UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, DC 20549

FORM 10-K

For the fiscal year ended January 31, 20142016

For the transition period from              to             

Commission File No. 000-22754

URBAN OUTFITTERS, INC.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (215) 454-5500

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

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by checkmark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.    Yes  x    No  ¨

Indicate by checkmark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.    Yes  ¨    No  x

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

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate website, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).    Yes  x    No  ¨

Indicate by checkmark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of Registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. x

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

Indicate by a checkmark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act).    Yes  ¨    No  x

The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates computed by reference to the price at which the common equity was last sold, or the average bid and asked price of such common equity, as of the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, was $4,876,471,643.$3,014,925,747.

The number of shares outstanding of the registrant’s common stock on March 26, 201424, 2016 was 144,560,953.117,401,220.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Certain information required by Items 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 is incorporated by reference into Part III hereof from portions of the Proxy Statement for the registrant’s 20142016 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Certain matters contained in this filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) may contain forward-looking statements and are being made pursuant to the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. When used in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, the words “project,” “believe,” “plan,” “will,” “anticipate,” “expect” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Any one, or all, of the following factors could cause actual financial results to differ materially from those financial results mentioned in the forward-looking statements: the difficulty in predicting and responding to shifts in fashion trends, changes in the level of competitive pricing and promotional activity and other industry factors, overall economic and market conditions and the resultant impact on consumer spending patterns, lowered levels of consumer confidence and higher levels of unemployment, lowered levels of consumer spending resulting from the continuing worldwide political and economic downturn and related debt crisis,events, any effects of terrorist acts or war, terrorism and civil unrest, natural disasters or severe weather conditions, increases in labor costs, availability of suitable retail space for expansion, timing of store openings, risks associated with international expansion, seasonal fluctuations in gross sales, the departure of one or more key senior executives, import risks, including potential disruptions and changes in duties, tariffs and quotas, the closing or disruption of, or any damage to, any of our distribution centers, our ability to protect our intellectual property rights, risks associated with internet sales, response to new store concepts, our ability to integrate acquisitions, failure of our manufacturers to comply with our social compliance program, changes in accounting standards and subjective assumptions, regulatory changes and legal matters and other risks identified in our filings with the SEC, including those set forth in Item 1A of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.10-K for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2016. We disclaim any intent or obligation to update forward-looking statements even if experience or future changes make it clear that actual results may differ materially from any projected results expressed or implied therein.

Unless the context otherwise requires, all references to “Urban Outfitters,” the “Company,” “we,” “us,” “our” or “our company” refer to Urban Outfitters, Inc., together with its subsidiaries.

PART I

Item 1. Business

General

We are a leading lifestyle specialty retail company that operates under the Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain and Bhldn brands. We also operate a Wholesale segment under the Free People brand. We have over 4345 years of experience creating and managing retail stores that offer highly differentiated collections of fashion apparel, accessories and home goods in inviting and dynamic store settings. Our core strategy is to provide unified environments that establish emotional bonds with the customer. In addition to our retail stores, we offer our products and market our brands directly to the consumer through our e-commerce websites, mobile applications and also through our Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie and Free People catalogs. We have achieved compounded annual sales growth of approximately 11%9% over the past five years, with sales of approximately $3.1$3.4 billion during the fiscal year ended January 31, 2014.2016.

We opened our first Urban Outfitters store in 1970 near the University of Pennsylvania campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. WePennsylvania and were incorporated in Pennsylvania in 1976, and opened our second store in Harvard Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1980.1976. The first Anthropologie store opened in a suburb of Philadelphia in October 1992. We started doing business in Europe in June 1998, with our first European Urban Outfitters store located in London. We opened our first Free

People store in the Garden State Plaza Mall in Paramus, New Jersey in November 2002. We opened our first Terrain

garden center in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania in April 2008. We opened our first European Anthropologie store in London in October 2009. In August 2011, we opened our first Bhldn store in Houston, Texas.

In 1984 we established the Free People wholesale division to develop, in conjunction with Urban Outfitters, private label apparel lines of young women’s casual wear that could be effectively sold at attractive prices in Urban Outfitters stores.

Our fiscal year ends on January 31. All references to our fiscal years refer to the fiscal years ended on January 31 in those years. For example, our fiscal 2014 ended on January 31, 2014.

Our annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports filed with, or furnished to, the SEC pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d)In February 2016, we acquired substantially all of the Securities Exchange Actassets of 1934, as amended, are available freethe Vetri Family group of charge on our investor relations website,www.urbanoutfittersinc.com, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish such material to, the SEC. We will voluntarily provide electronic or paper copies (other than exhibits) of our filings free of charge upon written request. You may also obtain any materials we file with, or furnish to, the SEC on its website atwww.sec.gov.restaurants.

Our omni-channel strategy enhances our customers’ brand experience by providing a seamless approach to the customer shopping experience. We have substantially integrated all available shopping channels, including stores, websites (online and through mobile devices) and catalogs. Our investments in areas such as marketing campaigns and technology advancements are designed to generate demand for the omni-channel and not the separate store or direct-to-consumer channels. Store sales are primarily fulfilled from that store’s inventory, but may also be shipped from any of our fulfillment centers or from a different store location if an item is not available at the original store. Direct-to-consumer orders are primarily shipped to our customers through our fulfillment centers, but may also be shipped from any store, or a combination of fulfillment centers and stores depending on the availability of a particular item. Direct-to-consumer orders may also be picked up at a store location. Customers may also return certain merchandise purchased through direct-to-consumer channels at retail locations. As our customers continue to shop across multiple channels, we have adapted our approach towards meeting this demand. Due to the availability of like product in a variety of shopping channels, we now source these products utilizing single stock keeping units (“SKUs”) based on the omni-channel demand rather than the demand of the separate channels. These and other technological capabilities allow us to better serve our customers and help us to fill orderscomplete sales that otherwise may not have been cancelledoccurred due to out-of-stock positions. As a result of changing customer behavior and the substantial integration of the operations of our store and direct-to-consumer channels, we manage and analyze our performance based on a single omni-channel rather than separate channels and believe that the omni-channel results present the most meaningful and appropriate measure of our performance.

Our fiscal year ends on January 31. All references to our fiscal years refer to the fiscal years ended on January 31 in those years. For example, our fiscal 2016 ended on January 31, 2016.

Our annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports filed with, or furnished to, the SEC pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, are available free of charge on our investor relations website,www.urbanoutfittersinc.com, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish such material to, the SEC. We will voluntarily provide electronic or paper copies (other than exhibits) of our filings free of charge upon written request. You may also obtain any materials we file with, or furnish to, the SEC on its website atwww.sec.gov.

Retail Segment

Urban Outfitters. Urban Outfitters targets young adults aged 18 to 28 through its unique merchandise mix and compelling store and website environment. We have established a reputation

with these young adults, who are culturally sophisticated, self-expressive and concerned with acceptance by their peer group. The product offering includes women’s and men’s fashion apparel, intimates, footwear, beauty and accessories, and sporting apparelhome goods, activewear and gear, electronics, as well as an eclectic mix of apartment wares and gifts. Apartment wares range from rugs, pillows and shower curtains to books, candles and novelties. Stores average approximately 8,8009,000 square feet of selling space, and typically carryspace. The brand offers an estimated 60,00070,000 to 65,000 SKUs.75,000 SKUs across the Retail segment. Our stores are located in large metropolitan areas, select university communities,

specialty centers and enclosed malls. Our stores accommodate our customers’ propensity not only to shop, but also to congregate with their peers.

As of January 31, 2014,2016, we operated 230240 Urban Outfitters stores, of which 176179 were located in the United States, 1418 were located in Canada and 4043 were located in Europe. We plan to open approximately 13five Urban Outfitters stores, globally, in fiscal 2015.2017. Urban Outfitters operates websites in North America and Europe that capture the spirit of the brand by offering a similar yet broader selection of merchandise as found in our stores. Urban Outfitters offers a catalog in North America and Europe offering select merchandise, most of which is also available in our Urban Outfitters stores. Urban Outfitters’ North American and European Retail segment net sales accounted for approximately 36.3%32.5% and 8.1%8.0% of consolidated net sales, respectively, for fiscal 2014.2016.

Anthropologie.Anthropologie Group. The Anthropologie Group consists of the Anthropologie, Bhldn and Terrain brands. We initially operated the Bhldn and Terrain brands as standalone concepts and opened two Bhldn stores and two Terrain garden centers. We ultimately determined that the Bhldn and Terrain brands were complementary to the Anthropologie brand and integrated those brands into the Anthropologie Group during fiscal 2015 and 2016, respectively.

The Anthropologie brand tailors its merchandise and inviting store environment to sophisticated and contemporary women aged 28 to 45. Anthropologie’sThe Anthropologie brand’s unique and eclectic product assortment includes women’s casual apparel and accessories, intimates, shoes, beauty, home furnishings and a diverse array of gifts and decorative items. The home furnishings range from furniture, rugs, lighting and antiques to table top items, bedding and gifts. The brand offers registry services through our website and mobile applications and in all of our stores throughout the United States, allowing our customers to create gift registries for any occasion. The Anthropologie brand also offers catalogs in North America and Europe that market select merchandise, most of which is also available in our Anthropologie brand stores.

The Bhldn brand emphasizes every element that contributes to a wedding. The brand offers a curated collection of heirloom quality wedding gowns, bridesmaid frocks, party dresses, assorted jewelry, headpieces, footwear, lingerie and decorations. In addition to the two standalone Bhldn stores, we operate shop-within-shop locations within our Anthropologie brand stores that offer a comparable product assortment to our Bhldn stores and website.

The Terrain brand is designed to appeal to women and men interested in a creative, sophisticated outdoor living and gardening experience. Terrain’s product offering includes lifestyle home and garden products combined with antiques, live plants, flowers, wellness products and accessories. Both Terrain garden centers also offer a full service restaurant and coffee bar.

As of January 31, 2016, we operated 218 Anthropologie Group stores, of which 197 were located in the United States, 12 were located in Canada and nine were located in Europe. Stores average

approximately 7,1007,000 square feet of selling space, typically carryspace. The Anthropologie Group offers an estimated 45,00080,000 to 50,00085,000 SKUs andacross the Retail segment. Our stores are located in specialty retail centers, upscale street locations and enclosed malls. As of January 31, 2014, we operated 187 Anthropologie stores, of which 174 were located in the United States, nine were located in Canada and four were located in Europe. We plan to open approximately 13ten Anthropologie Group stores, globally, in fiscal 2015.2017. The Anthropologie Group operates websites in North America and Europe that capture the spirit of the brandits brands by offering a similar yet broader selection of merchandise as found in our stores. The Anthropologie also offers a catalog in North America and Europe that markets select merchandise, most of which is also available in our Anthropologie stores. Anthropologie’sGroup’s North American and European Retail segment net sales accounted for approximately 39.8%40.2% and 1.2%1.6% of consolidated net sales, respectively, for fiscal 2014.2016.

Free People. Our Free People retail stores primarily offer private label branded merchandise targeted to young contemporary women aged 25 to 30. Free People offers a unique merchandise mix of casual women’s apparel, intimates, shoes, accessories, activewear, home products and gifts. Free People retail stores average approximately 1,5001,800 square feet of selling space, carry upspace. The brand offers an estimated 20,000 to 13,00025,000 SKUs andacross the Retail segment. Our stores are located in enclosed malls, upscale street locations and specialty retail centers. The retail channels of Free People expose both our wholesale accounts and retail customers to the full Free People product assortment and store environment.

As of January 31, 2014,2016, we operated 90114 Free People stores, of which 88109 were located in the United States and twofive were located in Canada. We plan to open approximately 12 new Free People stores in fiscal 2015.2017. Free People operates websites in North America, Europe and EuropeAsia that capture the spirit of the brand by offering a similar yet broader selection of merchandise as found in our stores, as well as substantially all of the Free People wholesale offerings. Free People also offers a catalog offering select merchandise, most of which is also available in our Free People stores. Free People’s Retail segment net sales accounted for approximately 7.7%10.1% of consolidated net sales for fiscal 2014.

Terrain. Terrain is designed to appeal to women and men interested in a creative, sophisticated outdoor living and gardening experience. Terrain creates a compelling shopping environment through its large and free standing sites, inspired by the “greenhouse.” Each of our Terrain garden centers operates with an average of approximately 18,000 square feet of enclosed selling space as well as a large outdoor seasonal selling space used for its offering of lifestyle home and garden products, combined with antiques, live plants, flowers, wellness products and accessories. Both Terrain locations offer a full-service restaurant and coffee bar. Terrain also offers a variety of landscape and design service solutions to our customers. As of January 31, 2014, we operated two Terrain garden centers

and a website that offers customers a portion of the product assortment found at the Terrain garden centers. Terrain’s Retail segment net sales accounted for less than 1.0% of consolidated net sales for fiscal 2014.

Bhldn. The Bhldn brand emphasizes every element that contributes to a wedding. Bhldn offers a curated collection of heirloom quality wedding gowns, bridesmaid frocks, party dresses, assorted jewelry, headpieces, footwear, lingerie and decorations. The stores average approximately 3,300 square feet of selling space and are located in a specialty retail center and an upscale street location. As of January 31, 2014, we operated two Bhldn stores and a website that offers customers access to all product offerings of the Bhldn brand. We also operate shop-within-shop locations within our Anthropologie stores that offer a comparable product assortment to our standalone stores and website. Bhldn’s Retail segment net sales accounted for less than 1.0% of consolidated net sales for fiscal 2014.2016.

Wholesale Segment

The Free People wholesale division was established in 1984 to develop, in conjunction with Urban Outfitters, private label apparel lines of young women’s casual wear that could be effectively sold at attractive prices in Urban Outfitters stores. In order to achieve minimum production lots, Free People wholesale began selling to other retailers throughout the United States. We distribute our Free People products in certain department stores using a shop-within-shop sales model. We believe that the shop-within-shop model allows for a more complete merchandising of our Free People products and will give us greater freedom in differentiating the presentation of our products and further strengthening of our brand image. During fiscal 2014,2016, Free People’s range of tops, bottoms, sweaters, dresses, intimates, shoes and dressesactivewear were sold worldwide through approximately 1,4001,800 better department and specialty stores worldwide, including Macy’s, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s, Lord & Taylor, Selfridges,Selfridge’s, and our own Free People stores, and in Japan through an exclusive distribution and marketing agreement with World Co., Ltd.stores. We monitor the styles and products that are popular with our wholesale customers to give us insight into current fashion trends, which helpshelping us to better serve our retail customers. Free People presently maintains wholesale sales and showroom facilities are located in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago London and Tokyo.London. Free People’s wholesale sales accounted for approximately 5.8%7.6% of consolidated net sales for fiscal 2014.2016.

Store Environment

We create a unified environment in our stores that establishes an emotional bond with the customer. Every element of the environment is tailored to the aesthetic preferences of our target customers. Through creative design, much of the existing retail space is modified to incorporate a

mosaic of fixtures, finishes and revealed architectural details. In our stores, merchandise is integrated into a variety of creative vignettes and displays designed to offer our customers an entire look at a distinct lifestyle. This dynamic visual merchandising and display technique provides the connection among the store design, the merchandise and the customer. Essential components of the ambiance of each store may include playing music that appeals to our target customers, using unique signage and employing a staff that understands and identifies with the target customer.

Our Urban Outfitters, Anthroplogie,Anthropologie, and Free People stores are primarily located in upscale street locations, enclosed shopping malls, and specialty retail centers. Our two Terrain garden centers are both free-standing locations. Our Bhldn stores are located in a specialty retail center and an upscale street location.

For our Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters and Free People stores, we We plan to implement a store location expansion strategy in fiscal 20152017 similar to our strategy in fiscal 2014.2016.

Buying and Design Operations

Maintaining a constant flow of fashionable merchandise for our Retail segment is critically important to our ongoing performance. We maintain our own buying groups that select and develop products to satisfy our target customers and provide us with the appropriate amount and timing of products offered. Merchandise managers may supervise several buyers and assistant buyers. Our buyers stay in touch with the evolving tastes of their target customers by shopping at major trade markets, attending national and regional trade shows and staying current with mass media influences, including social media, music, video, film, magazines and pop culture.

Merchandise

Our Urban Outfitters stores, websites and mobile applications and catalogs offer a wide array of eclectic merchandise, including women’s and men’s fashion apparel, intimates, footwear, beauty and accessories, sporting apparelhome goods, activewear and gear, andelectronics, as well as an eclectic mix of apartment wares and gifts. Product offerings in ourOur Anthropologie stores, on our websites, and mobile applications and within our catalogscatalog product offerings include women’s casual apparel and accessories, intimates, shoes, as well asbeauty, home furnishings and an eclectica diverse array of gifts and decorative accessories for the home, garden, bed and bath. Our Free People retail stores, websites, mobile applications and catalog offer a showcase for casual women’s apparel, intimates, shoes, accessories and gifts, primarily developed and designed by our Free People wholesale division. Our Terrain garden centers and website offer lifestyle home and garden products combined with antiques, live plants, flowers, wellness products and accessories.items. Our Bhldn retail stores, shop-within-shop locations and website offer a curated collection of heirloom quality wedding gowns, bridesmaid frocks, party dresses, assorted jewelry, headpieces, footwear, lingerie and decorations. Our Terrain garden centers and website product offerings include home furnishings and decorative items, garden products including live plants and flowers, outdoor living furnishings and entertainment products and a wide variety of gifts. Our Free People retail stores, websites, mobile applications and catalogs offer a showcase for casual women’s apparel, intimates, shoes, accessories, activewear, home products and gifts. Our merchandise is continuously updated to appeal to our target customers’ changing tastes and is supplied by a large number of domestic and foreign vendors, with new shipments of merchandise arriving at our stores and fulfillment centers almost daily.

The wide breadth of merchandise offered by our Retail segment includes a combination of national third-party brands, as well as exclusive merchandise developed and designed internally by our brands. This selectioncombination allows us to offer fashionable merchandise and to differentiate our product mix from that of traditional department stores, as well as that of other specialty and direct-to-consumer retailers. Merchandise designed and developed by our brands generally yields higher gross profit margins than third-party branded merchandise, and helps to keep our product offerings current and unique.

The ever-changing mix of products available to our customers allows us to adapt our merchandise to prevailing fashion trends, and together with the inviting atmosphere and experience of our stores and websites, encourages our core customers to visit our shopping channels frequently.

We seek to select price points for our merchandise that are consistent with the spending patterns of our target customers. As such, our stores carry merchandise at a wide range of price points that may vary considerably within product categories.

Store Operations

We have organized our retail store operations by brand into geographic areas or districts that each have a district manager. District managers are responsible for several stores and monitor and supervise

individual store managers. Each store manager is responsible for overseeing the daily operations of one of our stores. In addition to a store manager, the staff of a typical Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain and Bhldn store includes a combination of some or all of the following positions: a visual manager, several department managers and full and part-time sales and visual staff. The staff of a typical Anthropologie store may also include a customer care manager who helps tailor the shopping experience to the needs of Anthropologie’s target customers. The staff of a Bhldn location may also include a bridal and event manager, appointment stylist and a category specialist. A Terrain garden center may also include merchandise care and maintenance staff. The staff of a Bhldn store also includes a product, bridal and event manager, appointment stylist and a category specialist.

An essential requirement for the success of our stores is our ability to attract, train and retain talented, highly motivated store managers, visual managers and other key employees. In addition to management training programs for both newly hired and existing employees, we have a number of retention programs that offer qualitative and quantitative performance-based incentives to district-level managers, store-levelstore managers and full-time sales associates.

Marketing and Promotion

We believe we have highly effective marketing tools in our websites, mobile applications, catalogs, email campaigns and social media. We refresh this media as frequently as daily to reflect the most cutting edge changes in fashion and culture. We also believe that highly visible store locations, broad merchandise selection and creative and visual presentation within our stores, on our websites and on our mobile applications are key enticements for customers to explore these channels and purchase merchandise. Consequently, we rely on these factors,enticements, as well as the brand recognition created by our direct marketing activities, to draw customers to our omni-channel operations, rather than traditional forms of advertising such as print, radio and television media. Marketing activities for each of our retail store concepts may include special event promotions and a variety of public relations activities designed to create community awareness of our stores and products. We also are active in social media and blogs. We believe that the traditional method of a one-way communication to customers is no longer enough. We believe that by starting a conversation and interacting directly with our customers, most notably via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and our own mobile applications, we are more effective at understanding and serving their fashion needs. We also believe that our blogs continue this conversation. Not only do our blogs allow us to communicate what inspires us, they allow our customers to tell us what inspires them. This fosters our relationships with our customers and encourages them to continue shopping with us.

During fiscal 20142016, we circulated approximately 29.429.2 million catalogs across allmultiple brands. We plan for our catalog circulation to remain consistent in fiscal 2015.2017.

Suppliers

To serve our target customers and to recognize changes in fashion trends and seasonality, we purchase merchandise from numerous foreign and domestic vendors. We also have arrangements with agents and third party manufacturers to produce our private label merchandise. To the extent that our vendors are located overseas or, in the case of third-party vendors, rely on overseas sources for a large portion of their merchandise, any event causing a disruption of imports, such as the imposition of import restrictions,increased security or regulatory requirements applicable to imported goods, war, public health concerns, acts of terrorism, natural disasters, port security considerations or labor disputes, financial or political instability in any of the countries in which goodsmerchandise we purchase areis manufactured, trade restrictions in the form of tariffs or quotas, or both, disruption in the supply of fabrics or raw materials, increases in the cost of fuel or

decreases in the value of the U.S. dollar relative to foreign currencies could adversely affect our business. During fiscal 2014,2016, we purchased merchandise from approximately 4,7005,000 vendors. No single vendor or manufacturer accounted for more than 10% of merchandise purchased during that time. While certain of our vendors have limited financial resources and production capabilities, we do not believe that the loss of any one vendor would have a material adverse effect on our business.

Company Operations

Distribution.We own a 291,000 square foot distribution facility in Lancaster County,Gap, Pennsylvania that receives and distributes approximately half of our retail store merchandise. This facility provides distribution services to our east coast retail stores at a favorable freight cost per unit, and provides for faster turnaround from selected vendors. This facility has a computerized material handling system and is located approximately 65 miles from our home officesmerchandise in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.North America. We also lease a 214,500 square foot distribution center located in Reno, Nevada, that receives and distributes the remaining half of our retail store merchandise. This facility provides distribution

In June 2015, we opened a new 1,000,000 square foot fulfillment center in Gap, Pennsylvania, which we own and operate. Operations at the center include direct-to-consumer and wholesale fulfillment services, to our west coast retail stores at a favorable freight cost per unit,including inventory warehousing, receiving and provides for faster turnaround from selected vendors.

customer shipping. We lease a 459,000 square foot fulfillment center located in Trenton, South Carolina. This facility which utilizes an automated material handling system, houses merchandise distributed throughcurrently services a portion of our Wholesale segment customer orders and processes all of our Wholesale segment returns. In fiscal 2016, we transitioned all of the Retail segment fulfillment operations and a portion of the Wholesale segments. The center accommodates direct-to-consumer fulfillment related functions, including inventory warehousing, receivingsegment operations from this location to our new facility in Gap, Pennsylvania. We plan to transition the remaining Wholesale segment operations to our new facility and customer shipping.close the Trenton facility when the lease expires in fiscal 2017.

In September 2012 we completed construction onWe own a 463,000 square foot fulfillment center located in Reno, Nevada. This facility which we own and operate, is used primarily to house and distribute merchandise to our western United States direct-to-consumer customers, significantly improving our fulfillment capability. The facility also includes automated material handling systems as well as a data center.

We lease distribution and fulfillment facilities each located in Rushden, England. Our 98,000 square foot distribution facility supports our entire European store base and has an automated material handling system. Ourour 142,000 square foot fulfillment facility which supports our entire European direct-to-consumer channel, has an advanced cross belt sorter.channel. We believe both of these facilities will support our European growthoperations for the next several years.

Information SystemsSystems.. Very early in our growth, we recognized the need for high-quality information in order to manage merchandise planning, buying, inventory management and control functions. We invested in a retail software package that met our processing and reporting requirements. We utilize point-of-sale register systems connected by a digital subscriber linesecure data network to our

home offices. Additionally, many of our stores have mobile point-of-sale devices whichthat have virtually the same functionality as our cash registers. These systems provide for register efficiencies, timely customer checkout and instant back office access to register information, as well as daily updates of sales, inventory data and price changes. Our direct-to-consumer channel, which includes the Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters, Free People, Terrain and Bhldnour retail websites and the Anthropologie, Free People and Urban Outfitters catalogs, maintains separate software systems that manage the merchandise and customer information for our in-house customer contact center and fulfillment functions. The Free People wholesale divisionOur Wholesale segment uses a separate software system for customer service, order entry, and allocations, production planning and inventory management. We have a

second fully redundant data center located in our Reno fulfillment facilitycenter that functions as a redundant hostingdisaster recovery site for our direct-to-consumer, and data communication systems. We have contracted with a nationally recognized company to provide disaster recovery services with respect to our keyand other business critical systems.

Competition

TheOur Retail and Wholesale segments compete with individual and chain fashion specialty retailstores as well as department stores, both in stores and the wholesale businesses are eachonline, in highly competitive in both the domestic and international markets. Our Retail segment competes on the basis of, among other things, the location of our stores,stores; website, mobile applicationsapplication and catalog presentation,presentation; website design,design; the breadth, quality, style, price and availability of merchandise and the level of customer service offered. Although we believe that the eclectic mix of products and ourthe unique store and website experiences offered by our Retail segment help differentiate us, it also means that our Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain and Bhldn stores compete against a wide variety of smaller, independent specialty retailers, as well as department stores and national specialty chains. Many of our competitors have substantially greater name recognition as well as financial, marketing and other resources. Our Anthropologie, Free People and Bhldn stores also face competition from small boutiques that offer an individualized shopping experience similar to the one we strive to provide to our target customers. In addition, some of our suppliersthird party vendors offer products directly to consumers and certain of our competitors.

Along with certain Retail segment competitive factors noted above, other key competitive factors for our direct-to-consumer channel include the success or effectiveness of our merchandise delivery, website and mobile application availability and customer lists. Our direct-to-consumer channel competes against numerous websites and catalogs, which may have a greater volume of circulation and web traffic or more effective marketing through online media and social networking sites.

Our Free People wholesale businessWholesale segment competes with numerous wholesale companies based on the basis of quality, price and fashion of our wholesale productmerchandise offerings. Many of our wholesale business competitors’ productsWholesale segment competitors have a wider product distribution network. In addition, certain of our wholesale competitors have greater name recognition and greater financial, marketing and other resources.resources than us.

Trademarks and Service Marks

We are the registered owner in the United States of certain service marks and trademarks, including, but not limited to “Urban Outfitters,” “Anthropologie,” “Free People,” “Bhldn,” “Terrain,” “BDG,“Vetri,” “Co-Operative,” “Deletta,“BDG,” “Ecote,” “Eloise,“FP Me,” “Intimately Free People,” “Odille,“Pizzeria Vetri,” “Pure + Good,” “Urban Renewal”Renewal,” “Urbn.com,” and “Urbn.com.“We The Free.” Each mark is renewable indefinitely, contingent upon continued use at the time of renewal. In addition, we currently have pending registration applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office covering certain other marks. We also own marks that have been registered in foreign countries, and have applications for marks pending in

additional foreign countries. We regard our marks as important to our business due to their name recognition with our customers. We are not aware of any valid claims of infringement or challenges to our right to use any of our marks in the United States.

Employees

As of January 31, 2014,2016, we employed approximately 22,90024,000 people, approximately 37%39% of whom were full-time employees. The number of part-time employees fluctuates depending on seasonal

needs. Of our total employees, approximately 3%1% work in the Wholesale segment and the remaining 97%99% work in our Retail segment. None of our employees are covered by a collective bargaining agreement, and we believe that our relations with our employees are excellent.

Financial Information about Operations

We aggregate our operations into two reportable segments, the Retail segment and the Wholesale segment. See Note 15, “Segment Reporting,” in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.

Financial Information about Geographical Areas

See Note 15, “Segment Reporting,” in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements for information regarding net sales and long-lived assets from domestic and foreign operations and long-lived assets.operations.

Seasonality

Our business is subject to seasonal fluctuations in net sales and operating income, with a more significant portion typically realized from August 1 to December 31in the fourth quarter of each year (the back-to-school andreflecting the year-end holiday periods).period. Historically, and consistent with the retail industry, this seasonality also impacts our working capital requirements, particularly with regard to inventory. See Item 7: Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Seasonality and Quarterly Results for additional information.

Item 1A. Risk Factors

Our reportable segments are sensitive to economic conditions, consumer spending shifts in fashion and industry and demographic conditions.other business factors.

We are subject to seasonal variations and face numerous business risk factors. Consumer purchases of discretionary retail items and specialty retail products, including our products, may decline during recessionary periods and also may decline at other times when disposable income is lower. A prolonged economic downturn could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition or results of operations. There is a risk that consumer sentiment may decline due to economic and/or geo-political factors, which could negatively impact our financial position and results of operations.

Our performance is subject to worldwide economic conditions and their impact on levels of consumer spending remains uncertain and may remain depressed for the foreseeable future. Some of the factors impacting discretionary consumer spending include general economic conditions, wages and employment, consumer debt, reductions in net worth based on severe market declines, residential real estate and mortgage markets, taxation, fuel and energy prices, interest rates, consumer confidence, the European political and economic crisiscrises and other macroeconomic factors. Consumer purchases of discretionary items, including our merchandise, generally decline during recessionary periods and other periods where disposable income is adversely affected. The current economy may continue to affect consumer purchases of our merchandise and adversely impact our results of operations and continued growth. The economic conditions may also affect the number of specialty retail businesses and their ability to purchase merchandise from our Wholesale segment. It is difficult to predict how long the current uncertainnear term and/or future economic, capital and credit market conditions will continue and what impact they will have on our business.

We rely heavily on our ability to identify changes in fashion.

Customer tastes and fashion trends are volatile and can change rapidly. Our success depends in part on our ability to effectively predict and respond to changing fashion tastes and consumer demands, and to translate market trends into appropriate, saleable product offerings. Our inabilityIf we are unable to effectively determine these changespredict or respond to changing styles or trends successfully or misjudge the market for products or new product lines, our sales may leadbe impacted and we may be faced with a substantial amount of unsold inventory or missed opportunities. In response, we may be forced to higher seasonalrely on additional markdowns or promotional sales to dispose of excess, slow-moving inventory, levels and a future need to increase markdowns to liquidatewhich could decrease our inventory.revenues or margins. Compared to our Retail segment, our Wholesale segment is more sensitive to changes in fashion trends because of longer lead times in the manufacturing and sale of its apparel. Our fashion decisions if unsuccessfully forecasted, constitute a material risk and may have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We may not be successful in expanding our business, opening new retail stores or extending our existing store leases.

Our growth strategy depends on our ability to open and operate new retail stores on a profitable basis. We also must be able to effectively extend our existing store leases. Our operating complexity will increase as our store base grows, and we may face challenges in managing our future growth. Such growth will require that we continue to expand and improve our operating capabilities, and expand, train and manage our employee base. We may be unable to hire and train a sufficient number of qualified personnel or successfully manage our growth.

Our expansion prospects also depend on a number of other factors, many of which are beyond our control, including, among other things,

competition, the availability of financing for capital expenditures and working capital requirements and the availability of suitable sites for new store locations on acceptable lease terms. There can be no assurance that we will be able to achieve our store expansion goals, nor canis there be any assurance that our newly opened stores will achieve revenue or profitability levels comparable to those of our existing stores in the time periods estimated by us, or at all. If our stores fail to achieve, or are unable to sustain, acceptable revenue, profitability and profitabilitycash flow levels, we may incur additional store asset impairment charges, significant costs associated with closing those stores.stores or both, which could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

We may not be successful expanding our business internationally.

Our current growth strategy includes plans to continue to open new stores, expand our digital marketing and grow our wholesale customer base internationally over the next several years. We have limited prior experience operating internationally, where we faceyears against more established international competitors. International stores have different operational characteristics, including employment and labor, transportation, logistics, real estate and legal requirements. Furthermore, consumer demand and behavior, as well as tastes and purchasing trends may differ internationally, and as a result, sales of our merchandise may not be successful, or the margins on those sales may not be in line with those we currently anticipate. Additionally, our ability to conduct business internationally may be adversely impacted by political and economic risks, as well as the global economy. Any differenceschallenges that we encounter as we expand internationally may divert financial, operational and managerial resources from our existing operations, which could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

In addition, we are increasingly exposed to foreign currency exchange rate risk with respect to our revenue, profits, assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. We currently do not utilize hedging instruments to mitigate these foreign currency risks. In the future, however we may initiate strategies to hedge certain foreign currency risks that may not succeed in offsetting all of the negative impact of foreign currency rate movements on our business and results of operations.

As we continue to expand our international operations, we are subject to certain U.S. laws, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, as well as the laws of the foreign countries in which we operate. We are required to use all commercially reasonable efforts to ensure compliance with these laws. Violations of these laws could subject us to sanctions or other penalties that could negatively affect our reputation, business and operating results.

Existing and increased competition in the specialty retail direct-to-consumer and wholesale apparel businessesindustries may reduce our net revenues, profits and market share.

The specialty retail segment and the wholesale apparel businessesindustries are each highly competitive. Our retail stores compete on the basis of, among other things, location, the breadth, quality, style, and availability of merchandise and the level of customer service offered and merchandise price. Our Anthropologie, Free People and Bhldn stores also face competition from small boutiques that offer an individualized shopping experience similar to the one we strive to provide to our target customers. Additionally, the internet and other new technologies facilitate competitive entry and comparison shopping in our Retail

segment. We strive to offer a multichannelan omni-channel shopping experience for our direct-to-consumer customers and use social media and mobile applications as a way to interact with our customers andthem to enhance their shopping experiences. MultichannelOmni-channel retailing is rapidlyconstantly evolving and we must keep pace with changing customer expectations and new developments by our competitors. In addition, some of our suppliersthird party vendors offer products directly to consumers and certain of our competitors. Our Free People wholesale businessWholesale segment competes with numerous wholesale companies based on the quality, fashion and price of its wholesale product offerings, many of whose products have a wider distribution. Many of our competitors have substantially greater name recognition as well asand greater financial, marketing and other resources.resources than us. We cannot assure you that we will continue to be able to compete successfully against existing or future competitors. Due to difficult economic conditions our

competitors may force a markdown or promotional sales environment which could hurtimpair our ability to achieve our historical profit margins. Our expansion into markets served by our competitors and entry of new competitors or expansion of existing competitors into our markets could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our business depends on effective marketing and high customer traffic.

We have many initiatives in our marketing programs particularly with regard to our websites and mobile applications. If our competitors increase their spending on marketing, if our marketing expenses increase, if our marketing becomes less effective than that of our competitors, or if we do not adequately leverage technology and data analytics capabilities needed to generate concise competitive insight, we could experience a material adverse effect on our results of operations. A failure to sufficiently innovate or maintain adequate and effective marketing strategies could inhibit our ability to maintain brand relevance and drive increased sales.

We depend on key personnel and may not be able to retain or replace these employees or recruit additional qualified personnel, which would harm our business.

We believe that we have benefited substantially from the leadership and experience of our senior executives, including our co-founder, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, and President, Richard A. Hayne. The loss of the services of any of our senior executives could have a material adverse effect on our business and prospects, as we may not be able to find suitable management personnel to replace departing executives on a timely basis. In addition, if our senior executives do not fully integrate within the structure of our management team and core business, we may be adversely affected. We do not have an employment agreement with Mr. Hayne,our Chief Executive Officer, or any of our other key personnel. In addition, as our business expands, we believe that our future success will depend greatly on our continued ability to attract and retain highly skilled and qualified personnel. There is a high level of competition for personnel in the retail industry. Our inability to meet our staffing requirements in the future could impair our ability to increase revenue and could otherwise harm our business.

Increases in labor costs, including wages, could adversely impact our operational results, financial condition, and results of operations.

Our retail store operations are subject to laws governing such matters as minimum wages, working conditions and overtime pay. As minimum wage rates increase or related laws and regulations change, we may need to increase not only the wage rates of our minimum wage employees, but also the wages paid to our other hourly or salaried employees as well. Any increase in the cost of our labor could have an adverse effect on our operating results, financial condition and results of operations. In

addition, wage actions by other retailers may require us to increase wage rates in order to attract and retain talented employees. Labor shortages and increased employee turnover could also increase our labor costs. This in turn could lead us to increase prices, which could adversely impact our sales. We are also subject to risks related to other store expenses and operational costs. Conversely, if competitive pressures or other factors prevent us from offsetting increased labor costs by increases in prices, our profitability may decline.

We could be materially and adversely affected if any of our distribution or fulfillment centers are closed.damaged or closed or if their operations are diminished

We operate sixseven distribution and fulfillment facilities worldwide to support our Retail and Wholesale segments in the United States, Western Europe and Canada, and forincluding the fulfillment of catalog and website orders around the world. We also utilize a third-party distributor for certain home furnishings. The merchandise purchased for our United States and Canadian retail store operations is shipped directly to our distribution centers in Lancaster County,Gap, Pennsylvania, and Reno, Nevada. Merchandise purchased for our direct-to-consumer operations is shipped directly to our fulfillment centers in Trenton, South CarolinaGap, Pennsylvania and Reno, Nevada. Merchandise purchased for our wholesale operations is shipped directly to our fulfillment centercenters in Trenton, South Carolina.Carolina and Gap, Pennsylvania. The merchandise purchased for our Western Europe retail and direct-to-consumer operations is shipped to Rushden, England. IfDamage to, or disruption of the operations at, any of these facilities due to work stoppages, system failures, accidents, economic or weather conditions, natural disasters, demographic and population changes, as well as other unforeseen events and circumstances could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. In addition, if any of our distribution or fulfillment centers were to close unexpectedly or operate significantly below historical efficiency levels for any reason,an extended period of time, the other distribution centers may not be able to support the resulting additional distributionvolume demands. As a result, we could incur significantly higher costs and longer lead times associated with distributing our products to our stores and customers during the time it takes for us to re-open or replace the center.

We rely significantly on international sources of production.

We receive a substantial portion of our apparel and other merchandise from foreign sources, both purchased directly in foreign markets and indirectly through domestic vendors with foreign sources.

To the extent that our vendors are located overseas or, in the case of third-party vendors, rely on overseas sources for a large portion of their products, any event causing a disruption of imports, including the imposition of import restrictions,increased security or regulatory requirements applicable to imported goods, war, public health concerns acts of terrorism and natural disasters could adversely affect our business. New initiatives may be proposed that may have an impact on the trading status of certain countries and may include retaliatory duties or other trade sanctions that, if enacted, could increase the cost of products purchased from suppliers in such countries or restrict the importation of products from such countries. If imported goodsforeign sourced products become difficult or impossible to bring into the United States due to significant labor issues, such as strikes at any of our ports in the United States, and if we cannot obtain such merchandise from other sources at similar costs, our sales and profit margins may be adversely affected. The flow of merchandiseproducts from our vendors could also be adversely affected by financial or political instability in any of the countries in which the goodsproducts we purchase are manufactured, if the instability affects the production or export of merchandise from those countries. Moreover, in the event of a significant disruption in the supply of the fabrics or raw materials used by our vendors in the manufacture of our products, our vendors may not be able to locate alternative

suppliers of materials of comparable quality at an acceptable price, or at all. Trade restrictions in the form of tariffs or quotas, or both, applicable to the products we sell could also affect the importation of those products and could increase the cost and reduce the supply of products available to us. The cost of fuel is a significant component in transportation costs, therefore, increases in the petroleum products can adversely affect our gross margins. In addition, decreases in the value of the U.S. dollar relative to foreign currencies could increase the cost of products we purchase from overseas vendors.

On August 22, 2012, pursuantRegulations related to “conflict minerals” will require us to incur additional expenses and could limit the supply and increase the cost of certain metals used in manufacturing our products.

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (the “Dodd-Frank Act”),contains provisions to improve transparency and accountability concerning the supply of minerals originating from the conflict zones of the Democratic Republic of Congo and adjoining countries. As a result, the SEC adopted new requirements for companies that manufacture products that contain certain minerals and metals, known as conflict minerals. Some“conflict minerals,” that are necessary to the functionality or production of these conflict mineralsproducts manufactured or contracted to be manufactured by public companies. We have developed a framework and management system and are commonly used in many products,currently performing due diligence on our supply chain. We have and may be used in some of the products we offer. These requirements will generally require companiesexpect to investigate, disclose and report annually whether or not conflict minerals, if used in the manufacture of the products offered by the company, originated from the Democratic Republic of Congo or adjoining countries. The implementation of these requirements could adversely affect the sourcing, availability and pricing of conflict minerals used in the manufacture of certain of the products we offer. In addition, we maycontinue to incur additional costs to comply with these disclosure requirements, including costs related to determining the disclosure requirements.sources of the specified minerals used in our products, in addition to the cost of any changes to products, processes, or sources of supply as a consequence of such verification activities, which may adversely affect our business. In addition, the number of suppliers who provide “conflict-free” minerals may be limited, which may make it difficult to satisfy customers who require that all of the components of our products be certified as conflict-free, which could place us at a competitive disadvantage if we are unable to do so. There is also uncertainty relating to the requirements of the regulations as a result of ongoing litigation challenging the constitutionality of portions of the regulations. Most recently, we filed our annual Specialized Disclosure Report on Form SD with respect to these minerals on June 1, 2015, as required by the rules.

Our operating results fluctuate from period to period.

Our business experiences seasonal fluctuations in net sales and operating income, with a more significant portion of operating income typically realized duringin the five-month period from August 1 to December 31fourth quarter of each year (the back-to-school andreflecting the year-end holiday periods).period. Historically, and consistent with the retail industry, this seasonality also impacts our working capital requirements, particularly with regard to inventory. Any decrease in sales or margins during this period, or in the availability of working capital needed in the months preceding this period, could have a more material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations than in other periods. Seasonal fluctuations also affect our inventory levels, as we usually order merchandise in advance of peak selling periods and sometimes before new fashion trends are confirmed by customer purchases. We must carry a significant amount of inventory, especially before the back-to-school and holiday selling periods. If we are not successful in selling our inventory during this period, we may be forced to rely on markdowns or promotional sales to dispose of the inventory or we may not be able to sell the inventory at all, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may be unable to protect our trademarks and other intellectual property rights.

We believe that our trademarks and service marks are important to our success and our competitive position due to their name recognition with our customers. We devote substantial

resources to the establishment and protection of our trademarks and service marks on a worldwide basis. We are not aware of any valid claims of infringement or challenges to our right to use any of our trademarks and service marks in the United States. Nevertheless, there can be no assurance that the actions we have taken to establish and protect our trademarks and service marks will be adequate to prevent imitation of our products by others or to prevent others from seeking to block sales of our products as a violation of the trademarks, service marks and intellectual property of others. Also, others may assert rights in, or ownership of, our trademarks and other intellectual property and we may not be able to successfully resolve these types of conflicts to our satisfaction. In addition, the laws of certain foreign countries may not protect proprietary rights to the same extent as do the laws of the United States.

War, acts of terrorism, civil unrest or the threat of eitherother violence may negatively impact availability of merchandise and/or otherwise adversely impact our business.

In the event of war, terrorism, civil unrest or acts of terrorism, or if either are threatened,other violence, our ability to obtain merchandise available for sale in our stores or on our websites may be negatively impacted. A substantial portion of our merchandise is imported from other countries, see ““—We rely significantly on international sources of production.”If commercial transportation is curtailed or substantially delayed, our business may be adversely impacted, as we may have difficulty shipping merchandise to our distribution and fulfillment centers and stores, as well as fulfilling catalog and website orders. Our stores are located in public areas where large numbers of people typically gather. Terrorist attacks, threats of terrorist attacks or civil unrest involving public areas could cause people not to visit areas where our stores are located. In the eventaddition, other types of warviolence in malls or actsin other public areas could lead to lower customer traffic in areas in which we operate stores. If any of terrorism, or the threat of either,these events were to occur, we may be required to suspend operations in some or all of our stores, which could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may not be successful in introducing additional store concepts or brands.

We may, from time to time, seek to develop and introduce new concepts or brands in addition to our established brands, Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie and Free People.brands. Our ability to succeed in Terrain, Bhldn, and otherthe early stages of new concepts could require significant capital expenditures and management attention. Additionally, any new concept is subject to certain risks, including customer acceptance, competition, product differentiation, challenges relating to economies of scale in merchandise sourcing and the ability to attract and retain qualified personnel, including management and designers. There can be no assurance that we will be able to develop and grow these or any other new concepts to a point where they will become profitable, or generate positive cash flow. If we cannot successfully develop and grow these new concepts, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely impacted.

We may develop new store concepts through acquisitions and we may not be successful in integrating those acquisitions.

Acquisitions involve numerous risks, including the diversion of our management’s attention from other business concerns, the possibility that current operating and financial systems and controls may be inadequate to deal with our growth and the potential loss of key employees.

We also may encounter difficulties in integrating any businesses we may acquire with our existing operations. The success of these transactions depends on our ability to:

In addition, there may be liabilities that we fail, or are unable, to discover in the course of performing due diligence investigations on any company that we may acquire, or have recently acquired. Also, there may be additional costs relating to acquisitions including, but not limited to, possible purchase price adjustments. Any of our rights to indemnification from sellers to us, even if obtained, may not be enforceable, collectible or sufficient in amount, scope or duration to fully offset the possible liabilities associated with the business or property acquired. Any such liabilities, individually or in the aggregate, could have a material adverse effect on our business and financial condition.

We rely on information technology systems and a material disruption or failure of such systems or technologies could adversely affect our business.

Our operations, in particular our direct-to-consumer sales, are subject to numerous risks, including reliance on third-party computer hardware/software, rapid technological change, diversion of sales from our stores, liability for online content, violations of state or federal laws, including those relating to online privacy, credit card fraud, risks related to the failure of the information technology systems that operate our websites, including computer viruses, telecommunications failures and electronic break-ins and similar disruptions. In addition, we regularly evaluate our information technology systems and have implemented modifications and/or upgrades to the information technology systems that support our business. Modifications include replacing legacy systems with successor systems, making changes to legacy systems or acquiring new systems with new functionality. There are inherent risks associated with replacing and modifying these systems, including inaccurate system information and system disruptions, which we may not be able to alleviate through testing, training, staging implementation and in-sourcing certain processes, or by securing appropriate commercial contracts with third-party vendors supplying such replacement and redundancy technologies. If our information systems or other technologies are damaged or cease to function properly, we may have to make a significant investment to fix or replace them, and we may suffer loss of critical data and interruptions or delays in our operations in the interim. Although we have not experienced any interruptions or shutdowns of our systems for any material length of time for the reasons described above, such disruptions could lead to delays in our business operations and, if significant, affect our sales and profitability.

If we are unable to safeguard against security breaches with respect to our information technology systems our business may be adversely affected.

During the course of business, we obtain and transmit confidential customer information through our information technology systems. The protection of customer, employee and Company data is critical. The regulatory environment surrounding information security and privacy is demanding, with the frequent imposition of new and changing requirements and heightened public awareness and scrutiny. While, to the best of our knowledge, we have not experienced any material misappropriation,

loss or other unauthorized disclosure of confidential or personally identifiable information as a result of a security breach or cyber-attack,cyber attack, such a security breach or cyber-attackcyber attack could adversely affect our business and operations, including damaging our reputation and our relationships with our customers, employees and investors and exposing us to risks of litigation and liability. While we believe we are diligent in selecting vendors, systems and procedures to enable us to maintain the integrity of our systems, we recognize that there are inherent risks and we cannot assure that any future interruptions, shutdowns or unauthorized disclosures will not occur.

Manufacturer complianceManufacturers may not comply with our social compliance program requirements.requirements, which could adversely affect our reputation.

We have a manufacturer compliance program that is monitored on a regular basis by our buying offices. Our production facilities are either certified as in compliance with our program, or areas of improvement are identified and corrective follow-up action is taken. All manufacturing facilitiesmanufacturers are required to follow applicable national labor laws, as well as international compliance standards regarding workplace safety, such as standards that require clean and safe working environments, clearly marked exits and paid overtime. We believe in protecting the safety and working rights of the people who manufacture the products we sell, while recognizing and respecting cultural and legal differences found throughout the world. We require our third party outside vendors to register through an online website and agree that they and their suppliers will abide by certain standards and conditions of employment. If our third party vendors fail to comply with our social compliance program, our reputation may be adversely affected.

Our results can be adversely affected by market disruptions.

Market disruptions due to severe weather conditions, natural disasters, health hazards, terrorist activities, financial crises, political crises or other major events or the prospect of these events can affect consumer spending and confidence levels andwhich may result in financial losses or otherwise adversely affect our results or prospects in affected markets. The receipt of proceedsrecovery we receive under any insurance we maintain for these purposes may be delayed or the proceeds may be insufficient to fully offset our losses.

Changes in accounting standards and subjective assumptions, estimates and judgments by management related to complex accounting matters could significantly affect our financial results or financial condition.

Generally accepted accounting principles and related accounting pronouncements, implementation guidelines and interpretations with regard to a wide range of matters that are relevant to our business, such asincluding but not limited to revenue recognition, asset impairment, impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets, inventories, lease obligations, self-insurance, tax mattersinventory, income taxes and litigation, are highly complex and involve many subjective assumptions, estimates and judgments. Changes in these rules or their interpretation or changes in underlying assumptions, estimates or judgments could significantly change our reported or expected financial performance or financial condition.

We are subject to numerous regulations and legal matters that could adversely affect our business.

We are subject to customs, child labor, tax, employment, privacy, truth-in-advertising and other laws, including consumer protection regulations and zoning and occupancy ordinances that regulate

retailers generally and/or govern the importation, promotion and sale of merchandise and the operation of retail stores and distribution and fulfillment centers. Additional legal and regulatory requirements, and the fact that foreign laws occasionally conflict with domestic laws, have increased the complexity of the regulatory environment and the cost of compliance. If these laws change without our knowledge, or are violated by importers, designers, manufacturers or distributors, we could experience delays in shipments and receipt of goodsproducts or be subject to fines or other penalties under the controlling regulations, any of which could adversely affect our business. Moreover, legal actions may be filed against us from time to time, including class actions. These actions may assert commercial, tort, intellectual property, customer, employment, data privacy, securities or other claims. We may also be impacted by litigation trends, including class action lawsuits involving consumers and shareholders, thatwhich could have a material adverse effect on our reputation, the market price of our common shares, or our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.

Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments

We have no outstanding comments with the staff of the SEC.

Item 2. Properties

Since 2006, our home office has been located in several buildings on one campus in the historic core of the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Navy Yard. The consolidated offices at the Navy Yard allow for an efficient operation of our Philadelphia-based offices and will help to support our growth needs for the foreseeable future. We currently occupyDuring fiscal 2015, we completed construction on a 93,000 square foot building which expanded our home offices to approximately 404,000497,000 square feet. WeDuring fiscal 2014, we purchased a 122,000 square foot building in the Navy Yard, for future expansion. This building is leased to a third party through January 2017. In addition, we hold options on several adjacent buildings that are available for at least the next ten years toon several adjacent buildings that would allow for additional

expansion if necessary.

During fiscal 2014,2016, we began construction on two buildings that will expand our home offices an additional 133,000entered into a lease agreement for approximately 8,000 square feet of office space in Los Angeles, California to accommodatesupport our growth. One of these buildings was completed in fiscal 2014design and we anticipate the other to be completed during fiscal 2015. In addition, during fiscal 2014 we purchased another building in the Navy Yard that consists of approximately 122,000 square feet for future expansion. This building is currently leased to a third party.production teams.

Our European home offices are located in London, England and consist of threefour leased properties totaling approximately 13,00025,000 square feet. The leased properties have varying lease term expirations ranging from 2019 through 2024.

Our North American retail stores are supported by two distribution facilities. We own a 291,000 square foot distribution center in Lancaster County,Gap, Pennsylvania, which supports approximately half of our retail stores. We lease a 214,500 square foot distribution facility in Reno, Nevada. The Nevada facility is approximately 214,500 square feet andthat supports the remaining half of our retail stores. The term of this operating lease is set to expire in June 2017 with Company options to renew for up to an additional ten years.

In fiscal 2016, we opened a new 1,000,000 square foot fulfillment center in Gap, Pennsylvania, which we own and operate. The new facility fulfills Retail segment customer orders and a portion of our Wholesale segment customer orders.

We operatelease a 459,000 square foot fulfillment center in Trenton, South Carolina, which houses merchandise distributed throughCarolina. This facility currently services a portion of our Wholesale segment customer orders and processes all of our

Wholesale segment returns. In fiscal 2016, we transitioned all of the Retail segment fulfillment operations and a portion of the Wholesale segments. The operating lease forsegment operations from this location to our new facility in Gap, Pennsylvania. We plan to transition the remaining Wholesale segment operations to our new facility and close the Trenton center is set to expirefacility when the lease expires in 2016.fiscal 2017.

In September 2012, we completed the construction ofWe own a 463,000 square foot fulfillment center in Reno, Nevada that we ownis used primarily to house and operatedistribute merchandise to support the Retail segment. our western United States direct-to-consumer customers.

In fiscal 2014, we relocated our customer contact center to Martinez, Georgia. This leased facility consists of approximately 40,000 square feet and has a lease term expiring in fiscal 2019 with three five year renewal options.

We lease separate distribution and fulfillment centers in Rushden, England to support our retail and direct-to-consumer channels in Europe. The distribution center occupies approximately 98,000 square feet and the fulfillment center occupies approximately 142,000 square feet, which also includes our European customer contact center. The term of both of these leases are set to expire in September 2020.

Improvements in recent years, including those in fiscal 20142016 described in Item 7: Management’s Discussion and Analysis—Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources, were necessary to adequately support our growth. We believe we may need to further expand the square footage of our home office and distribution facilities to support our growth over the next several years. For more information on our distribution center properties, see Item 1: Business—Company Operations—Distribution. We believe that our facilities are well maintained and in good operating condition.

All of our Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain and Bhldn stores are leased, well maintained and in good operating condition. Our retail stores are typically leased for a term of ten years with renewal options for an additional five to ten years. Total estimated selling square feet for stores open, under lease as of January 31, 2014,2016, by Urban Outfitters, the Anthropologie Group and Free People Terrain and Bhldn was approximately 2,031,000, 1,318,000, 131,000, 36,0002,159,000, 1,517,000, and 6,700,203,000, respectively. Terrain also utilizes outdoor space to sell seasonal items, live plants, accessories and outdoor furniture. The average store selling square feet is approximately 8,8009,000 for Urban Outfitters, 7,1007,000 for the Anthropologie Group and 1,5001,800 for Free People. Selling square feet can sometimes change due to floor moves, use of staircases, cash register configuration and other factors.

The following table shows the location of each of our existing retail stores, as of January 31, 2014:2016:

		Urban Outfitters				Anthropologie				Free People				Terrain				Bhldn				Total
Canada:
Alberta			2				2				1				—				—				5
British Columbia			2				2				—				—				—				4
Ontario			6				4				1				—				—				11
Quebec			4				1				—				—				—				5
Total Canada			14				9				2				—				—				25
Europe:
Belgium			2				—				—				—				—				2
Denmark			1				—				—				—				—				1
Germany			6				—				—				—				—				6
Ireland			2				—				—				—				—				2
Netherlands			1				—				—				—				—				1
Sweden			1				—				—				—				—				1
United Kingdom			27				4				—				—				—				31
Total Europe			40				4				—				—				—				44
Global Total			230				187				90				2				2				511

		Urban Outfitters				Anthropologie Group				Free People				Total
United States			179				197				109				485
Canada			18				12				5				35
Europe			43				9				—				52
Global Total			240				218				114				572

In addition to the stores listed above, Free People also operates wholesale sales and showroom facilities in New York City, London, Los Angeles and Chicago that are leased through 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2019, respectively. Through our exclusive distribution and marketing agreement with World Co., Ltd., we operate a wholesale sales and showroom facility in Tokyo.

Item 3. Legal Proceedings

We are party to various legal proceedings arising from normal business activities. Management believes that the ultimate resolution of these matters will not have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures

Not applicable.

PART II

Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Shareholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

Our common shares are traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “URBN.” The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated below, the reported high and low sale prices for our common shares as reported on the NASDAQ Global Select Market.

Market Information

Holders of Record

On March 26, 201424, 2016 there were 112111 holders of record of our common shares.

Dividend Policy

Our current credit facility includes certain limitations on the payment of cash dividends on our common shares. We have not paid any cash dividends since our initial public offering and do not anticipate paying any cash dividends on our common shares in the foreseeable future.

Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans

All equity compensation plans have been approved by security holdersstockholders of the Company. See Note 9, “Share-Based Compensation,” for details of the Company’s equity compensation plans and outstanding awards.

Stock Performance

The following graph and table compares the cumulative total shareholder return on our common shares with the cumulative total return on the Standard and Poor’s 500 Composite Stock Index and the Standard and Poor’s 500 Apparel Retail Index for the period beginning January 30, 200931, 2011 and ending January 31, 2014,2016, assuming the reinvestment of any dividends and assuming an initial investment of $100 in each. The comparisons in this table are required by the SEC and are not intended to forecast or be indicative of possible future performance of the common shares or the referenced indices.

*$100 invested on 1/30/0931/11 in stock or index, including reinvestment of dividends.

Fiscal years ending January 31.

A summary of the repurchase of our common shares under the 2015 share repurchase program for the quarter ended January 31, 2016 is as follows:

Item 6. Selected Financial Data

The following table sets forth selected consolidated income statement and balance sheet data for the periods indicated. The selected consolidated income statement and balance sheet data for each of the five fiscal years presented below is derived from our consolidated financial statements.Consolidated Financial Statements. The data presented below should be read in conjunction with Item 7: Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and the Consolidated Financial Statements of the Company and the related notes thereto, which appear elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The results of operations for past accounting periods are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for any future accounting period.

Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

Overview

We are an omni-channel retailer operatingoperate two reportable segments: a leading lifestyle specialty Retail segment and a Wholesale segment. Our Retail segment consists of our Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain and Bhldn brands, whose merchandise is sold directly to our customers through retail stores, websites, mobile applications, catalogs and customer contact centers. Our Wholesale segment consists of the Free People wholesale division that primarily designs, develops and markets young women’s contemporary casual apparel.apparel and shoes through individual and chain specialty stores and department stores.

Our fiscal year ends on January 31. All references to our fiscal years refer to the fiscal years ended on January 31 in those years. For example, our fiscal year 20142016 ended on January 31, 2014.2016.

Retail Segment

Our omni-channel strategy enhances our customers’ brand experience by providing a seamless approach to the customer shopping experience. We have substantially integrated all available shopping channels, including stores, websites (online and through mobile devices) and catalogs. Our investments in areas such as marketing campaigns and technology advancements are designed to generate demand for the omni-channel and not the separate store or direct-to-consumer channels. Store sales are primarily fulfilled from that store’s inventory, but may also be shipped from any of our fulfillment centers or from a different store location if an item is not available at the original store. Direct-to-consumer orders are primarily shipped to our customers through our fulfillment centers, but may also be shipped from any store, or a combination of fulfillment centers and stores depending on the availability of particular items. Direct-to-consumer orders may also be picked up at a particular item.store location. As our customers continue to shop across multiple channels, we have adapted our approach towards meeting this demand. Due to the availability of like product in a variety of shopping channels, we now source these products utilizing single SKUsstock keeping units based on the omni-channel demand rather than the demand of the separate channels. These and other technological capabilities allow us to better serve our customers and help us to fill orderscomplete sales that otherwise may not have been cancelledoccurred due to out-of-stock positions. As a result of changing customer behavior and the substantial integration of the operations of our store and direct-to-consumer channels, we manage and analyze our performance based on a single omni-channel rather than separate channels and believe that the omni-channel results present the most meaningful and appropriate measure of our performance.

Our comparable Retail segment net sales data is equal to the sum of our comparable store plusand comparable direct-to-consumer channels.channel net sales. A store is considered to be comparable if it has been open at least onetwelve full fiscal year,months, unless it was materially expanded or remodeled within that year or was not otherwise operating at its full capacity within that year. A direct-to-consumer channel is considered to be comparable if it has been operational for at least onetwelve full fiscal year.months. There is no overlap between comparable store net sales and comparable direct-to-consumer net sales. Sales from stores and direct-to-consumer channels that do not fall within the definition of comparable store or channel are considered to be non-comparable. The effects of foreign currency translation are also considered non-comparable.

Although we have no precise empirical data as it relates toWe monitor customer traffic orand customer conversion rates withinat our stores, we believe that, based only on our observations, changes in transaction volume in our stores, as discussed in our results of operations, may correlate to changes inand customer traffic. We are able to monitor customer visits,sessions, average order value and conversion raterates on

our websites. We believe that changes in any of these

metrics may be caused by a response to our brands’ fashion offerings, our marketing campaigns, circulation of our catalogs and an overall growth in brand recognition as we expand our store base.

Retail Segment

As of January 31, 2014,2016, we operated 230240 Urban Outfitters stores of which 176179 were located in the United States, 1418 were located in Canada and 4043 were located in Europe. During fiscal 2014,2016, we opened 16four new Urban Outfitters stores, of which 10two were located in the United States one wasand two were located in Canada, and five were located in Europe. During the year ended January 31, 2014, Urban Outfitterswe closed one store locatedtwo stores in the United States. Total store selling square footage as of January 31, 2016 was 2.2 million and was flat as compared to the prior year. Urban Outfitters operates websites in North America and Europe that capture the spirit of the brand by offering a similar yet broader selection of merchandise as found in our stores. Urban Outfitters offers a catalog in North America and in Europe offering select merchandise, most of which is also available in our Urban Outfitters stores. Urban Outfitters targets young adults aged 18 to 28 through a unique merchandise mix, and compelling store environment.environment and websites. Urban Outfitters’ product offering includes women’s and men’s fashion apparel, intimates, footwear, beauty and accessories, and sporting apparelactivewear and gear, electronics, as well as an eclectic mix of apartment wares and gifts. We plan to open additional stores over the next several years. Urban Outfitters’ North American and European Retail segment net sales accounted for approximately 36.3%32.5% and 8.1%8.0% of consolidated net sales, respectively, for fiscal 2014,2016, compared to 39.2%32.9% and 8.2%8.8%, respectively, for fiscal 2013.2015.

The Anthropologie Group consists of the Anthropologie, Bhldn and Terrain brands. We initially operated the Bhldn and Terrain brands as standalone concepts and opened two Bhldn stores and two Terrain garden centers. We ultimately determined that the Bhldn and Terrain brands were complementary to the Anthropologie brand and integrated those brands with the Anthropologie brand during fiscal 2015 and 2016, respectively, to form the Anthropologie Group. As of January 31, 2014,2016, we operated 187218 Anthropologie Group stores, of which 174197 were located in the United States, nine12 were located in Canada and fournine were located in Europe. During fiscal 2014,2016, we opened nine14 new Anthropologie Group stores, of which seven12 were located in the United States one wasand two were located in CanadaEurope, and one was located in Europe. During the year ended January 31, 2014, Anthropologiewe closed two stores located in the United States dueStates. Total store selling square footage as of January 31, 2016 increased 4.7% over the prior year period to lease expirations.1.5 million. The Anthropologie Group operates websites in North America and Europe that capture the spirit of the brandour brands by offering a similar yet broader selection of merchandise as found in our stores. The Anthropologie alsobrand offers registry services through our website and mobile applications and in all of our stores throughout the United States, allowing our customers to create gift registries for any occasion. The Anthropologie brand offers a catalog in North America and in Europe that markets select merchandise, most of which is also available in our Anthropologie brand stores. The Anthropologie brand tailors its merchandise to sophisticated and contemporary women aged 28 to 45. Anthropologie’sThe Anthropologie brand’s product assortment includes women’s casual apparel and accessories, intimates, shoes, beauty, home furnishings and a diverse array of gifts and decorative items. The Bhldn brand offers a curated collection of heirloom quality wedding gowns, bridesmaid frocks, party dresses, assorted jewelry, headpieces, footwear, lingerie and decorations. The Terrain brand is designed to appeal to women and men interested in a creative and sophisticated outdoor living and gardening experience. Merchandise includes lifestyle home and garden products combined with antiques, live plants, flowers, wellness products and accessories. Both Terrain garden centers also offer a full service restaurant and coffee bar. We plan to open additional Anthropologie brand stores over the next several years. Anthropologie’syears, some of which will include Bhldn or Terrain shop-within-shop concepts. The Anthropologie Group’s North American and European Retail segment net sales accounted for approximately 39.8%40.2% and 1.2%1.6% of consolidated net sales, respectively, for fiscal 2014,2016, compared to 38.8%40.1% and 1.1%1.5%, respectively, for fiscal 2013.2015.

As of January 31, 2014,2016, we operated 90114 Free People stores, of which 88109 were located in the United States and twofive were located in Canada. During fiscal 2014,2016, we opened 13 new Free People stores, all of which 12 were located in the United States.States and one was located in Canada, and we closed one store located in the United States due to lease expiration. Total store selling square footage as of January 31, 2016, increased 27.8% over the prior year period to 203,000. Free People operates websites in North America, Europe and in EuropeAsia that capture the spirit of the brand by offering a similar yet broader selection of merchandise as found in our stores, as well as substantially all of the Free People wholesale offerings. Free People also offers a catalog offeringthat markets select merchandise, most of which is also available in our Free People stores. Free People primarily offersfocuses its product offering on private label branded merchandise targeted to young contemporary women aged 25 to 30. Free People provides a unique merchandise mix of casual women’s apparel, intimates, shoes, activewear, accessories, home products and gifts. We plan to open additional stores over the next several years, some of which may be outside the United States.years. Free People’s Retail segment net sales accounted for approximately 7.7%10.1% of consolidated net sales for fiscal 2014,2016, compared to approximately 6.2%9.2% for fiscal 2013.

As of January 31, 2014, we operated two Terrain garden centers and a website that offers customers a portion of the product assortment found at the Terrain garden centers. Terrain is designed to appeal to women and men interested in a creative, sophisticated outdoor living and gardening experience. Terrain creates a compelling shopping environment through its large and freestanding sites. Merchandise includes lifestyle home and garden products combined with antiques, live plants, flowers, wellness products and accessories. Both Terrain locations offer a full-service restaurant and coffee bar. Terrain also offers a variety of landscape and design services. Terrain’s Retail segment net sales accounted for less than 1.0% of consolidated net sales for fiscal 2014 and 2013, respectively.

As of January 31, 2014, we operated two Bhldn stores and a website that offers customers access to all product offerings of the Bhldn brand. We also operate shop-within-shop locations within our Anthropologie stores that offer a comparable product assortment to our standalone stores and website. Bhldn offers a curated collection of heirloom quality wedding gowns, bridesmaid frocks, party dresses, assorted jewelry, headpieces, footwear, lingerie and decorations. Bhldn’s Retail segment net sales accounted for less than 1.0% of consolidated net sales for fiscal 2014 and 2013, respectively.2015.

For all brands combined, we plan to open approximately 35 to 4027 new stores during fiscal 2015,2017, including 13five Urban Outfitters stores, 13ten Anthropologie Group stores and 12 Free People stores.

Wholesale Segment

TheOur Wholesale segment consists of the Free People wholesale division that designs, develops and markets young women’s contemporary casual apparel. Free People’s range of tops, bottoms, sweaters, dresses, intimates, shoes and dressesactivewear are sold worldwide through approximately 1,4001,800 better department and specialty stores worldwide, including Macy’s, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s, Lord & Taylor, Selfridges,and our own Free People stores, and in Japan through an exclusive distribution and marketing agreement with World Co., Ltd. Free People’sstores. Our Wholesale segment net sales accounted for approximately 5.8%7.6% of consolidated net sales for fiscal 2014,2016, compared to 5.3% in6.8% for fiscal 2013.2015.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Our consolidated financial statementsConsolidated Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States. These generally accepted accounting principles require management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, and liabilities, and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of net sales and expenses during the reporting period.

Our senior management has reviewed the critical accounting policies and estimates with our audit committee.Audit Committee. Our significant accounting policies are described in Note 2, “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies,” in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements.” We believe that the following discussion addresses our critical accounting policies, which are those that are most important to the presentationportrayal of our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows and require management’s most difficult, subjective and complex judgments, often as a result of the need to make estimates about the effect of matters that are inherently uncertain. If actual results were to differ significantly from estimates made, the reported results could be materially affected. We are not currently aware of any reasonably likely events or circumstances that would cause our actual results to be materially different from our estimates.

Revenue Recognition

Revenue is recognized by theWe recognize revenue in our Retail segment at the point-of-sale for merchandise the customer takes possession of at the retailour store or when merchandise is shipped to the customer, in each case, net of estimated customer returns. Revenue is recognized by theour Wholesale segment when merchandise is shipped to the customer, net of estimated customer returns. Revenue is recognized at the completion of a job or service for landscape sales. Revenue is presented on a net basis and does not include any tax assessed by a governmental or municipal authority. Payment for merchandise in our Retail segment is tendered by cash, check, credit card, debit card or gift card. Therefore, our need to collect outstandinguncollectible accounts receivable for our Retail segment is negligible and mainlyprimarily results from returned checks or unauthorized credit card transactions. We maintain an allowance for doubtful accounts for ourthe Wholesale segment and landscape service accounts receivable, which management reviewswe review on a regular basis and believesbelieve is sufficient to cover potential credit losses and billing adjustments. Deposits for custom orders are recorded as a liability and recognized as a sale upon delivery of the merchandise to the customer. These custom orders, typically for upholstered furniture, are not material. Deposits for landscape services are recorded as a liability and recognized as a sale upon completion of service. Landscape services and related deposits are not material.

We account for a gift card transaction by recording a liability at the time the gift card is issued to the customer in exchange for consideration from the customer. A liability is established and remains on our books until the card is redeemed by the customer, at which time we record the redemption of the card for merchandise as a sale, or when we determine the likelihood of redemption is remote. We determine the probability of the gift cards being redeemed to be remote based on historical redemption patterns. Revenues attributable to the reduction of gift card liabilities for which the likelihood of redemption becomes remote are included in sales and are not material. Our gift cards do not expire.

Sales Return Reserve

We record a reserve for estimated product returns where the sale has occurred during the period reported, but the return is likely to occur subsequent to the period reported. The reserve for estimated product returns is based on our most recent historical return trends. If the actual return rate or experience is materially higherdifferent than our estimate, sales returns would be adjusted in the future. As of January 31, 20142016 and 2013,2015, reserves for estimated sales returns totaled $17.1$24.4 million and $14.4$19.8 million, representing 3.2%3.5% and 3.3%3.5% of total liabilities, respectively.

Marketable Securities

All of our marketable securities as of January 31, 20142016 and January 31, 20132015 are classified as available-for-sale and are carried at fair value, which approximates amortized cost. Interest on these securities, as well as the amortization of discounts and premiums, is included in “Interest income” in the Consolidated Statements of Income. UnrealizedWe record unrealized gains and losses on these securities (other than mutual funds, held in the rabbi trust for the Urban Outfitters, Inc. Non-qualified Deferred Compensation Plan (See Note 3, “Marketable Securities,” in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements)) are considered temporary and therefore are excluded from earnings and are reported as a component of “ Other“Other comprehensive (loss) income” in the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income and in accumulated“Accumulated other comprehensive lossloss” within “Shareholders’ equity” until realized, except when we consider declines in shareholders’ equity until realized.value to be other than temporary. Other than temporary impairment losses related to credit losses are considered to be realized losses. Mutual funds held in the rabbi trust have been accounted for under the fair value option, which results in all unrealized gains and losses being recorded in “Interest income” in the Consolidated Statements of Income. Other than temporary impairment losses related to credit losses are considered to be realized

losses. When available-for-sale securities are sold, the cost of the securities is specifically identified and is used to determine the realized gain or loss. Securities classified as current assets have maturity dates of less than or equal to one year from the balance sheet date. Securities classified as non-current assets have maturity dates greater than one year from the balance sheet date. Available-for-sale securities such as auction rate securities that fail at auction and do not liquidate in the normal course are classified as non-current assets.

InventoriesInventory

We value our inventories,inventory, which consistconsists primarily of general consumer merchandise held for sale, at the lower of cost or market. Cost is determined on the first-in, first-out method and includes the cost of merchandise and import related costs, including freight, import taxes and agent commissions. A periodic review of inventory is performed in order to determine if inventory is properly stated at the lower of cost or market. Factors related to current inventorieswe consider in our review, such as future expected consumer demand and fashion trends, current aging, current and anticipated retail markdowns or wholesale discounts and class or type of inventory, are analyzed to determine estimated net realizable value. Criteria that we utilize to quantifyconsider in our review of aging trends includes factors such asinclude average selling cycle and seasonality of merchandise, the historical rate at which merchandise has sold below cost during the average selling cycleprior twelve months and the value and nature of merchandise currently priced below original cost. A provision is recorded to reduce the cost of inventoriesinventory to theits estimated net realizable values,value, if appropriate. The majority of inventory at January 31, 2014 and 2013 consisted of finished goods. Unfinished goods and work-in-process were not material to the overall net inventory value. Net inventories as of January 31, 2014 and January 31, 2013 totaled $311.2 million and $282.4 million, representing 14.0% and 15.7% of total assets, respectively. Any significant unanticipated changes in the risk factors noted within this reportabove could have a significant impact on the value of our inventoriesinventory and our reported operating results.

Adjustments to provisions related to the net realizable value of our inventories are primarily based on the market value of our annual physical inventories, cycle counts and recent historical trends. Our estimates generally have been accurate and our reserve methods have been applied on a consistent basis. We expect the amount of our reservesprovision and related inventoriesinventory to increase over time as we increase our sales. The majority of inventory at January 31, 2016, and 2015 consisted of finished goods. Raw materials and work-in-process were not material to the overall inventory value. Inventory as of January 31, 2016 and 2015 totaled $330.2 million and $358.2 million, representing 18.0% and 19.0% of total assets, respectively.

Long-Lived Assets

Our long-lived assets consist principally of store leasehold improvements, buildings, and furniture and fixtures, and other operating equipment and are included in the “Property and equipment, net” line item in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. Store leasehold improvements are recorded at cost and are amortized using the straight-line method over the lesser of the applicable store lease term, including lease renewals which are reasonably assured, or the estimated useful life of the leasehold improvements. The typical initial lease term for our stores is ten years. Buildings are recorded at cost and are amortized using the straight-line method over 39 years. Furniture and fixtures are recorded at cost and are amortized using the straight-line method over their useful life, which is typically five years. Other operating equipment is recorded at cost and amortized using the straight-line method over its useful life, which is three to ten years. Net property and equipment as of January 31, 20142016 and January 31, 20132015 totaled $806.9$863.1 million and $733.4$889.2 million, representing 36.3%47.1% and 40.8%47.1% of total assets, respectively.

In assessing potential impairment of these assets, we make estimates regarding forecasted operating results and cash flows on a store-by-store basis. Newly opened stores may take time to generate positive operating and cash flow results. Factors such as store type (e.g., mall versus free-

standing), store location (e.g., urban area versus college campus or suburb), current marketplace awareness of our brands, local customer demographic data and current fashion trends are all considered in determining the time frame required for a store to achieve positive financial results, which, in general, is assumed to be within three years from the date a store location has opened. We record impairment losses when events indicate that an asset may be impaired and the undiscounted cash flows are less than the carrying amount of the assets. For fiscal 2014, 2013 and 2012, impairment losses were not material.

We have not historically encountered material early retirement charges related to our long-lived assets. The cost of assets sold or retired and the related accumulated depreciation or amortization is removed from the accounts with any resulting gain or loss included in net income. Maintenance and repairs are charged to expense as incurred. Major renovations or improvements that extend the service lives of our assets are capitalized over the lesser of the extension period, or life of the improvement, whicheveror the remaining term of the lease.

Impairment of Long-lived Assets, Goodwill and Intangible Assets

We periodically review the carrying values of our long-lived assets whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value may not be recoverable. Events that result in an impairment review include plans to close a store, distribution or fulfillment center or a significant decrease in the operating results of a long-lived asset. Our retail stores are reviewed for impairment at

the store level, which is less.the lowest level at which individual cash flows can be identified. Newly opened stores may take time to generate positive operating and cash flow results. Factors such as store type (e.g., mall versus free-standing), store location (e.g., urban area versus college campus or suburb), current marketplace awareness of our brands, local customer demographic data and current fashion trends are all considered in determining the time frame required for a store to achieve positive financial results, which, in general, is assumed to be within three years from the date a store location has opened. In assessing an asset for potential impairment, we make estimates regarding future operating results, cash flows and estimated useful life. When events indicate that an asset may be impaired and the estimated undiscounted cash flows are less than the carrying amount of the asset, the impaired asset is adjusted to its estimated fair value and an impairment loss is recorded. We have not made any material changes in the methodology to assess and calculate impairment of long-lived assets in the past three fiscal years. During fiscal 2016, we recorded impairment charges for five retail stores, totaling $8.9 million, of which $7.4 million is in “Cost of sales” and $1.5 million is in “Selling, general and administrative expenses,” in the Consolidated Statements of Income. During our assessment of current and future performance it was determined that these stores would not be able to generate sufficient cash flow over the expected remaining lease term to recover the carrying value of the respective store assets. Impairment charges for fiscal 2015 and 2014 were immaterial.

Accounting for Income Taxes

As part of the process of preparing our consolidated financial statements,Consolidated Financial Statements, we are required to estimate our income taxes in each of the tax jurisdictions in which we operate. This process involves estimating our actual current tax obligations together with assessing temporary differences resulting from differing treatment of certain items for tax and accounting purposes, such as depreciation of property and equipment and valuation of inventories. These temporary differences result in deferred tax assets and liabilities, which are included within our Consolidated Balance Sheets. We then assess the likelihood that our deferred tax assets will be recovered from future taxable income. We recognizeA valuation allowance is recognized if, based on the weight of available evidence, it is more-likely-than-not that some portion, or all, of the deferred tax assets to the extent that we believe these assets are more likely thanasset will not to be realized. In making such a determination, we consider all material available positive and negative evidence, including future reversals of existing taxable temporary differences, projected future taxable income, tax-planning strategies, and results of recent operations. Actual results could differ from this assessment if adequate taxable income is not generated in future periods. Net deferred tax assets as of January 31, 20142016 and January 31, 20132015 totaled $66.8$54.2 million and $41.1$68.7 million, representing 3.0% and 2.3%3.6% of total assets, respectively.

To the extent we believe that recovery of ana deferred tax asset is at risk, we establish valuation allowances. To the extent we establish valuation allowances or increase the allowances in a period, we record additional income tax expense in the Consolidated Statements of Income. Valuation allowances were $6.6 million as of January 31, 2016 and $0.1 million as of January 31, 2014 and $2.1 million as of January 31, 2013.2015, respectively. Valuation allowances are based on evidence of our ability to generate sufficient taxable income in certain foreign and state jurisdictions. In the future, if enough evidence of our ability to generate sufficient future taxable income in these jurisdictions becomes apparent, we would be required to reduce our valuation allowances, resulting in a reduction in income tax expense in the Consolidated Statements of Income. On a quarterly basis, management evaluates the likelihood that we will realize the deferred tax assets and adjusts the valuation allowances, if appropriate.

We record uncertain tax positions on the basis of a two-step process whereby (1) we determine whether it is more likely than notmore-likely-than-not that the tax positions will be sustained on the basis of the technical

merits of the position and (2) for those tax positions that meet the more-likely-than-not recognition threshold, we recognize the largest amount of tax benefit that is more than 50 percent likely to be realized upon ultimate settlement with the related tax authority.

Our tax liability for uncertain tax positions contains uncertainties because we are required to make assumptions and to apply judgment to estimate the exposures associated with our various filing positions. Although we believe that the judgments and estimates discussed herein are reasonable, actual results may differ, and we may be exposed to lossesincome tax expenses or gainsbenefits that could be material.

We consider thecertain earnings of certain non-U.S. subsidiaries to be indefinitely invested outside the United States on the basis of estimates that future domesticUnited States cash generation will be sufficient to meet future domesticUnited States cash needs and our specific plans for reinvestment of those subsidiarysubsidiaries’ earnings. Should we decide to repatriate the foreign earnings, we would need to adjust our income tax provision in the period we determined that the earnings will no longer be indefinitely invested outside the United States.

Accounting for Contingencies

From time to time, we are named as a defendant in legal actions arising from our normal business activities. We are required to record ana reserve for estimated loss contingencylosses when information available prior to issuance of our financial statements indicates that it is probable that a liability has been incurred at the date of the financial statements and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. Accounting for contingencies arising from contractual disputes or legal proceedings requires management to use its best judgment when estimating an accrual related to such contingencies. As additional information becomes known, our accrualreserves for a loss contingencycontingencies could fluctuate, thereby creating variability in our results of operations from period to period. Likewise, an actual loss arising from a loss contingency which significantly exceeds the amount accrued in our financial statementsreserve could have a material adverse impact on our operating results for the period in which such actual loss becomes known. We believe that our reserves adequately reflect the anticipated final outcome of any matter currently pending against us and the ultimate settlement of such matters will not materially affect our financial position or results of operations.

Share-Based Compensation

Accounting for share-based compensation requires measurement of compensation cost for all share-based awards at fair value on the date of grant and recognition of compensation over the service period, net of estimated forfeitures.

We use a lattice binomial pricing model to determine the fair value of our stock options and stock appreciation rights. This model uses assumptions including the risk freerisk-free rate of interest, expected volatility of our stock price and expected life of the awards. A Monte Carlo simulation, which utilizes similar assumptions, is used to determine the fair value of performance-based awards. We review our assumptions and the valuations provided by independent third-party valuation advisors in order to determine the fair value of share-based compensation awards at the date of grant. The assumptions used in calculating the fair value of these share-based payment awards represent our best estimates, but these estimates involve inherent uncertainties and the application of judgment. Changes in these assumptions can materially affect the fair value estimate.

Additionally, we make certain estimates about the number of awards which will become vested under performance-based incentive plans. We record expense for performance-based awards based on our current expectations of the probable number of sharesawards that will ultimately vest. The estimation of share-based awards that will ultimately vest requires judgment, and to the extent actual results or updated estimates differ from our current estimates, such amounts will be recorded as a cumulative adjustment in the period estimates are revised and could be materially different from share-based compensation expense recorded in prior periods.

We also estimate the expected forfeiture rate. We consider many factors when estimating expected forfeitures, including types of awards and historical experience. We revise our forfeiture rates, when necessary, in subsequent periods if actual forfeitures differ from those originally estimated. As a result, if the actual forfeiture rate is different from the estimate at the completion of the vesting period, the share-based compensation expense may not be comparable to amounts recorded in prior periods.

Results of Operations

As a Percentage of Net Sales

The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the percentage of our net sales represented by certain income statement data and the change in certain income statement data from period to period. This table should be read in conjunction with the discussion that follows: