corresp
June 3, 2011
VIA EDGAR
Ms. Kathleen Collins
Accounting Branch Chief
Securities and Exchange Commission
Division of Corporation Finance
Washington, DC 20549
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Re: |
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PFSweb, Inc.
Form 10-K for the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2010
Filed March 31, 2011
Form 10-Q for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2011
Filed May 16, 2011
File No. 000-28275 |
Dear Ms. Collins:
On behalf of PFSweb, Inc. (the Company), set forth below are the Companys responses to the
comments of the Securities and Exchange Commission contained in your letter dated May 18, 2011. For
your convenience, we have set forth below the comments in italics, followed by the Companys
response thereto. Based on the Companys responses, we do not believe any amendment to the above
referenced filings is required.
Form 10-K for the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2010
Item 7. Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
Liquidity and Capital Resources, page 30
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We note that your discussion of cash provided by operating activities is essentially a
recitation of certain reconciling items identified on the face of the statement of cash flows.
This does not appear to contribute substantively to an understanding of your cash flows as it
repeats items that are readily determinable from the financial statements. When preparing the
discussion and analysis of operating cash flows, you should address material changes in the
underlying drivers that affect these cash flows. These disclosures should also include a
discussion of the underlying reasons for changes in working capital items that affect
operating cash flows. See Section IV.B.1 of SEC Release 33-8350. |
Response.
In future filings we will revise our discussion to more fully address material changes in the
underlying drivers that affect cash flows and we will put less focus on reciting the reconciling
items on the cash flow statement.
500 North Central Expressway
Plano, Texas 75074
972-881-2900
Ms. Kathleen Collins
June 3, 2011
Page 2
Item 1. Business
Clients and Marketing, page 11
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You disclose in a risk factor on page 20 that in fiscal 2010 four clients represented
approximately 33% of your service fee revenue and three clients represented 37% of your
product revenue. You also disclose in Note 3 to your financial statements that one product
revenue customer represented 11% of your consolidated total net revenue in each of fiscal 2009
and 2010. Please tell us what consideration you gave to disclosing your dependence on certain
customers in this section. Refer to Item 101(h)(4)(vi) of Regulation S-K. Also, we note the
disclosure on page 46 that you are dependent upon the continuation of multiple arrangements
with IBM and IPS. We also note that IPS, which had formerly been a joint venture between Ricoh
Company and IBM, became a wholly owned subsidiary of Ricoh Company in June 2010. Please tell
us if this change in IPS ownership has affected your arrangements with either IPS or IBM. |
Response.
Although we disclose in our Risk Factors and financial statement footnotes certain customer
concentrations, our business is not dependent upon any single customer or group of related
customers. In disclosing our customer concentration percentages in our financial statement
footnotes, we identified client/customer arrangements that constituted 10% or more of consolidated
revenue, product revenue or service fee revenue in either 2009 or 2010. In our Risk Factors, we
identify a risk of client/customer concentration, although our business is not dependent upon any
individual customer/client included in the Risk Factors (and which customers/clients are not
related and do not constitute a group).
Currently, the change in IPS ownership has not affected our arrangements with either IPS or IBM.
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
General
3. |
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We note that you have provided Condensed Financial Information of the Registrant in Schedule
1. Please tell us how you considered the disclosures required by Rule 4-08 (e)(3)(ii) of
Regulation S-X |
Response.
In providing Condensed Financial Information of the Registrant in Schedule I, Rule 4-08
(e)(3)(ii) of Regulation S-X requires separate disclosure of the amounts of restricted net assets
for consolidated subsidiaries as of the end of the most recently completed fiscal year. While we
disclose the nature of such restrictions in our Vendor Financing and Debt and Capital Lease
Obligations footnotes to the consolidated financial statements, in future filings we will also
include a disclosure indicating the amount of such restricted net assets.
Ms. Kathleen Collins
June 3, 2011
Page 3
Note 2. Significant Accounting Policies
Revenue and Cost Recognition, page 44
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We note you disclose on page 26 that revenues from your Agent or Flash model are recorded on
a gross or net basis depending on the contract terms. Considering your clients maintain
ownership of the inventory please explain to us how you would meet the criteria for gross
reporting in ASC 605-45-45. |
Response.
In our Agent or Flash model, the client maintains inventory ownership until immediately prior
to the sale of the product to the end-user customer. We review each relationship in this model to
determine revenue recognition, on a gross or net basis, using the indicators noted in ASC
605-45-45. As noted in this regulation, it is a matter of judgment whether an entity should report
revenue on a gross or net basis, depending upon its evaluation of these indicators. Based on these
indicators, as noted below, the Company has historically recognized our Agent and Flash model
activity on a net basis; however, we want to ensure the users of our financial statements are aware
there may be agreements in the future that may warrant gross revenue recognition.
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Indicator of |
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Principal |
a.
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Who is the primary obligor?
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Client and PFSweb |
b.
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Who has inventory risk?
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Client and PFSweb |
c.
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Latitude in establishing price
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Client |
d.
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Value added to the product
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Client |
e.
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Discretion in supplier selection
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Client |
f.
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Determination of product specifications
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N/A |
g.
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Who has physical loss inventory risk?
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Client and PFSweb |
h.
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Who has credit risk?
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Client and PFSweb |
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Is the Company is the primary obligor in the arrangement? The client is
responsible for acceptability of the goods purchased by a customer. The Company is
responsible for shipping the product from the Companys facility and arranging
transportation for the product. |
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b. |
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Does the Company have general inventory risk (before customer order is placed
or upon customer return)? The client maintains general inventory risk until the product
is ordered by a customer. While the Company takes inventory risk for customer returns,
this product is generally able to be returned to the client at full cost. |
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c. |
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Does the Company have latitude in establishing price? The client sets the sales
price of product sold to their customers. |
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d. |
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Does the Company change the product or perform part of the service? The Company
does not add value or change the product itself. |
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e. |
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Does the Company have discretion in supplier selection? The Company does not
have discretion in supplier selection. |
Ms. Kathleen Collins
June 3, 2011
Page 4
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f. |
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Is the Company involved in the determination of product or service
specifications? This indicator is not applicable to the existing agreements given the
nature of the product. |
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g. |
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Does the Company have physical loss inventory risk (after customer order or
during shipping)? The Company has physical inventory loss risk to the extent of
contractual shrink limits, otherwise the client maintains inventory risk. |
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h. |
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Does the Company have credit risk? The Company generally has credit risk,
primarily credit card related exposure, although in certain instances is able to charge
credit losses back to the client. |
The collective weight of the above indicators generally establishes that the Company should record
revenues in its Agent or Flash model on a net basis. However, in the future if the characteristics
change we may record revenue on a gross basis for certain arrangements. In future filings, we will
clarify that these types of arrangements are accounted for on a net basis.
Note 9. Commitments and Contingencies, page 58
5. |
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With respect to the eCOST matter, please note that if there is a reasonable possibility that
a loss may have been incurred and the amount of that loss would be material, you must either
disclose the estimated loss, or state that such an estimate cannot be made. Please tell us
whether you believe that it is reasonably possible that any losses would be material and, if
so, how your disclosures comply with paragraphs 3 through 5 of ASC 450-20-50 and SAB Topic 5Y.
As part of your response, please tell us whether you considered your insurance coverage when
determining the materiality of the contingency for disclosure purposes. |
Response.
We have disclosed that the Office of the U.S. Attorney has seized approximately $620,000 of
eCOST funds in connection with its charge that an eCOST sales employee violated various federal
criminal statutes relating to certain sales of eCOST products to certain customers. Based on the
information available to date, we are unable to determine the amount of the loss, if any, relating
to the seizure of the funds. We believe our disclosure complies with paragraphs 3 through 5 of ASC
450-20-50 and SAB Topic 5Y since we have disclosed the nature of the contingency (i.e., the seizure
of the funds), have stated that we are unable to provide an estimate of the possible loss, and that
the amount could have a material adverse effect upon the Companys financial condition and results
of operation. We have considered our insurance coverage (based on the information available to
date) when determining the materiality of the foregoing contingency for disclosure purposes.
Note 12. Discontinued Operations, page 60
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Tell us how you determined that the remaining $0.8 million goodwill balance associated with
eCOST.com was not impaired at December 31, 2010. In this regard, based on your purchase price
of $2.3 million and the assets of discontinued operations of $3.9 million it is unclear to us
how the remaining balance was not impaired as of December 31, 2010. |
Ms. Kathleen Collins
June 3, 2011
Page 5
Response.
We conducted an impairment analysis as of December 31, 2010. The first step of our
goodwill impairment analysis (ASC 350-20-35-4) was to compare the fair value of the eCOST reporting
unit with its carrying amount, including goodwill. That step indicated that fair value of the eCOST
reporting unit was less than its carrying value. As such, in accordance with ASC 350-20-35-9, we
compared the implied fair value of the reporting unit goodwill with the carrying amount of that
goodwill by assigning the fair value of the reporting unit to the assets and liabilities of that
unit as if the eCOST reporting unit had been acquired in a business combination.
On February 18, 2011, the Company sold the revenue producing assets, including the intangible
assets, of the eCOST reporting unit to a third party. As the sale was completed very near the
impairment analysis date, we used the purchase price to approximate the fair value of the eCOST
reporting unit and performed a purchase price allocation at that date using the inventory levels
on February 18, 2011 to determine the implied value of goodwill as follows (in thousands):
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Inventories |
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$ |
994 |
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Identifiable intangibles |
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$ |
303 |
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Goodwill |
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$ |
810 |
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Total purchase price |
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$ |
2,107 |
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Note that the inventory balance at the sale date was less than at the balance sheet date ($2.8
million) due to a reduction of the inventory in anticipation of a possible sale of the reporting
unit. However, there were no significant changes in the underlying business from December 31, 2010
to February 18, 2011, so we believe the implied value of the goodwill at February 18, 2011 is the
best determination of fair value as it best represents the price that would be received to sell the
reporting unit in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date (ASC
350-20-35-22), December 31, 2010.
As the balance sheet date carrying amount of the eCOST reporting unit goodwill ($3.6 million)
exceeded the implied fair value of that goodwill ($810,000), we recorded an impairment loss in the
amount equal to the excess ($2.8 million) during the quarter ended December 31, 2010. (ASC
350-20-35-11).
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures, page 62
7. |
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We note that your CEO and CFO concluded that your disclosure controls and procedures as of
December 31, 2010 were effective, at a reasonable assurance level, to ensure that information
required to be disclosed in the reports that [you] file and submit under the Exchange Act (i)
is recorded, processed, summarized and reported as and when required and (ii) is
accumulated and communicated to [your] management, including [your] Chief Executive Officer
and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required
disclosure. Please confirm, if true, that your officers concluded your disclosure controls
and procedures are effective to ensure that the information required to be disclosed by the
company in reports that it files under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and
reported within the time periods specified in the Commissions rules and forms and also to
ensure that information required to be disclosed in the reports that you file or submit under
the Exchange Act is |
Ms. Kathleen Collins
June 3, 2011
Page 6
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accumulated and communicated to management, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions
regarding required disclosure. In this regard, please note that if your conclusions
concerning the effectiveness of your disclosure controls and procedures refer to the
definition of disclosure controls and procedures as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)
of the Exchange Act, then you should either (1) provide the entire definition or (2) clearly
indicate that the evaluation was made with respect to disclosure controls and procedures as
defined in Rule 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) of the Exchange Act. Please revise your future
filings accordingly. Please note that similar revisions should be made to the Item 4
disclosures in your Forms 10-Q. |
Response.
This will confirm that the Companys officers concluded that its disclosure controls and
procedures are effective to ensure that the information required to be disclosed by the Company in
reports that it files under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within
the time periods specified in the Commissions rules and forms and also to ensure that information
required to be disclosed in the reports that the Company files or submits under the Exchange Act is
accumulated and communicated to management, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding
required disclosure.
In future filings, we will revise our Controls and Procedures disclosure to read as follows:
We maintain a comprehensive set of disclosure controls and procedures as defined in
Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act. As of [the evaluation date],
an evaluation of the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures was
carried out under the supervision and with the participation of our management,
including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer. Based upon that
evaluation, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that,
as of the end of the period covered by this report, these disclosure controls and
procedures were effective.
During the period that ended on the [evaluation date], there was no change in
internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and
15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act) that has materially affected, or is reasonably
likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
Form 10-Q for the Quarterly Period Ended March 31, 2011
Item 4. Controls and Procedures, page 25
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We note your statement that no significant changes were made to [your] internal controls or
other factors that could significantly affect these controls subsequent to the date of your
evaluation. In addition, we note from your disclosure under Changes in Internal Control
over Financial Reporting that there have been no changes in [your] internal controls over
financial reporting .... Please confirm that your assertions under Changes in Internal
Control over Financial Reporting are correct. If so, revise your future filings to remove the
reference to significant changes within your Disclosure Controls and Procedures discussion. |
Ms. Kathleen Collins
June 3, 2011
Page 7
Response.
We confirm that our disclosure under Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting is
correct and, as noted above, future filings will not contain a reference to significant changes.
The Company acknowledges that:
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the Company is responsible for the adequacy and accuracy of the disclosure in the filing; |
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staff comments or changes to disclosure in response to staff comments do not
foreclose the Commission from taking any action with respect to the filing; and |
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the Company may not assert staff comments as a defense in any proceeding initiated
by the Commission or any person under the federal securities laws of the United States. |
Please contact the undersigned at (972) 881-2900 if you have any questions or require any
further information.
Very truly yours,
/s/ Thomas J. Madden
Thomas J. Madden
Executive Vice President
Chief Financial Officer