Management's Discussion and Analysis of


                 Financial Condition and Results of Operations



You should read the following summary together with the more detailed business information and consolidated financial statements and related notes that appear elsewhere in this Form 10-K and in the documents that we incorporate by reference into this Form 10-K. This document may contain certain "forward-looking" information within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This information involves risks and uncertainties. Our actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. In this Form 1-K, (a) "FY" means fiscal year; thus for example, FY21 refers to the fiscal year ended January 31, 2021 and (b) "Q" refers to a quarter; thus, for example, Q4 FY21 refers to the fourth quarter of the fiscal year ended January 31, 2021.





                    Overview; Response to COVID-19 Outbreak


We manufacture and sell a comprehensive line of industrial protective clothing and accessories for the industrial and public protective clothing market. Our products are sold globally by our in-house sales teams, our customer service group, and authorized independent sales representatives to a network of over 1,600 global safety and industrial supply distributors. Our authorized distributors supply end users, such as integrated oil, chemical/petrochemical, automobile, steel, glass, construction, smelting, cleanroom, janitorial, pharmaceutical, and high technology electronics manufacturers, as well as scientific, medical laboratories and the utilities industry. In addition, we supply federal, state and local governmental agencies and departments, such as fire and law enforcement, airport crash rescue units, the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security and the Centers for Disease Control. Internationally, we sell to a mixture of end users directly, and to industrial distributors depending on the particular country and market. In addition to the United States, sales are made to more than 50 foreign countries, the majority of which were into China, the European Economic Community ("EEC"), Canada, Chile, Argentina, Russia, Kazakhstan, Colombia, Mexico, Ecuador, India and Southeast Asia.

In FY21 we had net sales of $159.0 million and $107.8 million in FY20.

We have operated facilities in Mexico since 1995 and in China since 1996. Beginning in 1995, we moved the labor intensive sewing operation for our limited use/disposable protective clothing lines to these facilities. Our facilities and capabilities in China and Mexico allow access to a less expensive labor pool than is available in the United States and permit us to purchase certain raw materials at a lower cost than they are available domestically. More recently we have added manufacturing operations in Vietnam and India to offset increasing manufacturing costs in China and further diversify our manufacturing capabilities. Our China operations will continue primarily manufacturing for the Chinese market and other markets where duty advantages exist. Manufacturing expansion is not only necessary to control rising costs, it is also necessary for Lakeland to achieve its growth objectives.

Our net sales attributable to customers outside the United States were $88.4 million and $51.9 million for the fiscal years ended January 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.

The last two weeks of FY20 and all of FY21 were dominated by response to the COVID 19 outbreak. The virus' progression into a global pandemic will likely continue to impact our business into the first half of FY22. We experienced a drop in COVID 19 demand in Q4 FY21 that will continue into Q2 FY22, when vaccines become more widely available. As COVID 19 demand, currently estimated at approximately 30% to 35% of revenue decreases, we anticipate a continuation of an increase in our core businesses (industrial) that began in Q2 FY21 and continued through Q4 FY21. The negative impact of lock downs and stay at home orders peaked in Q2 FY21 with core business sales down by approximately 25%. Through the second half of Q2 FY21 and through Q4 FY21 our core business sales have been recovering steadily. Based on recent, third quarter U.S. GDP Growth of 33.1%; November 2020 manufacturing Purchasing Manager Index of 57.5%, up from 56.0% at August 2020, and our increased market penetration and new customers, we expect our core business sales to recover fully and continue to grow through FY22. We anticipate that COVID 19 related sales will continue for the first half of FY22, however not at the levels experienced in FY21 as demand for immediate use diminishes and give way to stockpiling demand and increased core business sales.






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At present, raw materials supply appears to have caught up with demand, albeit at prices well above pre-COVID-19 pricing. We anticipate raw material pricing to continue at inflated levels into FY22.Our future sales would be affected should there be an industry-wide shortage of necessary raw materials in the event of another rise or surge in COVID-19 cases. As noted, we did experience significant price increases for fabric during FY21 and managed our available manufacturing capacity to lower costs, and increase prices, to meet customer demand at these higher prices. With the exception of our India export manufacturing operation, which did not qualify for "essential status" due to its export only restrictions we have not experienced any manufacturing capacity issues due to inability to source raw materials, government quarantine, or shelter-in-place orders, or due to COVID-19 outbreaks in any of our factories, however there can be no assurance that this will continue to be the case. While leading economic indicators indicate a relatively robust industrial market recovery, potential headwinds to revenue as we emerge from pandemic sales include the possibility of a recession and consumer stockpiled inventories, as well as a decline in our oil and gas industrial sector that may temper demand within our regular markets in the second half of FY21.

Reference is made to "Risk Factors" in Part I, Item 1A, of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2021. Offsetting these risks are changes to our sales environment, as a result of COVID-19, that we believe represent considerable upside to sales. We believe that once the pandemic subsides, there will be continued demand establishing PPE stockpiles for the long-term. This stockpiling will be filled in part by inventory that is in the distribution channels as the pandemic ends. When specific governments will issue RFQs for additional product is unknown, but some RFQs are already pending release; others are expected to be released over the next several months. Additionally, we believe the private sector will also engage in stockpiling of PPE as supply channels catch up to demand. And finally, we are seeing the emergence of institutional cleaning as a new market segment as countries and states reopen and seek to prevent further infections. For these reasons we are maximizing our manufacturing capacity in the near-term and evaluating expansion opportunities to allow us to further increase our industrial market penetration as our competitors abandon their industrial customers as they seek to maximize COVID-19 related sales. This strategy combined with new product development, manufacturing expansion, and the addition of key senior personnel also serves to prepare us for any economic slowdown that may occur as COVID-19 business ends and our industry transitions to a more traditional product mix.

Lakeland's strategy for response to these "black swan" events is to remain focused on our long term growth strategies and tailor our response to these events so as to accelerate our strategic plans. We believe that focusing on our long-term growth strategy is also a solid strategy for minimizing the impact of any post-pandemic recession. In this particular case, our long-term strategy for revenue and margin improvement is to increase market penetration into markets that use higher value, higher margin products, that are recession resistant. Our manufacturing flexibility allows the Company to maximize the manufacture of disposable and chemical garments without degrading its ability to supply higher end, flame resistant and arc flash resistant garments. In order to maximize our response to pandemic demand, we have increased the daily working hours for our disposables and chemical manufacturing product lines, and we have significantly reduced the number of SKUs in these product lines in order to maximize efficiencies. This will have the effect of increasing throughput and reducing manufacturing costs to help mitigate any raw materials prices increases. Additionally, by focusing on a few core styles, we believe we can minimize the impact on inventory of any production over run when the pandemic subsides. SKU reduction also affords Lakeland the opportunity to discontinue any styles that have ceased being profitable due to pricing or sales volume We are not deviating from our growth strategy, rather we are looking to utilize the short-term, increased demand as a catalyst to accelerate attainment of growth objectives.

Having successfully implemented the above strategy, as evidenced by significantly increased market penetration in international markets, the addition of new customers accounting for additional sales of approximately $10 million, and realizing efficiency gains that we intend to make permanent, we are now focused on adding human and IT resources required to accelerate our growth rate in a post-COVID-19 environment. We believe that we will emerge from FY21 a full year ahead of our pre-COVID-19 growth plan, and we are committed to leveraging our position to accelerate growth in Critical Environment Markets such as pharmaceutical cleanrooms, isolation gowns, and Chemo-gowns; the Electric Utility Market; and to continue improving efficiencies by rationalizing our product offering in non-Covid product lines. To do this we will be acquiring additional senior and middle managers with specific skills in Sales and Marketing, Quality Control, Supply Chain Management, and Industrial Engineering. These personnel will facilitate future manufacturing expansion.by assuring that we have the skill sets necessary to meet our growth targets.






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The personal protective equipment market continues to grow worldwide at an estimated rate of 7.0% to 7.5%, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, as developing countries increasingly adopt protection standards similar to those of North America and Europe, and standards in more mature markets become more stringent, cover more workers, and more hazards. This growth rate will likely be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and resultant post-pandemic economic conditions, however these fundamental growth drivers will remain in place. Management believes Lakeland is uniquely positioned to take advantage of these trends with its presence in many major and high growth potential markets worldwide. However, management also understands that significant investment in these markets in terms of sales personnel, sales collateral and improved distribution (local warehousing) is required for the Company to realize its goals for growth in revenue and income as many of these markets become more competitive.

In order to promote future improvements in operating income, cash availability, and business outlook, the Company made multiple investments in operations and organizational expansion. Additional personnel in sales and marketing have been hired worldwide in order to increase penetration in existing markets and pursue new sales channels. On February 1, 2020, we relocated our corporate offices from New York to our Decatur, AL facility where we have hired additional personnel to improve centralized planning, finance, and IT support throughout the organization. New equipment has been purchased to increase manufacturing capacity and efficiency as well as to replace older equipment. New manufacturing facilities in Vietnam and India commenced production in FY19 and continued to add capacity until the latter half of FY20 when inventory levels necessitated curtailment. Curtailment of these operations was ended at all facilities in early February of 2020 as COVID-19 sales began to escalate. New accounting and operations software is being installed to improve processes, planning, and access to sales, financial, and manufacturing data. Additionally we continue to explore new fabrics and new technologies that may improve our product offerings and/or profitability. Management believes the Company's ability to compete for the global opportunities in its industry are being enhanced.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Revenue Recognition. Substantially all the Company's revenue is derived from product sales, which consist of sales of the Company's personal protective wear products to distributors. The Company considers purchase orders to be a contract with a customer. Contracts with customers are considered to be short-term when the time between order confirmation and satisfaction of the performance obligations is equal to or less than one year, and virtually all of the Company's contracts are short-term. The Company recognizes revenue for the transfer of promised goods to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the Company expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods. The Company typically satisfies its performance obligations in contracts with customers upon shipment of the goods. Generally, payment is due from customers within 30 to 90 days of the invoice date, and the contracts do not have significant financing components. The Company elected to account for shipping and handling activities as a fulfillment cost rather than a separate performance obligation. Shipping and handling costs associated with outbound freight are included in operating expenses, and for the years ended in FY21 and FY20 aggregated approximately $3.9 million and $3.3 million, respectively. Taxes collected from customers relating to product sales and remitted to governmental authorities are excluded from revenue.

The transaction price includes estimates of variable consideration, related to rebates, allowances, and discounts that are reductions in revenue. All estimates are based on the Company's historical experience, anticipated performance, and the Company's best judgment at the time the estimate is made. Estimates for variable consideration are reassessed each reporting period and are included in the transaction price to the extent it is probable that a significant reversal of cumulative revenue recognized will not occur upon resolution of uncertainty associated with the variable consideration. All the Company's contracts have a single performance obligation satisfied at a point in time and the transaction price is stated in the contract, usually as quantity times price per unit.

Inventories. Inventories include freight-in, materials, labor and overhead costs and are stated at the lower of cost (on a first-in, first-out basis) or net realized value. Adjustments are recorded for slow-moving, obsolete or unusable inventory. We assess our inventory for estimated obsolescence or unmarketable inventory and write down the difference between the cost of inventory and the estimated net realizable value based upon assumptions about future sales and supply on-hand, if necessary.If actual market conditions are less favorable than those projected by management, additional inventory write-downs may be required.

Income Taxes. The Company is required to estimate its income taxes in each of the jurisdictions in which it operates as part of preparing the consolidated financial statements. This involves estimating the actual current tax in addition to assessing temporary differences resulting from differing treatments for tax and financial accounting purposes. These differences, together with net operating loss carryforwards and tax credits, are recorded as deferred tax assets or liabilities on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. A judgment must then be made of the likelihood that any deferred tax assets will be recovered from future taxable income. A valuation allowance may be required to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount that is more likely than not to be realized. In the event the Company determines that it may not be able to realize all or part of its deferred tax asset in the future, or that new estimates indicate that a previously recorded valuation allowance is no longer required, an adjustment to the deferred tax asset is charged or credited to income in the period of such determination.






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The Company recognizes tax positions that meet a "more likely than not" minimum recognition threshold. If necessary, the Company recognizes interest and penalties associated with tax matters as part of the income tax provision and would include accrued interest and penalties with the related tax liability in the consolidated balance sheets.

Net income Per Share

Basic net income per share is based on the weighted average number of common shares outstanding without consideration of common stock equivalents. Diluted net income per share is based on the weighted average number of common shares and common stock equivalents. The diluted net income per share calculation takes into account unvested restricted shares and the shares that may be issued upon exercise of stock options and warrants, reduced by shares that may be repurchased with the funds received from the exercise, based on the average price during the fiscal year.

Significant Balance Sheet Fluctuation January 31, 2021, as Compared to January 31, 2020

Cash increased by $38.0 million, primarily as a result of increased profitability, improved accounts receivable collection efficiency, an increase in inventory turns, and a net increase in current liabilities. Accounts receivable was increased due to an increase in sales. Inventory decreased $0.4 million due to improved inventory management and increased inventory turns from higher sales levels. Accounts payable, accrued compensation, and other accrued expenses increased $2.1 million due to an increase in accounts payable for raw material purchases and increased accruals for employee incentive plans.

Results of Operations

The following table sets forth our historical results of continuing operations for the years and three-months ended January 31, 2021 and 2020 as a percentage of our net sales from operations.





                             Three Months Ended
                                 January 31,                Year Ended
                                 (Unaudited)                January 31,
                              2021          2020         2021        2020
Net sales                       100.0 %      100.0 %      100.0 %     100.0 %
Cost of goods sold               51.1 %       62.3 %       50.2 %      64.8 %
Gross profit                     48.9 %       37.7 %       49.8 %      35.2 %
Operating expenses               23.9 %       31.6 %       22.3 %      29.7 %
Operating profit                 25.1 %        6.1 %       27.6 %       5.5 %
Other income, net                 0.0 %        0.1 %        0.0 %       0.0 %
Interest expense                  0.0 %       (0.1 )%       0.0 %      (0.1 )%
Income (loss) before tax         25.1 %        6.1 %       27.6 %       5.3 %
Income tax expense                3.8 %        1.9 %        5.5 %       2.3 %
Net income                       21.3 %        4.3 %       22.1 %       3.0 %



Net Sales. Net sales increased to $159.0 million for the year ended January 31, 2021 compared to $107.8 million for the year ended January 31, 2020, an increase of 47.5%. Sales in the US increased $14.7 million or 26.3% primarily due to increases in the number of direct container shipments in the US and Canada throughout the year, and sales driven by COVID-19 demand. Sales to the Asian market increased by $13.1 million or 72.0% driven by COVID-19 demand. Sales to the European market increased by $7.5 million or 79.7% driven by COVID-19 demand. Canada sales increased by $4.0 million or 41.2% due to direct container shipments. Latin America sales increased $3.8 million or 45.3% as the Company continued to expand its selling efforts into the Chilean market and also expanded to Uruguay. Sales into the Mexican market increased $2.9 million or 102.1% driven by COVID-19 demand. Our other foreign markets accounted for $5.4 million of increased sales or 146.7% as we further penetrated these markets coupled with COVID-19 demand.






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Gross Profit. Gross profit increased $41.4 million, or 109.2%, to $79.3 million for the year ended January 31, 2021, from $37.9 million for the year ended January 31, 2020. Gross profit as a percentage of net sales increased from 35.2% for the year ended January 31, 2020 to 49.8% for the year ended January 31, 2021. Major factors driving gross margins were:





    ·   Increased volumes and pricing overall, throughout the entire year.
    ·   Increased sales of higher margin product lines, primarily disposables,
        chemical, and fire.
    ·   Improved manufacturing efficiency in Vietnam.



Operating Expense. Operating expenses increased 10.5% from $32.0 million for the year ended January 31, 2020 to $35.4 million for the year ended January 31, 2021. Operating expenses as a percentage of net sales was 22.3% for the year ended January 31, 2021, down from 29.7% for the year ended January 31, 2020. Selling expenses increased $0.8 million, including sales compensation, freight out, advertising and marketing. General and administrative expenses increased $2.6 million due to increases in salaries and compensation (including bonuses and equity based compensation), banking and insurance expenses, depreciation, and bad debt expense. During FY20, the Company reversed stock-based compensation expense of $0.8 million related to restricted stock grants due to cumulative financial performance for the grant awards. Due to the results in FY21, the Company recognized $0.8 million of expense as a result of a change in estimate in the numbers of shares expected to be earned under the performance plan.

Operating Profit. Operating profit increased to $43.9 million for the year ended January 31, 2021, from $5.9 million for the year ended January 31, 2020, due to the impacts detailed above. Operating margin increased to 27.6% for the year ended January 31, 2021, compared to 5.5% for the year ended January 31, 2020.

Interest Expense. Interest expenses was less than $0.1 million for the year ended January 31, 2021 compared to $0.1 million for the year ended January 31, 2020.

Income Tax Expense. Income tax expense consists of federal, state and foreign income taxes. Income tax expense was $8.8 million and included $1.9 million associated with the GILTI component of the Tax Act of 2017 for the year ended January 31, 2021, as compared to an income tax expense of $2.5 million, including $1.0 million associated with the GILTI component, for the year ended January 31, 2020. All international subsidiaries impacted the GILTI calculation.

Net Income. Net income increased to $35.1 million for the year ended January 31, 2021 from $3.3 million for the year ended January 31, 2020.

Fourth Quarter Results

Net sales and net income were $36.9 million and $7.9 million, respectively, for Q4 FY21, as compared to $28.2 million and $1.2 million, respectively, for Q4 FY20.

Factors affecting Q4 FY21 results of operations included:





    ·   Increased sales due to COVID-19 demand in the US and China.
    ·   Margins were increased due to increased pricing and improved manufacturing
        efficiency, primarily in our Vietnam facility.



Liquidity and Capital Resources

At January 31, 2021, cash and cash equivalents were approximately $52.6 million and working capital was approximately $108.0 million. Cash and cash equivalents increased $38.0 million and working capital increased $41.1 million from January 31, 2020 reflecting positive earnings and the Company's focus on working capital efficiencies.






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Of the Company's total cash and cash equivalents of $52.6 million as of January 31, 2021, cash held in Latin America of $1.4 million, cash held in Russia and Kazakhstan of $1.1 million, cash held in the UK of $2.5 million, cash held in India of $0.9 million and cash held in Canada of $3.8 million would not be subject to additional US tax in the event such cash was repatriated due to the change in the US tax law as a result of the December 22, 2017 enactment of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the "Tax Act"). In the event the Company repatriated cash from China, of the $23.8 million balance at January 31, 2021 there would be an additional 10% withholding tax incurred in that country. The Company has strategically employed a dividend plan subject to declaration and certain approvals in which its Canadian subsidiary sends dividends to the US in the amount of 100% of the previous year's earnings, the UK subsidiary sends dividends to the US in the amount of 50% of the previous year's earnings, and the Weifang China subsidiary sends dividends to the US in declared amounts of the previous year's earnings. No dividends were proposed by management or declared by our Board of Directors for our China subsidiary in FY21.

Net cash provided by operating activities of $40.7 million for the year ended January 31, 2021 was primarily due to net income of $35.1 million, non-cash expenses of $7.0 million for deferred taxes, depreciation and amortization, and stock compensation, decrease in net inventories of $0.5 million and an increase in accounts payable, accrued expenses and other liabilities of $3.8 million, offset in part by a $4.0 million increase to accounts receivable due to a higher sales volumes in the fourth quarter as compared to prior year and an increase in other current assets of $1.7 million due to an increase in amounts due from HSBC under the UK factoring agreement. Net cash used in investing activities of $1.7 million for the year ended January 31, 2021 reflects purchases in property and equipment as the Company optimized capital expenditures in the year for the ERP project, the set-up of manufacturing facilities in Vietnam and India, the enhancement of IT infrastructure, and equipment purchases in Mexico and China. Net cash used in financing activities was $1.3 million for the year ended January 31, 2021, primarily due to the repayment of $1.2 million term loan with SunTrust Bank as part of the transition to the new Loan Agreement with Bank of America.

Net cash provided by operating activities of $3.6 million for the year ended January 31, 2020 was primarily due to net income of $3.3 million, non-cash expenses of $2.6 million for deferred taxes, depreciation and amortization and stock compensation, and an increase in accounts payable of $1.1 million, offset in part by a $1.4 million increase to accounts receivable due to a higher concentration of sales in the latter part of the fourth quarter and an increase in inventories of approximately $2.2 million. Net cash used in investing activities of $1.0 million for the year ended January 31, 2020 reflects purchases in property and equipment as the Company optimized capital expenditures in the year for the ERP project, the set-up of manufacturing facilities in Vietnam and India, the enhancement of IT infrastructure, and equipment purchases in Mexico and China. Net cash used in financing activities was $0.7 million for the year ended January 31, 2020, was primarily due to a $0.5 million increase in treasury stock for shares purchased under the previously approved stock repurchase program.

On June 25, 2020, we entered into a Loan Agreement (the "Loan Agreement") with Bank of America ("Lender"). The Loan Agreement provides the Company with a secured $12.5 million revolving credit facility, which includes a $5.0 million letter of credit sub-facility. The Company may request from time to time an increase in the revolving credit loan commitment of up to $5.0 million (for a total commitment of up to $17.5 million). Borrowing pursuant to the revolving credit facility is subject to a borrowing base amount calculated as (a) 80% of eligible accounts receivable, as defined, plus (b) 50% of the value of acceptable inventory, as defined, minus (c) certain reserves as the Lender may establish for the amount of estimated exposure, as reasonably determined by the Lender from time to time, under certain interest rate swap contracts. The borrowing base limitation only applies during periods when the Company's quarterly funded debt to EBITDA ratio, as defined, exceeds 2.00 to 1.00. The credit facility will mature on June 25, 2025. Borrowings under the revolving credit facility bear interest at a rate per annum equal to the sum of the LIBOR Daily Floating Rate ("LIBOR"), plus 125 basis points. LIBOR is subject to a floor of 100 basis points. All outstanding principal and unpaid accrued interest under the revolving credit facility is due and payable on the maturity date. On a one-time basis, and subject to there not existing an event of default, the Company may elect convert up to $5.0 million of the then outstanding principal of the revolving credit facility to a term loan facility with an assumed amortization of 15 years and the same interest rate and maturity date as the revolving credit facility. The Loan Agreement provides for an annual unused line of credit commitment fee, payable quarterly, of 0.25%, based on the difference between the total credit line commitment and the average daily amount of credit outstanding under the facility during the preceding quarter.

The Company has experienced increased sales and order activity as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and may need to increase inventories in order to continue to respond to this increased demand. Additionally, the Company may accelerate investments in capacity expansion which may require significant capital expenditures.

Stock Repurchase Program. On February 17, 2021, the Company's board of directors approved a stock repurchase program under which the Company may repurchase up to $5,000,000 of its outstanding common stock. The new program replaces the prior program which had approximately $800,000 remaining for repurchases. There were no shares repurchased in FY21. The Company has repurchased 152,801 shares of stock under the prior program as of the date of this filing which amounted to $1,671,188, inclusive of commissions.

Capital Expenditures. Our capital expenditures for FY21 of $1.7 million principally relate to capital purchases for our manufacturing facilities in Vietnam and India, the enhancement of IT infrastructure, and equipment purchases in Mexico and the US. We anticipate FY22 capital expenditures to be approximately $4.0 million as we continue to deploy our ERP solution globally, invest in strategic capacity expansion, and replace existing equipment in the normal course of operations.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

See Note 1 - Business and Significant Accounting Policies of the consolidated financial statements in Part II Item 8 of this Form 10-K.

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