unemployment levels, particularly given the past volatility in the global financial markets, (ii) the impact on our margins of labor costs given our labor-intensive business model, the trend toward higher wages in both mature and developing markets and the potential impact of union organizing efforts on day-to-day operations of our manufacturing facilities and (iii) other factors, which may be beyond our control.

Digital technologies will continue to erode the demand for our printed business documents. 8 Digital technologies will continue to erode the demand for our printed business documents.

The printing industry continues to experience weakening demand for printed products. The increasing sophistication of software, internet technologies, and digital equipment combined with our customers’ general preference and digital substitutions, as well as governmental influences for paperless business environments will continue to reduce the number of traditional printed documents sold. Moreover, the documents that will continue to coexist with software applications will likely contain less value-added print content.

Increasing postal rates make direct mail campaigns more expensive, potentially leading our customers to reduce their demand for our products and shift to alternative marketing channels. Many of our custom-printed documents help companies control their internal business processes and facilitate the flow of information. These applications will increasingly be conducted over the internet or through other electronic payment systems. The predominant method of our customers’ communication with their customers is by printed information. As their customers become more accepting of internet communications, our customers may increasingly opt for what is perceived to be a less costly electronic option, which would reduce our revenue. As their customers become more accepting of internet communications, our clients may increasingly opt for what is perceived to be a less costly electronic option, which would reduce our revenue. The pace of these trends is difficult to predict. These factors will tend to reduce the industry-wide demand for printed documents and require us to gain market share to maintain or increase our current level of print-based revenue which could place pressure on our operating margins.

In response to the gradual obsolescence of our standardized business forms, we continue to develop our capability to provide custom and full-color products. If new printing capabilities and new product introductions do not continue to offset the obsolescence of our standardized business forms products and we are unable to increase our market share, our sales and profits will be affected. Decreases in sales of our standardized business forms and products due to obsolescence could also reduce our gross margins or impact the value of our recorded goodwill and intangible assets. This reduction could in turn adversely impact our profits, unless we are able to offset the reduction through the introduction of new high margin products and services or realize cost savings in other areas.

We obtain our raw materials from a limited number of suppliers, and any disruption in our relationships with these suppliers, or any substantial increase in the price of raw materials or material shortages could have a material adverse effect on us. We obtain our raw materials from a limited number of suppliers, and any disruption in our relationships with these suppliers, or any substantial increase in the price of raw materials or material shortages could have a material adverse effect on us.

We currently purchase a large majority of our paper products (a significant input to our print products) from one major supplier at favorable costs based on our high volume of business with this supplier relative to our competitors. Traditionally we have purchased our paper products from a limited number of suppliers, all of which must meet stringent quality and on-time delivery standards under long-term contracts. The closing of paper mills as recently announced would reduce capacity, potentially increasing prices and require us to seek alternative suppliers. We predominantly purchase our other raw materials from domestic suppliers but may be required to source from international suppliers if our domestic suppliers are unable to meet our supply requirements. Fluctuations in the quality of our paper commodity, unexpected price changes, decline in overall distribution channels or other factors that relate to our suppliers could have a material adverse effect on our operating results. Fluctuations in the quality of our paper, unexpected price changes, decline in overall distribution channels or other factors that relate to our suppliers could have a material adverse effect on our operating results.

Paper is a commodity that is subject to frequent increases or decreases in price, and these fluctuations are sometimes significant. The prices for paper and many of our raw materials have been volatile and may continue to increase due to overall inflationary pressure and global market conditions. We believe there is no effective market of derivative instruments to insulate us against unexpected changes in price of paper in a cost-effective manner and negotiated purchase contracts provide only limited protection against price increases. Generally, when paper prices increase, we attempt to recover the higher costs by raising the prices of our products to our customers. In the price-competitive marketplaces in which we operate, however, we may not always be able to pass through any or all of the higher costs. As such, any significant increase in the price of paper or shortage in its availability could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

Challenging financial market conditions and changes in long-term interest rates could adversely impact the funded status of our pension plan. Challenging financial market conditions and changes in long-term interest rates could adversely impact the funded status of our pension plan.

We maintain a noncontributory defined benefit retirement plan (the “Pension Plan”) covering approximately 12% of our employees. As of February 28, 2025, the Pension Plan was 103% funded on a projected benefit obligation ("PBO") basis and 109% on an accumulated benefit obligation ("ABO") basis. As of February 29, 2024, the Pension Plan was 100% funded on a projected benefit obligation ("PBO") basis and 107% on an accumulated benefit obligation ("ABO") basis. Included in our financial results are Pension Plan costs that are measured using actuarial valuations. The actuarial assumptions used may differ from actual results. In addition, as our Pension Plan assets are invested in marketable securities, fluctuations in market values can negatively impact our funded status, recorded pension liability and future required minimum contribution levels. A decline in long-term interest rates puts downward pressure on the discount rate used by plan sponsors to determine their pension liabilities. Each 10-basis point change in the discount rate impacts our computed pension liability by approximately $0.5 million. Similar to fluctuations in market values, a drop in the discount rate can negatively impact our funded status, recorded pension liability and future contribution levels. Also, continued changes in the mortality assumptions can impact our funded status. Additionally, as we experienced in recent years, the number of participants taking lump sum distributions at retirement could be sufficiently high as to cause a settlement charge, which would impact current earnings of the Pension Plan. Additionally, as we experienced in recent years, the number of participants 9 taking lump sum distributions at retirement could be sufficiently high as to cause a settlement charge, which would impact current earnings of the Pension Plan.

We may be unable to identify or to complete acquisitions or to successfully integrate the businesses we acquire.

We have evaluated, and may continue to evaluate, potential acquisition transactions. We have evaluated, and may continue to evaluate, potential acquisition transactions. We attempt to address the potential risks inherent in assessing the attractiveness of acquisition candidates, as well as other challenges such as retaining the employees and integrating the operations of the businesses we acquire. Integrating acquired operations involves significant risks and uncertainties, including maintenance of uniform standards, controls, policies and procedures; diversion of management’s attention from normal business operations during the integration process; unplanned expenses associated with integration efforts; and unidentified issues not discovered in due diligence, including legal contingencies. Due to these risks and others, there can be no guarantee that the businesses we acquire will lead to the cost savings or increases in net sales that we expect or desire. Additionally, there can be no assurance that suitable acquisition opportunities will be available in the future, which could harm our strategic business plan as acquisitions are part of our strategy to offset normal print attrition.

Our distributor customers may be acquired by other manufacturers who redirect business within their plants. Our distributor customers may be acquired by other manufacturers who redirect business within their plants.

Some of our customers are being absorbed by the distribution channels of some of our manufacturing competitors. Some of our customers are being absorbed by the distribution channels of some of our manufacturing competitors. However, we do not believe this will significantly impact our business model. We have continued to sell to some of these customers even after they were absorbed by our competition because of the breadth of our product line and our geographic diversity.

Our distributors face increased competition from various sources, such as office supply superstores. Increased competition may require us to reduce prices or to offer other incentives in order to enable our distributors to attract new customers and retain existing customers.

Low price, high value office supply chain stores offer standardized business forms, checks and related products. Low price, high value office supply chain stores offer standardized business forms, checks and related products. Because of their size, these superstores have the buying power to offer many of these products at competitive prices. These superstores also offer the convenience of “one-stop” shopping for a broad array of office supplies that our distributors do not offer. In addition, superstores have the financial strength to reduce prices or increase promotional discounts to expand market share. This could result in us reducing our prices or offering incentives in order to enable our distributors to attract new customers and retain existing customers, which could reduce our profits.

We could experience labor disputes, labor shortages and increases in cost of labor that could disrupt our business in the future and impact operating results. We could experience labor disputes, labor shortages and increases in cost of labor that could disrupt our business in the future and impact operating results.

As of February 28, 2025, approximately 8% of our employees are represented by labor unions under collective bargaining agreements, which are subject to periodic negotiations. As of February 29, 2024, approximately 8% of our employees are represented by labor unions under collective bargaining agreements, which are subject to periodic negotiations. While we believe we have a good working relationship with all of the unions, there can be no assurance that any future labor negotiations will prove successful, which may result in a significant increase in the cost of labor, or may break down and result in the disruption of our business or operations.

We have faced a tight labor market due to competitive wage increases, labor shortages and turnover. Labor shortages and rising labor-related costs could adversely impact our earnings.

We face intense competition to gain market share, which may lead some competitors to sell substantial amounts of goods at prices against which we cannot profitably compete.

Our marketing strategy is to differentiate ourselves by providing quality service and quality products to our customers. Our marketing strategy is to differentiate ourselves by providing quality service and quality products to our customers. Even if this strategy is successful, the results may be offset by reductions in demand or price declines due to competitors’ pricing strategies or other micro or macro-economic factors. We face the risk of our competition following a strategy of selling its products at or below cost in order to cover some amount of fixed costs, especially in stressed economic times.

Environmental regulations may impact our future operating results. 10 Environmental regulations may impact our future operating results.

We are subject to extensive and changing federal, state and foreign laws and regulations establishing health and environmental quality standards, concerning, among other things, wastewater discharges, air emissions and solid waste disposal, and may be subject to liability or penalties for violations of those standards. We are also subject to laws and regulations governing remediation of contamination at facilities currently or formerly owned or operated by us or to which we have sent hazardous substances or wastes for treatment, recycling or disposal. We may be subject to future liabilities or obligations as a result of new or more stringent interpretations of existing laws and regulations. In addition, we may have liabilities or obligations in the future if we discover any environmental contamination or liability at any of our facilities, or at the facilities we may acquire.

Changes in U.S. tariff and trade policy could adversely affect our business.

We are monitoring changes and potential changes to U.S. tariff and trade policies under the current Presidential administration, along with reciprocal tariffs or other countermeasures imposed or that may be imposed by other countries in response. The current environment is dynamic and uncertain, as the U.S. President has imposed, modified and paused tariffs, and granted exemptions from tariffs, on different countries and products multiple times since taking office in January 2025. Changing U.S. tariff and trade policies could cause higher inflation, higher interest rates and slower economic growth or recession in the U.S. We predominantly purchase our other raw materials from domestic suppliers but may be required to source from international suppliers if our domestic suppliers are unable to meet our supply requirements. Our domestic suppliers may incur tariffs leading to increased prices. These changes and uncertainties regarding future changes could result in higher costs to our business and impact demand from our customers. These factors could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We are subject to taxation related risks. We are subject to taxation related risks.

We are subject to U.S. federal income tax as well as income tax of multiple state jurisdictions. Applicable tax rates and the jurisdictions within which we operate can vary and therefore our effective tax rate may be adversely affected by changes in the mix of our earnings by jurisdiction. We may be subject to audits of our income, sales and other transaction taxes by U.S. federal and state authorities. Outcomes from these audits could have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Income, sales or other tax laws are dynamic and subject to change as new laws are passed and new interpretations of the law are applied. Income, sales or other tax laws are dynamic and subject to change as new laws are passed and new interpretations of the law are applied. Most recently, on August 16, 2022, legislation commonly known as the Inflation Reduction Act (the "IRA") was signed into law. Among other things, the IRA includes a 1% excise tax on certain corporate stock repurchases, applicable to repurchases after December 31, 2022, and also a new minimum tax based on book income. Following the 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision in South Dakota v Wayfair, states may require an out-of-state seller with no physical presence in the state to collect and remit sales tax on goods the seller ships to consumers in the state. While the company now collects, remits and reports sales tax in states that it does business in, the adoption of new laws by taxing authorities could create significant increases in internal cost necessary to capture data, collect and remit tax. All of these factors and uncertainties may adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and cash flows. All of these factors and uncertainties may adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and cash flows.

We are exposed to the risk of non-payment by our customers on a significant amount of our sales. We are exposed to the risk of non-payment by our customers on a significant amount of our sales.

Our extension of credit involves considerable judgment and is based on an evaluation of each customer’s financial condition and payment history. We monitor our credit risk exposure by periodically obtaining credit reports and updated financials on our customers. We generally see a heightened amount of bankruptcies by our customers during

economic downturns. While we maintain an allowance for credit losses based upon our historical trends and other available information, in times of economic turmoil, there is heightened risk that our historical indicators may prove to be inaccurate. The inability to collect on sales to significant customers or a group of customers could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

Our business incurs significant freight and transportation costs.

We incur transportation expenses to ship our products to our customers. Significant increases in the costs of freight and transportation could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, as there can be no assurance that we could pass on these increased costs to our customers. Government regulations can and have impacted the availability of drivers, which will be a significant challenge to the transportation industry. Costs to employ drivers have increased and transportation shortages have become more prevalent. Additionally, the challenge of employing new drivers for the increasingly larger web-based economy could create shortages in trucks and drivers which could impact our sales.

A natural disaster, catastrophe, pandemic or other unexpected events could adversely affect our operations.

The occurrence of one or more unexpected events, including war, acts of terrorism or violence, civil unrest, epidemics or pandemics, fires, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, floods and other forms of severe weather in the United States could adversely affect our operations and financial performance. The occurrence of one or more unexpected events, including war, acts of terrorism or violence, civil unrest, epidemics or pandemics, fires, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, floods and other forms of severe weather in the United States could adversely affect our operations and financial performance. Although we maintain third party insurance against various liability risks and risks of property loss for items we believe are economically reasonable to insure, we could incur uninsured losses and liabilities arising from such events which would adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. Although we maintain third party 11 insurance against various liability risks and risks of property loss for items we believe are economically reasonable to insure, we could incur uninsured losses and liabilities arising from such events which would adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

We depend on the reliability of our information technology ("IT") and network infrastructure as well as those of third parties. We depend on the reliability of our information technology ("IT") and network infrastructure as well as those of third parties. If these systems fail, our operations may be adversely affected.

We depend on IT and data processing systems to operate our business, and a significant malfunction or disruption in the operation of our systems may disrupt our business and adversely affect our ability to operate and compete in the markets we serve. We depend on IT and data processing systems to operate our business, and a significant malfunction or disruption in the operation of our systems may disrupt our business and adversely affect our ability to operate and compete in the markets we serve. This could take various forms, including through the injection of ransomware on our IT infrastructure rendering it inoperable without the payment of some form of cyber currency. These systems include systems that we own and operate, as well as systems of our vendors or other third parties. Such systems are susceptible to ransomware attacks, malfunctions, interruptions and phishing scams, for example. We also periodically upgrade and install new systems, which if installed or programmed incorrectly, may cause significant disruptions. These disruptions could interrupt our operations and adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.

Increasing global cybersecurity attacks and regulatory focus on privacy and security issues could impact our business, expose us to increased liability, subject us to lawsuits, investigations and other liabilities and restrictions on our operations that could significantly and adversely affect our business. Increasing global cybersecurity attacks and regulatory focus on privacy and security issues could impact our business, expose us to increased liability, subject us to lawsuits, investigations and other liabilities and restrictions on our operations that could significantly and adversely affect our business.

Along with our own data and information in the normal course of our business, we and our customers and partners collect and retain significant volumes of certain types of data, some of which are subject to specific laws and regulations. Along with our own data and information in the normal course of our business, we and our customers and partners collect and retain significant volumes of certain types of data, some of which are subject to specific laws and regulations. Complying with varying jurisdictional requirements is becoming increasingly complex and could increase the costs and difficulty of compliance, and violations of applicable data protection laws. Many of our clients provide us with information they consider confidential or sensitive, and many of our clients' industries have established standards for safeguarding the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information relating to their businesses and customers. Data stored in our systems or available through web portals is susceptible to cybercrime or intentional disruption, which have increased globally across all industries in terms of sophistication and frequency. Disclosure of data maintained on our network, a security breach of our systems or other similar events may damage our reputation, subject us to regulatory enforcement action, third party litigation and cause significant reputational or financial harm for our clients and partners. Any of these outcomes may adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.

As previously disclosed, the Company was targeted with an encryption ransomware attack on November 30, 2022. The Company eliminated the ransomware and restored its systems. Since then, the Company has implemented additional security measures to make it more difficult for an outside agent to gain access to our network, such as a

multifactor authentication (MFA) protocol and a robust firewall to strengthen the Company's network. Despite us improving our information technology general controls, we cannot give any assurances that the Company will not become the subject of a future more sophisticated, or more harmful attack. Despite us improving our Information Technology General Controls, we cannot give any assurances that the Company will not become the subject of a future more sophisticated, or more harmful attack.

Increases in the cost of employee benefits could impact our financial results and cash flow.

Our expenses relating to employee health benefits are significant. Our expenses relating to employee health benefits are significant. Unfavorable changes in the cost of such benefits could impact our financial results and cash flow. Healthcare costs have risen significantly in recent years, and recent legislative and private sector initiatives regarding healthcare reform could result in significant changes to the U.S. healthcare system. While the Company has various cost control measures in place and employs an outside oversight review on larger claims, employee health benefits have been and are expected to continue to be a significant cost to us and may increase due to factors outside the Company’s control.

Risks related to our securities

Because of the volatility in the stock market in general, the market price of our Common Stock will also likely be volatile.

The stock markets have historically experienced price and volume fluctuations that at times have been extreme and have affected, and continue to affect, the market prices of equity securities of many companies. The stock markets have historically experienced price and volume fluctuations that at times have been extreme and have affected, and continue to affect, the market prices of equity securities of many companies. These fluctuations have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of those companies. Broad market and industry fluctuations, as well as general economic, political, regulatory and market conditions, may negatively impact the market price of our common stock. If the market price of our Class A common stock falls below your investment price, you may lose some or all of your investment. In the past, companies that have experienced volatility in the market price of their securities have been subject to securities class action litigation. We may be the target of this type of litigation in the future, which could result in substantial costs and divert our management's attention.

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

There are no unresolved SEC staff comments.