, homemade, custom-built burgers as it has since 1947. As of December 27, 2020, there were 182 franchised and sub-franchised Fatburger locations globally.

Johnny Rockets. Founded in 1986 on iconic Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, Johnny Rockets is a world-renowned, international restaurant franchise that offers high quality, innovative menu items including Certified Angus Beef® cooked-to-order hamburgers, Boca Burger®, chicken sandwiches, crispy fries and rich, delicious hand-spun shakes and malts. This dynamic lifestyle brand offers friendly service and upbeat music contributing to the chain’s signature atmosphere of relaxed, casual fun. We acquired the Johnny Rockets brand on September 21, 2020 and began consolidating Johnny Rockets’ financial results on that date. As of December 27, 2020, there were 316 franchised and nine corporate-owned Johnny Rockets locations globally. The corporate-owned locations are part of the Company’s refranchising program.

Buffalo’s Cafe. Established in Roswell, Georgia in 1985, Buffalo’s Cafe (Where Everyone is Family) is a family-themed casual dining concept known for its chicken wings and 13 distinctive homemade wing sauces, burgers, wraps, steaks, salads and other classic American cuisine. Featuring a full bar and table service, Buffalo’s Cafe offers a distinctive dining experience affording friends and family the flexibility to share an intimate dinner together or to casually watch sporting events while enjoying extensive menu offerings. Beginning in 2011, Buffalo’s Express was developed and launched as a fast-casual, smaller footprint variant of Buffalo’s Cafe offering a limited version of the full menu with an emphasis on chicken wings, wraps and salads. Current Buffalo’s Express outlets are co-branded with Fatburger locations, providing our franchisees with complementary concepts that share kitchen space and result in a higher average unit volume (compared to stand-alone Fatburger locations). As of December 27, 2020, there were 16 franchised Buffalo’s Cafe and 112 co-branded Fatburger / Buffalo’s Express locations globally.

Ponderosa & Bonanza Steakhouse. Ponderosa Steakhouse, founded in 1965, and Bonanza Steakhouse, founded in 1963 (collectively, “Ponderosa”), offer the quintessential American steakhouse experience, for which there is strong and growing demand in international markets, particularly in Asia and the Middle East. Ponderosa and Bonanza Steakhouses offer guests a high-quality buffet and broad array of great tasting, affordably priced steak, chicken and seafood entrées. Buffets at Ponderosa and Bonanza Steakhouses feature a large variety of all you can eat salads, soups, appetizers, vegetables, breads, hot main courses and desserts. An additional variation of the brand, Bonanza Steak & BBQ, offers a full-service steakhouse with fresh farm-to-table salad bar and a menu showcase of USDA flame-grilled steaks and house-smoked BBQ, with contemporized interpretations of traditional American classics. As of December 27, 2020, there were 70 Ponderosa and Bonanza franchised locations globally.

Hurricane Grill & Wings. Founded in Fort Pierce, Florida in 1995, Hurricane Grill & Wings is a tropical beach themed casual dining restaurant known for its fresh, jumbo, chicken wings, 35 signature sauces, burgers, bowls, tacos, salads and sides. Featuring a full bar and table service, Hurricane Grill & Wings’ laid-back, casual, atmosphere affords family and friends the flexibility to enjoy dining experiences together regardless of the occasion. The acquisition of Hurricane Grill & Wings has been complementary to FAT Brands existing portfolio chicken wing brands, Buffalo’s Cafe and Buffalo’s Express. As of December 27, 2020, there were 48 franchised Hurricane Grill & Wings and one franchised Hurricane BTWs (Hurricane’s fast-casual burgers, tacos & wings concept) locations in the United States.

Yalla Mediterranean. Founded in 2014, Yalla Mediterranean is a Los Angeles-based restaurant chain specializing in authentic, healthful, Mediterranean cuisine with an environmentally conscience and focus on sustainability. The word “yalla” which means “let’s go” is embraced in every aspect of Yalla Mediterranean’s culture and is a key component of our concept. Yalla Mediterranean offers a healthful Mediterranean menu of wraps, plates, and bowls in a fast-casual setting, with cuisine prepared fresh daily using, GMO-free, local ingredients for a menu that includes vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and dairy-free options accommodating customers with a wide variety of dietary needs and preferences. The brand demonstrates its commitment to the environment by using responsibly sourced proteins and utensils, bowls and serving trays made from compostable materials. Each of Yalla’s three locations in California also feature on-tap selections of craft beers and fine wines. We intend to expand the business through additional franchising.

Elevation Burger. Established in Northern Virginia in 2002, Elevation Burger is a fast-casual burger, fries, and shakes chain that provides its customers with healthier, “elevated” food options. Serving grass-fed beef, organic chicken, and French fries cooked using a proprietary olive oil-based frying method, Elevation maintains environmentally friendly operating practices including responsible sourcing of ingredients, robust recycling programs intended to reduce carbon footprint, and store décor constructed of eco-friendly materials. The acquisition of Elevation Burger in June 2019 aligns with our corporate mission of providing fresh, authentic and tasty products to the customers of our franchisees and complements our existing burger brand, Fatburger. The Company acquired the Elevation Burger brand on June 19, 2019 and began consolidating Elevation Burger’s financial results effective with that date. As of December 27, 2020, there were 43 franchised Elevation Burger locations globally.

Beyond our current brand portfolio, we intend to acquire other restaurant franchise concepts that will allow us to offer additional food categories and expand our geographic footprint. In evaluating potential acquisitions, we specifically seek concepts with the following characteristics:

Leveraging our scalable management platform, we expect to achieve cost synergies post-acquisition by reducing the corporate overhead of the acquired company – most notably in the legal, accounting and finance functions. We also plan to grow the top line revenues of newly acquired brands through support from our management and systems platform, including public relations, marketing and advertising, supply chain assistance, site selection analysis, staff training and operational oversight and support.

Our franchisee base consisted of 326 franchisees as of December 27, 2020. Of these franchisees, 87 own multiple restaurant locations. System wide, our franchisees operated 679 restaurants as of December 27, 2020 with store level sales in excess of $312 million in 2020. As of December 27, 2020, we had 34 units under construction and a development pipeline of over 200 new units which remain to be completed.

The FAT Brands Difference – Fresh. Authentic. Tasty.

Our name represents the values that we embrace as a company and the food that we provide to customers – Fresh. Authentic. Tasty (which we refer to as “FAT”). The success of our franchisor model is tied to consistent delivery by our restaurant operators of freshly prepared, made-to-order food that our customers desire. With the input of our customers and franchisees, we continually strive to keep a fresh perspective on our brands by enhancing our existing menu offerings and introducing appealing new menu items. When enhancing our offerings, we ensure that any changes are consistent with the core identity and attributes of our brands, although we do not intend to adapt our brands to be all things to all people. In conjunction with our restaurant operators (which means the individuals who manage and/or own our franchised restaurants), we are committed to delivering authentic, consistent brand experiences that have strong brand identity with customers. Ultimately, we understand that we are only as good as the last meal served, and we are dedicated to having our franchisees consistently deliver tasty, high-quality food and positive guest experiences in their restaurants.

In pursuing acquisitions and entering new restaurant brands, we are committed to instilling our FAT Brands values into new restaurant concepts. As our restaurant portfolio continues to grow, we believe that both our franchisees and diners will recognize and value this ongoing commitment as they enjoy a wider concept offering.

Competitive Strengths

We believe that our competitive strengths include:

Growth Strategy

The principal elements of our growth strategy include:

Franchise Program – FAT Brands

General. We utilize a franchise development strategy as our primary method for new store growth by leveraging the interest of our existing franchisees and those potential franchisees with an entrepreneurial spirit looking to launch their own business. We have a rigorous franchisee qualification and selection process to ensure that each franchisee meets our strict brand standards.

Fatburger Franchise Agreements. For Fatburger locations, the current franchise agreement provides for an initial franchise fee of $50,000 per store ($65,000 per store internationally) and a royalty fee of 6% of net sales on a 15-year term. In addition, the franchisee must also pay an advertising fee of 2% of net sales on local marketing and 2% of net sales on international marketing.

Johnny Rockets Franchise Agreements. For Johnny Rockets locations, the current franchise agreement provides for an initial franchise fee of $50,000 per store and a royalty fee of 6% of gross sales on a 15-year term. In addition, the Johnny Rocket’s franchisee agrees to pay an advertising fee of 2% of net sales on local marketing and 2% of net sales to the Johnny Rocket’s advertising fund.

Buffalo’s Franchise Agreements. For Buffalo’s Cafe and Buffalo’s Express locations, the current franchise agreement provides for an initial franchise fee of $50,000 per store and a royalty fee of 6% of gross sales on a 15-year term. In addition, the franchisee agrees to pay an advertising fee of 2% of net sales on local marketing and 2% of net sales to the Buffalo’s Cafe advertising fund.

Ponderosa / Bonanza Franchise Agreements. For Ponderosa and Bonanza locations, the current franchise agreement provides for an initial franchise fee of $50,000 per store and a royalty fee of 5% of net sales on a 15-year term. In addition, the franchisee agrees to pay an advertising fee of 2% of net sales on local marketing and 2% of net sales to a pooled advertising fund.

Hurricane Franchise Agreements. For Hurricane locations, the current franchise agreement provides for an initial franchise fee of $50,000 per store and a royalty fee of 6% of net sales on a 15-year term. In addition, the franchisee must also pay an advertising fee of 2% of net sales on local marketing and 2% of net sales to a pooled advertising fund.

Yalla Mediterranean Franchise Agreements. For franchised Yalla locations, the current franchise agreement provides for an initial franchise fee of $50,000 per store and a royalty fee of 6% of net sales on a 15-year term. In addition, the franchisee must also pay an advertising fee of 2% of net sales on local marketing and 2% of net sales to a pooled advertising fund.

Elevation Burger Franchise Agreements. For franchised Elevation locations, the current franchise agreement provides for an initial franchise fee of $50,000 per store and a royalty fee of 6% of net sales on a 15-year term. In addition, the franchisee must also pay an advertising fee of 2% of net sales on local marketing and 2% of net sales to a pooled advertising fund.

Development Agreements. We use development agreements to facilitate the planned expansion of Fatburger and Buffalo’s restaurants through single and multiple unit development. In addition, through our acquisition of Hurricane, Johnny Rockets and Elevation, we acquired certain development agreements. Each development agreement gives a developer the exclusive right to construct, own and operate stores within a defined area. In exchange, the franchisee agrees to open a minimum number of stores in the area in a prescribed time period. Franchisees that enter into development agreements are required to pay a fee, which is credited against franchise fees due when the store is opened in the future. Franchisees may forfeit such fees and lose their rights to future development if they do not maintain the required schedule of openings.

Franchisee Support – FAT Brands

Marketing

Our Fresh, Authentic and Tasty values are the anchor that inspires our marketing efforts. Our resolve to maintain our premium positioning, derived from the FAT Brands’ values, is reinforced by our management platform, capital light business model, experienced and diverse global franchisee network and seasoned and passionate management team. Although our marketing and advertising programs are concept-specific, we believe that our patrons appreciate the value of their experiences visiting our establishments and, thus, the core of our marketing strategy is to engage and dialogue with customers at our restaurant locations as well as through social media.

Our Fresh, Authentic and Tasty values are an invitation for our guests to align with FAT Brands’ commitment to consistently deliver freshly prepared, made-to-order food that customers desire. We are dedicated to keeping a fresh perspective on our concepts, perfecting our existing menu offerings as well as introducing appealing new items. We ensure that any changes are consistent with the core identity of our brands, and we will not adapt our brands to be all things to all people.

Our marketing initiatives include a robust mix of local community marketing, in-store campaigns, product placements, partnerships, promotions, social media, influencer marketing, traditional media and word of mouth advertising. Corresponding with the evolutionary shift in how customers receive content and engage with media and brands today, we have also dramatically increased our focus on mobile, social, and digital advertising to leverage the content we generate from public relations and experiential marketing in order to better connect with customers, sharing information about new menu offerings, promotions, new store openings and other relevant FAT Brands information. We communicate with customers in creative and organic ways that fortify our connections with them and increase brand awareness.

Site Selection and Development.

Our franchisees work alongside our franchise development department during the search, review, leasing and development process for a new restaurant location. Typically, it takes between 60 and 90 days from the time we sign an agreement with a franchisee until that franchisee signs a lease. When selecting a location, our team assists franchisees in seeking locations with the following site characteristics:

Supply Chain Assistance

FAT Brands has always been committed to seeking out and working with best-in-class suppliers and distribution networks on behalf of our franchisees. Our Fresh, Authentic and Tasty vision guides us in how we source and develop our ingredients, always looking for the best ways to provide top quality food that is as competitively priced as possible for our franchisees and their customers. We utilize a third-party purchasing and consulting company that provides distribution, rebate collection, product negotiations, audits and sourcing services focusing on negotiating distributor, vendor and manufacturer contracts, thereby ensuring that our brands receive meaningful buying power for our franchisees.

Our team has developed a reliable supply chain and continues to focus on identifying additional back-ups to avoid any possible interruption of service and product globally for our franchisees. We have a regional strategy for ground beef supply to ensure that our franchisees are always serving a proprietary blend of freshly ground and never frozen beef in their stores in the continental United States for Fatburger, while our Elevation Burger franchisees utilize another supplier that provides the organic, grass-fed beef associated with that brand. Internationally, we utilize the same strategy market-by-market in each country in which our franchisees operate. Domestically, our franchisees utilize the same, Southern California based, beef supplier for all of the U.S. Fatburger locations. Similarly, our franchisees utilize the same, South East United States based, beef supplier for Buffalo’s Cafe. Ponderosa and Bonanza Steakhouses franchisees utilize contracted beef suppliers as do those of our Hurricane brand. Internationally, we have a select group of beef suppliers providing product to our franchisees market-by-market for each brand. We utilize the same procurement strategies on behalf of our franchisees for the poultry, produce, and Mediterranean offerings.

Domestically, FAT Brands has distribution agreements with broadline national distributors as well as regional providers. Internationally, our franchisees have distribution agreements with different providers market-by-market. We utilize distribution centers operated by our distributors. Our broadline national distributors are the main purchasing link in the United States among many of our suppliers, and distribute most of our dry, refrigerated and frozen goods, non-alcoholic beverages, paper goods and cleaning supplies. Internationally, distributors are also used to provide the majority of products to our franchisees.

Food Safety and Quality Assurance. Food safety is a top priority of FAT Brands. As such, we maintain rigorous safety standards for our menu offerings. We have carefully selected preferred suppliers that adhere to our safety standards, and our franchisees are required to source their ingredients from these approved suppliers. Furthermore, our commitment to food safety is strengthened through the direct relationship between our Supply Chain and Field Consultant Assistance teams.

Management Information Systems. FAT Brands restaurants utilize a variety of back-office, computerized and manual, point-of-sale systems and tools, which we believe are scalable to support our growth plans. We utilize these systems following a multi-faceted approach to monitor restaurants operational performance, food safety, quality control, customer feedback and profitability.

The point-of-sale systems are designed specifically for the restaurant industry and we use many customized features to evaluate and increase operational performance, provide data analysis, marketing promotional tracking, guest and table management, high-speed credit card and gift card processing, daily transaction data, daily sales information, product mix, average transaction size, order modes, revenue centers and other key business intelligence data. Utilizing these point-of-sale systems back-end, web-based, enterprise level, software solution dashboards, our home office and Franchise Operations Consultant Support staff are provided with real-time access to detailed business data which allows for our home office and Franchise Operations Consultant Support staff to closely, and remotely, monitor stores performance and assist in providing focused and timely support to our franchisees. Furthermore, these systems supply sales, bank deposit and variance data to our accounting department on a daily basis, and we use this data to generate daily sales information and weekly consolidated reports regarding sales and other key measures for each restaurant with final reports following the end of each period.

In addition to utilizing these point-of-sale systems, FAT Brands utilizes systems which provide detailed, real-time (and historical) operational data for all locations, allowing our management team to track product inventories, equipment temperatures, repair and maintenance schedules, intra-shift team communications, consistency in following standard operating procedures and tracking of tasks. FAT Brands also utilizes a web-based employee scheduling software program providing franchisees, and their management teams, increased flexibility and awareness of scheduling needs allowing them to efficiently, and appropriately, manage their labor costs and store staffing requirements/needs. Lastly, FAT Brands utilizes a proprietary customer feedback system allowing customers to provide feedback in real-time to our entire management team, franchisees and store managers.

Field Consultant Assistance.

In conjunction with utilizing the FAT Brands Management Information Systems, FAT Brands has a team of dedicated Franchise Operations Consultant Support staff who oversee designated market areas and specific subsets of restaurants. Our Franchise Operations Consultant Support staff work in the field daily with franchisees, and their management teams, to ensure that the integrity of all FAT Brands concepts are upheld and that franchisees are utilizing the tools and systems FAT Brands requires in order to optimize and accelerate franchisee profitability. FAT Brands Franchise Operations Consultant Support staff responsibilities include (but are not limited to):

Training, Pre-Opening Assistance and Opening Support

FAT Brands offers Executive level and Operational level training programs to its franchisees, pre-opening assistance and opening assistance. Once open, FAT Brands constantly provides ongoing operational and marketing support to our franchisees by assisting their management teams in effectively operating their restaurants and increasing their stores financial profitability.

Competition

As a franchisor, our most important direct customers are our franchisees, who own and operate FAT Brands restaurants. Our competitors for franchisees include well-established national, regional or local franchisors with franchises in the geographies or restaurant segments in which we operate or in which we intend to operate.

Our franchisees compete in the fast casual and casual dining segments of the restaurant industry, a highly competitive industry in terms of price, service, location, and food quality. The restaurant industry is often affected by changes in consumer trends, economic conditions, demographics, traffic patterns, and concern about the nutritional content of fast casual foods. Furthermore, there are many well-established competitors with substantially greater financial resources, including a number of national, regional, and local fast casual, casual dining, and convenience stores. The restaurant industry also has few barriers to entry and new competitors may emerge at any time.

Food Safety

Food safety is a top priority. As such, we maintain rigorous safety standards for each menu item. We have carefully selected preferred food suppliers that adhere to our safety standards, and our franchisees are required to source their ingredients from these approved suppliers.

Seasonality

Our franchisees have not historically experienced significant seasonal variability in their financial performance.

Intellectual Property

We own, domestically and internationally, valuable intellectual property including trademarks, service marks, trade secrets and other proprietary information related to our restaurant and corporate brands. This intellectual property includes logos and trademarks which are of material importance to our business. Depending on the jurisdiction, trademarks and service marks generally are valid as long as they are used and/or registered. We seek to actively protect and defend our intellectual property from infringement and misuse.

Employees

As of December 27, 2020, our company, including our subsidiaries, employed approximately 179 people, including approximately 116 people who are employed in restaurants which are being marketed to potential franchisees for resale as part of our refranchising program. We believe that we have good relations with our employees.

Government Regulation

U.S. Operations. Our U.S. operations are subject to various federal, state and local laws affecting our business, primarily laws and regulations concerning the franchisor/franchisee relationship, marketing, food labeling, sanitation and safety. Each of our franchised restaurants in the U.S. must comply with licensing and regulation by a number of governmental authorities, which include health, sanitation, safety, fire and zoning agencies in the state and/or municipality in which the restaurant is located. To date, we have not been materially adversely affected by such licensing and regulation or by any difficulty, delay or failure to obtain required licenses or approvals.

International Operations. Our restaurants outside the U.S. are subject to national and local laws and regulations which are similar to those affecting U.S. restaurants. The restaurants outside the U.S. are also subject to tariffs and regulations on imported commodities and equipment and laws regulating foreign investment, as well as anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws.

See “Risk Factors” for a discussion of risks relating to federal, state, local and international regulation of our business.

Our Corporate Information

FAT Brands Inc. was formed as a Delaware corporation on March 21, 2017. Our corporate headquarters are located at 9720 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 500, Beverly Hills, California 90212. Our main telephone number is (310) 319-1850. Our principal Internet website address is www.fatbrands.com. The information on our website is not incorporated by reference into, or a part of, this Annual Report.

Available Information

Our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to reports filed pursuant to Sections 13(a) and 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). We are subject to the informational requirements of the Exchange Act and file or furnish reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. The public may read and copy any materials filed by us with the SEC at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, NE, Room 1580, Washington, DC 20549, and may obtain information on the operation of the Public Reference Room by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. The SEC maintains an Internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC at www.sec.gov. The contents of these websites are not incorporated into this Annual Report. Further, our references to the URLs for these websites are intended to be inactive textual references only. We also make the documents listed above available without charge through the Investor Relations Section of our website at www.fatbrands.com.

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

Except for the historical information contained herein or incorporated by reference, this report and the information incorporated by reference contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements include projections about our accounting and finances, plans and objectives for the future, future operating and economic performance and other statements regarding future performance. These statements are not guarantees of future performance or events. Our actual results could differ materially from those discussed in this report. Factors that could cause or contribute to these differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed in the following section, as well as those discussed in Part II, Item 7 entitled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and elsewhere throughout this report and in any documents incorporated in this report by reference.

You should consider carefully the following risk factors and in the other information included or incorporated in this report. If any of the following risks, either alone or taken together, or other risks not presently known to us or that we currently believe to not be significant, develop into actual events, then our business, financial condition, results of operations or prospects could be materially adversely affected. If that happens, the market price of our common stock could decline, and stockholders may lose all or part of their investment.

Risks Related to COVID-19, Health Epidemics and Food Safety

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has disrupted and is expected to continue to disrupt our business, which could continue to materially affect our operations, financial condition and results of operations for an extended period of time.

In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) as a pandemic, which continues to spread throughout the United States and other countries. As a result, Company franchisees have closed, or temporarily closed, some retail locations, reduced or modified store operating hours, adopted a “to-go” only operating model, or a combination these actions. These actions have reduced consumer traffic, all resulting in a negative impact to Company revenues. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic may make it more difficult for our franchisees to staff restaurants and, in more severe cases, may cause a temporary inability to obtain supplies, increase commodity costs or cause full and partial closures of our affected restaurants for a prolonged period of time.

Our franchisees have temporarily shifted to a “to-go” only operating model at the majority of our Fatburger, Johnny Rockets, Hurricane Grill & Wings, Buffalo’s Café, and Elevation Burger restaurants in the United States, suspending sit-down dining and serving our guests through take-out, drive-thru and delivery. In addition, most of our Ponderosa, Bonanza, and Yalla stores have implemented temporary closures or modified hours. COVID-19 and the economic downturn caused by the pandemic may also materially adversely affect our ability to implement our growth plans, including closures of existing stores if our franchisees cannot continue operating, delays in opening new stores, and delays or inability to finance acquisitions of additional brands and restaurant concepts.

Furthermore, the fear of contracting viruses could cause employees or guests to avoid gathering in public places, which has had, and could further have, longer-term adverse effects on our restaurant guest traffic or the ability to adequately staff restaurants. We could also be adversely affected if government authorities impose longer-term restrictions on public gatherings such as reductions in restaurant capacity, operations of restaurants or mandatory closures. Even if such measures are not implemented and the COVID-19 virus does not continue to spread significantly, the perceived risk of infection or health risk may adversely affect our business, liquidity, financial condition and results of operations.

While the disruption to our business from the COVID-19 pandemic is currently expected to be temporary, there is a great deal of uncertainty around the severity and duration of the disruption, and also the longer-term effects on our business and economic growth and consumer demand in the U.S. and worldwide. The effects of COVID-19 may materially adversely affect our business, results of operations, liquidity and ability to service our existing debt, particularly if these effects continue in place for a significant amount of time.

Health concerns arising from outbreaks of diseases, other than COVID-19, may have an adverse effect on our business.

In addition to the risks to our business of COVID-19 discussed above, our business could be materially and adversely affected by the outbreak of other widespread health epidemics or pandemics. The occurrence of such an outbreak of an epidemic illness, other than COVID-19, or other adverse public health developments could materially disrupt our business and operations. Such events could also significantly impact our industry and cause a temporary closure of restaurants, which would severely disrupt our operations and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Furthermore, viruses other than COVID-19 may be transmitted through human contact, and the risk of contracting viruses could cause employees or guests to avoid gathering in public places, which could adversely affect restaurant guest traffic or the ability to adequately staff franchised restaurants. We could also be adversely affected if jurisdictions in which our franchisees’ restaurants operate impose mandatory closures, seek voluntary closures or impose restrictions on operations of restaurants. Even if such measures are not implemented and a virus or other disease, other than COVID-19, does not spread significantly, the perceived risk of infection or health risk may affect our business.

Food safety and foodborne illness concerns may have an adverse effect on our business.

Foodborne illnesses, such as E. coli, hepatitis A, trichinosis and salmonella, occur or may occur within our system from time to time. In addition, food safety issues such as food tampering, contamination and adulteration occur or may occur within our system from time to time. Any report or publicity linking one of our franchisee’s restaurants, or linking our competitors or our industry generally, to instances of foodborne illness or food safety issues could adversely affect our brands and reputations as well as our revenues and profits, and possibly lead to product liability claims, litigation and damages. If a customer of one of our franchisees’ restaurants becomes ill as a result of food safety issues, restaurants in our system may be temporarily closed, which would decrease our revenues. In addition, instances or allegations of foodborne illness or food safety issues, real or perceived, involving our franchised restaurants, restaurants of competitors, or suppliers or distributors (regardless of whether we use or have used those suppliers or distributors), or otherwise involving the types of food served at our franchisees’ restaurants, could result in negative publicity that could adversely affect our revenues or the sales of our franchisees. Additionally, allegations of foodborne illness or food safety issues could result in litigation involving us and our franchisees. The occurrence of foodborne illnesses or food safety issues could also adversely affect the price and availability of affected ingredients, which could result in disruptions in our supply chain and/or lower revenues and margins for us and our franchisees.

Risks Related to Our Franchised Business Model

Our operating and financial results and growth strategies are closely tied to the success of our franchisees.

Our restaurants are operated by our franchisees, which makes us dependent on the financial success and cooperation of our franchisees. We have limited control over how our franchisees’ businesses are run, and the inability of franchisees to operate successfully could adversely affect our operating and financial results through decreased royalty payments. If our franchisees incur too much debt, if their operating expenses or commodity prices increase or if economic or sales trends deteriorate such that they are unable to operate profitably or repay existing debt, it could result in their financial distress, including insolvency or bankruptcy. If a significant franchisee or a significant number of our franchisees become financially distressed, our operating and financial results could be impacted through reduced or delayed royalty payments. Our success also depends on the willingness and ability of our franchisees to implement major initiatives, which may include financial investment. Our franchisees may be unable to successfully implement strategies that we believe are necessary for their further growth, which in turn may harm the growth prospects and financial condition of the company. Additionally, the failure of our franchisees to focus on the fundamentals of restaurant operations, such as quality service and cleanliness (even if such failures do not rise to the level of breaching the related franchise documents), could have a negative impact on our business.

Our franchisees could take actions that could harm our business and may not accurately report sales.

Our franchisees are contractually obligated to operate their restaurants in accordance with the operations, safety, and health standards set forth in our agreements with them and applicable laws. However, although we will attempt to properly train and support all our franchisees, they are independent third parties whom we do not control. The franchisees own, operate, and oversee the daily operations of their restaurants, and their employees are not our employees. Accordingly, their actions are outside of our control. Although we have developed criteria to evaluate and screen prospective franchisees, we cannot be certain that our franchisees will have the business acumen or financial resources necessary to operate successful franchises at their approved locations, and state franchise laws may limit our ability to terminate or not renew these franchise agreements. Moreover, despite our training, support and monitoring, franchisees may not successfully operate restaurants in a manner consistent with our standards and requirements or may not hire and adequately train qualified managers and other restaurant personnel. The failure of our franchisees to operate their franchises in accordance with our standards or applicable law, actions taken by their employees or a negative publicity event at one of our franchised restaurants or involving one of our franchisees could have a material adverse effect on our reputation, our brands, our ability to attract prospective franchisees, our company-owned restaurants, and our business, financial condition or results of operations.

Franchisees typically use a point of sale, or POS, cash register system to record all sales transactions at the restaurant. We require franchisees to use a specific brand or model of hardware or software components for their restaurant system. Currently, franchisees report sales manually and electronically, but we do not have the ability to verify all sales data electronically by accessing their POS cash register systems. We have the right under our franchise agreement to audit franchisees to verify sales information provided to us, and we have the ability to indirectly verify sales based on purchasing information. However, franchisees may underreport sales, which would reduce royalty income otherwise payable to us and adversely affect our operating and financial results.

If we fail to identify, recruit and contract with a sufficient number of qualified franchisees, our ability to open new franchised restaurants and increase our revenues could be materially adversely affected.

The opening of additional franchised restaurants depends, in part, upon the availability of prospective franchisees who meet our criteria. Most of our franchisees open and operate multiple restaurants, and our growth strategy requires us to identify, recruit and contract with a significant number of new franchisees each year. We may not be able to identify, recruit or contract with suitable franchisees in our target markets on a timely basis or at all. In addition, our franchisees may not have access to the financial or management resources that they need to open the restaurants contemplated by their agreements with us, or they may elect to cease restaurant development for other reasons. If we are unable to recruit suitable franchisees or if franchisees are unable or unwilling to open new restaurants as planned, our growth may be slower than anticipated, which could materially adversely affect our ability to increase our revenues and materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

If we fail to open new domestic and international franchisee-owned restaurants on a timely basis, our ability to increase our revenues could be materially adversely affected.

A significant component of our growth strategy includes the opening of new domestic and international franchised restaurants. Our franchisees face many challenges associated with opening new restaurants, including:

As a result of these challenges, our franchisees may not be able to open new restaurants as quickly as planned or at all. Our franchisees have experienced, and expect to continue to experience, delays in restaurant openings from time to time and have abandoned plans to open restaurants in various markets on occasion. Any delays or failures to open new restaurants by our franchisees could materially and adversely affect our growth strategy and our results of operations.

Negative publicity relating to one of our franchised restaurants could reduce sales at some or all of our other franchised restaurants.

Our success is dependent in part upon our ability to maintain and enhance the value of our brands, consumers’ connection to our brands and positive relationships with our franchisees. We may, from time to time, be faced with negative publicity relating to food quality, public health concerns, restaurant facilities, customer complaints or litigation alleging illness or injury, health inspection scores, integrity of our franchisees or their suppliers’ food processing, employee relationships or other matters, regardless of whether the allegations are valid or whether or not the Company is held to be responsible. The negative impact of adverse publicity relating to one franchised restaurant may extend far beyond that restaurant or franchisee involved to affect some or all of our other franchised restaurants. The risk of negative publicity is particularly great with respect to our franchised restaurants because we are limited in the manner in which we can manage and control a franchisee’s operations and messaging, especially on a real-time basis. The considerable expansion in the use of social media over recent years can further amplify any negative publicity that could be generated by such incidents. A similar risk exists with respect to unrelated food service businesses, if consumers associate those businesses with our own or franchised operations. Additionally, employee claims against us based on, among other things, wage and hour violations, discrimination, harassment or wrongful termination may also create negative publicity that could adversely affect us and divert our financial and management resources that would otherwise be used to benefit the future performance of our operations. A significant increase in the number of these claims or an increase in the number of successful claims would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Consumer demand for our products and our brands’ value could diminish significantly if any such incidents or other matters create negative publicity or otherwise erode consumer confidence in us or our products, which would likely result in lower sales and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our brands’ value may be limited or diluted through franchisee and third-party activity.

Although we monitor and regulate franchisee activities under the terms of our franchise agreements, franchisees or other third parties may refer to or make statements about our brands that do not make proper use of our trademarks or required designations, that improperly alter trademarks or branding, or that are critical of our brands or place our brands in a context that may tarnish our reputation. This may result in dilution of, or harm to, our intellectual property or the value of our brands. Franchisee noncompliance with the terms and conditions of our franchise agreements may reduce the overall goodwill of our brands, whether through the failure to meet health and safety standards, engage in quality control or maintain product consistency, or through the participation in improper or objectionable business practices. Moreover, unauthorized third parties may use our intellectual property to trade on the goodwill of our brands, resulting in consumer confusion or dilution of our brands’ value. Any reduction of our brands’ goodwill, consumer confusion, or reputational dilution is likely to impact sales, and could materially and adversely impact our business and results of operations.

Risks Relating to Our Business and Operations

We have significant outstanding indebtedness under our whole-business securitization facility, which requires that we generate sufficient cash flow to satisfy the payment and other obligations under the terms of our debt and exposes us to the risk of default and lender remedies.

The principal balance of the indebtedness under our whole-business securitization facility issued by our special purpose subsidiary, FAT Brands Royalty I, LLC (“FAT Royalty”), was $80.0 million as of December 27, 2020. We and FAT Royalty may incur additional indebtedness for various purposes, including to fund future acquisitions and operational needs. The terms of our outstanding indebtedness provide for significant principal and interest payments, and subjects us and FAT Royalty to certain financial and non-financial covenants, including a debt service coverage ratio calculation, as defined in the Indenture. If certain covenants are not met, the indebtedness may become partially or fully due and payable on an accelerated schedule.  Our ability to meet the payment obligations under our debt depends on our ability to generate significant cash flow in the future. We cannot assure you that our business will generate cash flow from operations, or that other capital will be available to us, in amounts sufficient to enable us to meet our payment obligations under our loan agreements and to fund our other liquidity needs. If we are not able to generate sufficient cash flow to service these obligations, we may need to refinance or restructure our debt, sell unencumbered assets (if any) or seek to raise additional capital. If we are unable to implement one or more of these options, we may not be able to meet these payment obligations, and the imposition of lender remedies could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and liquidity.

Our growth strategy includes pursuing opportunistic acquisitions of additional brands, and we may not find suitable acquisition candidates or successfully operate or integrate any brands that we may acquire.

As part of our growth strategy, we intend to opportunistically acquire new brands and restaurant concepts. Although we believe that opportunities for future acquisitions may be available from time to time, competition for acquisition candidates may exist or increase in the future. Consequently, there may be fewer acquisition opportunities available to us as well as higher acquisition prices. There can be no assurance that we will be able to identify, acquire, manage or successfully integrate additional brands or restaurant concepts without substantial costs, delays or operational or financial problems.

The difficulties of integration include coordinating and consolidating geographically separated systems and facilities, integrating the management and personnel of the acquired brands, maintaining employee morale and retaining key employees, implementing our management information systems and financial accounting and reporting systems, establishing and maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting, and implementing operational procedures and disciplines to control costs and increase profitability.

In the event we are able to acquire additional brands or restaurant concepts, the integration and operation of such acquisitions may place significant demands on our management, which could adversely affect our ability to manage our existing restaurants. In addition, we may be required to obtain additional financing to fund future acquisitions, but there can be no assurance that we will be able to obtain additional financing on acceptable terms or at all.

Our success depends substantially on our corporate reputation and on the value and perception of our brands.

Our success depends in large part upon our and our franchisees’ ability to maintain and enhance the value of our brands and our customers’ loyalty to our brands. Brand value is based in part on consumer perceptions on a variety of subjective qualities. Business incidents, whether isolated or recurring, and whether originating from us, franchisees, competitors, suppliers or distributors, can significantly reduce brand value and consumer trust, particularly if the incidents receive considerable publicity or result in litigation. For example, our brands could be damaged by claims or perceptions about the quality or safety of our products or the quality or reputation of our suppliers, distributors or franchisees, regardless of whether such claims or perceptions are true. Similarly, entities in our supply chain may engage in conduct, including alleged human rights abuses or environmental wrongdoing, and any such conduct could damage our or our brands’ reputations. Any such incidents (even if resulting from actions of a competitor or franchisee) could cause a decline directly or indirectly in consumer confidence in, or the perception of, our brands and/or our products and reduce consumer demand for our products, which would likely result in lower revenues and profits. Additionally, our corporate reputation could suffer from a real or perceived failure of corporate governance or misconduct by a company officer, or an employee or representative of us or a franchisee.

Failure to protect our service marks or other intellectual property could harm our business.

We regard our Fatburger®, Johnny Rockets®, Buffalo’s Cafe®, Ponderosa®, Bonanza®, Hurricane®, and Yalla Mediterranean® service marks, and other service marks and trademarks related to our franchise restaurant businesses, as having critical importance to our future operations and marketing efforts. We rely on a combination of protections provided by contracts, copyrights, patents, trademarks, service marks and other common law rights, such as trade secret and unfair competition laws, to protect our franchised restaurants and services from infringement. We have registered certain trademarks and service marks in the U.S. and foreign jurisdictions. However, from time to time we become aware of names and marks identical or confusingly similar to our service marks being used by other persons. Although our policy is to oppose any such infringement, further or unknown unauthorized uses or other misappropriation of our trademarks or service marks could diminish the value of our brands and adversely affect our business. In addition, effective intellectual property protection may not be available in every country in which our franchisees have, or intend to open or franchise, a restaurant. There can be no assurance that these protections will be adequate and defending or enforcing our service marks and other intellectual property could result in the expenditure of significant resources. We may also face claims of infringement that could interfere with the use of the proprietary knowhow, concepts, recipes, or trade secrets used in our business. Defending against such claims may be costly, and we may be prohibited from using such proprietary information in the future or forced to pay damages, royalties, or other fees for using such proprietary information, any of which could negatively affect our business, reputation, financial condition, and results of operations.

If our franchisees are unable to protect their customers’ credit card data and other personal information, our franchisees could be exposed to data loss, litigation, and liability, and our reputation could be significantly harmed.

Privacy protection is increasingly demanding, and the use of electronic payment methods and collection of other personal information expose our franchisees to increased risk of privacy and/or security breaches as well as other risks. The majority of our franchisees’ restaurant sales are by credit or debit cards. In connection with credit or debit card transactions in-restaurant, our franchisees collect and transmit confidential information by way of secure private retail networks. Additionally, our franchisees collect and store personal information from individuals, including their customers and employees.

If a person is able to circumvent our franchisees’ security measures or those of third parties, he or she could destroy or steal valuable information or disrupt our operations. Our franchisees may become subject to claims for purportedly fraudulent transactions arising out of the actual or alleged theft of credit or debit card information, and our franchisees may also be subject to lawsuits or other proceedings relating to these types of incidents. Any such claim or proceeding could cause our franchisees to incur significant unplanned expenses, which could have an adverse impact on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Further, adverse publicity resulting from these allegations could significantly harm our reputation and may have a material adverse effect on us and our franchisees’ business.

We and our franchisees rely on computer systems to process transactions and manage our business, and a disruption or a failure of such systems or technology could harm our ability to effectively manage our business.

Network and information technology systems are integral to our business. We utilize various computer systems, including our franchisee reporting system, by which our franchisees report their weekly sales and pay their corresponding royalty fees and required advertising fund contributions. When sales are reported by a franchisee, a withdrawal for the authorized amount is initiated from the franchisee’s bank on a set date each week based on gross sales during the week ended the prior Sunday. This system is critical to our ability to accurately track sales and compute royalties and advertising fund contributions and receive timely payments due from our franchisees. Our operations depend upon our ability to protect our computer equipment and systems against damage from physical theft, fire, power loss, telecommunications failure or other catastrophic events, as well as from internal and external security breaches, viruses, worms and other disruptive problems. Any damage or failure of our computer systems or network infrastructure that causes an interruption in our operations could have a material adverse effect on our business and subject us to litigation or actions by regulatory authorities. Despite the implementation of protective measures, our systems are subject to damage and/or interruption as a result of power outages, computer and network failures, computer viruses and other disruptive software, security breaches, catastrophic events, and improper usage by employees. Such events could result in a material disruption in operations, a need for a costly repair, upgrade or replacement of systems, or a decrease in, or in the collection of, royalties and advertising fund contributions paid to us by our franchisees. To the extent that any disruption or security breach were to result in a loss of, or damage to, our data or applications, or inappropriate disclosure of confidential or proprietary information, we could incur liability which could materially affect our results of operations. It is also critical that we establish and maintain certain licensing and software agreements for the software we use in our day-to-day operations. A failure to procure or maintain these licenses could have a material adverse effect on our business operations.

The retail food industry in which we operate is highly competitive.

The retail food industry in which we operate is highly competitive with respect to price and quality of food products, new product development, advertising levels and promotional initiatives, customer service, reputation, restaurant location, and attractiveness and maintenance of properties. If consumer or dietary preferences change, if our marketing efforts are unsuccessful, or if our franchisees’ restaurants are unable to compete successfully with other retail food outlets in new and existing markets, our business could be adversely affected. We also face growing competition as a result of convergence in grocery, convenience, deli and restaurant services, including the offering by the grocery industry of convenient meals, including pizzas and entrees with side dishes. Competition from delivery aggregators and other food delivery services has also increased in recent years, particularly in urbanized areas. Increased competition could have an adverse effect on our sales, profitability or development plans, which could harm our financial condition and operating results.

Shortages or interruptions in the availability and delivery of food and other supplies may increase costs or reduce revenues.

The food products sold by our franchisees and raw materials used in their restaurants are sourced from a variety of domestic and international suppliers. We, along with our franchisees, are also dependent upon third parties to make frequent deliveries of food products and supplies that meet our specifications at competitive prices. Shortages or interruptions in the supply of food items, raw materials and other supplies to our franchisees’ restaurants could adversely affect the availability, quality and cost of items we use and the operations of our franchisees’ restaurants. Such shortages or disruptions could be caused by inclement weather, natural disasters, increased demand, problems in production or distribution, restrictions on imports or exports, the inability of vendors to obtain credit, political instability in the countries in which suppliers and distributors are located, the financial instability of suppliers and distributors, suppliers’ or distributors’ failure to meet our standards, product quality issues, inflation, the price of gasoline, other factors relating to the suppliers and distributors and the countries in which they are located, food safety warnings or advisories or the prospect of such pronouncements, the cancellation of supply or distribution agreements or an inability to renew such arrangements or to find replacements on commercially reasonable terms, or other conditions beyond our control or the control of our franchisees.

A shortage or interruption in the availability of certain food products, raw materials or supplies could increase costs and limit the availability of products critical to our franchisees’ restaurant operations, which in turn could lead to restaurant closures and/or a decrease in sales and therefore a reduction in royalty fees to us. In addition, failure by a key supplier or distributor to our franchisees to meet its service requirements could lead to a disruption of service or supply until a new supplier or distributor is engaged, and any disruption could have an adverse effect on our franchisees and therefore our business. See “Business—Supply Chain.”

Our business may be adversely impacted by changes in consumer discretionary spending, general economic conditions, or consumer behavior.

Purchases at our franchisees’ restaurants are generally discretionary for consumers and, therefore, our results of operations are susceptible to economic slowdowns and recessions. Our results of operations are dependent upon discretionary spending by consumers of our franchisees’ restaurants, which may be affected by general economic conditions globally or in one or more of the markets we serve. Some of the factors that impact discretionary consumer spending include unemployment rates, fluctuations in the level of disposable income, the price of gasoline, stock market performance, changes in the level of consumer confidence, and long-term changes in consumer behavior related to social distancing behaviors resulting from COVID-19 or other widespread health events. These and other macroeconomic factors could have an adverse effect on sales at our franchisees’ restaurants, which could lead to an adverse effect on our profitability or development plans and harm our financial condition and operating results.

Our expansion into international markets exposes us to a number of risks that may differ in each country where we have franchised restaurants.

We currently have franchised restaurants in 37 countries including 36 states within the United States, and we plan to continue to grow internationally. Expansion in international markets may be affected by local economic and market as well as geopolitical conditions. Therefore, as we expand internationally, our franchisees may not experience the operating margins we expect, and our results of operations and growth may be materially and adversely affected. Our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected if global markets in which our franchised restaurants compete are affected by changes in political, economic or other factors. These factors, over which neither our franchisees nor we have control, may include:

We depend on key executive management.

We depend on the leadership and experience of our relatively small number of key executive management personnel, in particular our Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Wiederhorn. The loss of the services of any of our executive management members could have a material adverse effect on our business and prospects, as we may not be able to find suitable individuals to replace such personnel on a timely basis or without incurring increased costs, or at all. We do not maintain key man life insurance policies on any of our executive officers. We believe that our future success will depend on our continued ability to attract and retain highly skilled and qualified personnel. There is a high level of competition for experienced, successful personnel in our industry. Our inability to meet our executive staffing requirements in the future could impair our growth and harm our business.

Labor shortages or difficulty finding qualified employees could slow our growth, harm our business and reduce our profitability.

Restaurant operations are highly service oriented, and our success depends in part upon our franchisees’ ability to attract, retain and motivate a sufficient number of qualified employees, including restaurant managers and other crew members. The market for qualified employees in our industry is very competitive. Any future inability to recruit and retain qualified individuals may delay the planned openings of new restaurants by our franchisees and could adversely impact our existing franchised restaurants. Any such delays, material increases in employee turnover rate in existing franchised restaurants or widespread employee dissatisfaction could have a material adverse effect on our and our franchisees’ business and results of operations.

In addition, strikes, work slowdowns or other job actions may become more common in the United States. Although none of the employees employed by our franchisees are represented by a labor union or are covered by a collective bargaining agreement, in the event of a strike, work slowdown or other labor unrest, the ability to adequately staff our restaurants could be impaired, which could result in reduced revenue and customer claims, and may distract our management from focusing on our business and strategic priorities.

Changes in labor and other operating costs could adversely affect our results of operations.

An increase in the costs of employee wages, benefits and insurance (including workers’ compensation, general liability, property and health) could result from government imposition of higher minimum wages or from general economic or competitive conditions. In addition, competition for qualified employees could compel our franchisees to pay higher wages to attract or retain key crew members, which could result in higher labor costs and decreased profitability. Any increase in labor expenses, as well as increases in general operating costs such as rent and energy, could adversely affect our franchisees’ profit margins, their sales volumes and their ability to remain in business, which would adversely affect our results of operations.

Risks Related to Government Regulation and Litigation

We could be party to litigation that could adversely affect us by increasing our expenses, diverting management attention or subjecting us to significant monetary damages and other remedies.

We may become involved in legal proceedings involving consumer, employment, real estate related, tort, intellectual property, breach of contract, securities, derivative and other litigation. Plaintiffs in these types of lawsuits often seek recovery of very large or indeterminate amounts, and the magnitude of the potential loss relating to such lawsuits may not be accurately estimated. Regardless of whether any such claims have merit, or whether we are ultimately held liable or settle, such litigation may be expensive to defend and may divert resources and management attention away from our operations and negatively impact reported earnings. With respect to insured claims, a judgment for monetary damages in excess of any insurance coverage could adversely affect our financial condition or results of operations. Any adverse publicity resulting from these allegations may also adversely affect our reputation, which in turn could adversely affect our results of operations.

Our subsidiary Fog Cutter Acquisition, LLC is a party to environmental litigation which could result in significant legal expenses whether or not it is resolved favorably.

As described in this Annual Report under “Item 3. Legal Proceedings”, our subsidiary Fog Cutter Capital Group Inc. (now known as Fog Cutter Acquisition, LLC), is a party to litigation entitled Stratford Holding LLC v. Foot Locker Retail Inc. for alleged environmental contamination stemming from dry cleaning operations on a property which was included in a lease portfolio managed by a former subsidiary of Fog Cutter. The property owners seek damages in the range of $12 million to $22 million in the aggregate from all defendants. The Company is unable to predict the ultimate outcome of this matter, and reserves have been recorded on the balance sheet relating to this litigation. There can be no assurance that Fog Cutter Acquisition, LLC will be successful in defending against this action, and an unfavorable outcome in excess of the reserves could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Changes in, or noncompliance with, governmental regulations may adversely affect our business operations, growth prospects or financial condition.

We and our franchisees are subject to numerous laws and regulations around the world. These laws change regularly and are increasingly complex. For example, we and our franchisees are subject to:

Compliance with new or existing laws and regulations could impact our operations. The compliance costs associated with these laws and regulations could be substantial. Any failure or alleged failure to comply with these laws or regulations by our franchisees or indirectly by us could adversely affect our reputation, international expansion efforts, growth prospects and financial results or result in, among other things, litigation, revocation of required licenses, internal investigations, governmental investigations or proceedings, administrative enforcement actions, fines and civil and criminal liability. Publicity relating to any such noncompliance could also harm our reputation and adversely affect our revenues.

In addition, if any governmental authority were to adopt and implement a broader standard for determining when two or more otherwise unrelated employers may be found to be a joint employer of the same employees under laws such as the National Labor Relations Act in a manner that is applied generally to franchise relationships (which broader standards in the past have been adopted by U.S. governmental agencies such as the National Labor Relations Board), this could cause us to be liable or held responsible for unfair labor practices and other violations of our franchisees. Further, a California law enacted in 2019 adopted an employment classification test to be used when determining employee or independent contractor status which establishes a high threshold to obtain independent contractor status. These laws and any similar laws enacted at the federal, state or local level, could increase our and our franchisees’ labor costs and decrease profitability or could cause employees of our franchisees to be deemed to be our employees.

Failure to comply with antibribery or anticorruption laws could adversely affect our business operations.

The U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other similar applicable laws prohibiting bribery of government officials and other corrupt practices are the subject of increasing emphasis and enforcement around the world. Although we have implemented policies and procedures designed to promote compliance with these laws, there can be no assurance that our employees, contractors, agents, franchisees or other third parties will not take actions in violation of our policies or applicable law, particularly as we expand our operations in emerging markets and elsewhere. Any such violations or suspected violations could subject us to civil or criminal penalties, including substantial fines and significant investigation costs, and could also materially damage our reputation, brands, international expansion efforts and growth prospects, business and operating results. Publicity relating to any noncompliance or alleged noncompliance could also harm our reputation and adversely affect our revenues and results of operations.

Risks Related to Our Common Stock and Organizational Structure

We are controlled by Fog Cutter Holdings LLC, whose interests may differ from those of our public stockholders.

Fog Cutter Holdings LLC controls approximately 58.4% of the voting power of our Common Stock and has significant influence over our corporate management and affairs and is able to control virtually all matters requiring stockholder approval. It is possible that the interests of Fog Cutter Holdings LLC may, in some circumstances, conflict with our interests and the interests of our other stockholders.

Our anti-takeover provisions could prevent or delay a change in control of our company, even if such change in control would be beneficial to our stockholders.

Provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws as well as provisions of Delaware law could discourage, delay or prevent a merger, acquisition or other change in control of our company, even if such change in control would be beneficial to our stockholders. These provisions include:

These provisions could also discourage proxy contests and make it more difficult for minority stockholders to elect directors of their choosing and cause us to take other corporate actions they desire. In addition, because our Board of Directors is responsible for appointing the members of our management team, these provisions could in turn affect any attempt by our stockholders to replace current members of our management team.

In addition, the Delaware General Corporation Law, or the DGCL, to which we are subject, prohibits us, except under specified circumstances, from engaging in any mergers, significant sales of stock or assets or business combinations with any stockholder or group of stockholders who owns at least 15% of our common stock.

We may continue to issue shares of preferred stock in the future, which could make it difficult for another company to acquire us or could otherwise adversely affect holders of our Common Stock, which could depress the price of our Common Stock.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes us to issue one or more series of preferred stock. Our board of directors has the authority to determine the preferences, limitations and relative rights of the shares of preferred stock and to fix the number of shares constituting any series and the designation of such series, without any further vote or action by our stockholders. We may authorize or issue shares of preferred stock with voting, liquidation, dividend and other rights superior to the rights of our Common Stock. To date we have authorized and outstanding shares of Series A Preferred Stock and Series B Preferred Stock, which have liquidation and dividend rights superior to the rights of our Common Stock. The potential issuance of preferred stock may also delay or prevent a change in control of us, discourage bids for our Common Stock at a premium to the market price, and materially and adversely affect the market price and the voting and other rights of the holders of our Common Stock.

The provision of our certificate of incorporation requiring exclusive venue in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware for certain types of lawsuits may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers or other employees to us or our stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against us arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or the bylaws or (iv) any action asserting a claim against us governed by the internal affairs doctrine will have to be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware. Although we believe this provision benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law in the types of lawsuits to which it applies, the provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.

If our operating and financial performance in any given period does not meet the guidance that we provide to the public, our stock price may decline.

We may provide public guidance on our expected operating and financial results for future periods. Any such guidance will be comprised of forward-looking statements subject to the risks and uncertainties described in our public filings and public statements. Our actual results may not always be in line with or exceed any guidance we have provided, especially in times of economic uncertainty. If our operating or financial results for a particular period do not meet any guidance we provide or the expectations of investment analysts or if we reduce our guidance for future periods, the market price of our Common Stock may decline as well.

Our ability to pay regular dividends to our stockholders is subject to the discretion of our Board of Directors and may be limited by our holding company structure and applicable provisions of Delaware law.

While we have paid cash and stock dividends to holders of our Common Stock during fiscal 2018, 2019 and 2020, our board of directors may, in its sole discretion, decrease the amount or frequency of cash or stock dividends or discontinue the payment of dividends entirely. In addition, as a holding company, we will be dependent upon the ability of our operating subsidiaries to generate earnings and cash flows and distribute them to us so that we may pay cash dividends to our stockholders. Our ability to pay cash dividends will be subject to our consolidated operating results, cash requirements and financial condition, the applicable provisions of Delaware law which may limit the amount of funds available for distribution to our stockholders, our compliance with covenants and financial ratios related to existing or future indebtedness, and our other agreements with third parties. In addition, each of the companies in the corporate chain must manage its assets, liabilities and working capital in order to meet all of its cash obligations, including the payment of dividends or distributions.

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES

Our corporate headquarters, including our principal administrative, sales and marketing, customer support, and research and development operations, are located in Beverly Hills, California, comprising 6,137 square feet of space, pursuant to a lease that expires on September 29, 2025, as well as an additional 2,915 square feet of space pursuant to a lease amendment that expires on February 29, 2024.

Our administrative and culinary operations for Bonanza and Ponderosa are located in Plano, Texas, where we currently lease and occupy 1,775 square feet of space pursuant to a lease that expires on March 31, 2021.

As part of the Yalla transaction in December 2018, the Company assumed control of seven restaurant properties subject to leases in California being operated as Yalla Mediterranean restaurants, but did not guarantee the leases of the Yalla restaurants. As of December 27, 2020, all of these locations had either been sold to franchisees or closed.

When we acquired Johnny Rockets, we assumed control of nine restaurant locations which are now being marketed as part of our refranchising efforts. Each location is subject to a real estate lease.

We believe that all our existing facilities are in good operating condition and adequate to meet our current and foreseeable needs.

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

Eric Rojany, et al. v. FAT Brands Inc., et al., Superior Court of California for the County of Los Angeles, Case No. BC708539, and Daniel Alden, et al. v. FAT Brands Inc., et al., Superior Court of California for the County of Los Angeles, Case No. BC716017.

On June 7, 2018, FAT Brands, Inc., Andrew Wiederhorn, Ron Roe, James Neuhauser, Edward H. Rensi, Marc L. Holtzman, Squire Junger, Silvia Kessel, Jeff Lotman, Fog Cutter Capital Group Inc., and Tripoint Global Equities, LLC (collectively, the “Original Defendants”) were named as defendants in a putative securities class action lawsuit entitled Rojany v. FAT Brands, Inc., Case No. BC708539 (the “Rojany Case”), in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Los Angeles. Since the time that the case was initially filed, plaintiffs Alden, Hazelton-Harrington and Marin, voluntarily dismissed their claims without prejudice, leaving only plaintiff Rojany as the putative class representative plaintiff (“Plaintiff”). On January 29, 2020, Plaintiff filed a Motion for Class Certification. On October 8, 2020, the Court denied Plaintiff’s Motion for Class Certification. On January 6, 2021, the parties executed a Settlement Agreement and Mutual Release pursuant to which plaintiff agreed to dismiss his individual claims against defendants with prejudice in exchange for a payment by or on behalf of defendants of $50,000. On January 27, 2021, plaintiff filed a request for dismissal of this action, with prejudice, in its entirety.

Adam Vignola, et al. v. FAT Brands Inc., et al., United States District Court for the Central District of California, Case No. 2:18-cv-07469.

On August 24, 2018, the Original Defendants were named as defendants in a putative securities class action lawsuit entitled Vignola v. FAT Brands, Inc., Case No. 2:18-cv-07469-PSG-PLA, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California. The allegations and claims for relief asserted in Vignola are substantively identical to those asserted in the Rojany Case. On December 27, 2019, Lead Plaintiffs filed a Motion for Class Certification. By order entered March 16, 2020, the Court denied Lead Plaintiffs’ Motion for Class Certification. On September 25, 2020, the parties executed a Settlement Agreement and Mutual Release pursuant to which lead plaintiffs agreed to dismiss their individual claims against defendants with prejudice in exchange for a payment by or on behalf of defendants of $75,000. On October 13, 2020, the Court ordered the stipulated dismissal of this action, with prejudice, in its entirety.

Stratford Holding LLC v. Foot Locker Retail Inc. (U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, Case No. 5:12-cv-00772-HE)

In 2012 and 2013, two property owners in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma sued numerous parties, including Foot Locker Retail Inc. and our subsidiary Fog Cutter Capital Group Inc. (now known as Fog Cutter Acquisition, LLC), for alleged environmental contamination on their properties, stemming from dry cleaning operations on one of the properties. The property owners seek damages in the range of $12 million to $22 million. From 2002 to 2008, a former Fog Cutter subsidiary managed a lease portfolio, which included the subject property. Fog Cutter denies any liability, although it did not timely respond to one of the property owners’ complaints and several of the defendants’ cross-complaints and thus is in default. The parties are currently conducting discovery, and the matter is scheduled for trial for November 2021. The Company is unable to predict the ultimate outcome of this matter, however, reserves have been recorded on the balance sheet relating to this litigation. There can be no assurance that the defendants will be successful in defending against these actions.

SBN FCCG LLC v FCCGI (Los Angeles Superior Court, Case No. BS172606)

SBN FCCG LLC (“SBN”) filed a complaint against Fog Cutter Capital Group, Inc. (“FCCG”) in New York state court for an indemnification claim (the “NY case”) stemming from an earlier lawsuit in Georgia regarding a certain lease portfolio formerly managed by a former FCCG subsidiary. In February 2018, SBN obtained a final judgment in the NY case for a total of $651,290, which included $225,030 in interest dating back to March 2012. SBN then obtained a sister state judgment in Los Angeles Superior Court, Case No. BS172606 (the “California case”), which included the $651,290 judgment from the NY case, plus additional statutory interest and fees, for a total judgment of $656,543. In May 2018, SBN filed a cost memo, requesting an additional $12,411 in interest to be added to the judgment in the California case, for a total of $668,954. In May 2019, the parties agreed to settle the matter for $580,000, which required the immediate payment of $100,000, and the balance to be paid in August 2019. FCCG wired $100,000 to SBN in May 2019, but has not yet paid the remaining balance of $480,000. The parties have not entered into a formal settlement agreement, and they have not yet discussed the terms for the payment of the remaining balance.

The Company is involved in other claims and legal proceedings from time-to-time that arise in the ordinary course of business, including those involving the Company’s franchisees. The Company does not believe that the ultimate resolution of these actions will have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity or capital resources. As of December 27, 2020, the Company had accrued an aggregate of $5.68 million for the specific matters mentioned above and claims and legal proceedings involving franchisees as of that date.

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

PART II

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR THE REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Market Information

Our common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Common Stock”), is traded on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the ticker symbol “FAT”.

As of March 13, 2021, there were 49 shareholders of record for our Common Stock. The number of record holders does not include persons who held shares of our Common Stock in nominee or “street name” accounts through brokers.

Dividends

In connection with the acquisition of FCCG by the Company, in December 2020 we declared a special stock dividend (the “Special Dividend”) payable only to holders of our Common Stock, other than FCCG, on the record date, consisting of 0.2319998077 shares of our 8.25% Series B Cumulative Preferred Stock (liquidation preference $25.00 per share) (the “Series B Preferred Stock”) for each outstanding share of Common Stock held by such stockholders. The value of any fractional shares of Series B Preferred Stock was paid in cash and amounted to approximately $29,000. The Special Dividend was paid on December 23, 2020 and resulted in the issuance of 520,145 additional shares of Series B Preferred Stock with a market value on the payment date of approximately $8,885,000.

On February 7, 2019, we declared a stock dividend equal to 2.13% on our common stock, representing the number of shares equal to $0.12 per share of common stock based on the closing price as of February 6, 2019. The stock dividend was paid on February 28, 2019 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on February 19, 2019. We issued 245,376 shares of common stock at a per share price of $5.64 in satisfaction of the stock dividend. No fractional shares were issued, instead we paid stockholders cash-in-lieu of shares. (See Note 17 in the accompanying audited consolidated financial statements). Unless otherwise noted, the common stock share and share price information presented in this Form 10-K for periods prior to February 28, 2019 have been adjusted retrospectively to reflect the impact of the stock dividend.

The declaration and payment of future dividends will be at the sole discretion of the board of directors. In determining the amount of any future dividends, the board of directors will take into account: (i) our consolidated financial results, available cash, future cash requirements and capital requirements, (ii) any contractual, legal, tax or regulatory restrictions on the payment of dividends to stockholders, (iii) general economic and business conditions, and (iv) any other factors that the board of directors may deem relevant. The ability to pay dividends may also be restricted by the terms of our credit agreements and indentures, and any future debt or preferred equity securities of the Company or its subsidiaries.

Equity Compensation Plan Information

The Company’s 2017 Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan (the “Plan”) is a comprehensive incentive compensation plan under which the Company can grant equity-based and other incentive awards to officers, employees and directors of, and consultants and advisers to, FAT Brands Inc. and its subsidiaries. The purpose of the Plan is to help attract, motivate and retain qualified personnel and thereby enhance stockholder value. The Plan provides a maximum of 1,021,250 shares available for grant. Unexercised options which lapse or are forfeited become available again for grant.

As of December 27, 2020, under the Plan, we have granted options to purchase 502,922 shares of common stock to employees, 367,632 shares of common stock to non-employee directors, and 45,954 shares of common stock to non-employee consultants. As of December 27, 2020, options granted to employees to purchase 122,541 shares of common stock and options granted to non-employee directors to purchase 137,862 shares of common had been cancelled. Each grant is subject to a three-year vesting requirement, with one-third of the options vesting each year.

The information presented in the table below is as of December 27, 2020:

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

We do not have a program in place to repurchase our own Common Stock or preferred stock and as of December 27, 2020, we have not repurchased any of these securities.

On July 30, 2020, we entered into an agreement (the “Lender Warrant Purchase Agreement”) to reacquire for $249,500, warrants that had been issued on July 3, 2018 and which granted the right to purchase 509,604 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $7.20 per share (the “Lender Warrant”). The Lender Warrant was issued as part of the former $16 million credit facility with FB Lending, LLC, which was repaid on January 29, 2019. The Lender Warrant was valued at $592,000 at the date of grant and may have been exercised at any time beginning on the issue date and ending on July 3, 2023.

On August 11, 2020, we purchased a portion of the outstanding Placement Agent Warrants for $12,626. The reacquired Placement Agent Warrants were issued on July 3, 2018 and granted the right to purchase 25,787 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $7.20 per share. As of September 27, 2020, there were remaining outstanding Placement Agent Warrants granting rights to purchase 40,904 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $7.20 per share.

Between August 19, 2020 and December 7, 2020, we engaged in several open market purchases of the 2020 Series B Offering Warrants. For payment of total consideration of $488,027, we acquired warrants which had been issued on July 16, 2020 and which granted the right to purchase a total of 284,290 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $5.00 per share. As a result of these transactions, the remaining outstanding 2020 Series B Offering Warrants grant rights to purchase 1,899,910 shares of our common stock, beginning on the earlier of one year from the date of issuance or the consummation of a consolidation, merger or other similar business combination transaction involving the Company and FCCG.

Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities

Other than sales of unregistered securities that were disclosed on reports that we filed with the SEC, we have not issued any additional securities in transactions that were not registered under the Securities Act during the year ended December 27, 2020.

ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA.

Not required for smaller reporting companies.

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

COVID-19

In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of a novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) as a pandemic, which continues to spread throughout the United States and other countries. As a result, Company franchisees have temporarily closed some retail locations, reduced or modified store operating hours, adopted a “to-go” only operating model, or a combination these actions. These actions have reduced consumer traffic, all resulting in a negative impact to Company revenues. While the disruption to our business from the COVID-19 pandemic is currently expected to be temporary, there is a great deal of uncertainty around the severity and duration of the disruption, and also the longer-term effects on our business and economic growth and consumer demand in the U.S. and worldwide. The effects of COVID-19 may materially adversely affect our business, results of operations, liquidity and ability to service our existing debt, particularly if these effects continue in place for a significant amount of time. As additional information becomes available regarding the potential impact and the duration of the negative financial effects of the current pandemic, the Company may determine that additional impairment adjustment to the recorded value of trademarks, goodwill and other intangible assets may be necessary.

Executive Overview

Business overview

FAT Brands Inc. is a leading multi-brand restaurant franchising company that develops, markets, and acquires primarily quick-service, fast casual and casual dining concepts restaurant concepts around the world. Organized in March 2017 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Fog Cutter Capital Group, Inc. (“FCCG”), we completed our initial public offering on October 20, 2017 and issued additional shares of common stock representing 20 percent of our ownership upon completion of the offering. During the fourth quarter of 2020, we completed a transaction in which FCCG merged into a wholly owned subsidiary of ours, and we became the parent company of FCCG.

As a franchisor, we generally do not own or operate restaurant locations, but rather generate revenue by charging franchisees an initial franchise fee as well as ongoing royalties. This asset light franchisor model provides the opportunity for strong profit margins and an attractive free cash flow profile while minimizing restaurant operating company risk, such as long-term real estate commitments or capital investments. Our scalable management platform enables us to add new stores and restaurant concepts to our portfolio with minimal incremental corporate overhead cost, while taking advantage of significant corporate overhead synergies. The acquisition of additional brands and restaurant concepts as well as expansion of our existing brands are key elements of our growth strategy.

As of December 27, 2020, the Company owns nine restaurant brands: Fatburger, Johnny Rockets, Buffalo’s Cafe, Buffalo’s Express, Hurricane Grill & Wings, Ponderosa and Bonanza Steakhouses, Elevation Burger and Yalla Mediterranean, that have over 700 locations, including units under construction.

Operating segments

With minor exceptions, our operations are comprised exclusively of franchising a growing portfolio of restaurant brands. Our growth strategy is centered on expanding the footprint of existing brands and acquiring new brands through a centralized management organization which provides substantially all executive leadership, marketing, training and accounting services. While each of our brands could be considered an individual business segment, the nature of our business is consistent across our portfolio. Consequently, while our management assesses the progress of our operations by brand, these operations may be aggregated into one reportable segment in the Company’s financial statements.

Our chief operating decision maker (“CODM”) is our Chief Executive Officer. Our CODM reviews financial performance and allocates resources at an overall level on a recurring basis. Therefore, management has determined that the Company has one reportable segment.

Results of Operations

We operate on a 52-week or 53-week fiscal year ending on the last Sunday of the calendar year. In a 52-week fiscal year, each quarter contains 13 weeks of operations. In a 53-week fiscal year, each of the first, second and third quarters includes 13 weeks of operations and the fourth quarter includes 14 weeks of operations, which may cause our revenue, expenses and other results of operations to be higher due to an additional week of operations. The 2020 and 2019 fiscal years were each 52-week years.

Results of Operations of FAT Brands Inc.

The following table summarize key components of our consolidated results of operations for the fiscal years ended December 27, 2020 and December 29, 2019. Certain account balances from the prior period have been reclassified to conform to current period presentation.

(In thousands)

For the Fiscal Years Ended

Net Loss - Net loss for the fiscal year ended December 27, 2020 totaled $14,860,000 consisting of revenues of $18,118,000 less costs and expenses of $33,216,000 and other expense of $3,451,000, plus income tax benefit of $3,689,000. Net loss for the fiscal year ended December 29, 2019 totaled $1,018,000 consisting of revenues of $22,505,000 less costs and expenses of $16,587,000, other expense of $6,426,000 and provision for income tax of $510,000.

Revenues - Revenues consist of royalties, franchise fees, advertising fees and other income. We earned revenues of $18,118,000 for the fiscal year ended December 27, 2020 compared to $22,505,000 for the fiscal year ended December 29, 2019. The decrease of $4,387,000 (19%) was primarily the result of the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on royalties and advertising fees from reduced restaurant sales.

Costs and Expenses – Costs and expenses consist primarily of general and administrative costs, impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets, advertising expense and refranchising losses. Our costs and expenses increased from $16,587,000 in the 2019 fiscal year to $33,216,000 in the comparable period of 2020.

For the fiscal year ended December 27, 2020, our general and administrative expenses increased $2,619,000 over the previous year. The increase was primarily the result of an increase in COVID driven bad debt expense of $904,000; increased occupancy costs of $337,000 relating to new office space; an increase in legal fees of $738,000 relating primarily to various litigation matters; an increase in amortization of intangible assets of $385,000 arising from a full year of amortization for Elevation Burger and the addition of Johnny Rockets in 2020; and an increase in public company expenses of $494,000 relating to various capital transactions in 2020.

Our refranchising efforts were significantly negatively impacted by the COVID pandemic. During the fiscal year ended December 27, 2020, our refranchising efforts resulted in a net loss of $3,827,000. The refranchising loss consisted of losses on the sale or closure of certain restaurant locations in the amount of $1,463,000, plus restaurant operating expenses, net of food sales, of $2,364,000. During the fiscal year ended December 29, 2019, our refranchising efforts resulted in a net loss of $219,000. The refranchising loss consisted of gains on the sale of six restaurant locations to new franchisees in the amount of $1,795,000, less restaurant operating expenses, net of food sales, of $2,014,000.

We review our goodwill and other intangible assets regularly throughout the year. In large part as a result of impacts from COVID-19, this analysis resulted in recognition of impairment charges of these assets in the amount of $9,295,000 for the year ended December 27, 2020. There were no impairment charges during the 2019 fiscal year.

Advertising expenses totaled $5,218,000 during the fiscal year ended December 27, 2020, compared with $4,111,000 during the prior year period, representing an increase of $1,107,000 (27%). These expenses generally vary in relation to the advertising revenue recognized. However, the increase in 2020 is largely the result of expensing advertising expenditures in excess of the advertising fees collected from franchisees.

Other Expense, net – Other expense for the fiscal year ended December 27, 2020 totaled $3,451,000 and consisted primarily of net interest expense of $4,919,000 and costs associated with the acquisition and analysis of additional franchise brands. These costs were partially offset by gains relating to a derivative liability in the amount of $887,000 and a gain on the revaluation of the contingent portion of consideration for a previous acquisition. Other expense for the fiscal year ended December 29, 2019 totaled $6,426,000 and consisted primarily of net interest expense of $6,530,000.

Provision for income taxes – We recorded an income tax benefit of $3,689,000 for the year ended December 27, 2020, compared to a provision for income taxes of $510,000 for the fiscal year ended December 29, 2019. These tax results were based on a net losses before taxes of $18,549,000 for 2020 and $508,000 for 2019.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Liquidity is a measurement of our ability to meet potential cash requirements, including ongoing commitments to repay borrowings, fund business operations, acquisitions, and expansion of franchised restaurant locations and for other general business purposes. Our primary sources of funds for liquidity during the fiscal year ended December 27, 2020 consisted of cash provided by borrowings and the issuance of preferred stock.

We are involved in a world-wide expansion of franchise locations, which will require significant liquidity, primarily from our franchisees. If real estate locations of sufficient quality cannot be located and either leased or purchased, the timing of restaurant openings may be delayed. Additionally, if we or our franchisees cannot obtain capital sufficient to fund this expansion, the extent of or timing of restaurant openings may be reduced or delayed.

We also plan to acquire additional restaurant concepts. These acquisitions typically require capital investments in excess of our normal cash on hand. We would expect that future acquisitions will necessitate financing with additional debt or equity transactions. If we are unable to obtain acceptable financing, our ability to acquire additional restaurant concepts likely would be negatively impacted.

As of December 27, 2020, we had cash and restricted cash totaling $7,211,000.

On March 6, 2020, we completed a whole-business securitization (the “Securitization”) through the creation of a bankruptcy-remote issuing entity, FAT Brands Royalty I, LLC (“FAT Royalty”) in which FAT Royalty issued new notes (the “Securitization Notes”) pursuant to an indenture and the supplement thereto (collectively, the “Indenture”). Net proceeds from the issuance of the Securitization Notes were $37,389,000, which consisted of the combined face amount of $40,000,000, net of discounts and debt offering costs. A portion of the proceeds from the Securitization was used to repay the remaining $26,771,000 in outstanding balance under the Lion Loan and Security Agreement and to pay the Securitization debt offering costs.

On September 21, 2020, the FAT Royalty completed the sale of an additional $40 million of Series 2020-2 Fixed Rate Asset-Backed Notes (the “Series M-2 Notes”), increasing FAT Royalty’s Securitization Notes to $80 million. Net proceeds from the issuance of the Series M-2 Notes were $35,371,000, which consist of the face amount of $40,000,000, net of discounts of $3,200,000 and debt offering costs of $1,429,000. Approximately $24,730,000 of the proceeds from the Series M-2 Notes were used to acquire Johnny Rockets. The remaining proceeds from the Securitizations are being used for working capital.

During the second quarter of 2020, the Company received loan proceeds in the amount of $1,532,000 from the Paycheck Protection Program administered by the Small Business Administration (“PPP”) in response to economic difficulties resulting from the outbreak of COVID-19. These loan proceeds relate to FAT Brands Inc. as well as five restaurant locations that were part of the Company’s refranchising program.

On July 13, 2020, the Company entered into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) to issue and sell in a public offering (the “Offering”) 360,000 shares of 8.25% Series B Cumulative Preferred Stock (“Series B Preferred Stock”) and 1,800,000 warrants (the “2020 Series B Warrants”) to purchase common stock at $5.00 per share. The Offering closed on July 16, 2020 with net proceeds to the Company of $8,122,000, which was net of $878,000 in underwriting and offering costs.

Comparison of Cash Flows

Our cash and restricted cash balance was $7,211,000 as of December 27, 2020, compared to $25,000 as of December 29, 2019.

The following table summarize key components of our audited consolidated cash flows for the fiscal years ended December 27, 2020 and December 29, 2019:

(In thousands)

For the Fiscal Years Ended

Operating Activities

Net cash from operating activities decreased $13,078,000 in 2020 compared to 2019. There were variations in the components of the cash from operations between the two periods. Our net loss in 2020 was $14,860,000, compared to a net loss in 2019 of $1,018,000. The net positive adjustments to reconcile these net losses to net cash provided by (or used in) operations were $3,376,000 in 2020 compared to $2,612,000 in 2019. The primary components of the adjustments to reconcile the net loss to net cash from operations for each year were as follows:

Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities increased by $27,562,000 in 2020 compared to 2019 primarily due to the acquisition of Johnny Rockets in 2020 for $23,918,000 (net of cash acquired) and by an increase in advances to affiliates of $4,383,000 over the 2019 levels.

Financing Activities

Net cash from financing activities increased by $48,454,000 in 2020 compared to 2019. Proceeds from borrowings were $51,272,000 higher in 2020 than in 2019 due to our $80,000,000 whole business securitization. We also issued preferred stock in 2020, resulting in net cash proceeds of $8,122,000. Our repayments of borrowings were $7,569,000 higher in 2020 than in 2019.

Dividends

In connection with the acquisition of FCCG by the Company, in December 2020, we declared a special stock dividend (the “Special Dividend”) payable only to holders of our Common Stock, other than FCCG, on the record date, consisting of 0.2319998077 shares of our 8.25% Series B Cumulative Preferred Stock (the “Series B Preferred Stock”) for each outstanding share of Common Stock held by such stockholders. The value of fractional shares of Series B Preferred Stock was paid in cash and amounted to approximately $29,000. The Special Dividend was paid on December 23, 2020 and resulted in the issuance of 520,145 additional shares of Series B Preferred Stock with a market value on the payment date of approximately $8,885,000.

On February 7, 2019, our Board of Directors declared a stock dividend equal to 2.13% on its common stock, representing the number of shares equal to $0.12 per share of common stock based on the closing price as of February 6, 2019. The stock dividend was paid on February 28, 2019 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on February 19, 2019. The Company issued 245,376 shares of common stock at a per share price of $5.64 in satisfaction of the stock dividend. No fractional shares were issued, instead the Company paid stockholders cash totaling $1,670 for fractional interests based on the market value of the common stock on the record date.

The declaration and payment of future dividends, as well as the amount thereof, are subject to the discretion of our Board of Directors. The amount and size of any future dividends will depend upon our future results of operations, financial condition, capital levels, cash requirements and other factors. There can be no assurance that we will declare and pay dividends in future periods.

Securitization

On March 6, 2020, we completed a whole-business securitization (the “Securitization”) through the creation of a bankruptcy-remote issuing entity, FAT Brands Royalty I, LLC (“FAT Royalty”) in which FAT Royalty issued notes (the “Securitization Notes”) pursuant to an indenture and the supplement thereto (collectively, the “Indenture”).

The Securitization Notes issued in March 2020 consist of the following (the “Series A and B Notes”):

Net proceeds from the issuance of the Series A and B Notes were $37,389,000, which consists of the combined face amount of $40,000,000, net of discounts of $246,000 and debt offering costs of $2,365,000. The discount and offering costs will be accreted as additional interest expense over the expected term of the Series A and B Notes.

A portion of the proceeds from the Series A and B Notes were used to repay the remaining $26,771,000 in outstanding balance under the Loan and Security Agreement (the “Loan and Security Agreement”) with The Lion Fund, L.P. and The Lion Fund II, L.P. (collectively, “Lion”) and to pay Securitization debt offering costs. The remaining proceeds from the Securitization were available for working capital.

On September 21, 2020, FAT Royalty completed the sale of an additional $40 million of Series 2020-2 Fixed Rate Asset-Backed Notes (the “Series M-2 Notes”), increasing our Securitization Notes to $80 million.

The Series M-2 Notes consist of the following:

Net proceeds from the issuance of the Series M-2 Notes were $35,371,000, which consists of the face amount of $40,000,000, net of discounts of $3,200,000 and debt offering costs of $1,429,000. The discount and offering costs will be accreted as additional interest expense over the expected term of the Series A and B Notes. We used approximately $24,730,000 to acquire Johnny Rockets and the balance of the proceeds were available as working capital.

The Series M-2 Notes are subordinate to the Series A-2 Notes and Series B-2 Notes. All Securitization Notes issued under the Base Indenture are secured by an interest in substantially all of the assets of FAT Royalty, including the Johnny Rockets companies, contributed to FAT Royalty and are obligations only of FAT Royalty under the Base Indenture and not obligations of the Company.

While the Securitization Notes are outstanding, scheduled payments of principal and interest are required to be made on a quarterly basis, with the scheduled principal payments of $1,000,000 per quarter on each of the Series A-2 and Series B-2 Notes and $200,000 per quarter on the Series M-2 Notes beginning the second quarter of 2021. It is expected that the Securitization Notes will be repaid prior to the Final Legal Maturity Date, with the anticipated repayment date occurring in January 2023 for the A-2 Notes, October 2023 for the B-2 Notes and April 2026 for the Series M-2 Notes (the “Anticipated Repayment Dates”). If FAT Royalty has not repaid or refinanced the Securitization Notes prior to the applicable Anticipated Repayment Date, additional interest expense will begin to accrue and all additional proceeds will be utilized for additional amortization, as defined in the Indenture.

In connection with the Securitization, FAT Royalty and each of the Franchise Entities (as defined in the Indenture) entered into a Management Agreement with the Company, dated as of the Closing Date (the “Management Agreement”), pursuant to which we agreed to act as manager of FAT Royalty and each of the Franchise Entities. The Management Agreement provides for a management fee payable monthly by FAT Royalty to the Company in the amount of $200,000, subject to three percent (3%) annual increases (the “Management Fee”). The primary responsibilities of the manager are to perform certain franchising, distribution, intellectual property and operational functions on behalf of the Franchise Entities pursuant to the Management Agreement.

The Securitization Notes are secured by substantially all of the assets of FAT Royalty, including the equity interests in the Franchise Entities. The restrictions placed on the FAT Royalty subsidiaries require that the Securitization principal and interest obligations have first priority, after the payment of the Management Fee and certain other FAT Royalty expenses (as defined in the Indenture), and amounts are segregated monthly to ensure appropriate funds are reserved to pay the quarterly principal and interest amounts due. The amount of monthly cash flow that exceeds the required monthly debt service is generally remitted to the Company. Once the required obligations are satisfied, there are no further restrictions, including payment of dividends, on the cash flows of the subsidiaries.

The Securitization Notes have not been and will not be registered under the Securities Act or the securities laws of any jurisdiction.

The Securitization Notes are subject to certain financial and non-financial covenants, including a debt service coverage ratio calculation, as defined in the Indenture. In the event that certain covenants are not met, the Notes may become partially or fully due and payable on an accelerated schedule. In addition, FAT Royalty may voluntarily prepay, in part or in full, the Notes in accordance with the provisions in the Indenture. As of December 27, 2020, FAT Royalty was in compliance with these covenants.

During the twelve months following the date of the issuance of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, the Company anticipates that it may refinance the Securitization Notes and Series M-2 Notes at an amount greater than the outstanding principal indebtedness and borrowing rates that are lower than its existing rates, which could provide additional liquidity to the Company. In addition, the Company has seen significant improvement in its operating performance subsequent to December 27, 2020, as COVID-19 vaccinations have become more prevalent in the United States and federal, state and local restrictions have eased in many of the markets where our franchisees operate. Lastly, the Company may negotiate extended payment terms of certain short-term liabilities. Despite the Company’s belief that it may (i) have the ability to refinance its Securitization Notes and Series M-2 Notes, (ii) continue to see operating performance improvements, and (iii) have the ability to negotiate extended payment terms of short-term liabilities, the Company cannot make any reasonable assurances about its ability to refinance or renegotiate its obligations nor can it estimate any future effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on its business, results of operations, and financial position. The accompanying financial statements do not include the effects of these uncertainties.

Capital Expenditures

As of December 27, 2020, we do not have any material commitments for capital expenditures.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Franchise Fees: The franchise arrangement is documented in the form of a franchise agreement. The franchise arrangement requires us to perform various activities to support the brand that do not directly transfer goods and services to the franchisee, but instead represent a single performance obligation, which includes the transfer of the franchise license. The services provided by us are highly interrelated with the franchise license and are considered a single performance obligation. Franchise fee revenue from the sale of individual franchises is recognized over the term of the individual franchise agreement on a straight-line basis. Unamortized non-refundable deposits collected in relation to the sale of franchises are recorded as deferred franchise fees.

The franchise fee may be adjusted at management’s discretion or in a situation involving store transfers between franchisees. Deposits are non-refundable upon acceptance of the franchise application. In the event a franchisee does not comply with their development timeline for opening franchise stores, the franchise rights may be terminated, at which point the franchise fee revenue is recognized in the amount of the non-refundable deposits.

Royalties: In addition to franchise fee revenue, we collect a royalty calculated as a percentage of net sales from our franchisees. Royalties range from 0.75% to 6% and are recognized as revenue when the related sales are made by the franchisees. Royalties collected in advance of sales are classified as deferred income until earned.

Advertising: We require advertising payments based on a percent of net sales from franchisees. We also receive, from time to time, payments from vendors that are to be used for advertising. Advertising funds collected are required to be spent for specific advertising purposes. Advertising revenue and associated expense is recorded on the consolidated statement of operations. Assets and liabilities associated with the related advertising fees are reflected in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets.

Goodwill and other intangible assets: Goodwill and other intangible assets with indefinite lives, such as trademarks, are not amortized but are reviewed for impairment annually, or more frequently if indicators arise, as was done in 2020. The Company recorded impairment charges in the amount of $9,295,000 relating to goodwill and other intangible assets during the year ended December 27, 2020.

Assets classified as held for sale – Assets are classified as held for sale when we commit to a plan to sell the asset, the asset is available for immediate sale in its present condition and an active program to locate a buyer at a reasonable price has been initiated. The sale of these assets is generally expected to be completed within one year. The combined assets are valued at the lower of their carrying amount or fair value, net of costs to sell and included as current assets on the Company’s consolidated balance sheet. Assets classified as held for sale are not depreciated. However, interest attributable to the liabilities associated with assets classified as held for sale and other expenses continue to be recorded as expenses in the Company’s consolidated statement of operations.

Income taxes: We account for income taxes under the asset and liability method. Under this method, deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the differences between financial reporting and tax reporting bases of assets and liabilities and are measured using enacted tax rates and laws that are expected to be in effect when the differences are expected to reverse. Realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon future earnings, the timing and amount of which are uncertain.

We utilize a two-step approach to recognize and measure uncertain tax positions. The first step is to evaluate the tax position for recognition by determining if the weight of available evidence indicates that it is more likely than not that the position will be sustained upon tax authority examination, including resolution of related appeals or litigation processes, if any. The second step is to measure the tax benefit as the largest amount that is more than 50% likely of being realized upon the ultimate settlement.

Share-based compensation: We have a stock option plan which provides for options to purchase shares of our common stock. For grants to employees and directors, we recognize an expense for the value of options granted at their fair value at the date of grant over the vesting period in which the options are earned. Cancellations or forfeitures are accounted for as they occur. Fair values are estimated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. For grants to non-employees for services, we revalue the options each reporting period while the services are being performed. The adjusted value of the options is recognized as an expense over the service period. See Note 15 in our consolidated financial statements for more details on our share-based compensation.

Use of estimates: The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, as well as the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reported periods. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Recently Adopted Accounting Standards

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-13, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Disclosure Framework – Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for Fair Value Measurement.” This ASU adds, modifies and removes several disclosure requirements relative to the three levels of inputs used to measure fair value in accordance with Topic 820, “Fair Value Measurement.” The Company adopted this ASU on December 30, 2019. The adoption of this standard did not have a material effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

The FASB issued ASU No. 2018-15, Intangibles-Goodwill and Other-Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40). The new guidance reduces complexity for the accounting for costs of implementing a cloud computing service arrangement and aligns the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred in a hosting arrangement that is a service contract with the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred to develop or obtain internal-use software (and hosting arrangements that include an internal use software license). The Company adopted this ASU on December 30, 2019. The adoption of this standard did not have a material effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

The FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes: This standard removes certain exceptions for recognizing deferred taxes for investments, performing intra-period allocation and calculating income taxes in interim periods. It also adds guidance in certain areas, including the recognition of franchise taxes, recognition of deferred taxes for tax goodwill, allocation of taxes to members of a consolidated group, computation of annual effective tax rates related to enacted changes in tax laws, and minor improvements related to employee stock ownership plans and investments in qualified affordable housing projects accounted for using the equity method. The Company adopted this ASU on December 30, 2019. The adoption of this standard did not have a material effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

As of December 27, 2020, we did not have any off-balance sheet arrangements.

ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

Not required for smaller reporting companies.

ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

See Item 15 of Part IV of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

There has been no change of accountants or any disagreements with accountants on any matter of accounting principles or practices, or financial statement disclosure required to be reported under this item.

ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Our management, with the participation of our Chief Executive Officer and our Chief Financial Officer, has evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures as of the end of the period covered by this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The term “disclosure controls and procedures,” as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), means controls and other procedures of a company that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by a company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by a company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to the company’s management, including its principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Management recognizes that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving their objectives and management necessarily applies its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures. Based on such evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have concluded that, as of such date, our disclosure controls and procedures were not effective at the reasonable assurance level.

Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15(f) under the Exchange Act.

A company’s 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 for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting also includes those policies and procedures that:

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

Under the supervision of the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, we conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting using the criteria established in Internal Control Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). Based on our assessment and those criteria, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was not effective as of December 27, 2020 and have identified the following material weaknesses in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting:

Segregation of duties: We are classified as a smaller reporting company and an emerging growth company. As such, we have a small accounting staff that reviews and processes all transactions within our accounting systems. Each member of the staff has access rights to the accounting system that extend beyond his / her specific job function. Accordingly, we are not able to segregate duties to the extent we could if we had more people to establish a preventative control. While we have taken steps to mitigate this risk through detective controls, these steps have not been adequately documented to deem the material weakness to be fully remediated.

Financial Close Process: As outlined above, we are a smaller reporting company and emerging growth company that has experienced rapid growth over the past two years. Combined with a small accounting staff, we have not effectively implemented or documented our financial close process in order to provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements without error. While management regularly reviews the many accounting transaction cycles on an aggregated basis to ensure reasonableness, detailed review controls have not been adequately implemented and documented to establish an effective detective control to deem the material weakness to be fully remediated.

Recognizing our deficiencies and our lack of adequate documentation regarding the effectiveness around our mitigating controls, we will continue to review our compensating controls and implement additional procedures in our efforts to remediate the above-mentioned weaknesses. In addition, we intend to promptly hire and retain additional financial accounting staff and third party consultants to help remedy the weaknesses outlined above.

Because we are an Emerging Growth Company, we are not required to include an attestation report by our independent registered public accounting firm regarding the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting in this annual report as of December 27, 2020.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

There was no change in our internal control over financial reporting identified in connection with the evaluation required by Rule 13a-15(d) and 15d-15(d) of the Exchange Act that occurred during the quarter ended December 27, 2020 that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION

On March 29, 2021, the Board of Directors approved an amendment and restatement of the Company’s Bylaws to remove an incorrect reference in Section 2.03(A)(1) of the Bylaws and make other conforming changes. The Amended and Restated Bylaws are filed herewith as Exhibit 3.2.

PART III

ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Executive Officers and Directors

Below is a list of the names and ages, as of February 28, 2021, of our directors and executive officers, and a description of the business experience of each of them.

Edward H. Rensi has served on the board of directors of FAT Brands Inc. since its formation and became Chairman of the Board on October 20, 2017. Mr. Rensi is the retired president and chief executive officer of McDonald’s USA. Prior to his retirement in 1997, Mr. Rensi devoted his entire professional career to McDonald’s, joining the company in 1966 as a “grill man” and part-time manager trainee in Columbus, Ohio. He was promoted to restaurant manager within a year, and went on to hold nearly every position in the restaurant and field offices, including franchise service positions in Columbus, Ohio and Washington, D.C. In 1972, he was named Philadelphia district manager, and later became regional manager and regional vice president. In 1978, he transferred from the field to the company’s home office in Oak Brook, Illinois, as vice president of Operations and Training, where he was responsible for personnel and product development. In 1980, he became executive vice president and chief operations officer, and was appointed senior executive vice president in 1982. Mr. Rensi was promoted to president and chief operating office of McDonald’s USA in 1984. In 1991, he was named chief executive officer. As president and chief executive officer, his responsibilities included overseeing all domestic company-owned and franchisee operations, in addition to providing direction relative to sales, profits, operations and service standards, customer satisfaction, product development, personnel, and training. Mr. Rensi was directly responsible for management of McDonald’s USA, which consisted of eight geographic zones and 40 regional offices. During his 13-year term as president, McDonald’s experienced phenomenal growth. U.S. sales doubled to more than $16 billion, the number of the U.S. restaurants grew from nearly 6,600 to more than 12,000, and the number of U.S. franchisees grew from 1,600 to more than 2,700. Since his retirement, Mr. Rensi has held consulting positions. From January 2014 to July 2015, Mr. Rensi served as director and interim CEO of Famous Dave’s of America, Inc. Mr. Rensi received his B.S. in Business Education from Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. Mr. Rensi was selected to our Board of Directors because of his long career in hospitality and restaurant franchising, and because he possesses particular knowledge and experience in strategic planning and leadership of complex organizations and hospitality businesses.

Squire Junger became a member of the board of directors of FAT Brands Inc. on October 20, 2017. Mr. Junger is a co-founder and a managing member of Insight Consulting LLC, a management consulting firm based in the Los Angeles area, providing advice in mergers and acquisitions, corporate divestitures, business integration diagnostics, real estate investment, acquisition, development and construction and litigation support services. Prior to co-founding Insight in 2003 he was a partner at Arthur Andersen LLP, which he joined in 1972. Mr. Junger co-developed and managed the west coast Transaction Advisory Services practice at Andersen, providing comprehensive merger and acquisition consulting services to both financial and strategic buyers and sellers. Mr. Junger is a certified public accountant in California and received Bachelor of Science and M.B.A. degrees from Cornell University. Mr. Junger was selected to our Board of Directors because he brings substantial expertise in financial and strategic planning, mergers and acquisitions, and leadership of complex organizations.

James Neuhauser has served on the board of directors of FAT Brands Inc. since its formation. Mr. Neuhauser is a Senior Managing Director in the Private Capital Markets Group of Stifel Nicolas & Company. Mr. Neuhauser is also the Managing Member of Turtlerock Capital, LLC, a company that finances and invests in real estate development projects. He previously worked for FBR & Co. for more than 24 years, including positions as Chief Investment Officer, Head of Investment Banking and Head of the Real Estate and Financial Services groups in Investment Banking through October 2016. He also served as Head of FBR’s Commitment Committee and was a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. Prior to joining FBR, Mr. Neuhauser was a Senior Vice President of Trident Financial Corporation for seven years, where he specialized in managing stock offerings for mutual to stock conversions of thrift institutions. Before joining Trident, he worked in commercial banking with the Bank of New England. Mr. Neuhauser is a CFA charter holder and a member of the Society of Financial Analysts. He received a Bachelor of Arts from Brown University and an M.B.A. from the University of Michigan. Mr. Neuhauser was selected to our Board of Directors because he brings substantial expertise in financial and strategic planning, investment banking complex financial transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and leadership of complex organizations.

Andrew A. Wiederhorn has served as a director and President and Chief Executive Officer of FAT Brands Inc. since its formation. Mr. Wiederhorn has served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of Fatburger North America, Inc. since 2006 and Buffalo’s Franchise Concepts, Inc. since 2011. He also served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of Fog Cutter Capital Group Inc. since its formation in 1997. Mr. Wiederhorn previously founded and served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of Wilshire Financial Services Group Inc. and Wilshire Credit Corporation. Mr. Wiederhorn received his B.S. degree in Business Administration from the University of Southern California in 1987, with an emphasis in Finance and Entrepreneurship. He previously served on the Board of Directors of Fabricated Metals, Inc., The Boy Scouts of America Cascade Pacific Council, The Boys and Girls Aid Society of Oregon, University of Southern California Associates, Citizens Crime Commission of Oregon, and Economic Development Council for the City of Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Wiederhorn was featured as the Fatburger CEO on the CBS television program “Undercover Boss” in 2013. Mr. Wiederhorn was selected to our Board of Directors because of his role in our founding and long career in hospitality, and because he possesses particular knowledge and experience in strategic planning and leadership of complex organizations and hospitality businesses.

Rebecca D. Hershinger has served as our Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary since August 16, 2018. Ms. Hershinger previously served as the Chief Financial Officer of Genius Brands International, Inc., a publicly traded global children’s media company that creates and licenses animated entertainment content, from April 2016 to April 2018. She also served as the Chief Financial Officer of Genius from October 2014 through June 2015 after consulting with the company beginning in March 2014. In 2012, she founded CFO Advisory Services Inc., an accounting and business advisory services firm, headquartered in Park City, UT. From 2008 through 2012, Ms. Hershinger was Chief Financial Officer and Vice President, Finance & Corporate Development for SpectrumDNA, Inc., a publicly traded, but currently inactive, social media marketing and application development company that had been located in Park City, UT. Ms. Hershinger was an independent financial consultant in San Francisco between 2007 and 2008. Ms. Hershinger was employed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. in Los Angeles, California from 1999 to 2005, holding various positions ultimately rising to the level of Vice President, Finance & Corporate Development. Between 1995 and 1998, Ms. Hershinger worked as an analyst for JP Morgan Chase & Co. in Los Angeles and New York. Ms. Hershinger received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Georgetown University, McDonough School of Business, in Washington, D.C., and a Masters in Business Administration from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. She also completed studies at the International Finance & Comparative Business Policy Program at Oxford University, Oxford England.

Gregg Nettleton has served as the President and Chief Operating Officer, Casual Dining Division since October 2017. Prior to joining our company, Mr. Nettleton served as President and Chief Executive Officer of GBS Enterprises, an international management consulting firm, since 2011. From 2004 to 2006, Mr. Nettleton served as a consultant and Board member for Black Angus Steakhouses, LLC. From 2002 to 2004, he served as Chief Marketing officer of International House of Pancakes Inc. and received the award for “Turnaround Chain of the Year” in 2003, and from 2000 to 2001, he served as Interim Chief Marketing Officer of Applebee’s International, Inc. Mr. Nettleton received his B.S. in Management Science from the State University of New York at Geneseo in Geneseo, New York and his M.B.A. in Marketing and Sales from Nova University in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

Jacob A. Berchtold has served as Chief Operating Officer of the Fast Casual Division of FAT Brands Inc. since February 2020. Previously, he served as Director of Operations – Fast Casual Division following his relocating from Dubai, UAE in July 2019, where he held the position of Director of Operations MENA. From September 2012 through July 2019, Mr. Berchtold oversaw all aspects of international operations His scope of work included operations, training, new store development and supply chain logistics across developing markets in Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and Asia. From September 2008 through September 2012, Mr. Berchtold was Operations Manager for Vetra Investments UAE, a franchisee of Fatburger/Buffalo’s Express. Vetra Investments developed and operated multiple restaurant brands throughout the UAE, Jordan and Lebanon. From September 2006 through September 2008, Mr. Berchtold was Operations Manager for Fatburger China, overseeing company owned locations in Hong Kong and Macau as well as franchise support across China and southeast Asia. Mr. Berchtold first joined Fatburger in June 2005 as a restaurant Manager and member of the Domestic New Store Opening Team. He attended Arizona State University.

Thayer Wiederhorn has served as the of FAT Brands Inc. since March 2017 where he oversees global branding and marketing for over 700 franchise-owned restaurants. Mr. Wiederhorn served as Vice President - Marketing of Fatburger North America Inc. and Buffalo’s Franchise Concepts Inc. From June 2012 through March 2017 and as Director of Marketing of Fatburger North America Inc. from July 2011 through June 2012. Additionally, he served as Marketing Coordinator from April 2011 through June 2011 and Brand Development Agent from October 2010 through April 2011. Mr. Wiederhorn started his career working in Fatburger restaurants and food-trucks. Mr. Wiederhorn received his B.S. degree in Business Administration, with an emphasis in Finance Business Economics, from the University of Southern California.

Taylor Wiederhorn has served as the Chief Development Officer of FAT Brands Inc. since October 2017. Previously, Mr. Wiederhorn served as Vice President - Franchise Marketing and Development for Fatburger North America from September 2011 until October 2017. Mr. Wiederhorn graduated from the USC Marshall School of Business with a Bachelors’ degree in Business Administration with a concentration in corporate Finance.

Donald J. Berchtold currently serves as our Executive Vice President and Chief Concept Officer. Prior to February 20, 2018, Mr. Berchtold served as the President and Chief Operating Officer of Fatburger North America. Mr. Berchtold has also served as the President and Chief Operating Officer of FCCG since 2006 and in various other positions at FCCG prior to 2006. From 1991 to 1999, Mr. Berchtold served as Senior Vice President of Wilshire Financial Services Group Inc. and its sister company Wilshire Credit Corporation. Prior to 1990, Mr. Berchtold was the owner-operator of his own business that included a dinner house, catering company and other food service concepts, and was active in the Restaurants of Oregon Association. Mr. Berchtold holds a BSC degree in Finance and Marketing from the University of Santa Clara.

Allen Z. Sussman has agreed to serve as our General Counsel and Executive Vice President for Corporate Development, commencing March 23, 2021. Prior to such date, Mr. Sussman was a partner at the law firm of Loeb & Loeb LLP in Los Angeles, California, specializing in corporate and securities law, and served as our primary outside corporate and securities counsel. Prior to private practice, in the early 1990s Mr. Sussman served as an attorney with the Division of Enforcement of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington, DC. Mr. Sussman holds a B.S. degree in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University and a J.D. degree from Boston University School of Law.

Ron Roe currently serves as our Senior Vice President of Finance. Prior to August 16, 2018, Mr. Roe served as our Chief Financial Officer since 2009 and served as our Vice President of Finance from 2007 to 2009. Prior to 2007, Mr. Roe was an acquisitions associate for FCCG. He began his career as an investment banking analyst with Piper Jaffray. Mr. Roe attended UC Berkeley, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics.

Family Relationships

The following family members of Andrew Wiederhorn and Donald Berchtold are employed by the Company in the capacities indicated below:

Delinquent Section 16(a) Reports

Based solely on a review of Forms 3, 4 and 5 and amendments thereto furnished to us for the year ended December 27, 2020, our directors, officers, or beneficial owners of more than 10% of our common stock timely furnished reports on all Forms 3, 4 and 5, except that (i) Squire Junger filed three late Form 4s, two with one transaction and one with two transactions; (i) Silvia Kessel filed one late Form 4s, with one transaction (iii) James Neuhauser filed three late Form 4s, two with one transaction and one with two transactions; and (iv) Andy Wiederhorn filed two late Form 4 with one with two transactions and one with four transactions.

Code of Ethics

We have adopted a written code of business ethics that applies to our directors, officers and employees, including our principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions. We have posted a current copy of the code under the Corporate Governance section of our website at https://ir.fatbrands.com. In addition, we intend to post on our website all disclosures that are required by law or the NASDAQ listing standards concerning any amendments to, or waivers from, any provision of the code.

Board Committees

During 2020, our Board of Directors held four regular meetings and 32 special meetings. Each director attended at least 75% of the aggregate number of meetings of the Board of Directors and meetings of the committees of the Board of Directors on which he serves.

The following table sets forth the three standing committees of our Board and the members of each committee as of December 27, 2020 and the number of meetings held by our Board of Directors and the committees during 2020:

To assist it in carrying out its duties, the Board of Directors has delegated certain authority to an Audit Committee, a Compensation Committee and a Nominating and Governance Committee, the functions of which are described below.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee is responsible for, among other matters:

Our Board of Directors has determined that each member of the Audit Committee meets the definition of “independent director” for purposes of serving on an audit committee under Rule 10A-3 and NASDAQ rules. In addition, our Board of Directors has determined that each of Mr. Neuhauser and Mr. Junger qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert,” as such term is defined in Item 407(d)(5) of Regulation S-K.

The Board of Directors adopted a charter for the Audit Committee on October 19, 2017. A copy of the Audit Committee charter is available in the Corporate Governance section of our website at https://ir.fatbrands.com. The Audit Committee reviews and reassesses the adequacy of the charter on an annual basis.

Compensation Committee

The Compensation Committee is responsible for assisting our Board of Directors in discharging its responsibilities relating to the compensation of our Chief Executive Officer, other executive officers and outside directors, as well as administering stock incentive plans. During the fiscal year ended December 27, 2020, there were no employee directors on the Compensation Committee and no Compensation Committee interlocks.

The Compensation Committee is responsible for the following, among other matters, as required from time to time:

The Board of Directors has adopted a charter for the Compensation Committee on October 19, 2017. A copy of the Compensation Committee charter is available in the Corporate Governance section of our website at https://ir.fatbrands.com. The Compensation Committee reviews and reassesses the adequacy of the charter on an annual basis.

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is responsible for the following, among other matters, as required from time to time:

The Board of Directors has adopted a charter for the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee on October 19, 2017. A copy of the Compensation Committee charter is available in the Corporate Governance section of our website at https://ir.fatbrands.com. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee reviews and reassesses the adequacy of the charter on an annual basis.

ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

The following table sets forth the compensation for the years ended December 27, 2020 and December 29, 2019 awarded to, earned by, or paid to our principal executive officer, our principal financial officer, and our two other most highly compensated executive officers. We refer to the individuals included in the Summary Compensation Table as our “named executive officers.”

SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE

Explanatory Notes:

(1) Reflects the dollar amount recognized for financial statement reporting purposes for salary paid or accrued on behalf of the named executives for the fiscal years ended December 27, 2020 and December 29, 2019.

(2) Reflects the dollar amount recognized for financial statement reporting purposes for the fiscal years ended December 27, 2020 and December 29, 2019, in accordance with ASC 718 of awards pursuant to the Stock Option Plan. Assumptions used in the calculation of this amount for fiscal year ended December 27, 2020 are included in footnote 15 to the Company’s audited consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 27, 2020, included in Part IV of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Executive Employment Agreements

There are no written employment agreements between the Company and any of its employees.

OUTSTANDING EQUITY AWARDS AT FISCAL 2020 YEAR END

The following table summarizes the outstanding equity award holdings of our named executive officers as of December 27, 2020.

Explanatory Notes: None

Option Exercises and Stock Vested

None of the named executives acquired shares of the Company’s stock through exercise of options during the year ended December 27, 2020.

DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

The Company uses a combination of cash and stock-based incentive compensation to attract and retain qualified candidates to serve on the board of directors. In setting director compensation, the Company considers the significant amount of time that our directors expend in fulfilling their duties to the Company as well as the skill-level required by the Company of members of the board of directors.

Effective with our initial public offering on October 20, 2017, we paid each non-employee director serving on our Board of Directors $40,000 in annual cash compensation, plus an annual equity award of stock options to acquire 15,000 shares of common stock, subject to adjustments for stock splits. To the extent that any non-employee director serves on one or more committees of our Board of Directors, we paid an additional $20,000 in cash compensation annually. Beginning in August 2020, the amount of annual cash compensation payable to non-employee directors was increased retroactively to January 1, 2020, to $80,000 and an additional $40,000 in annual cash compensation for service on committees, plus an annual equity award of stock options to acquire 30,636 shares of common stock. The stock options issued to directors are awarded under our 2017 Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan. The non-employee director compensation policy may be amended, modified or terminated at any time by our Board of Directors or Compensation Committee.

At various times upon the quarterly payment dates of the cash component of director compensation, the Board has allowed each independent director to elect to receive his or her cash compensation in the form of common stock of the Company at market value at the time the election is made. Under such arrangement, during fiscal 2020 and 2019, the independent directors elected to acquire an aggregate of 65,965 shares of common stock in 2020 at a weighted average price per share of $3.640, and an aggregate of 68,334 shares of common stock in 2019 at a weighted average price per share of $5.27.

The terms of the equity award described above are set forth in the 2017 Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan (the “Plan”). The Plan is a comprehensive incentive compensation plan under which we can grant equity-based and other incentive awards to officers, employees and directors of, and consultants and advisers to, FAT Brands and its subsidiaries. The Plan provides for a maximum of 1,021,250 shares available for grant, as adjusted for the impact of the February 28, 2019 stock dividend. The Plan is administered by the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors.

The non-employee director compensation policy (including the compensation described above) may be amended, modified or terminated by our Board of Directors at any time in its sole discretion.

The following table sets forth a summary of the compensation we paid or accrued to our non-employee directors during 2020 and 2019:

Explanatory Notes:

ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

PRINCIPAL STOCKHOLDERS

The following table sets forth information, as of March 12, 2021, with respect to the beneficial ownership of our common stock and our non-voting 8.25% Series B Cumulative Preferred Stock by:

The number of shares beneficially owned by each stockholder is determined under rules issued by the SEC and includes voting power (if applicable) or investment power with respect to securities. Under these rules, beneficial ownership includes any shares as to which the individual or entity has sole or shared voting power (if applicable) or investment power. In computing the number of shares beneficially owned by an individual or entity and the percentage ownership of that person, shares subject to options, or other rights held by such person that are currently exercisable or will become exercisable within 60 days of the effective date of the disclosure, are considered outstanding, although these shares are not considered outstanding for purposes of computing the percentage ownership of any other person. Unless otherwise indicated, the address of all listed stockholders is c/o FAT Brands Inc., 9720 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 500, Beverly Hills, California 90212. Each of the stockholders listed below has sole voting power (if applicable) and sole investment power with respect to the shares beneficially owned by such stockholder unless noted otherwise, subject to community property laws where applicable.

As of February 28, 2021, there were 12,029,264 shares of our common stock issued and outstanding.