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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 40-F
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Registration statement pursuant to Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 |
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Annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 |
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For Fiscal year ended: October 2, 2005
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Commission File number: 01-14830
GILDAN ACTIVEWEAR INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Québec, Canada
(Province or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)
2200, 2250, 2300
(Primary standard industrial classification code number, if applicable)
Not Applicable
(I.R.S. employer identification number, if applicable)
725 Montée de Liesse, Montréal, Québec, Canada H4T 1P5, (514) 735-2023
(Address and telephone number of registrants principal executive office)
Puglisi & Associates, 850 Library Avenue, Suite 204, P.O. Box 885, Newark, Delaware 19715,(302) 738-6680
(Name, address and telephone number of agent for service in the United States)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
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Title of each class
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Name of each exchange on which registered |
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Common Shares
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The New York Stock Exchange
The Toronto Stock Exchange |
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Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act:
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None
None |
For annual reports, indicate by check mark the information filed with this form:
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Annual Information Form
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Audited Annual Financial Statements |
Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuers classes of capital or common
stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report:
Common Shares:
59,954,530
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by filing the information contained in this form is
also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the Exchange Act). If Yes is marked, indicate the file number
assigned to the registrant in connection with such rule.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by
Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period
that the registrant has been required to file such reports); and (2) has been subject to such
filing requirements in the past 90 days.
GILDAN ACTIVEWEAR INC.
ANNUAL INFORMATION FORM
for the year ended October 2, 2005
December 22, 2005
GILDAN ACTIVEWEAR INC.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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1. CORPORATE STRUCTURE |
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1.1 Name, Address and Incorporation |
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1.2 Intercorporate Relationships |
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2. GENERAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE BUSINESS |
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2.1 Three Year History |
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3. DESCRIPTION OF THE BUSINESS |
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3.1 Business Overview |
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3.2 Property, Plants and Equipment |
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3.3 Risk Factors |
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3.4 Employees |
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4. DIVIDEND POLICY |
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5. CAPITAL STRUCTURE |
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6. MARKET FOR SECURITIES |
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7. DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS |
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8. AUDIT COMMITTEE DISCLOSURE |
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9. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS |
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10. TRANSFER AGENT AND REGISTRAR |
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11. MATERIAL CONTRACTS |
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12. INTERESTS OF EXPERTS |
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13. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION |
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APPENDIX A MANDATE OF THE AUDIT AND FINANCE COMMITTEE |
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Except as otherwise indicated, the information contained herein is given as of December
15, 2005, and all dollar amounts set forth herein are expressed in U.S. dollars.
In this annual information form, Gildan, the Corporation, or the words we, our and
"us refer, depending on the context, either to Gildan Activewear Inc. or to Gildan Activewear Inc.
together with its subsidiaries.
The information appearing in the extracts of the documents listed below and specifically
referred to in this Annual Information Form is incorporated herein by reference:
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2005 Annual Report; and |
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2005 Notice of Annual Meeting of Shareholders and Management Proxy Circular (the Circular). |
The foregoing documents are available on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com, on the Edgar
website at www.sec.gov and on the Corporations website at www.gildan.com.
This Annual Information Form contains certain forward-looking statements, which are based on
Gildans current expectations, estimates, projections and assumptions and were made by Gildan in
light of its experience and its perception of historical trends. All statements that address
expectations or projections about the future, including statements about Gildans strategy for
growth, commodity prices, costs, operating or financial results, are forward-looking statements.
Some of the forward-looking statements may be identified by words like expects, anticipates,
plans, intends, believes, projects, could and similar expressions. These statements are
not guarantees of future performance and involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions.
These statements do not reflect the potential impact of any non-recurring items or of any mergers,
acquisitions, dispositions, other business combinations or other transactions that may be announced
or that may occur after the date hereof. Other factors that could cause results or events to
differ materially from current expectations are described in the Risks section of our
managements discussion and analysis on pages 21 to 45 of our 2005 Annual Report.
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CORPORATE STRUCTURE |
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Name, Address and Incorporation |
We were incorporated on May 8, 1984 pursuant to the Canada Business Corporations Act
under the name of Textiles Gildan Inc. At our inception, we focused our activities on the
manufacture of textiles and produced and sold finished fabric as a principal product-line. In 1992,
we redefined our operating strategy and, by 1994, our operations focused exclusively on the
manufacture and sale of activewear for the wholesale distribution market.
In March 1995, we changed our name to Gildan Activewear Inc./Les Vêtements de Sports Gildan
Inc. In June 1998, in conjunction with our initial public offering, we filed Articles of Amendment
to, among other things, remove the private company restrictions contained in our charter documents
and change the structure of our authorized share capital.
In February 2004, we amended our Articles in order to provide for the possibility of holding
annual meetings of shareholders at places outside Canada and to change the province or territory in
Canada where our registered office is to be situated from Montreal Urban Community (Province of
Québec) to Province of Québec.
On February 2, 2005, we filed Articles of Amendment in order to (i) create a new class of
Common Shares (the Common Shares), (ii) change each of the issued and outstanding Class A
Subordinate Voting Shares into one of the newly-created Common Shares, (iii) remove the Class B
Multiple Voting Shares and the Class A Subordinate Voting Shares as well as the rights, privileges,
restrictions and conditions attaching thereto, (iv) change the French form of our name to Les
Vêtements de Sport Gildan Inc. and (v) decrease the maximum number of directors from fifteen (15)
to ten (10).
Our principal executive offices and registered office are located at 725 Montée de Liesse,
Montreal, Québec, Canada H4T 1P5, and our telephone number at that address is (514) 735-2023.
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Intercorporate Relationships |
We have 32 directly or indirectly wholly-owned subsidiaries, which include the following
entities:
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Gildan Activewear SRL, a Barbados corporation, which has overall responsibility for
all of our international sales and related activities, such as contract manufacturing,
warehousing, distribution, marketing and customer service; |
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Gildan Activewear Properties (BVI) Inc., a British Virgin Islands corporation, which
owns the facility in Barbados that houses the executive offices of Gildan Activewear
SRL; |
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Gildan Activewear San José, S.A., a Honduran corporation, which operates a sewing
facility in San Pedro Sula, Honduras; |
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Gildan Activewear San Miguel, S.A. a Honduran corporation, which operates a sewing
facility in Choloma, Honduras; |
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Gildan Activewear San Antonio, S.A., a Honduran corporation, which operates a sewing
facility in Choloma, Honduras; |
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Gildan Activewear Villanueva, S.A., a Honduran corporation which operates a sewing
facility in Villanueva, Honduras; |
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Gildan Activewear (Clercine), S.A., a Haitian corporation, which operates two sewing
facilities in Port-au-Prince, Haiti; |
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Gildan Activewear (San Marcos), S.A., a Nicaraguan corporation, which operates a
sewing facility in San Marcos, Nicaragua; |
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Gildan Activewear (Rivas), S.A., a Nicaraguan corporation, which operates a sewing
facility in Rivas, Nicaragua; |
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Gildan Activewear Castaños, S. de R.L. de C.V., a Mexican corporation, which
operates two sewing facilities in Mexico; |
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Gildan Activewear Mexico, S.A. de C.V., a Mexican corporation, which will be
responsible for sales and distribution in Mexico; |
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Gildan Activewear Malone, Inc., a New York corporation, which operates a cutting
facility in Bombay, New York; |
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Gildan Activewear Honduras Textiles Company, S.A., a Honduran corporation, which
operates our integrated textile facility in Rio Nance, Honduras; |
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Gildan Activewear (UK) Limited, a U.K. corporation, which is responsible for sales
and distribution for our European and Asia/Pacific markets; |
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Gildan Choloma Textiles, S.A., a Honduran corporation, which will operate our second
integrated textile facility in Rio Nance, Honduras; |
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Gildan Honduras Hosiery Factory, S.A., a Honduran corporation, which will operate
our integrated sock manufacturing facility in Rio Nance, Honduras; |
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Gildan Activewear (Eden) Inc., a North Carolina corporation, which operates our
Eden, North Carolina distribution facility; |
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Gildan Activewear (US Holdings) Inc., a Florida Corporation, which owns 50% of CanAm
Yarns, LLC; |
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Gildan Activewear Dominican Republic Textile Company Inc., a Barbados corporation,
which operates our integrated textile facility in Bella Vista, Dominican Republic; and |
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Gildan Activewear Properties (Dominican Republic) Inc., a Barbados corporation,
which owns the real estate where our integrated textile facility is located in Bella
Vista, Dominican Republic. |
In addition, in the first quarter of fiscal 2004, we formed a joint venture company with
Frontier Spinning Mills, Inc. (Frontier), a major U.S. yarn manufacturer. This company, called
CanAm Yarns, LLC (formerly Cedartown Manufacturing, LLC) (CanAm), a Delaware limited liability
company, currently operates yarn spinning facilities in Cedartown, Georgia and Clarkton, North
Carolina. Gildan and Frontier each own a 50% voting and equity interest in CanAm.
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GENERAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE BUSINESS |
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Three Year History |
Over the past three fiscal years, we have continued the expansion of our manufacturing
capacity and invested in the acquisition of modern, automated equipment for all aspects of our
manufacturing process to maximize production and achieve high efficiency rates. We have made
capital investments for company expansion and cost reduction. For changes in our business that are
expected to occur during fiscal 2006, see Description of the Business Business Overview
Growth Strategy.
Retail Market Initiative
In fiscal 2005, as an initial step into the retail market, we began selling our existing
activewear products to retailers for sale without logos or decoration. In fiscal 2006, we plan to
expand further into the retail market by adding new customers and selling underwear and athletic
socks to retailers. Manufacturing capacity will be added to support our planned penetration into
the retail channel.
Yarn Spinning
During fiscal 2003 and 2004, our yarn spinning plants in Long Sault, Ontario and Montreal,
Québec, provided virtually all of the commodity yarn requirements of our Canadian textile
manufacturing facilities.
In the second quarter of fiscal 2005, we closed both of our Canadian yarn spinning plants and
transferred our Canadian yarn spinning activities to the United States. In order to be globally
cost-competitive, we decided to focus on expanding our textile operations in Central America and
the Caribbean Basin and utilizing our textile operations in Canada to produce shorter-run,
higher-value product-lines. This resulted in lower requirements for commodity yarns from our
Canadian yarn spinning facilities, with the consequence that by fiscal 2005 they were no longer
able to operate at an efficient level of capacity utilization. Under U.S. international trade
legislation enacted in 2000, it became uneconomical for us to utilize yarn from our Canadian yarn
spinning facilities to supply our offshore textile operations, which must use U.S. yarn in order to
be eligible for duty-free access to U.S. markets. Approximately 86% of our overall sales are
currently made to the United States. The new Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), which
was enacted by the United States this year, allows duty-free access from our offshore manufacturing
hubs for products using regionally-spun yarn, but this new legislation does not provide for the use
of Canadian yarn. In addition to the impact of lower capacity utilization on our Canadian yarn
spinning facilities, their cost structure was also negatively impacted by the appreciation of the
Canadian dollar and by the deregulation of electricity costs in the province of Ontario.
In the first quarter of fiscal 2004, we formed CanAm, a 50%/50%-owned joint venture company
with Frontier, which acquired all of the assets of an existing yarn spinning facility located in
Cedartown, Georgia. The total cost of the equipment and real estate for the acquisition of the
Cedartown facility, including Frontiers 50% share of the investment, amounted to $12.5 million. In
fiscal 2005, concurrent with the Canadian yarn spinning plant closures, CanAms yarn spinning
operations were expanded to include a new yarn spinning facility in Clarkton, North Carolina. In
conjunction with the development of the new Clarkton facility, CanAm acquired certain assets of our
yarn spinning facility in Long Sault,
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Ontario, the transfer of which occurred in the second quarter of fiscal 2005 and the new
Clarkton facility became fully operational by the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2005.
Textile Manufacturing
In fiscal 2002, we began production at our integrated knitting, bleaching, dyeing, finishing
and cutting facility in Rio Nance, Honduras. The site is strategically located within our Honduran
regional manufacturing hub.
In fiscal 2004, we began construction of an integrated knitting, bleaching, dyeing, finishing
and cutting facility in Bella Vista, Dominican Republic to support our projected continuing sales
growth. The Bella Vista facility began production in the third quarter of fiscal 2005 and we expect
to ramp up this facility to close to full capacity in fiscal 2006.
In fiscal 2004, we purchased property in Nandaïme, Nicaragua for development of an integrated
textile facility. We view the Nicaragua site as a strategic long-term asset for future capacity
expansion.
During fiscal 2005, we purchased additional land adjacent to our Rio Nance facility in
Honduras for the purpose of building two new manufacturing facilities. We intend to build a new
integrated textile manufacturing facility in order to add capacity primarily to support projected
future growth in our existing product-lines in both the wholesale and retail market channels. We
expect to begin commercial operations at this facility in fiscal 2007. We also intend to build a
new integrated sock manufacturing facility to support our planned entry into the athletic sock
market. We expect to begin commercial operations in this facility in fiscal 2006.
Sewing
In fiscal 2003, we closed our Montreal sewing plant, which at the time provided approximately
2% of our overall sewing requirements, as this plant was no longer cost competitive or economically
viable in relation to a global competitive environment. In addition, in September 2004, we closed
our sewing facility in El Progreso, Honduras, for economic and operational reasons.
In fiscal 2003, we began production in a new sewing facility located in Port-au-Prince, Haiti
and in fiscal 2004, we began production in a new sewing facility located in San Marcos, Nicaragua.
In fiscal 2005, we began production in three new sewing facilities located in Choloma,
Honduras, Rivas, Nicaragua and Port-au-Prince, Haiti. In the first quarter of fiscal 2006, we
signed a lease agreement for a new sewing facility located in Villanueva, Honduras and production
at this facility has commenced. In addition to our own facilities, we supplement our production by
using third party contractors in Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Haiti and the Dominican
Republic.
Distribution
In April and November 2003 and January 2004 respectively, we entered into third party
logistics agreements to utilize distribution centres located in Bletchley-Milton Keynes, United
Kingdom, Brisbane, Australia and Meer, Belgium. In fiscal 2004, we began a major expansion of our
distribution centre in Eden, North Carolina, which was completed in the second quarter of fiscal
2005. In addition, in fiscal 2004, we added a new third party distribution centre in Ontario,
California to better serve our U.S. customers located on the west coast.
Capital Expenditures
In the last three fiscal years, we have invested an aggregate of $179.2 million in our
manufacturing and distribution operations in North America and offshore.
Share Structure
In February 2004, our Board of Directors approved the conversion of all of the Corporations
Class B Multiple Voting Shares into Class A Subordinate Voting Shares on a one-for-one basis and
without any conversion premium. The Class B Multiple Voting Shares were held by H. Greg Chamandy,
Glenn J. Chamandy and Edwin B. Tisch through their respective holding companies. The conversion
became effective on March 1, 2004.
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At the annual and special meeting of the shareholders on February 2, 2005, our shareholders
approved a special resolution to amend our Articles in order to change each of the issued and
outstanding Class A Subordinate Voting Shares into one newly-created Common Share and to remove the
Class B Multiple Voting Shares and the Class A Multiple Voting Shares, effectively eliminating our
dual class voting structure.
Shareholder Rights Plan
On December 1, 2004, our Board of Directors adopted a shareholder rights plan, which became
effective that same day. At the annual and special meeting of the shareholders held on February 2,
2005, our shareholders approved a resolution confirming the ratification of the shareholder rights
plan. The objectives of the shareholder rights plan are to provide the Board of Directors and the
shareholders with adequate time to assess any unsolicited take-over bid for the Corporation and
where appropriate, give the Board of Directors sufficient time to pursue other alternatives for
maximizing shareholder value.
Stock Split
On May 4, 2005, our Board of Directors approved a two-for-one stock split effected in the form
of a stock dividend. The split was applicable to all shareholders of record on May 20, 2005. The
Common Shares commenced trading on a post-split basis on May 18, 2005 on the Toronto Stock Exchange
and on June 1, 2005 on the New York Stock Exchange, in accordance with the respective requirements
of these exchanges. The stock split is intended to increase the liquidity of, and facilitate
trading in, our Common Shares.
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DESCRIPTION OF THE BUSINESS |
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Business Overview |
We are a rapidly growing, vertically-integrated marketer and manufacturer of premium
quality basic activewear for sale principally into the wholesale imprinted activewear market in the
Canadian, United States, European and Asia/Pacific apparel markets. Until fiscal 2000, our sales
were exclusively in Canada and the United States. During the past six years we have established a
strong base for future growth in Europe. We manufacture and sell premium quality 100% cotton
t-shirts and 50% cotton/50% polyester t-shirts, placket collar sport shirts and premium quality
fleece products in a variety of weights, sizes, colors and styles. We sell our products as
blanks, which are ultimately decorated by screenprinters with designs and logos for sale to end
users.
In fiscal 2005, as an initial step into the retail channel, we began selling our existing
activewear products to retailers. In fiscal 2006, we plan on gradually expanding our presence in
the retail channel and to begin selling underwear and athletic socks into this market.
Over the past several years, we have significantly increased our sales and earnings. From
fiscal 1993 through fiscal 2005, our sales grew from $24.0 million to $653.9 million, representing
a compounded annual growth rate of 31.7%.
Our sales growth has been supported by the continuing expansion of our manufacturing capacity.
In fiscal 2005, our sales increased to 31.8 million dozens, compared with 26.9 million dozens in
the previous fiscal year. We are currently adding new capacity to support our planned sales growth.
All of our new capacity is being added at the low end of the cost curve, reflecting our strategy to
grow using the latest manufacturing technology and processes.
Operating Strategy
We believe that our focus on low-cost manufacturing, our customer relationships and our
reputation for consistent premium quality are the reasons we have been able to rapidly increase our
market presence and establish our market leadership in the wholesale imprinted sportswear market.
We attribute our strong operating performance to our strategy, which is composed of the following
principal components:
Emphasis on Premium Quality Products. We offer our products in a wide variety of weights,
sizes, colors and styles. All of our products are designed to include premium quality features,
such as topstitched seamless collars, taped neck and shoulders, double stitched seams, and
quarter-turned bodies to eliminate the centre crease. To ensure the premium quality
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of our products, we apply stringent quality control procedures at all stages of the production
process, both at our facilities and those of our contractors.
Competitive Pricing and Low-Cost Operations. We believe that our combination of competitive
prices and premium quality products provides superior value to our customers. We are able to price
our products competitively because of our success in maintaining low production and operating
costs. We accomplish this by:
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investing in modern, automated equipment and facilities; |
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increasing our capacity through the development of integrated regional hubs in
Central America and the Caribbean Basin, where we benefit from strategic locations and
favourable international trade agreements; and |
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focusing on producing a narrow range of basic high-volume product-lines, which
allows us to maximize production efficiencies. |
Modern, Vertically-Integrated Operations. We control all aspects of our apparel manufacturing
process to ensure stringent quality standards. We believe that our modern, vertically-integrated
operations position us effectively to meet our customers needs. We intend to continue to acquire
modern, automated equipment for all aspects of our manufacturing process to maximize productivity
and achieve high efficiency rates. The continuous re-investment in our manufacturing facilities
enables us to add capacity, reduce manufacturing costs as well as monitor quality at all stages of
the production process, thus enabling us to maximize sales growth and profit margins.
During fiscal 2005, we continued to successfully operate our integrated textile facility in
Rio Nance, Honduras. We also began production at our new integrated textile facility in Bella
Vista, Dominican Republic in the third quarter of fiscal 2005. In addition, in the third quarter of
fiscal 2005, CanAm, our 50%/50%-owned joint venture company with Frontier, began operating a new
yarn spinning facility in Clarkton, North Carolina to supplement its existing yarn spinning
facility in Cedartown, Georgia.
Experienced Management Team. Our senior executives have significant industry experience. We
have complemented our senior management team by integrating managers who fit with our
entrepreneurial culture, while also providing depth and experience gained in other environments. We
believe our management teams at the corporate level, in our manufacturing hubs and in, our
principal subsidiary, Gildan Activewear SRL, are well qualified to successfully manage our growth
and strategic development.
Growth Strategy
In the third quarter of fiscal 2005, we began production at our second state-of-the-art
integrated knitting, bleaching, dyeing, finishing and cutting facility in Bella Vista, Dominican
Republic and expect to ramp up this facility to close to full capacity in fiscal 2006. The land we
purchased for this facility is large enough to accommodate an anticipated further major capacity
addition on the same site. The fabric manufactured at this facility is sewn primarily in Haiti,
where we operate integrated sewing facilities and have established relationships with external
contractors.
The new capacity generated by the Dominican Republic regional manufacturing hub is expected to
be utilized primarily to support our continuing sales growth.
During fiscal 2005, we purchased additional land adjacent to our Rio Nance facility in
Honduras for the purpose of building two new manufacturing facilities. We intend to build a new
integrated textile manufacturing facility to support projected future growth in activewear and
underwear and a new integrated sock manufacturing facility to support our planned entry into the
hosiery market. We expect to begin commercial operations in the sock and textile facilities in
fiscal 2006 and 2007, respectively.
As we bring in significant new production capacity, we anticipate that our projected organic
unit sales growth will result in unit volume growth over the next five years to annual sales of
approximately 100 million dozens, more than triple the level of sales achieved in fiscal 2005.
During this period our objective will be to achieve our market share targets in the wholesale
imprinted sportswear market. We also plan to continue to sell the same basic undecorated activewear
apparel products into the retail channel, as well as introduce complementary products, namely
underwear and athletic socks, that also leverage our existing core competencies, successful
business model and competitive strengths. We intend to follow the same pricing strategy as in the
wholesale market, by using our cost efficiencies to lower selling prices and then use lower selling
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prices to capture market share. The competition in the retail channel for basic family apparel
products is essentially the same as in the wholesale channel.
We also expect to pursue further international market expansion opportunities, in addition to
our existing served markets in Europe and Australia.
Industry Overview
We currently focus principally on sales of t-shirts, placket collar sport shirts and fleece
products in blank form, to the wholesale imprinted activewear market. Imprinted activewear is
typically decorated with a screenprint or embroidered with a logo, design or character before it
reaches the end user. Imprinted activewear is either branded or private label. Branded products
display the manufacturers label, whereas products sold on a private label basis display the brand
name of the customer.
We believe that growth in the imprinted activewear market has been driven by several trends,
such as the following:
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continued use of activewear for event merchandising (such as concerts, festivals, etc.); |
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continued evolution of the entertainment/sports licensing and merchandising businesses; |
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the growing use of activewear for uniform applications; |
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the growing use of activewear for corporate promotions; |
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continued increases in use of activewear products for travel and tourism; |
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an increased emphasis on physical fitness; and |
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a greater use and acceptance of casual dress in the workplace. |
Furthermore, significant improvements in activewear apparel, ranging from enhanced product
characteristics, such as pre-shrunk fabrics, improved fabric weight, blends and construction, to
increased product variety, including new sizes, colors and styles, have enhanced consumer appeal.
Finally, the screenprint activewear market is characterized by low fashion risk compared to
many other apparel markets. While opportunity exists for product innovations and differentiation,
demand is generally not driven by fashion trends or fads.
Products
Our product offering focuses on core basic activewear styles, sold in a variety of fabrics,
weights and colors. Silhouettes include basic t-shirts, long sleeve t-shirts, sleeveless t-shirts,
ringer tees, tank tops, pocket t-shirts, basic sport shirts, pocketed sport shirts, crewneck
sweatshirts, hooded sweatshirts and sweatpants. Each product category is serviced by various labels
(each indicative of a specific quality level or fabric type), such as Ultra Cotton®,
Heavy Cotton, Ultra Blend® and Heavy Blend. We offer 100% cotton as well as blended
cotton and polyester products. We are also introducing a variety of styles of underwear and
athletic socks into our product-line.
T-shirts
T-shirts represented approximately 80% of our sales in fiscal 2005 and in fiscal 2004. Our
primary t-shirt offerings are the Gildan Activewear Ultra Cotton® t-shirt (6.1 oz. per
sq. yd.), the Gildan Activewear Heavyweight Cotton t-shirt (5.4 oz. per sq. yd.) and the Gildan
Activewear Ultra BlendÔ t-shirt (5.6 oz. per sq. yd.). Each of these t-shirt lines
incorporates styles with enhanced features, such as double stitched necklines, seamless collars,
taped neck and shoulders, quarter-turned bodies and superior knit surfaces to enhance printability
of the fabrics. A variety of silhouettes complement the basic adult t-shirt styles within each
label offering.
7
For the nine-month period ended September 30, 2005, we further solidified our number one brand
position in the U.S. wholesale distributor network in the t-shirt category as reported in the
S.T.A.R.S. Report produced by ACNielsen Market Decisions (the S.T.A.R.S. Report). The value of
the S.T.A.R.S. Report market growth and share data for the U.S. wholesale distribution market is
reduced by the non-participation of a large wholesale distributor.
Fleece Products
In fiscal 2005 and fiscal 2004, slightly above 10% of our sales were derived from the sale of
fleece products. Our primary offerings in the fleece category are crewneck sweatshirts, sweatpants
and hooded sweatshirts in adult and youth sizes in three distinct fabric contents and weights. We
reached the number two position in the U.S. wholesale distributor network in the overall fleece
category for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2005 as reported in the S.T.A.R.S. Report.
Significant growth in this fleece category was driven by our volume-priced Heavy Blend collection,
featuring 50% cotton/50% polyester fabric in a 7.75 oz. per sq. yd. weight. Our Ultra
Blend® collection features 50% cotton /50% polyester fabric in a 9.3 oz. per sq. yd.
weight and is the volume leader in this segment. We remain the leader in the U.S. wholesale
distributor network in the high-cotton category, as reported in the S.T.A.R.S. Report for the
nine-month period ended September 30, 2005. This segment is well serviced with our Ultra
Cotton® products featuring 80% cotton / 20% polyester blend and a 10.0 oz. per sq. yd.
weight.
Placket Collar Sport Shirts
In fiscal 2005 and fiscal 2004, placket collar sport shirts represented approximately 10% of
our sales. We produce placket collar sport shirts in a variety of weights, sizes, colors and
styles, with or without a pocket. Our placket collar sport shirts include the 100% cotton Ultra
Cotton® sport shirt in jersey fabric (6.1 oz. per sq. yd.) and piqué fabric (7.0 oz. per
sq. yd.) and the 50% cotton/50% polyester Gildan Activewear Ultra Blend® sport shirt in
blended jersey fabric (5.6 oz. per sq. yd.) and piqué fabric (6.5 oz. per sq. yd.). We also offer
the Gildan Activewear Ultra Cotton® fashion sport shirt (7.0 oz. per sq. yd.), in piqué
fabric featuring fashion collars and cuffs in racing, jacquard, pin stripe and wide stripe styles.
Marketing and Sales
In the wholesale activewear market, and now more recently in the retail channel, we market our
products directly to our customers through our sales force. We do not maintain regional sales
offices; instead, our sales personnel work from home. Our small sales force is trained to manage
relationships with a limited number of regional wholesale distributors.
Our wholesale activewear marketing strategy concentrates primarily on the wholesale
distribution channel catering to screenprinters, embroiderers and advertising specialty
distributors. In fiscal 2005, we expanded our marketing strategy with consumer advertising to
support the arrival of retail products in stores in Canada. We promote ourselves through
appearances at tradeshows and trade magazine advertising. We also engage in various forms of
co-operative advertising with our major customers, including print advertising, catalogues and
mailings.
Customers
In fiscal 2005, we sold our products in Canada, the United States and Europe and other
markets, which accounted for 7.0%, 86.7% and 6.3% of total sales, respectively. For a breakdown of
our total sales by geographic market for each of the last three financial years, reference is made
to Note 15(ii) to the audited annual consolidated financial statements of the Corporation included
in our 2005 Annual Report, which is incorporated herein by reference. We currently sell our
products to approximately 150 customers. Our customer mix is highly diverse. In fiscal 2005, our
top two customers accounted for 28.2% and 5.6% of total sales, respectively, with the balance of
our top ten customers accounting for approximately 30.0% of total sales.
The large majority of total sales in fiscal 2005 were made through our wholesale distributors.
Although we have long-term ongoing relationships with our distributor network, we do not have
formal contractual agreements with them whereby they must purchase a minimum quantity of our
products. Instead, we meet with these customers at the beginning of each fiscal year to ascertain
their projected requirements and then plan our production and marketing strategy accordingly. Our
wholesale distributor customers then send purchase orders to us during the course of the fiscal
year. Distributors can also utilize a computerized vendor-managed inventory system.
8
Raw Materials
Cotton and polyester fibers are the main raw materials used in the manufacturing of our
products. Cotton is used in the manufacturing of 100% cotton yarn while polyester is added in the
manufacturing of 50% cotton/50% polyester blend yarn. Polyester pricing is negotiated on an annual
basis, while cotton fiber pricing is fixed in the futures markets.
On January 1, 2001, we entered into a supply agreement with Frontier, which agreement, as
amended, expires on September 30, 2008. This agreement allows us to source any type of yarn
originating from the United States. In the first quarter of fiscal 2004, we acquired, through
CanAm, our 50%/50%-owned joint venture with Frontier, a yarn spinning facility located in
Cedartown, Georgia, which supplies us with 100% cotton U.S. origin yarn. In the second quarter of
fiscal 2005, we transferred most of our yarn spinning assets from our Long Sault, Ontario facility
to a new facility leased by CanAm in Clarkton, North Carolina. Our two yarn spinning facilities in
Long Sault, Ontario and Montreal, Québec were closed effective March 31, 2005.
In the first quarter of fiscal 2005, we entered into an additional supply agreement with
Parkdale America, llc (Parkdale) for the delivery of yarn until 2009. During fiscal
2005, the supply agreements with Frontier and Parkdale and the jointly owned CanAm facilities in
Cedartown, Georgia and Clarkton, North Carolina provided us with 100% of our commodity yarn
requirements. We expect that our commodity yarn requirements will continue to be met by CanAms
yarn spinning operations and the supply agreements currently in place with Frontier and Parkdale.
We also purchase chemicals, dyestuffs and trims through a variety of suppliers. These products
have historically been available in sufficient supply.
Quality Control
Our quality control team has adopted strict standards and procedures to ensure the quality of
our products. This team enforces plant-specific quality control standards at the facilities we own
and monitors quality control at the facilities run by offshore contractors. As a result of our
quality control teams efforts, we have not experienced any significant quality claims from our
customers or end users.
Management Information Systems
Our Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system supports all of our operations in the areas of
finance, manufacturing and customer services. This system is centralized and is accessed from all
of our locations through secure networks. Our ERP system is linked to servers supporting both local
processes and specialized applications, including payroll and distribution. We continue to leverage
our existing ERP system by developing new functionality in the areas of supply chain, forecasting
and strategic network optimization. Due to our increasing dependence on the availability of our
computer systems to support our operations, we are planning several new technology infrastructure
initiatives in fiscal 2006 to ensure that our computer systems have high availability and to
enhance our disaster recovery capabilities.
Seasonality
The activewear business is seasonal. Our percentage sales breakdown by fiscal quarter for
fiscal 2005 was as follows: 16.7% for the first quarter, 25.3% for the second quarter, 30.4% for
the third quarter when our wholesale distributors generally purchase inventory for the peak summer
selling season for t-shirts, and 27.6% for the fourth quarter. This trend is consistent with the
prior fiscal year. We meet with our customers at the beginning of each fiscal year to ascertain
their projected requirements and then plan our production and marketing strategy accordingly. Based
on these discussions, our own assessment of projected market trends and demand, and our plans for
the growth and development of our business, we produce and store finished goods inventory in order
to meet the expected demand for delivery in the second half of the fiscal year. However, if after
producing and storing inventory in anticipation of third and fourth quarter deliveries, demand is
significantly less than expected, a risk inherent in our business is that we may be required to
hold inventory for an extended period of time at our expense, or sell the excess inventory at
reduced prices, thereby reducing profits.
Competition
The wholesale imprinted activewear segment of the North American apparel market in which we
compete includes a number of significant competitors. Our primary competitors are the major
U.S.-based manufacturers of basic branded
9
activewear for the wholesale and retail channels. These manufacturers include Fruit of the
Loom, Inc., the Branded Apparel Division of Sara Lee Corporation, the Jerzees division of Russell
Corporation and Anvil Knitwear, Inc.
Competition in Europe is similar to that in North America. We compete directly with European
divisions of Fruit of the Loom, Inc., the Branded Apparel Division of Sara Lee Corporation and the
Jerzees division of Russell Corporation. In addition to these North American companies, we also
compete directly against a Belgian-based company, the Cotton Group.
We compete primarily on the basis of quality and price. We produce only premium quality
products. We are able to price our products competitively because of our success in maintaining low
production and operating costs. We accomplish this by:
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investing in modern, automated equipment and facilities; |
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increasing capacity through the development of integrated regional hubs in Central
America and the Caribbean Basin, where we benefit from strategic locations and
favourable international trade agreements; and |
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focusing on producing a narrow range of basic high-volume product-lines, which
allows us to maximize production efficiencies. |
Our market share in the U.S. wholesale distribution market was 36.0% in the overall t-shirt
category, 32.0% in the sport shirt category and 25.0% in the fleece category for the first nine
months of fiscal 2005. All U.S. market share data is based on the S.T.A.R.S. Report.
Our ability to remain competitive in the areas of quality, price, marketing, product
development, manufacturing, distribution and order processing will, in large part, determine our
future success. Changes in the regulatory environment affecting the textile and apparel industries
may also affect the competitive pressures we face. See Business Overview Trade Regulatory
Environment.
Trade Regulatory Environment
The textile and apparel industries in both Canada and the United States have historically
received a relatively higher degree of international trade protection than most other industries.
However, this protection is diminishing as a result of the implementation of trade liberalization
programs and agreements in the last several years. So far, we have been successful in positioning
ourselves to benefit from this changing international regulatory climate. In order to maintain our
competitiveness in the future, we must continue to adapt to future changes in trade legislation,
including changes reflected in existing trade agreements and changes that may be decided
unilaterally by the governments of the countries and regions in which we and our competitors
operate.
World Trade Organization Elimination of Quotas
In 2005, World Trade Organization (WTO) member importing countries, including Canada, the
United States and countries in Western Europe, eliminated quotas on imports of textiles and apparel
from WTO member exporting countries. China became a member of the WTO in 2002 and now enjoys the
full benefit of the elimination of textile quotas, except that Chinas WTO accession agreement
allows importing countries to impose safeguards on their exports in cases of market disruption
until the end of 2008.
Under separate agreements negotiated in 2005, China has agreed to limit its exports of
textiles and apparel to European Union countries and the United States. The agreement with the
European Union covers ten categories of textiles and apparel and extends through 2007. The
agreement with the United States covers 34 categories and extends through 2008.
NAFTA
The North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), implemented in 1994, established a free
trade area among Canada, the United States and Mexico. None of the benefits of NAFTA apply to our
goods sewn outside of the three NAFTA countries and exported to the United States or Canada for
distribution.
All NAFTA originating textile and apparel goods traded among the three NAFTA countries are
duty-free. Subject to certain exceptions and additional criteria, NAFTA generally requires NAFTA
originating garments to be made in NAFTA
10
countries from the yarn stage forward. In other words, the yarn must be spun or extruded in a
NAFTA country, the fabric must be woven or knitted in a NAFTA country, and the apparel must be cut
and assembled in a NAFTA country. Because we knit certain of our fabric in Canada from Canadian and
American yarn, our garments sewn in Mexico from this fabric are NAFTA originating.
Non-NAFTA originating garments produced in the NAFTA territory from non-NAFTA originating yarn
or fabric are eligible to receive duty-free treatment under tariff preference levels. A tariff
preference level is a quota that allows non-NAFTA originating goods to receive the same duty
treatment as originating goods until the quota level is filled.
CAFTA
The Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) will become effective in 2006 among the
United States, the Dominican Republic and the Central American countries. All CAFTA originating
textile and apparel goods traded among the CAFTA countries will be duty-free, and most of such
goods will be subject to yarn forward origin rules similar to NAFTAs. We knit certain of our
fabric in Central America from American yarn. Our garments sewn in Central America with this
fabric will be CAFTA originating.
Other Trade Agreements and Programs
Canada, Mexico and the United States have each implemented separate bilateral free trade
agreements with Chile. The United States has also implemented bilateral free trade agreements with
Australia, Israel, Jordan and Singapore.
In 2000, the United States extended preferential trade treatment for apparel to the Caribbean
Basin Initiative (CBI) countries by enacting the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA).
The CBTPA eliminates U.S. duty on garments assembled in those countries from fabric wholly formed
in the United States from yarn wholly formed in the United States. It also provides duty-free
treatment for limited quantities of knit garments produced in those countries from fabric knit in
CBI countries using yarn wholly formed in the United States. CAFTA countries will no longer
participate in CBTPA, except that the Dominican Republic will continue to participate with respect
to certain garments produced partly in the Dominican Republic and partly in Haiti.
Also in 2000, the United States enacted the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA),
giving sub-Saharan African countries benefits similar to CBTPA. Unlike CBTPA, AGOA provides
additional duty-free treatment to limited quantities of garments produced in beneficiary countries
with regional fabric using regional or U.S. yarn, and in least developed countries with fabric of
any origin. In 2002, the United States enacted the Andean Trade Preference and Drug Eradication Act
(ATPDEA), giving the Andean countries benefits similar to CBTPA, except that the ATPDEA contains
more liberal provisions for limited quantities of garments made in those countries with regional
fabric and yarn.
The changes expected under CAFTA and already in place under CBTPA, AGOA and ATPDEA are
expected to benefit our Central American and Caribbean Basin fabric and garment production. We have
implemented a manufacturing and distribution plan that allows us to supply an increasing majority
of our geographical markets on a duty-free basis.
The United States is also contemplating additional free trade agreements with Bahrain, the
Andean countries, Morocco, Oman, Panama and the members of the South African Customs Union. Since
January 1, 2003, textile and apparel products originating from approximately 48 Least Developed
Countries (LDCs) are allowed into Canada duty and quota-free under certain rules of origin.
Similar legislation has also been introduced by Australia for its domestic market.
Interested countries, which include Canada, the United States, Mexico and Central and South
American countries, are continuing to work on the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). While
the implementation is uncertain, a successful FTAA would open a free trade area among all of the 34
potential participants, thus allowing all of our manufacturing operations in these regions to
operate within a duty-free environment.
Intellectual Property
We own several registered trademarks including, among others, Gildan in Canada and the
United States, the Gildan logo in Canada, and Gildan Activewear in Canada, the United States
and many countries in Europe, Central America, South America and Asia and in Australia.
Applications for the registration of a number of other trademarks, including Gildan Activewear,
are pending in several countries. We have and intend to continue to maintain our trademarks and the
relevant registrations, and will actively pursue the registration of trademarks in Canada, the
United States and abroad.
11
Environmental Regulation
All of our operations are subject to various environmental and occupational health and safety
laws and regulations. Because we monitor environmental issues, we believe that we are in compliance
in all material respects with the regulatory requirements of those jurisdictions in which our
facilities are located. We will continue to make expenditures to comply with these requirements,
and we do not believe that compliance will have a material adverse effect on our business. As is
the case with manufacturers in general, if a release of hazardous substances occurs on or from our
properties or any associated offsite disposal locations, or if contamination from prior activities
is discovered at any of our properties, we may be held liable. While the amount of such liability
could be material, we endeavour to conduct our operations in a manner that reduces such risks.
3.2 |
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Property, Plants and Equipment |
Textile Operations
Yarn. In the first quarter of fiscal 2004, we acquired, through CanAm, our 50%/50%-owned joint
venture with Frontier, a yarn spinning facility located in Cedartown, Georgia, which supplies our
offshore textile manufacturing facilities with 100% cotton U.S. origin yarn. In the second quarter
of fiscal 2005, we closed our Long Sault, Ontario and Montreal, Québec yarn spinning facilities and
expanded our CanAm operations by leasing an additional facility in Clarkton, North Carolina, for
the supply of 100% cotton U.S. origin yarn. In addition, CanAm purchased certain yarn spinning
equipment from our Long Sault facility for use in the Clarkton facility and this facility became
fully operational by the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2005.
Knitting. We currently conduct knitting operations at our knitting facility in Montreal,
Québec. We operate circular and flat knitting machines at this facility, producing jersey, piqué,
fleece and ribbing in body-sized fabrics in tubular form using cotton and cotton/polyester yarns.
We also conduct knitting operations in our integrated facility in Rio Nance, Honduras, and, during
fiscal 2005, we commenced knitting operations at our new integrated textile facility in Bella
Vista, Dominican Republic. At these facilities, we operate circular knitting machines, producing
jersey and ribbing in body-sized tubular form using cotton and cotton/polyester yarns.
Dyeing and Finishing. Knitted fabric produced at our facility in Montreal, Québec is batched
for bleaching and dyeing and is taken to our dyeing and finishing facilities in Valleyfield, Québec
and Montreal, Québec. Bleaching, dyeing and finishing operations in our integrated textile
facilities in Rio Nance, Honduras and Bella Vista, Dominican Republic process all the fabric
knitted in each respective facility.
Cutting. All of the fabric produced at the Montreal and Valleyfield dyeing and finishing
facilities is shipped to our automated cutting facility located in Bombay, New York. Cutting
operations in our integrated textile facilities in Rio Nance, Honduras and Bella Vista, Dominican
Republic, cut all bleached and dyed fabric produced in each respective facility, thereby leveraging
our existing manufacturing infrastructure and also reducing transportation costs.
Sewing Operations
We conduct our sewing operations primarily through our four facilities in Honduras, our two
facilities in Mexico, our two facilities in Haiti and our two facilities in Nicaragua. In addition
to these ten facilities, we supplement our production by using third party contractors in
Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. These facilities provide us
with substantially all of our market sewing assembly requirements. In conjunction with the
expansion of our Central American and Caribbean Basin regional manufacturing hubs, we started
operations in new sewing facilities in Choloma, Honduras, Rivas, Nicaragua and Port-au-Prince,
Haiti during fiscal 2005. In fiscal 2006, we also expect to develop new sewing facilities in
Central America and Haiti.
Distribution Operations
We distribute our products in the United States from a purpose-built distribution centre in
Eden, North Carolina as well as from a distribution centre operated by a third party in Ontario,
California. The North Carolina facility maintains our distribution operations close to our
customers, providing us with the space needed for continuing growth. The third party warehouse in
California was added in fiscal 2004 for the purpose of providing next day service to direct
customers on the U.S. west coast. Our Canadian customers are serviced from a distribution centre
located in Montreal, Québec. Customers in Europe are serviced from distribution centres operated by
third parties in Meer, Belgium and Bletchley-Milton Keynes,
12
United Kingdom. Customers in Australia are serviced from a distribution centre operated by a
third party in Brisbane, Australia. In fiscal 2006, we plan to begin utilizing a new distribution
centre operated by a third party in Monterrey, Mexico to service customers in that country.
Properties
The following table sets forth the location and use of each of our principal properties and
indicates whether it is owned or leased, and if leased, when the lease expires.
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Owned |
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Lease |
Location |
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Use |
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or Leased |
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Expiration(1) |
Montreal, Québec |
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Executive offices |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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Knitting facility |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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St. Michael, Barbados |
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Executive offices |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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Valleyfield, Québec |
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Dyeing and finishing facility |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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Montreal, Québec |
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Dyeing and finishing facility |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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Bombay, New York |
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Cutting facility |
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Leased |
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2006 |
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Rio Nance, Honduras |
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Knitting, dyeing, finishing and cutting facility |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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Bella Vista, Dominican Republic |
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Knitting, dyeing, finishing and cutting facility |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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Nandaïme, Nicaragua |
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Idle |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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San Pedro Sula, Honduras |
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Sewing facility |
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Leased |
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2007 |
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Choloma, Honduras |
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Sewing facility |
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Leased |
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2007 |
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Choloma, Honduras |
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Sewing facility |
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Leased |
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2010 |
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Villanueva, Honduras |
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Sewing facility |
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Leased |
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2008 |
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Castaños, Mexico |
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Sewing facility |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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San Buenaventura, Mexico |
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Sewing facility |
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Leased |
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2005 |
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San Marcos, Nicaragua |
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Sewing facility |
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Leased |
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2008 |
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Rivas, Nicaragua |
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Sewing facility |
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Leased |
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2010 |
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Port-au-Prince, Haiti |
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Sewing facility |
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Leased |
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2010 |
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Port-au-Prince, Haiti |
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Sewing facility |
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Leased |
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2010 |
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Montreal, Québec |
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Distribution facility |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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Eden, North Carolina |
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Distribution facility |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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Montreal, Québec(2) |
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Yarn spinning facility |
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Owned |
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n/a |
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Cedartown, Georgia |
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Yarn spinning facility |
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Owned(3) |
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n/a |
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Clarkton, North Carolina |
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Yarn spinning facility |
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Leased(3) |
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2007 |
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(1) |
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Includes renewals. |
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(2) |
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The yarn spinning facility in Montreal, Québec shut down in the second quarter of
fiscal 2005. |
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(3) |
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Jointly with Frontier. |
We believe that all of these facilities, whether owned or leased, are well maintained and
in good operating condition.
Our revolving term credit facility and senior notes are secured by a first ranking moveable
hypothec and security interest on most of our assets located at a majority of our facilities. The
lenders under the term credit facility and the noteholders, among others, are party to an
intercreditor agreement, which provides that the lenders and the noteholders shall in all respects
be pari passu first and senior liens in respect of our assets.
Labour Practices
We have invested significant time and resources in ensuring that the working conditions in all
our facilities meet or exceed the standards imposed by Canadian occupational health and safety
laws. In addition to having our own Code of Conduct, which is available on our website at
www.gildan.com, we have obtained WRAP (Worldwide Responsible Apparel Production) certification for
all of our existing sewing plants in Honduras and for our main Mexican sewing facility. To ensure
that these employment standards are appropriate, we have worked with the Canadian International
Development Agency, a Canadian federal governmental agency, to secure the services of professionals
who specialize in social/gender analysis and environmental audits with respect to developing
nations. We also contractually obligate our third party contractors to follow prescribed employment
policies as well as our Code of Conduct.
13
In November 2003, we joined the Fair Labor Association (FLA) as a Participating Company. The
FLA is recognized internationally as one of the most highly respected verification agencies and
promotes adherence to international labour standards and improving working conditions.
In fiscal 2005, we retained Vérité, an internationally respected training and monitoring
organization to conduct training and independent monitoring at our manufacturing facilities.
Please see the Risks section of our managements discussion and analysis on pages 21 to
45 of the 2005 Annual Report.
As at September 30, 2005, we employed 10,193 full-time employees. Of these employees,
368 Canadian employees are covered by collective bargaining agreements. 191 employees at our
Valleyfield, Québec dyeing and finishing facility are covered by a collective agreement that
expired on October 31, 2005. 177 employees at our Montreal, Québec dyeing and finishing facility
are covered by a collective bargaining agreement that expires on December 31, 2005.
We consider our relations with our employees to be very good and, as of the date hereof, we
have not experienced any work stoppages that have had a material impact on our operations.
We do not currently pay dividends because we retain all of our earnings to maximize our
financing capacity to develop and expand our business. The Board of Directors periodically reviews
the Corporations policy towards paying dividends. Although some of our credit facilities and debt
instruments require compliance with lending covenants in order to pay dividends, these covenants
are not currently, and are not expected to be, a constraint to the future payment of dividends.
First Preferred Shares
Issuance in Series
The First Preferred Shares are issuable in series and the Board of Directors has the right,
from time to time, to fix the number of, and to determine the designation, rights, privileges,
restrictions and conditions attaching to, the First Preferred Shares of each series subject to the
limitations, if any, set out in the Articles of the Corporation.
Rank
The First Preferred Shares rank senior to the Second Preferred Shares and the Common Shares
with respect to the payment of dividends, return of capital and the distribution of assets in the
event of the liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of Gildan. The First Preferred Shares in each
series rank equally with the First Preferred Shares of any other series.
Voting Rights
Unless the Articles otherwise provide with respect to any series of the First Preferred
Shares, the holders of the First Preferred Shares are not entitled to receive any notice of or
attend any meeting of the shareholders of Gildan and are not entitled to vote at any such meeting.
14
Second Preferred Shares
Issuance in Series
The Second Preferred Shares are issuable in series and the Board of Directors has the right,
from time to time, to fix the number of, and to determine the designation, rights, privileges,
restrictions and conditions attaching to, the Second Preferred Shares of each series subject to the
limitations, if any, set out in the Articles of the Corporation.
Rank
The Second Preferred Shares are subject and subordinate to the rights, privileges,
restrictions and conditions attaching to the First Preferred Shares. The Second Preferred Shares
rank senior to the Common Shares with respect to payment of dividends, return of capital and
distribution of assets in the event of the liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of Gildan. The
Second Preferred Shares in each series rank equally with the Second Preferred Shares of any other
series.
Voting Rights
Unless the Articles otherwise provide with respect to any series of the Second Preferred
Shares, the holders of the Second Preferred Shares are not entitled to receive any notice of or
attend any meeting of the shareholders of Gildan and are not entitled to vote at any such meeting.
Common Shares
Following the conversion of all of the Corporations Class B Multiple Voting Shares into Class
A Subordinate Voting Shares, the Corporations shareholders approved a special resolution on
February 2, 2005 to amend the Corporations Articles in order to change each of the issued and
outstanding Class A Subordinate Voting Shares into one newly-created Common Share and to remove the
Class B Multiple Voting Shares and the Class A Subordinate Voting Shares.
The Common Shares are subject to and subordinate to the rights, privileges, restrictions and
conditions attaching to the First Preferred Shares and the Second Preferred Shares. Each holder of
Common Shares shall have the right to receive any dividend declared by the Corporation and the
right to receive the remaining property and assets of the Corporation on dissolution.
Each holder of Common Shares is entitled to receive notice of and to attend all meetings of
shareholders of the Corporation, except meetings of which only holders of another particular class
or series shall have the right to vote. Each Common Share shall entitle the holder thereof to one
(1) vote.
The Common Shares of the Corporation are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (the
NYSE) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (the TSX) under the symbol GIL. The Class A Subordinate
Voting Shares (now the Common Shares), which were issued at an offering price of $1.75 (Cdn$2.57),
began trading on the TSX, the Montreal Exchange (the ME) and the American Stock Exchange (AMEX)
on June 17, 1998. Prior to that date, there was no public market for the Class A Subordinate Voting
Shares. On September 1, 1999, the Class A Subordinate Voting Shares (now the Common Shares)
commenced trading on the NYSE. We delisted such shares from AMEX on August 31, 1999. As a result of
a restructuring of Canadas stock exchanges, which took effect on December 7, 1999, we are no
longer listed on the ME.
15
The table below shows the monthly price range per share and the trading volume of the Common
Shares for the fiscal year ended October 2, 2005 on the TSX (in Cdn$) and on the NYSE (in US$).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
COMMON SHARES |
|
|
Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) |
|
|
New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) |
|
|
Month |
|
|
High |
|
|
|
Low |
|
|
|
Trading Volume |
|
|
Month |
|
|
High |
|
|
|
Low |
|
|
|
Trading Volume |
|
|
October 4 to 31, 2004 |
|
|
|
18.37 |
|
|
|
|
17.56 |
|
|
|
2,505,800 |
|
|
October 4 to 31, 2004 |
|
|
|
14.78 |
|
|
|
|
13.83 |
|
|
|
977,800 |
|
|
November 2004 |
|
|
|
18.60 |
|
|
|
|
17.43 |
|
|
|
4,049,200 |
|
|
November 2004 |
|
|
|
15.63 |
|
|
|
|
14.23 |
|
|
|
1,413,200 |
|
|
December 2004 |
|
|
|
20.63 |
|
|
|
|
18.46 |
|
|
|
6,320,800 |
|
|
December 2004 |
|
|
|
17.22 |
|
|
|
|
15.61 |
|
|
|
1,944,800 |
|
|
January 2005 |
|
|
|
22.80 |
|
|
|
|
20.30 |
|
|
|
5,472,400 |
|
|
January 2005 |
|
|
|
18.35 |
|
|
|
|
16.58 |
|
|
|
1,436,200 |
|
|
February 2005 |
|
|
|
25.25 |
|
|
|
|
22.25 |
|
|
|
6,527,800 |
|
|
February 2005 |
|
|
|
20.38 |
|
|
|
|
18.18 |
|
|
|
2,418,400 |
|
|
March 2005 |
|
|
|
27.25 |
|
|
|
|
24.63 |
|
|
|
5,184,000 |
|
|
March 2005 |
|
|
|
22.35 |
|
|
|
|
19.87 |
|
|
|
3,003,400 |
|
|
April 2005 |
|
|
|
28.76 |
|
|
|
|
25.03 |
|
|
|
4,276,400 |
|
|
April 2005 |
|
|
|
23.40 |
|
|
|
|
20.50 |
|
|
|
5,188,800 |
|
|
May 2005 |
|
|
|
32.00 |
|
|
|
|
26.50 |
|
|
|
5,931,600 |
|
|
May 2005 |
|
|
|
25.51 |
|
|
|
|
21.11 |
|
|
|
4,013,000 |
|
|
June 2005 |
|
|
|
32.51 |
|
|
|
|
29.80 |
|
|
|
4,374,600 |
|
|
June 2005 |
|
|
|
26.54 |
|
|
|
|
23.79 |
|
|
|
1,929,300 |
|
|
July 2005 |
|
|
|
36.92 |
|
|
|
|
32.98 |
|
|
|
5,016,800 |
|
|
July 2005 |
|
|
|
30.70 |
|
|
|
|
26.21 |
|
|
|
2,372,000 |
|
|
August 2005 |
|
|
|
41.28 |
|
|
|
|
35.91 |
|
|
|
5,405,500 |
|
|
August 2005 |
|
|
|
34.36 |
|
|
|
|
29.20 |
|
|
|
3,310,900 |
|
|
September 2005 |
|
|
|
45.41 |
|
|
|
|
38.07 |
|
|
|
3,950,200 |
|
|
September 2005 |
|
|
|
39.13 |
|
|
|
|
32.26 |
|
|
|
2,773,100 |
|
|
October 1 to 2, 2005 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
October 1 to 2, 2005 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
7. |
|
DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS |
Listed below is certain information about the current directors of Gildan. The directors
have served in their respective capacities since their election and/or appointment and will
continue to serve until the next annual meeting of shareholders or until a successor is duly
elected.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Name and Municipality of Residence |
|
Age |
|
Principal Occupation |
|
Director Since |
Robert M. Baylis (2)(3)(4)
Darien, Connecticut, United States.
|
|
|
67 |
|
|
Corporate Director
|
|
February 1999 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Glenn J. Chamandy
Montreal, Québec, Canada.
|
|
|
44 |
|
|
President and Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation
|
|
May 1984 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
William H. Houston, III (2)(3)
Memphis, Tennessee, United States.
|
|
|
71 |
|
|
President, World Trade Link
(an international business consulting firm)
|
|
November 1997 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sheila OBrien (2)(3)
Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
|
|
|
58 |
|
|
Special Advisor on student life to the President of the
University of Calgary
|
|
June 2005 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Pierre Robitaille(1)(2)
St-Lambert, Québec, Canada.
|
|
|
62 |
|
|
Business Advisor and Corporate Director
|
|
February 2003 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gerald H.B. Ross(1)(3)
Montreal, Québec, Canada.
|
|
|
61 |
|
|
Executive in Residence of the Faculty of Management,
McGill University
|
|
February 2003 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Richard P. Strubel (1)(3)
Chicago, Illinois, United States.
|
|
|
66 |
|
|
Vice Chairman and Director of Cardean Learning Group
(a provider of advanced education over the Internet)
Chairman of Broadspan Capital
|
|
February 1999 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gonzalo F. Valdes-Fauli(1)(2)
Key Biscayne, Florida, United States.
|
|
|
59 |
|
|
(an investment banking firm specializing in financial
advisory services)
|
|
October 2004 |
|
|
|
(1) |
|
Member of the Audit and Finance Committee. |
|
(2) |
|
Member of the Corporate Governance Committee. |
|
(3) |
|
Member of the Human Resources and Compensation Committee. |
|
(4) |
|
Chairman of the Board. |
16
Listed below is certain information about the current executive officers of Gildan.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Name and Municipality of Residence |
|
Age |
|
Position held within the Corporation |
Glenn J. Chamandy (1) (2)
Montreal, Québec, Canada.
|
|
|
44 |
|
|
President, Chief Executive Officer and Director |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Laurence G. Sellyn (1) (2)
Beaconsfield, Québec, Canada.
|
|
|
56 |
|
|
Executive Vice-President, Chief Financial and Administrative Officer |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Michael R. Hoffman (1)
St. James, Barbados.
|
|
|
43 |
|
|
President, Gildan Activewear SRL |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Georges Sam Yu Sum (1) (2)
Montreal, Québec, Canada.
|
|
|
48 |
|
|
Executive Vice-President, Operations |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gregg Thomassin (1) (2)
Baie DUrfé, Québec, Canada.
|
|
|
46 |
|
|
Executive Vice-President, Corporate Controller and
Chief Information Officer |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Benito Masi (1) (2)
Laval, Québec, Canada.
|
|
|
50 |
|
|
Executive Vice-President, Manufacturing |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Peter Iliopoulos(2)
Montreal, Québec, Canada.
|
|
|
36 |
|
|
Vice-President, Taxation |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Shaun Parmar`(2)
Montreal, Québec, Canada.
|
|
|
39 |
|
|
Vice-President, Business Development |
|
|
|
(1) |
|
Executive Management Committee.
|
|
(2) |
|
Officers of the Corporation. |
Glenn J. Chamandy is one of the founders of the Corporation and has been involved in
various Chamandy family textile and apparel businesses for over twenty years. Prior to February
2004, Mr. Chamandy held the position of President and Chief Operating Officer. He was then named
President and Co-Chief Executive Officer and, in August 2004, he was appointed to the position of
President and Chief Executive Officer.
Robert M. Baylis, Chairman of the Board of the Corporation, serves as a director of several
large corporations, including the New York Life Insurance Company, Host Marriott Corporation
(luxury hotels and resorts), Covance Inc. (drug development products and services provider), and
PartnerRe Ltd. (multi-line reinsurance provider).
William H. Houston, III is President of World Trade Link, an international business consulting
firm he founded in 1988. Mr. Houston served as U.S. Ambassador/Chief Textile Negotiator for the
United States Trade Representative during 1987 and 1988, and is a Past President of the Cotton
Foundation and the Delta Council of Mississippi.
Sheila OBrien is Special Advisor on student life to the President of the University of
Calgary. Ms. OBrien previously pursued her career at NOVA Chemicals Corporation, a producer of
commodity plastics and chemicals, where from 1995 to 2004 she held various positions leading to
Senior Vice-President, Human Resources, Public Affairs, Investor and Government Relations. Ms.
OBrien also serves on the boards of directors of MaRS (Medical and Related Sciences), a research
and development centre to promote research in life sciences, and Vartana, a Calgary-based
innovative bank concept to support voluntary sector organizations.
Pierre Robitaille is a business advisor. Mr. Robitaille previously pursued his career at
SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., an engineering-construction firm, where he was Executive Vice-President and
Chief Financial Officer from 1990 to 1998. Prior to this, Mr. Robitaille was in public practice for
more than twenty years with the public accounting and management consulting firm of Ernst &
Whinney, where he held the positions of Managing Partner of the Montreal office, President of the
firm in Québec, and member of its national board of directors. Mr. Robitaille also serves on the
board of directors of Cogeco Cable Inc. and Cogeco Inc. (providers of cable TV, Internet and
broadcast services), Swiss Re Company of Canada and Swiss Re Life & Health Co. Canada (global
reinsurance company).
Gerald H.B. Ross is Executive in Residence of the Faculty of Management of McGill University,
where from August 2000 until January 1, 2005, he was Dean of the Faculty of Management. Prior to
joining McGill University, Dr. Ross was senior partner of Change Lab International, a consultancy
specializing in helping organizations create new strategic directions and manage change.
17
Richard P. Strubel is Vice Chairman and Director of Cardean Learning Group, a provider of
advanced education over the Internet. Mr. Strubel also serves on the board of directors of the
Northern Funds and Northern Institutional Funds of The Northern Trust (financial services provider)
and the mutual funds of Goldman Sachs & Co.
Gonzalo F. Valdes-Fauli is Chairman of Broadspan Capital, an investment banking firm
specializing in financial advisory services. Mr. Valdes-Fauli retired from Barclays Bank PLC (a
major UK-based global bank) in 2001 when he held the position of Vice Chairman, Barclays Capital,
and Group CEO Latin America. Mr. Valdes-Fauli serves on the board of directors of Blue Cross and
Blue Shield of Florida (health insurance provider), Knight Ridder, Inc. (newspaper and Internet
publishing) and as Chairman of Republic Bank (financial services provider), Dominican Republic. He
is also Trustee Emeritus of the University of Miami.
Laurence G. Sellyn was appointed to the position of Executive Vice-President, Chief Financial
and Administrative Officer of the Corporation in November 2005. He joined Gildan as Executive
Vice-President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer of the Corporation in April 1999. He is a
Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales. Prior to joining Gildan, Mr.
Sellyn served as Senior Vice-President, Finance and Corporate Development and Chief Financial
Officer of Wajax Limited, an industrial distribution company, where he was employed from October
1992 to March 1999. Prior to joining Wajax, he was employed by Domtar Inc., where he held various
positions, including Corporate Controller and Vice-President, Business Planning and Development.
Michael R. Hoffman joined Gildan in November 1997. He served as Vice-President, Sales and
Marketing for the international division until his appointment as President of Gildan Activewear
SRL in February 2001. Prior to joining Gildan, Mr. Hoffman was employed by Fruit of the Loom, Inc.,
where he last served as Divisional Vice-President of the Activewear Division.
Georges Sam Yu Sum has been Executive Vice-President, Operations of the Corporation since
2000. From 1998 to 2000, he served as Vice-President, Operations of the Corporation and from 1995
to 1998, he served as Director of Operations of the Corporation. Prior to joining Gildan in 1995,
Mr. Sam Yu Sum spent sixteen years with Dominion Textiles, where he served in various managerial
capacities, from manufacturing to sales.
Gregg Thomassin was appointed to the position of Executive Vice-President, Corporate
Controller and Chief Information Officer of the Corporation in November 2003. He joined Gildan as
Corporate Controller in February 1999. He previously held the position of Vice-President, Finance
and Administration with various manufacturing companies.
Mr. Thomassin is a Canadian Chartered Accountant.
Benito Masi has been involved in apparel manufacturing in North America for the past
twenty-five years. He joined Gildan in 1986, where he held various positions. He was appointed
Vice-President, Apparel Manufacturing in February 2001 and his title was changed to Vice-President,
Corporate Apparel Operations in September 2003. In August 2004, he was appointed Executive
Vice-President, Apparel Manufacturing and was appointed Executive Vice-President, Manufacturing in
January 2005.
Peter Iliopoulos has served as Vice-President, Taxation of the Corporation since February
2004. He joined Gildan as Director, Taxation in July 2002. Prior to joining Gildan, Mr. Iliopoulos
held the position of Director, Taxation with a public manufacturing company and a mutual fund
company. Mr. Iliopoulos is a Canadian Chartered Accountant.
Shaun Parmar joined Gildan in January 2005 as Vice-President, Business Development. Prior to
joining Gildan, Mr. Parmar served as Director, Corporate Development of Telesystem International
Wireless Inc. from 1999 to 2004. From 1995 to 1998, he was employed by Bell Canada International
Inc. as Director, Financial Planning & Analysis. Mr. Parmar is a Certified General Accountant.
As at December 15, 2005, the executive officers and directors of the Corporation as a group
own 5,663,096 Common Shares, which represents 9.44% of the voting rights attached to all Common
Shares.
8. |
|
AUDIT COMMITTEE DISCLOSURE |
Mandate of the Audit and Finance Committee
The mandate of the Audit and Finance Committee is included herewith as Appendix A.
18
Composition of the Audit and Finance Committee
The Audit and Finance Committee is composed of four independent and financially literate
directors, as those terms are defined in the rules of the Canadian Securities Administrators and
the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as well as the standards of the NYSE. Their education
and experience that is relevant to the performance of their responsibilities as members of the
Audit and Finance Committee is as follows:
Pierre Robitaille Mr. Robitaille, who holds an FCA designation, is a business advisor and
corporate director. He is retired from SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., where he was Executive
Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer from 1990 to 1998. Prior to this, Mr. Robitaille was in
public practice for more than twenty years with the public accounting firm of Ernst & Whinney,
where he held the positions of Managing Partner of the Montreal office, President of the firm in
Québec and member of the firms national board of directors. Mr. Robitaille is a member of the
board of directors and the audit committee of Cogeco Inc. and Cogeco Cable Inc. He is also a member
of the board of directors of Swiss Reinsurance Canada Group. Over the course of his career, he has
acquired competence in the audit of major public and private companies and a familiarity with
internal controls and financial reporting procedures.
Dr. Gerald H.B. Ross Dr. Ross is Executive in Residence of the Faculty of
Management of McGill University, where from August 2000 until January 1, 2005, he was Dean of the
Faculty of Management. Prior to joining McGill, he was founder and senior partner of Change Lab
International, a consulting organization specialized in the development of techniques to assist
organizations in building new visions and managing change to create competitive advantage in the
marketplace. He is also Chairman of Astute Inc., an organization that develops advanced
context-based learning methodologies for business. During his consulting career, Dr. Ross has
worked with some of the worlds premier corporations, such as 3M, Xerox, IBM, DuPont, AT&T,
Coca-Cola, Reuters and Kodak. Dr. Ross recent academic appointments include serving as a faculty
member on the Wharton International Forum Executive Program on Cross Cultural Issues in Global
Management. He also works with the University of Michigans Executive Education Program and has
delivered programs on managing change to the banking industry in Saudi Arabia.
Richard P. Strubel Mr. Strubel is Vice Chairman and Director of Cardean Learning Group. He
also served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Microdot Inc., a manufacturing corporation
with sales of $400 million. Previously, he was president of Northwest Industries, then a New York
Stock Exchange company with sales in excess of $3 billion. Mr. Strubel is a trustee of all the
institutional and retail mutual funds managed by Goldman, Sachs & Co., as well as the institutional
funds of the Northern Trust Company and serves as a member of the audit committees of these mutual
fund families. He is a member of the board of trustees of the University of Chicago. Mr. Strubel
has more than twenty-five years of experience in executive positions overseeing large operating
corporations. He was educated at Williams College and Harvard Business School.
Gonzalo F. Valdes-Fauli Mr. Valdes-Fauli is a retired Vice-Chairman of Barclays Capital,
the investment banking division of Barclays Bank, London, England. Mr. Valdes-Fauli served as a
member of the management committee of Barclays Capital from 1988 to 2001. He was Group Chief
Executive of Barclays Bank Latin America from 1988 to 2001. He is Chairman of Broadspan Capital,
LLC and Chairman of Republic Bank, Dominican Republic. Mr. Valdes-Fauli currently serves on the
boards of directors of other companies, including Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida and Knight
Ridder, Inc., where he is respectively Chairman of the Corporate Governance Committee and Chairman
of the Audit Committee. Mr. Valdes-Fauli is a Trustee Emeritus of the University of Miami. He has
more than thirty years experience in finance. He holds a Masters Degree in international finance
from Thunderbird Graduate School for International Management and a Bachelor of Science Degree in
economics from Spring Hill College.
Pre-Approval of Non-audit Services
In accordance with the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants independence standards for
auditors, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission,
the Corporation is restricted from engaging the auditors to provide certain non-audit services to
the Corporation and its subsidiaries, including bookkeeping or other services related to the
accounting records or financial statements, information technology services, valuation services,
actuarial services, internal audit services, corporate finance services, management functions,
human resources functions, legal services and expert services unrelated to the audit. The
Corporation does engage the auditors from time to time to provide certain non-audit services other
than the restricted services. All non-audit services must be specifically pre-approved by the Audit
and Finance Committee.
19
External Auditor Service Fees
The aggregate fees billed by KPMG llp, Chartered Accountants (KPMG), the
Corporations external auditor, for various audit-related and non-audit services rendered for the
fiscal years 2005 and 2004 were as follows:
Audit Fees The aggregate audit fees billed by the auditor for professional services
rendered for the annual audit of the Corporations consolidated financial statements,
quarterly reviews of the Corporations financial statements and services provided in
connection with statutory and regulatory filings or engagements were Cdn$687,287 for fiscal
2005 and Cdn$611,250 for fiscal 2004.
Audit-Related Fees The aggregate audit-related fees billed by the auditor were Cdn$74,700
for fiscal 2005 and Cdn$55,042 for fiscal 2004. These services consisted of miscellaneous
assurance services.
Tax Fees The aggregate tax fees billed by the auditor were Cdn$262,659 for fiscal 2005
and Cdn$218,505 for fiscal 2004. These services consisted of tax compliance, including the
review of tax returns, assistance regarding income, capital and sales tax audits, the
preparation of employee tax returns under the Corporations expatriate tax service program
and the preparation of annual transfer pricing studies and tax advisory services relating to
domestic and international taxation.
All Other Fees The aggregate fees billed by KPMG for all other professional services
rendered were Cdn$3,178 for fiscal 2005 for services associated with the assistance of
statutory filing requirements and were nil for fiscal 2004.
The Corporation is a party to claims and litigation arising in the normal course of its
operations. Management does not expect the resolution of these matters to have a materially adverse
effect on the financial position or results of operations of the Corporation.
10. |
|
TRANSFER AGENT AND REGISTRAR |
The transfer agent and registrar of the Corporation is Computershare Investor Services
Inc., having offices in Montreal and Toronto at which the register of transfer of the Common Shares
is held. The co-transfer agent and co-registrar of the Corporation is Computershare Trust Company,
Inc., having an office in New York.
The Corporation has not entered into any material contracts outside the ordinary course
of business.
KPMG, the external auditors of the Corporation, reported on the fiscal 2005
audited consolidated financial statements of the Corporation (the Financial Statements), which
were filed with the securities regulatory authorities. KPMG had no registered or beneficial
interests, direct or indirect, in any securities or other property of the Corporation or any of the
Corporations associates or affiliates when it prepared the report on the Financial Statements, or
after such time, nor does it expect to receive any such securities or other property.
13. |
|
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION |
Additional information, including directors and officers remuneration and indebtedness,
principal holders of the Corporations securities and securities authorized for insurance under the
Corporations equity compensation plans is
20
contained in the Circular, and additional financial information is provided in the
Corporations comparative consolidated financial statements and managements discussion and
analysis for its most recently completed financial year, both of which are contained in the 2005
Annual Report.
Copies of these documents and additional information relating to Gildan may be found on the
SEDAR website at www.sedar.com and the Edgar website at www.sec.gov and may also be obtained upon
request to the Secretary of Gildan at the following address:
725 Montée de Liesse
Montreal, Québec
H4T 1P5
Telephone: (514) 735-2023
The documents mentioned above, as well as Gildans news releases, are also available on the
Corporations website at www.gildan.com.
21
APPENDIX A MANDATE OF THE AUDIT AND FINANCE COMMITTEE
The following description of the mandate of the Audit and Finance Committee of the Corporation
complies with applicable Canadian laws and regulations, such as the rules of the Canadian
Securities Administrators, and with the disclosure and listing requirements of the Toronto Stock
Exchange (collectively, the Canadian Corporate Governance Standards), as they exist on the date
hereof. In addition, this mandate complies with applicable U.S. laws, such as the Sarbanes-Oxley
Act of 2002, and rules and regulations adopted thereunder, and with the New York Stock Exchanges
corporate governance standards (collectively, the US Corporate Governance Standards), as they
exist on the date hereof. The mandate of the Audit and Finance Committee of the Corporation (the
"Audit Committee) shall be reviewed annually by the Board in order to ensure on-going compliance
with such standards.
|
|
|
a minimum of three directors; |
|
|
|
|
only independent (as contemplated by Canadian Corporate Governance Standards and
US Corporate Governance Standards) directors shall be appointed, the whole as
determined by the Board; no affiliate of the Corporation or any of its subsidiaries
(including any person who, directly or indirectly, controls or is controlled by, or is
under common control with the Corporation, or any director, executive officer, partner,
member, principal or designee of such affiliate) may serve on the Audit Committee; a
member of the Audit Committee shall receive no compensation from the Corporation or any
of its affiliates other than compensation as a director and committee member of the
Corporation; prohibited compensation includes fees paid, directly or indirectly, for
services as a consultant or as legal or financial advisor, regardless of the amount; |
|
|
|
|
each member must be financially literate (as contemplated by Canadian Corporate
Governance Standards and US Corporate Governance Standards), as determined by the
Board; |
|
|
|
|
at least one member must be an audit committee financial expert (as contemplated
by US Corporate Governance Standards), as determined by the Board; |
|
|
|
|
members of the Audit Committee shall be appointed annually by the Board upon
recommendation of the Corporations Corporate Governance Committee; such members may be
removed or replaced, and any vacancies on the Audit Committee shall be filled by the
Board upon recommendation of the Corporations Corporate Governance Committee;
membership on the Audit Committee shall automatically end at such time the Board
determines that a member ceases to be independent as determined in the manner set
forth above; |
|
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quorum of majority of members. |
2. |
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Frequency and Timing of Meetings |
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normally contemporaneously with the Corporations Board meetings; |
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at least four times a year and as necessary. |
3. |
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Mandate |
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The responsibilities of the Audit Committee include the following: |
22
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(a) |
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Overseeing financial reporting |
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monitoring the integrity and quality of the Corporations accounting and
financial reporting process, disclosure controls and procedures, and systems of
internal control, through independent discussions with management, the external
auditors and the internal auditors; |
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reviewing, with management and the external auditors, the annual audited
consolidated financial statements as well as the report of the auditors thereon
to be included in the Annual Report of the Corporation, including the
Corporations MD&A disclosure, prior to their release, filing and distribution; |
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reviewing, with management and the external auditors, quarterly consolidated
financial statements of the Corporation and accompanying information including
the Corporations MD&A disclosure, prior to their release, filing and
distribution; |
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reviewing with management and external auditors the financial
information contained in prospectuses, offering memoranda, Annual Information
Form, Annual Report, Management Proxy Circular, Forms 6-K (including
Supplemental Disclosure) and 40-F and any other document required to be
disclosed or filed by the Corporation before their public disclosure or filing
with regulatory authorities in Canada or the United States of America; |
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reviewing, with management, the level and type of financial
information provided from time to time, to financial markets, including any
earnings press releases, as well as financial information and earnings guidance
provided to analysts and rating agencies; |
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reviewing with management that adequate procedures are in place for
the review of the Corporations disclosure of financial information extracted or
derived from the Corporations financial statements and periodically assessing
the adequacy of those procedures; |
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reviewing, with the external auditors and management, the quality,
appropriateness and disclosure of the Corporations accounting principles and
policies, underlying assumptions and reporting practices, and any proposed
changes thereto; |
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reviewing any analysis or other written communications prepared by
management, the internal auditors or external auditors setting forth significant
financial reporting issues and judgments made in connection with the preparation
of the financial statements, including analyses of the effect of alternative
generally accepted accounting principles methods; |
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reviewing the external auditors quarterly review engagement
report; |
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reviewing the compliance of management certification of financial
reports with applicable legislation; |
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reviewing the potential impact of any litigation, claim or other
contingency and any regulatory or accounting initiatives that could have a
material effect upon the financial position or operating results of the
Corporation and the appropriateness of the disclosure thereof in the documents
reviewed by the Audit Committee; |
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reviewing the results of the external audit, any significant
problems encountered in performing the audit, and managements response and/or
action plan related to any Management Letter issued by the external auditors and
any significant recommendations contained therein; |
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reviewing at least annually the Corporations communications policy
and monitoring the Corporations communications with analysts, investors, the
media and the public. |
23
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(b) |
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Monitoring risk management and internal controls |
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receiving periodically managements report assessing the adequacy
and effectiveness of the Corporations disclosure controls and procedures and
systems of internal control; |
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reviewing insurance coverage (annually and as may otherwise be
appropriate); |
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taking reasonable measures to ensure that appropriate systems are
in place to identify business risks and opportunities and overseeing the
implementation of processes to manage these risks and opportunities; |
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reviewing policy parameters for normal derivative transactions to
hedge interest rate and foreign exchange risks and any transaction not within
the parameters; |
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assisting the Board with the oversight of the Corporations
compliance with, and reviewing the Corporations processes to ensure compliance
with, applicable legal and regulatory requirements; |
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while ensuring confidentiality and anonymity, establishing
procedures for the receipt, retention and treatment of complaints or concerns
received by the Corporation regarding accounting, internal accounting controls
or auditing matters or employee concerns regarding accounting or auditing
matters; |
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requesting the performance of any specific audit, as required. |
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(c) |
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Monitoring internal auditors |
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ensuring that the internal auditors have a functional reporting
relationship with the Audit Committee; |
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ensuring that the internal auditors have access to all levels of
management in order to carry out their duties; |
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regularly monitoring the internal audit functions performance, its
responsibilities, staffing and budget; |
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approving the appointment and termination of the Corporations chief internal auditor; |
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ensuring that the internal auditors are accountable to the Audit Committee and to the Board. |
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(d) |
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Monitoring external auditors |
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recommending the retention and, if appropriate, the removal of
external auditors (both subject to shareholder approval), their compensation, as
well as evaluating and monitoring their qualifications, performance and
independence; |
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overseeing all relationships between the external auditors and the
Corporation including, determining which non-audit services the external
auditors are prohibited from providing, approving, or pre-approving policies
defining audit and permitted non-audit services provided by the external
auditors, overseeing the disclosure of all audit and permitted non-audit
services provided by the external auditors, and reviewing the total amount of
fees paid by the Corporation to the external auditors for all audit and
non-audit services; |
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ensuring that the external auditors report directly to the Audit
Committee and that they are accountable to the Audit Committee and to the Board; |
24
|
|
|
directly overseeing the external auditors and discussing with them
the quality and not just the acceptability of the Corporations accounting
principles, including (i) all critical accounting policies and practices used,
(ii) any alternative treatments of financial information that have been
discussed with management, the ramification of their use and the treatment
preferred by the external auditors, as well as (iii) any other material written
communications between the Corporation and the external auditors (including any
disagreement with management and the resolution thereof); |
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reviewing at least annually, a report by the external auditors
describing their internal quality-control procedures; any material issues raised
by their most recent internal quality-control review of their firm, or peer
review, or by any inquiry or investigation by governmental or professional
authorities, within the preceding five years, respecting one or more audits
carried out by them, to the extent available, and any steps taken to deal with
any such issues; |
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reviewing at least annually, the formal written statement from the
external auditors stating all relationships the external auditors have with the
Corporation and confirming their independence, and holding discussions with the
external auditors as to any relationship or services that may impact their
objectivity or independence; |
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reviewing hiring policies for employees or former employees of the
Corporations firm of external auditors; |
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|
taking all reasonable steps to ensure the rotation of lead,
concurring and other audit partners, to the extent required by Canadian
Corporate Governance Standards and US Corporate Governance Standards. |
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reviewing the adequacy of the Corporations financing, including
terms and conditions. |
|
(f) |
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Evaluating the performance of the Audit Committee |
|
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|
ensuring that processes are in place to annually evaluate the
performance of the Audit Committee. |
Because of the Audit Committees demanding role and responsibilities, the Board chair, together
with the Corporate Governance Committee chair, reviews any invitation to Audit Committee
members to join the audit committee of another publicly-listed entity. Where a member of the
Audit Committee simultaneously serves on the audit committee of more than three public
companies, including the Corporation, the Board determines whether such simultaneous service
impairs the ability of such member to effectively serve on the Audit Committee and either
requires a correction to the situation or discloses in the Corporations Management Proxy
Circular that there is no such impairment.
As appropriate, the Audit Committee may obtain advice and assistance from outside legal, accounting
or other advisors and set and pay their compensation, and so advise the Board chair and, if
appropriate, the external auditors; the Audit Committee makes arrangements for the appropriate
funding for payment of the external auditors and any advisors retained by it. In addition, the
Corporation will provide appropriate funding for the Audit Committee, including the payment of all
outside legal, accounting and other advisors retained by the Audit Committee.
The internal auditors and the external auditors will have at all times a direct line of
communication with the Audit Committee. In addition, each must meet separately with the Audit
Committee, without management, twice a year and more frequently as required, during which the
Corporations financial statements and control environment must be discussed; the Audit Committee
must also meet separately with management twice a year, and more frequently as required.
The Audit Committee shall report annually to the Board on the adequacy of its mandate. In addition,
the chair of the Audit Committee shall report regularly to the Board on the business of the Audit
Committee.
Nothing contained in the above mandate is intended to transfer to the Audit Committee the Boards
responsibility to ensure the Corporations compliance with applicable laws or regulations or to
expand applicable standards of liability under
25
statutory or regulatory requirements for the directors or the members of the Audit Committee. Even
though the Audit Committee has a specific mandate and its members may have financial experience,
they do not have the obligation to act as auditors or to perform auditing, or to determine that the
Corporations financial statements are complete and accurate and are in accordance with generally
accepted accounting principles. Such matters are the responsibility of management, the internal
auditors and the external auditors. Members of the Audit Committee are entitled to rely, absent
knowledge to the contrary, on (i) the integrity of the persons and organizations from whom they
receive information, (ii) the accuracy and completeness of the information provided, and (iii)
representations made by management as to the non-audit services provided to the Corporation by the
external auditors. The Audit Committees oversight responsibilities are not established to provide
an independent basis to determine that (i) management has maintained appropriate accounting and
financial reporting principles or appropriate internal controls and procedures, or (ii) the
Corporations financial statements have been prepared and, if applicable, audited in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles.
* * * * * * *
26
A. Undertaking
Gildan Activewear Inc. (the Registrant) undertakes to make available, in person or by
telephone, representatives to respond to inquiries made by the staff of the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC), and to furnish promptly, when requested to do so by the SEC staff, information
relating to the securities in relation to which the obligation to file an annual report on Form
40-F arises or transactions in said securities.
B. Consent to Service of Process
The Registrant has previously filed with the SEC a written irrevocable consent and power of
attorney on Form F-X in connection with the Class A Subordinate Voting Shares (now Common Shares).
C. Disclosure Controls and Procedures
The Registrants President and Chief Executive Officer and the Registrants Executive
Vice-President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer, after evaluating the effectiveness of the
Registrants disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and
15d-15(e)) as of October 2, 2005, have concluded that, as of such date, the Registrants disclosure
controls and procedures were adequate and effective to ensure that material information relating to
the Registrant and its consolidated subsidiaries would be made known to them by others within those
entities.
D. Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
There has been no change in the Registrants internal controls over financial reporting during
the year ended October 2, 2005 that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially
affect, the Registrants internal controls over financial reporting.
E. Audit Committee Financial Experts
The Registrants board of directors has determined that it has at least two (2) audit
committee financial experts serving on its audit committee. Mr. Pierre Robitaille and Mr. Gonzalo
F. Valdes-Fauli have been determined to be such audit committee financial experts and are
independent, as that term is defined by the New York Stock Exchanges listing standards applicable
to the Registrant. The SEC has indicated that the designation of Mr. Robitaille and Mr.
Valdes-Fauli as audit committee financial experts does not make Mr. Robitaille and Mr. Valdes-Fauli
experts for any purpose, impose any duties, obligations or liability on Mr. Robitaille and Mr.
Valdes-Fauli that are greater than those imposed on members of the audit committee and board of
directors who do not carry this designation or affect the duties, obligations or liability of any
other member of the audit committee.
F. Code of Ethics
The Registrant has adopted a Code of Ethics and Business Conduct (the Code of Conduct) that
applies to all employees and officers, including its principal executive officer, principal
financial officer and principal accounting officer. The Code of Conduct is available at the
Registrants Internet website, www.gildan.com, and is available in print to any shareholder who
requests it.
G. Principal Accountant Fees and Services
In addition to retaining KPMG llp, Chartered Accountants (KPMG) to report upon the
annual consolidated financial statements of the Registrant, the Registrant retained KPMG to provide
various audit-related and non-audit services in fiscal 2005. The aggregate fees billed for
professional services by KPMG for each of the last two (2) fiscal years, were as follows:
Audit Fees The aggregate audit fees billed by KPMG for professional services rendered for
the annual audit of the Registrants consolidated financial statements, quarterly reviews of
the Registrants financial statements and services provided in connection with statutory and
regulatory filings or engagements were CDN$687,287 for fiscal 2005 and CDN$611,250 for fiscal
2004.
Audit-Related Fees The aggregate audit-related fees billed by KPMG were CDN$74,700 for
fiscal 2005 and CDN$55,042 for fiscal 2004. These services consisted of miscellaneous
assurance services.
Tax Fees The aggregate tax fees billed by KPMG were CDN$262,659 for fiscal 2005 and
CDN$218,505 for fiscal 2004. These services consisted of: tax compliance, including the
review of tax returns, assistance regarding income, capital and sales tax audits, the
preparation of employee tax returns under the Registrants expatriate tax service program and
the preparation of annual transfer pricing studies and tax advisory services relating to
domestic and international taxation.
All Other Fees The aggregate fees billed by KPMG for all other professional services
rendered were CDN$3,178 for fiscal 2005 for services associated with the assistance of
statutory filing requirements and were nil for fiscal 2004.
All fees billed to the Registrant by KPMG in fiscal 2005 were pre-approved by the Registrants
Audit and Finance Committee pursuant to the procedures and policies set forth in the Audit and
Finance Committee mandate and pursuant to applicable legislation. The mandate of the Audit and
Finance Committee is available on the Registrants Internet website at www.gildan.com.
H. Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
Operating leases and commitments
The Registrant has no commitments that are not reflected in its balance sheets except for
operating leases and other purchase obligations, which are included in the table of contractual
obligations on page 33 of its MD&A (see Exhibit 99.1). As disclosed in Note 11 to the Registrants
Consolidated Financial Statements (see Exhibit 99.2), the Registrant has issued standby letters of
credit and corporate guarantees primarily from various servicing agreements amounting to $19.8
million at October 2, 2005.
Derivative Financial Instruments
From time to time, the Registrant uses forward foreign exchange contracts, primarily in
Canadian dollars and Euros, to hedge cash flows related to accounts receivable and accounts payable
in foreign currencies (non-U.S. dollar) denominated goods and services. A forward foreign exchange
contract represents an obligation to exchange a foreign currency with a counterparty at a
predetermined rate. Credit risk exists in the event of failure by a counterparty to meet its
obligations. The Registrant reduces this risk by dealing only with highly rated counterparties,
normally major North American and European financial institutions. The Registrants exposure to
foreign currency fluctuations is described in more detail in the Risks section of its MD&A
beginning on page 40 (see Exhibit 99.1).
The Registrant does not use derivative financial instruments for speculative purposes. Forward
foreign exchange contracts are entered into with maturities not exceeding twenty-four months.
Gains and losses on forward foreign exchange contracts are recognized through income in the
same period as the transactions that are hedged. For the years ended October 2, 2005 and October 3,
2004, net earnings included recognized gains relating to derivative financial instruments of $5.8
million and $0.1 million, respectively.
The following table summarizes the Registrants commitments to buy and sell foreign currencies as
at October 2, 2005 and October 3, 2004:
|
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|
|
|
|
|
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Notional |
|
|
Exchange |
|
|
|
|
|
Notional US dollar |
|
|
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Amount |
|
|
Rate |
|
Maturity |
|
Equivalent |
|
|
|
(in thousands) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(in thousands) |
|
2005: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sell contracts: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Foreign exchange contracts: |
|
|
9,276 |
|
|
1.3450 to 1.3721 |
|
Oct. 2005 Sept. 2006 |
|
$ |
12,620 |
|
|
|
£ |
4,490 |
|
|
1.8707 to 1.8909 |
|
Oct. 2005 Sept. 2006 |
|
|
8,439 |
|
|
|
CDN$2,800 |
|
|
|
0.8610 |
|
|
Oct. 2005 |
|
|
2,410 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Buy contracts: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Foreign exchange contracts: |
|
CDN$21,400 |
|
|
0.7997 to 0.8216 |
|
Oct. 2005 - Aug. 2006 |
|
$ |
17,348 |
|
|
|
|
2,150 |
|
|
|
1.2039 |
|
|
Oct. 2005 |
|
|
2,588 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2004: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sell contracts: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Foreign exchange contracts: |
|
|
1,409 |
|
|
1.2703 to 1.2717 |
|
Oct. - Dec. 2004 |
|
$ |
1,791 |
|
|
|
£ |
1,002 |
|
|
1.7970 to 1.8490 |
|
Oct. - Dec. 2004 |
|
|
1,836 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Buy contracts: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Foreign exchange contracts: |
|
CDN$38,990 |
|
|
0.7251 to 0.7401 |
|
Oct. 2004 - May 2005 |
|
$ |
28,726 |
|
|
The fair value of the forward foreign exchange contracts, based on quoted market values,
was $3.0 million as at October 2, 2005 and $2.1 million as at October 3, 2004.
I. Tabular Disclosure of Contractual Obligations
See page 33 of Exhibit 99.1.
J. Corporate Governance Guidelines
The Registrant has adopted Corporate Governance Guidelines as well as mandates for its Board
of directors and each of its three committees which are available at the Registrants Internet
website, www.gildan.com, and are available in print to any shareholder who requests them.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Exchange Act, the Registrant certifies that it meets
all of the requirements for filing on Form 40-F and has duly caused this annual report to be signed
on its behalf by the undersigned, thereto duly authorized.
DATED: December 22, 2005
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GILDAN ACTIVEWEAR INC. |
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By:
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/s/ Lindsay Matthews |
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Name:
Title:
|
|
Lindsay Matthews
Corporate Secretary |
EXHIBIT INDEX
|
|
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|
Exhibit No. |
|
Description |
|
99.1 |
|
|
Managements Discussion and Analysis of the Registrant for the year
ended October 2, 2005 |
|
|
|
|
|
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99.2 |
|
|
Audited comparative consolidated financial statements of the
Registrant as at and for the year ended October 2, 2005 |
|
|
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99.3 |
|
|
Consent of KPMG llp |
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|
99.4 |
|
|
Officers Certifications Required by Rule 13a-14(a) or Rule 15d-14(a) |
|
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99.5 |
|
|
Officers Certifications Required by Rule 13a-14(b) or Rule 15d-14(b)
and Section 1350 of Chapter 63 of Title 18 of the United States Code |
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99.6 |
|
|
Schedule D Statement of Corporate Governance Practices to the
Registrants Notice of Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders and
Management Proxy Circular dated as of December 16, 2005 (incorporated
by reference to Exhibit 99.1 of the Registrants Form 6-K (file no.
001-14830) furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission on
December 23, 2005) |