Although we believe that none of our segment operations experience significant seasonal fluctuations, historically we have experienced, and expect to continue to experience, the lowest amount of revenue in our fourth quarter compared with the first three quarters of the year.

U.S. and Canada

As of December 31, 2018,2019, we operated 3,2062,902 company-owned stores across all 50 states and the District of Columbia in the United States, in Canada and Puerto Rico. Most of our company-owned stores in the United States are between 1,000 and 2,000 square feet and are located primarily in strip shopping centers and shopping malls.

As of December 31, 2018,2019, there were 1,037956 domestic franchise stores.stores operated by 408 franchisees. Our domestic franchise stores in the United States are typically between 1,000 and 2,000 square feet, and approximately 90% are located in strip shopping centers. We believe we have good relationships with our franchisees, as evidenced by our domestic franchisee renewal rate of approximately 90%87% between 20132014 and 2018. Currently, we have 459 franchisees operating stores in the United States.2019. We do not rely heavily on any single franchise operator in the United States, wherewith our largest franchisee ownsowning and/or operates 82operating 79 store locations.

All of our franchise stores in the United States offer both our proprietary products and third-party products, with a product selection similar to that of our company-owned stores.

Revenues from our franchisees in the United States accounted for approximately 15%16% of our total U.S. and Canada segment revenues for the year ended December 31, 2018.2019. New franchisees in the United States are required to pay an initial fee of $40,000 for a franchise license and existing GNC franchise operators may purchase an additional franchise license for a $30,000 fee. Once a franchise store begins operations, franchisees are required to pay us a continuing royalty of 6% of sales and contribute 3% of sales to a national advertising fund. Our standard franchise agreements for the United States are effective for an initial ten-year period with unlimited five-year renewal options. At the end of the initial term and each of the renewal periods, the renewal fee is generally 33% of the franchise fee that is then in effect. The franchisee renewal option is generally at our election. Franchisees must meet certain conditions to exercise the franchisee renewal option. Our franchisees in the United States receive limited geographical exclusivity and are required to utilize the standard GNC store format.

Generally, we negotiate lease terms to secure locations at cost-effective rates, which we typically sublease to our franchisees at cost. Franchisees must meet certain minimum standards and duties prescribed by our franchise operations manual, and we conduct periodic field visit reports to ensure our minimum standards are maintained. If a franchisee does not meet specified performance and appearance criteria, we are permitted to terminate the franchise agreement. In these situations, we may take possession of the location, inventory and equipment, and operate the store as a company-owned store or refranchise the location.

GNC.com continues to represent a significant and growing part of our business. The ability to purchase our products through the internet also offers a convenient method for repeat customers to evaluate and purchase new and existing products. This additional sales channel has enabled us to market and sell our products in regions where we have limited or no retail operations. We may offer products on our website that are not available at our retail locations, enabling us to broaden the assortment of products available to our customers. We also offer a product assortment on our market place on Amazon, the revenue of which is included in our GNC.com business unit.

International

As of December 31, 2018,2019, there were 1,9411,904 international franchise locations operating in approximately 50 international countries (including distribution centers where retail sales are made). The international franchise locations are typically smaller than our domestic locations and, depending upon the country and cultural preferences, are located in mall,malls, strip shopping center, streetcenters, streets or store-within-a-store locations. In addition, some international franchisees sell on the internet and distribute to other retail outlets in their respective countries. Typically, our international stores have a store format and signage similar to our United States

Our international franchise stores generally offer a more limited product selection than our franchise stores in the United States, primarily due to regulatory constraints.

Revenues from our international franchisees accounted for approximately 70%82% of our total international segment revenues for the year ended December 31, 2018.2019. New international franchisees wereare required to pay an initial fee of approximately $25,000 for a franchise license for each full size store, $12,500 for a franchise license for a store-within-a-store and continuing royalty fees. Our international franchise program has enabled us to expand into international markets with limited investment.

We enter into development agreements with international franchisees which grants the right to develop a specific number of stores, for either full-size stores or store-within-a-store locations, in a territory, often the entire country. We enter into distribution agreements with international franchisees which grants the right to distribute product through the store locations, wholesale distribution centers and, in some cases, limited internet distribution. The franchisee then enters into a franchise agreement for each

To increase brand awareness and promote access to customers who may not frequent specialty nutrition stores, we entered into a strategic alliance with Rite Aid in December 1998 to open GNC franchise "store-within-a-store" locations. As of December 31, 2018,2019, we had 2,1831,759 Rite Aid store-within-a-store locations. Through this strategic alliance, we generate revenues from sales to Rite Aid of our products at wholesale prices, the manufacturesales of Rite Aid private label products, retail sales of certain consigned inventory and license fees. We are Rite Aid's sole supplier for a number of Rite Aid private label supplements, pursuant to a supply agreement with Rite Aid that extends through 2021. The operating license that comprises our store-within-a store alliance with Rite Aid was extended through 2021. We terminated the consignment agreement with Rite Aid in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Other

Revenue prior to 2018 also included the results of an additional website, LuckyVitamin.com, beginning in August 2011 and through September 30, 2017. We sold substantially all of the assets of our Lucky Vitamin subsidiary effective September 30, 2017.

We are a global health and wellness brand with a diversified omni-channel business. Our product assortment includes health, wellness and performance products, including protein, performance supplements, weight management supplements, vitamins, herbs and greens, wellness supplements, health and beauty, food and drink and other general merchandise. Refer to Item 8, "Financial Statements and Supplementary Data," Note 3, "Revenue" of this Annual Report for a breakdown of revenue by

We offer a wide range of high-quality nutritional supplements sold under our GNC proprietary brand names. Sales of our proprietary brands at our U.S. company-owned and franchise stores, GNC.com and wholesale partners including Rite Aid, PetSmart and Sam's Club represented 51%52% and 44%51% of total system-wide retail product sales in 2019 and 2018, and 2017, or $1,072$1,015 million and $960$1,072 million, respectively. We also offer products through nationally recognized third-party brand names. Sales of our third-party products at our U.S. company-owned and franchise stores, GNC.com and wholesale partners represented approximately 49%48% and 56%49% of total system-wide retail product sales in 2019 and 2018, and 2017, or $1,011$923 million and $1,204$1,011 million, respectively, and together with proprietary sales yielded total U.S. system-wide sales of $2,083$1,938 and $2,164$2,083 million. In 20182019 and 2017,2018, we did not have a material concentration of sales from any single product or product line. Our largest vendor, excluding the Nutra manufacturing facility, supplied approximately 17%14% and 15%17% of our third-party products in 20182019 and 2017,2018, respectively.

Effective with the launch of the "One New GNC" program on December 29, 2016, the Gold Card Member Pricing program was discontinued in all domestic company-owned and franchise stores and we introducedWe offer a free points-based loyalty program,

Products are delivered to retail stores, wholesale distributors, international franchisees and directly to customers who purchase throughmake purchases online, via a third party transportation network, primarily through our distribution centers located in: Leetsdale, Pennsylvania; Whitestown, Indiana; Anderson, South Carolina, and Phoenix, Arizona. Our distribution centers support our company-owned stores as well as franchise stores and Rite Aid locations. Each of our distribution centers has a quality control department that monitors products received from our vendors to ensure they meet our quality standards. Internet purchases are fulfilled and shipped directly from our distribution centers to our consumers using a third-party transportation service, or directly by Amazon for certain market placemarketplace orders. In connection with the Manufacturing JV agreement with IVC, the Company has transitioned out of the Anderson, South Carolina distribution center in the first quarter of 2020.

As of December 31, 2018,2019, we had approximately 15,50012,400 employees, including approximately 5,9004,400 full-time and 9,6008,000 part-time employees. None of our employees belong to a union or are party to any collective bargaining or similar agreement. We consider our relationship with our employees to be good.

The United States nutritional supplements retail and packaged goods industry is a large, highly fragmented and growing industry, with no single industry participant accounting for a majority of total industry retail sales. Competition is based on multiple factors, including price, quality and assortment of products, customer service, convenience of store locations and online platform, marketing support and availability of new products. In addition, the market is highly sensitive to the introduction of new products.

We compete with both publicly and privately owned companies, which are highly fragmented in terms of geographical market coverage and product categories. We also compete with other specialty retailers, supermarkets, drugstores, mass merchants, multi-level marketing organizations, mail-order companies, other internet sitesonline-only retailers and a variety of other smaller participants. In the United States, many of our competitors have national brands that are heavily advertised and are manufactured by large pharmaceutical and food companies and other retailers. Most supermarkets, drugstores and mass merchants have narrow product offerings limited primarily to simple vitamins, herbs and popular third-party sports and diet products. Our international competitors also include large international pharmacy chains and major international supermarket chains, as well as other large U.S.-based companies with international operations. Our wholesale and manufacturing operations compete with other wholesalers and manufacturers of third-party nutritional supplements.

We believe trademark protection is particularly important to the maintenance of the recognized brand names under which we market our products. We own or have rights to material trademarks or trade names that we use in conjunction with the sale of our products, including the GNC brand name. We also rely upon trade secrets, know-how, continuing technological innovations and licensing opportunities to develop and maintain our competitive position. We protect our intellectual property rights through a variety of methods, including trademark, patent and trade secret laws, as well as confidentiality agreements and proprietary information agreements with vendors, employees, consultants and others who have access to our proprietary information. Protection of our intellectual property often affords us the opportunity to enhance our position in the marketplace by precluding our competitors from using or otherwise exploiting our technology and brands. We are also a party to several intellectual property license agreements relating to certain of our products. The duration of our trademark registrations is generally 10, 15 or 20 years, depending on the country in which the marks are registered, and we can renew the registrations. The scope and duration of our intellectual property protection varies throughout the world by jurisdiction and by individual product. Our global trademark portfolio, with the aforementioned registration durations, consists of our core marks for our business and our proprietary product brands which drive significant brand awareness for all of our reportable segments.  Our proprietary product formulas and recipes, maintained as trade secrets, are significant to our growth and success as they form the foundation for our production and sales of effective, high quality products.

We are self-insured for certain losses related to workers' compensation and general liability insurance and maintain stop-loss coverage with third-party insurers to limit our liability exposure. We face an inherent risk of exposure to potential product liability claims in the event that, among other things, the use of products sold by us results in injury. We carry product liability insurance with a deductible/retention of $4.0 million per claim with an aggregate cap on retained losses of $10.0 million per policy year. For product liability claims stemming from third party products sold in our stores, we generally have the ability to refer such claims directly to our vendors and their insurers. In most cases, our insurance covers such claims that are not adequately covered by a vendor's insurance and provides for excess secondary coverage above the limits provided by our product vendors. We are fully insured for health insurance.

We also purchase insurance to cover auto liability, network and cyber security, privacy liability, employment practice, and other casualty and property risks. We self-insure certain property and casualty risks, such as property damage due to our analysis of the risk, the frequency and severity of a loss and the cost of insurance for the risk.

Product Regulation

The processing, formulation, safety, manufacturing, packaging, labeling, advertising and distribution of our products are subject to regulation by one or more federal agencies, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the "FDA"), the Federal Trade Commission (the "FTC"), the Consumer Product Safety Commission (the "CPSC"), the United States Department of Agriculture (the "USDA") and the Environmental Protection Agency (the "EPA"), and by various agencies of the states and localities in which our products are sold.

The Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 ("DSHEA") amended the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the "FDC Act") to establish a new framework governing the composition, safety, labeling, manufacturing and marketing of dietary supplements. Generally, under the FDC Act, dietary ingredients (i.e., vitamins; minerals; herb or other botanical; amino acids; or dietary substances for use by humans to supplement diet by increasing total dietary intake; or any concentrate, metabolite, constituent, extract or combination of any of the above) that were marketed in the United States prior to October 15, 1994 may be used in dietary supplements without notifying the FDA. "New" dietary ingredients (i.e., dietary ingredients that were "not marketed in the United States before October 15, 1994") must be the subject of a new dietary ingredient notification submitted to the FDA unless the ingredient has been "present in the food supply as an article used for food" without being "chemically altered." A new dietary ingredient notification must provide the FDA evidence of a "history of use or other evidence of safety" establishing that use of the dietary ingredient "will reasonably be expected to be safe." A new dietary ingredient notification must be submitted to the FDA at least 75 days before the initial marketing of the new dietary ingredient. The FDA may determine that a new dietary ingredient notification does not provide an adequate basis to conclude that a dietary ingredient is reasonably expected to be safe.

We take a number of actions to ensure the products we sell comply with the FDC Act.  Some of these actions include maintaining and continuously updating a list of restricted ingredients that will be prohibited from inclusion in any products that are sold in our stores or on our websites.  Vendors selling product to us for the sale of such products by us will be required to warrant to us that the products sold to us do not contain any of these restricted ingredients.  In addition, we have developed and maintain a list of ingredients that we believe comply with the applicable provisions of the FDC Act. As is common in our industry, we rely on our third-party vendors to ensure that the products they manufacture and sell to us comply with all applicable regulatory and legislative requirements. In general, we seek representations and warranties, indemnification and/or insurance from our vendors.

The FDC Act permits structure/function claims to be included in labels and labeling for dietary supplements without FDA pre-market approval. However, companies must have substantiation that the claims are “truthful and not misleading”, and must submit a notification with the text of the claims to the FDA no later than 30 days after marketing the dietary supplement with the claims. Permissible structure/function claims may describe how a particular nutrient or dietary ingredient affects the structure, function or general well-being of the body, or characterize the documented mechanism of action by which a nutrient or dietary ingredient acts to maintain such structure or function. The label or labeling of a product marketed as a dietary supplement may not expressly or implicitly represent that a dietary supplement will diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat or prevent a disease (i.e. a disease claim). If the FDA determines that a particular structure/function claim is an unacceptable disease claim that causes the product to be regulated as a drug, a conventional food claim or an unauthorized version of a "health claim," or, if the FDA determines that a particular claim is not adequately supported by existing scientific data or is false or misleading in any particular, we would be prevented from using the claim and would have to update our product labels and labeling accordingly.

In addition, DSHEA provides that so-called "third-party literature," e.g., “a publication, including an article, a chapter in a book, or an official abstract of a peer-reviewed scientific publication that appears in an article and was prepared by the author or the editors of the publication” supplements, when reprinted in its entirety, may be used "in connection with the sale of a dietary supplement to consumers" without the literature being subject to regulation as labeling. Such literature: (1) must not be false or misleading; (2) may not "promote" a particular manufacturer or brand of dietary supplement; (3) must present a balanced view or is displayed or presented with other such items on the same subject matter so as to present a balanced view of the available scientific information; (4) if displayed in an establishment, must be physically separate from the dietary supplements; and (5) should not have appended to it any information by sticker or any other method. If the literature fails to satisfy each of these requirements, we may be prevented from disseminating such literature with our products, and any continued dissemination could subject our product to regulatory action as an illegal drug.

In June 2007, pursuant to the authority granted by the FDC Act as amended by DSHEA, the FDA published detailed current Good Manufacturing Practice ("cGMP") regulations that govern the manufacturing, packaging, labeling and holding operations of dietary supplement manufacturers. The cGMP regulations, among other things, impose significant recordkeeping requirements on manufacturers. The cGMP requirements are in effect for all dietary supplement manufacturers, and the FDA

In addition, the FDA's interpretation of the regulations governing dietary supplements will likely change over time as the agency becomes more familiar with the industry and the regulations. The failure of a manufacturing facility to comply with the cGMP regulations renders products manufactured in such facility "adulterated," and subjects such products and the manufacturer to a variety of potential FDA enforcement actions. In addition, under the Food Safety Modernization Act ("FSMA"), which was enacted in January 2011, the manufacturing of dietary ingredients contained in dietary supplements will be subject to similar or even more burdensome manufacturing requirements, which will likely increase the costs of dietary ingredients and will subject suppliers of such ingredients to more rigorous inspections and enforcement. The FSMA will also require importers of food, including dietary supplements and dietary ingredients, to conduct verification activities to ensure that the food they might import meets applicable domestic requirements.

The FDA has broad authority to enforce the provisions of federal law applicable to dietary supplements, including powers to issue a public warning or notice of violation letter to a company, publicize information about illegal products, detain products intended for import, require the reporting of serious adverse events, require a recall of illegal or unsafe products from the market, and request the Department of Justice to initiate a seizure action, an injunction action or a criminal prosecution in the United States courts.

The FTC exercises jurisdiction over the advertising of dietary supplements and cosmetics and requires that all advertising to consumers be truthful and non-misleading. The FTC actively monitors the dietary supplement space and has instituted numerous enforcement actions against dietary supplement companies for failure to have adequate substantiation for claims made in advertising or for the use of false or misleading advertising claims. As a result of these enforcement actions, we

We continue to be subject to a consent decree issued by the FTC in 1994 that limits our ability to make certain claims with respect to our hair care products. With respect to products containing CBD, FTC has stated that it is illegal to advertise that a product can prevent, treat, or cure human diseases without competent and reliable scientific evidence to support such claims.

The FTC continues to monitor our advertising and, from time to time, requests substantiation with respect to such advertising to assess compliance with the outstanding consent decree and with the Federal Trade Commission Act. Our policy is to use advertising that complies with the consent decree and applicable regulations. Nevertheless, there can be no assurance that inadvertent failures to comply with the consent decree and applicable regulations will not occur.

Some of the products sold by franchise stores are purchased by franchisees directly from other vendors and these products do not flow through our distribution centers. Although franchise contracts contain strict requirements for store operations, including

As a result of our efforts to comply with applicable statutes and regulations, we have from time to time reformulated, eliminated or relabeled certain of our products and revised certain provisions of our sales and marketing program.

Our products sold in foreign countries are also subject to regulation under various national, local and international laws that include provisions governing, among other things, the formulation, manufacturing, packaging, labeling, advertising and distribution of dietary supplements and over-the-counter drugs. Government regulations in foreign countries may prevent or delay the introduction, or require the reformulation, of certain of our products.

New Legislation or Regulation

Legislation may be introduced which, if passed, would impose substantial new regulatory requirements on dietary supplements. We cannot determine what effect additional domestic or international governmental legislation, regulations, or administrative orders, when and if promulgated, would have on our business in the future. New legislation or regulations may require the reformulation of certain products to meet new standards, require the recall or discontinuance of certain products not capable of reformulation, impose additional record keeping or require expanded documentation of the properties of certain products, expanded or different labeling or scientific substantiation.

Franchise Regulation

We must comply with regulations adopted by the FTC and with the laws of several states that regulate the offer and sale of franchises. The FTC's Trade Regulation Rule on Franchising (the "FTC Franchise Rule") and certain state laws require that we furnish prospective franchisees with a franchise offering circular containing information prescribed by the Trade RegulationFTC Franchise Rule on Franchising and applicable state laws and regulations.

We also must comply with a number of state laws that regulate some substantive aspects of the franchisor-franchisee relationship. These laws may limit a franchisor's business practices in a number of ways, including limiting the ability to:

To date, these laws have not precluded us from seeking franchisees in any given area and have not had a material adverse effect on our operations. Bills concerning the regulation of certain aspects of franchise relationships have been introduced into Congress on several occasions during the last decade, but none have been enacted. Revisions to the FTC ruleFranchise Rule have also been proposed by the FTC and currently are in the comment stage of the rulemaking process.

Our international franchise agreements and franchise operations are regulated by various foreign laws, rules and regulations. These laws may limit a franchisor's business practices in a number of ways. To date, these laws have not precluded us from seeking franchisees in any given area and have not had a material adverse effect on our operations.

Environmental Compliance

As part of soil and groundwater remediation conducted at the Greenville, South Carolina manufacturing facility pursuant to an investigation conducted in partnership with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (the "DHEC"), we havepreviously completed additional investigations with the DHEC's approval, including the installation and operation of a pilot vapor extraction system under a portion of the facility in the second half of 2016, which was an immaterial cost to the Company. After an initial monitoring period, in October of 2017 the DHEC approved a work plan for extended monitoring of such

In addition to the foregoing, we are subject to numerous federal, state, local and foreign environmental and health and safety laws and regulations governing our operations, including the handling, transportation and disposal of our non-hazardous and hazardous substances and wastes, as well as emissions and discharges from its operations into the environment, including discharges to air, surface water and groundwater. New laws, changes in existing laws or the interpretation thereof, or the development of new facts or changes in their processes could cause us, directly or indirectly through a joint venture entity, to incur additional capital and operating expenditures to maintain compliance with environmental laws and regulations and environmental permits. We are also subject to laws and regulations that impose liability and cleanup responsibility for releases of hazardous substances into the environment without regard to fault or knowledge about the condition or action causing the liability. Under certain of these laws and regulations, such liabilities can be imposed for cleanup of previously owned or operated properties, or for properties to which substances or wastes that were sent in connection with current or former operations at its facilities. The presence of contamination from such substances or wastes could also adversely affect our ability to sell or lease our properties, or to use them as collateral for financing.operations.

From time to time, we historically have incurred costs and obligations for correcting environmental and health and safety noncompliance matters and for remediation at or relating to certain of our properties or properties at which our waste has been disposed. However, compliance with the provisions of national, state and local environmental laws and regulations has not had a material effect upon our capital expenditures, earnings, financial position, liquidity or competitive position. We believe we have complied with, and are currently complying with, our environmental obligations pursuant to environmental and health and safety laws and regulations and that any liabilities for noncompliance will not have a material adverse effect on our business, financial performance or cash flows. However, it is difficult to predict future liabilities and obligations, which could be material.

TheAn investment in our securities is subject to various risks, including risks and uncertainties inherent in our business. In addition to the other information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, the following risk factors could cause our operational and/or financial performance to differ significantly from the goals, plans, objectives, intentions and expectations expressed in this Annual Report. If any of the following risks and uncertainties actually occur, our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows could be materially and adversely affected.

The market for health, wellness and performance products is large, highly fragmented and intensely competitive. Current and prospective participants include specialty retailers, supermarkets, drugstores, mass merchants, multi-level marketing organizations, on-lineonline merchants, mail-order companies and a variety of other smaller participants. We believe that the market is also highly sensitive to the introduction of new products, which may rapidly capture a significant share of the market. In the United States, we compete for sales with heavily advertised national brands manufactured by large pharmaceutical and food companies, as well as other brands, some of which have greater market presence, both brick and mortar and online, name recognition and financial, marketing and other resources, including some competitors that may spend more aggressively on advertising and

Our international competitors include large international pharmacy chains, major international supermarket chains and other large U.S.-based companies with international operations. Our wholesale and manufacturing operationspartnerships compete with other wholesalers and manufacturers of third-party nutritional supplements. We may not be able to compete effectively and our attempts to do so may require us to reduce our prices, which may result in lower margins. Failure to effectively compete could adversely affect our market share, revenues and growth prospects.

Further, the ability of consumers to compare prices on a real-time basis through the use of smartphones and digital technology puts additional pressure on us to maintain competitive pricing. We compete in multiple product categories and sales channels, including traditional large format stores; traditionalstore and specialty formats;store formats, mass merchants;merchants, and catalog; and increasingly internet-based and direct-sell retailers;retailers and vendors that sell directly to customers.vendors. Many factors affect the extent to which competition could affect our results, including as it relates to pricing, quality, assortment, marketing, promotions and advertising, service, locations, capital expenditures, category share and reputation, and prolonged competitive pressures, any of which could have a material effect on our results of operations.

We continue to explore new strategic initiatives but we may not be able to successfully execute on, or realize the expected benefit from the implementation of, our strategic initiatives, and our pursuit of new strategic initiatives may pose significant costs and risks.

Resources devoted to product innovation may not yield new products that achieve commercial success.

Our ability to develop new and innovative GNC-branded products, or identify and acquire new and innovative products from third-party vendors, depends on, among other factors, our ability to understand evolving customer and market trends and our ability to translate these insights into identifying, and then manufacturing or otherwise obtaining, commercially viablesuccessful new products. If we are unable to do so, our customer relationships and product sales could be harmed significantly. Furthermore, the nutritional supplements industry is characterized by rapid and frequent changes in demand for products and new product introductions. Our failure to accurately predict these trends could negatively impact consumer opinion of our stores as a source for the latest products. This could harm our customer relationships and cause losses to our market share. The development of new and innovative products also requires significant investment in research and development and testing of new ingredients, formulas and possibly new production processes. The R&Dresearch and development process can be expensive and prolonged and entails considerable uncertainty. Products may appear

Our performance depends in material part on our ability to purchase products at sufficient levels and at competitive prices from vendors who can deliver said products in a timely and efficient manner, and in compliance with our vendor standards and all applicable laws and regulations. We currently have a large number of vendor relationships. Generally, we do not have anyenter into committed, long-term purchase agreements with third-party vendors or provide other contractual assurances of continued supply, pricing or access to new products. Historically,products, and historically we have not relied on any single vendor for a larger percentage of our products and have not had difficulties replacing vendors for various products we sell. However, in the future there is no assurance that we will continue to be able to acquire desired products in sufficient quantities or on terms acceptable to us, or be able to develop relationships with new vendors to replace any discontinued vendors. Our inability to acquire suitable products in the future or our failure to replace any one or more vendors may have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, any significant change in the payment terms that we have with our suppliers could adversely affect our liquidity. Given recent circumstances and uncertainties around the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, we cannot assure you that our vendors will continue to maintain our current payment terms. See “Recent developments related to the global outbreak of the novel strain of the coronavirus known as “COVID-19.”

Many of our suppliers are small firms that produce a limited number of items. These smaller vendors generally have limited resources, production capacities and operating histories, and some of our vendors have limited the distribution of their products in the past. Accordingly, these smaller vendors may be more susceptible to cash flow issues, downturns in economic conditions, production difficulties, force majeure events and quality control issues than larger vendors. If a vendor fails to deliver on its commitments whether due to financial difficulties or other reasons,for any reason, we could experience productsproduct out-of-stocks that could lead to lost sales. In addition, although we generally have charge-back privileges in our vendor agreements, there is no assurance that we would be able, if necessary, to return product to these vendors, obtain refunds of our purchase price or obtain reimbursement or indemnification from any of our vendors should we so desire, and from time to time, we may beor obtain the same in litigation with one or more vendors.a timely manner. Many of these suppliers requireinclude extensive advance notice of our requirements in order to supply products in the quantities we need. This long lead time requires us to place orders far in advance of the time when certain products will be offered for sale, exposing us to shifts in consumer demand and discretionary spending.

Other supplier problems that we could face include product shortages due to ingredient or raw material shortages, excess supply, risks related to the terms of our contracts with suppliers, risks associated with contingent workers, supplier financial weaknesses, inability of suppliers to borrow funds in the credit markets, disputes with suppliers and risks related to our relationships with single source suppliers, as described above. Given the importance of third-party suppliers to our business, if any of these risks materializes, our ability to obtain raw materials and products and our results of operations may suffer.

We must successfully maintain and/or upgrade our information technology systems, including electronic payments systems, and our failure to do so, or other problems with these systems could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

We rely on various third partythird-party information technology systems to manage our operations and the core system needs of our business. These systems, if not functioning properly, could disrupt our operations, including our ability to track, record and analyze the merchandise that we sell, process shipments of goods, process financial information or credit card transactions, deliver products or engage in similar normal business activities. Over the last several years, we have implemented, and weWe continue to implement, modificationsmodify and undertake upgrades to such systems, including changes to legacy systems, replacing legacy systems with successor systems with new functionality, and acquiring new systems with new functionality. These types of activities subject us to inherent costs and risks associated with replacing and changing these systems, including impairment of our ability to fulfill customer orders, potential disruption of our internal control structure,

Privacy protection is increasingly demanding, and we may be exposed to risks and costs associated with security breaches, data loss, credit card fraud and identity theft that could cause us to incur unexpected expenses and loss of revenue, suffer reputational harm with our customers, as well as other risks.

The protection of customer, employee, vendor, franchisee and other business data is critical to us. We and our franchisees receive confidential customer data, including payment card and personally identifiable information, in the normal course of customer transactions. In order for our sales channel to function, we and other parties involved in processing customer transactions must be able to transmit confidential information, including credit card information, securely over public networks. While we have taken significant steps to protect customer and confidential information, the intentional or negligent actions of employees, business associates or third parties may undermine our security measures and result in unauthorized parties obtaining access to our data systems and misappropriating confidential data. There can be no assurance that advances in computer capabilities, new discoveries in the field of cryptography or other developments will prevent a compromise of our customer transaction processing capabilities and personal data. Because the techniques used to obtain unauthorized access to, disable, degrade, or sabotage systems change frequently and often are not recognized until launched against a target, we may be unable to anticipate these techniques or to implement adequate preventative measures. Any compromise of our data security could result in a violation of applicable privacy and other laws or standards, significant legal and financial exposure beyond the scope or limits of our insurance coverage, interruption of our operations, increased operating costs associated with remediation, equipment acquisitions or disposal, added personnel, and a loss of confidence in our security measures, which could harm our business or investor confidence. Any security breach involving the misappropriation, loss or other unauthorized disclosure of sensitive or confidential information could attract a substantial amount of media attention, damage our reputation, expose us to risk of litigation and material liability, disrupt our operations and harm our business.

Federal, state, provincial and international laws and regulations govern the collection, retention, sharing and security of data that we receive from and about our employees, customers, vendors and franchisees. The regulatory environment surrounding information security and privacy has been increasingly demanding in recent years, including General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the European Union, and the recent implementation of the California Consumer Privacy Act, and may see the imposition of new and additional requirements by states and the federal government as well as foreign jurisdictions in which we do business. Compliance with these laws and regulations may result in cost increases related to the development of new processes to meet these requirements by us and our franchisees.franchisees, which may negatively impact our overall financial performance.

Economic, political and other risks associated with our international operations could adversely affect our revenues and international growth prospects.

As of December 31, 2018,2019, we had 217175 company-owned Canadian stores, 11 company-owned The Health Store stores located in Ireland, 5 company-owned stores located in China, and 1,9411,904 international franchise locations in approximately 50 international countries (including distribution centers where retail sales are made).

As part of our business strategy, weWe intend to expand our international presence as part of our business strategy, including through the expansion of franchise locations. Our international operations are subject to a number of risks inherent to operating in foreign countries, and any expansion of our international operations will increaseamplify the effects of these risks. These risks, which include, among others:

Any of these risks could have a material adverse effect on our international operations and our growth strategy.

Additionally, if the opportunity arises, we may expand our operations into new and high-growth international markets. However, there is no assurance that we will expand our operations in such markets in our desired time frame. To expand our operations into new international markets, we may enter into business combination transactions, make acquisitions or enter into strategic partnerships, joint ventures or alliances, any of which may be material. We may enter into these transactions to acquire other businesses or products to expand our products or take advantage of new developments and potential changes in the industry. Our lack of experience operating in new international markets and our lack of familiarity with local economic, political and regulatory systems could prevent us from achieving the results that we expect on our anticipated time frame or at all. If we are unsuccessful in expanding into new or high-growth international markets, it could adversely affect our operating results and financial condition.

Our current debt profileAdditionally, our business is increasingly exposed to operational risks in China. These include, among others, changes in economic conditions (including consumer spending, unemployment levels and obligations under our debt instrumentswage and commodity inflation), consumer preferences, the regulatory environment, and tax laws and regulations, as well as increased media scrutiny, fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, increased restrictions or tariffs on imported supplies as a result of trade disputes and increased competition. Any significant or prolonged deterioration in U.S.-China relations could adversely affect our resultsoperations in China if Chinese consumers reduce the frequency of operations and financial condition and otherwise adverselytheir purchases of our products. Chinese law regulates our business conducted within China. In addition, if we are unable to enforce our intellectual property or contract rights in China, it could result in an interruption in the operation of our brands, which could negatively impact our operating incomefinancial results. If our business is harmed or development of our Chinese operations is slowed in China due to any of these factors, it could negatively impact our overall financial results or our growth prospects. For example, we are assessing the potential impact of the coronavirus outbreak that originated in China. The outbreak could substantially interfere with general commercial activity related to, among other things, our supply chain, logistics providers and growth prospects.

Substantially all of our retail stores are leased, including stores that we lease and sublease to franchisees in the United States. We are subject to various risks associated with our current and future real estate leases. Our costs could increase because of changes in the real estate markets and supply or demand for real estate sites. We generally cannot cancel our leases, so if we decide to close or relocate a location (or a franchisee fails), we may nonetheless be committed to perform our obligations under the applicable lease including paying the base rent for the remaining lease term. As each lease expires, we may fail to negotiate renewals, either on commercially acceptable terms or any terms at all and may not be able to find replacement locations that will provide for the same success as current store locations.

Our sales may decline significantly if we misjudge the market for our new products, which may result in significant inventory markdowns and lower margins, missed opportunities for other products, or inventory write-downs, and could have a negative impact on our reputation and profitability.

A significant disruption to our distribution network, inventory management system, or to the timely receipt of inventory could adversely impact sales and operations or increase our transportation costs, which would decrease our profits.

We rely on our ability to replenish depleted inventory in our stores through deliveries to our distribution centers from vendors and then from the distribution centers or direct ship vendors to our stores by various means of transportation, including shipments by sea and truck. Unexpected delays in those deliveries or increases in transportation costs (including through increased fuel costs) could significantly decrease our ability to make sales and earn profits. In addition, labor shortages in the transportation industry or long-term disruptions to the national and international transportation infrastructure that lead to delays or interruptions of deliveries could negatively affect our business. Further, we may not be able to maintain our existing distribution centers if the cost of the facilities increase or the location of a facility is no longer desirable. In those cases, we may not be able to locate suitable alternative sites or modify or enter into new leases on acceptable terms, which would force us to rely more heavily on our store network, third-party operated fulfillment centers and vendors to help meet our fulfillment needs. An inability to optimize our distribution and fulfillment network, including the expiration of a lease or an unexpected lease termination at one of our facilities (without timely replacement of the applicable facility) or serious disruptions (including natural disasters) at any of these facilities might impair our ability to adequately deliver products to our stores, franchisees and customers, process returns of products to vendors, increase costs associated with shipping and delivery, damage a material portion of our inventory, or otherwise negatively affect our operations, sales, profitability, and reputation.

We must maintain sufficient inventory levels to operate our business successfully. However, we also must guard against accumulating excess inventory. If we fail to anticipate accurately either the market for the merchandise in our stores or our customers’ purchasing habits, we may be forced to rely on markdowns or promotional sales to dispose of excess or slow moving inventory, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

A substantial amount of our revenue is generated from our franchisees, and our revenues could decrease significantly if our franchisees do not conduct their operations profitably or if we fail to attract new franchisees.

Our franchise operations generated approximately 20% and 18%, respectively, of our consolidated revenues in each of the years ended December 31, 20182019 and 2017.2018. Our revenues from franchise stores depend on the franchisees' ability to operate their stores profitably and adhere to our franchise standards. The closing of franchise stores or the failure of franchisees to comply with our policies could adversely affect our reputation and could reduce the amount of our franchise revenues. These factors could have a material adverse effect on our revenues and operating income.

If we are unable to attract new franchisees or to convince existing franchisees to open additional stores, any growth in royalties from franchise stores will depend solely upon increases in revenues at existing franchise stores. In addition, our ability to open additional franchise locations is limited by the territorial restrictions in our existing franchise agreements as well as our ability to identify additional markets in the United States and other countries. If we are unable to open additional franchise locations, we will have to sustain additional growth internally by attracting new and repeat customers to our existing locations. See “Recent developments related to the global outbreak of the novel strain of the coronavirus known as “COVID-19.”

We or our vendors may incur material product liability claims, or experience product recalls, which could increase our costs and adversely affect our sales and margin, reputation, revenues and operating income.

As a retailer, distributor and historical manufacturer of products designed for human consumption, we are subject to product liability claims if the use of our products is alleged to have resulted in injury. OurThe products that we sell consist of vitamins, minerals, herbs and other ingredients that are classified as foods or dietary supplements and are not subject to pre-market regulatory approval in the United States. OurThe products that we sell could contain contaminated substances, and some of ourthe products we sell contain ingredients that do not have long histories of human consumption. Previously unknown adverse reactions resulting from human consumption of these ingredients could occur.

In addition, third-party manufacturers produce many of the products we sell. We rely on these manufacturers to ensure the integrity of their ingredients and formulations. As a distributor of products manufactured by third parties, we may also be liable for various product liability claims for products we do not manufacture. Our ultimate liability for these products that are

We have been and may be subject to various product liability claims, including, among others, that our products include inadequate instructions for use or inadequate warnings concerning possible side effects and interactions with other substances. See Item 3, "Legal Proceedings." Even with adequate insurance and indemnification, product liability claims could significantly damage our reputation and consumer confidence in our products, regardless of the merits or outcomes of such claims. Our litigation expenses could increase as well, which also could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations even if a product liability claim is unsuccessful or is not fully pursued.

In addition, we may be subject to product recalls, withdrawals or seizures if any of the products we formulate, manufacture or sell are believed to cause injury or illness or if we are alleged to have violated governmental regulations in the manufacturing, labeling, promotion, sale or distribution of such products. A significant recall, withdrawal or seizure of any of the products we manufacture or sell may require significant management attention, would likely result in substantial and unexpected costs and may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations. Furthermore, a recall, withdrawal or seizure of any of ourthe products that we sell may adversely affect consumer confidence in our brands and thus decrease consumer demand for oursuch products.

In the past, due to frequently changing consumer preferences in the dietary supplement space, we have offset losses related to recalls and removals with reformulated or alternative products; however, there can be no assurance that we would be able to offset all or any portion of losses related to any future removal or recall. As a result of the indeterminable level of product substitution and reformulated product sales, we cannot reliably determine the potential impact of any such recall or removal on our business, financial condition or results of operation.

An increase in the price and shortage of supply of key raw materials could adversely affect our business.

Our products are composed of certain key raw materials. If the prices of these raw materials were to increase significantly, our costs to manufacture the product could increase, the prices our contract manufacturers and third-party manufacturers charge us for our GNC-branded products and third-party products could increase significantly and we may not be able to pass on such increases to our customers. Additionally, in the event any of our, or our contract manufacturer’s, third-party suppliers or vendors become unable or unwilling to continue to provide raw materials in the required volumes and quality levels or in a timely manner, we, or our contract manufacturers, would be required to identify and obtain acceptable replacement supply sources. If we, or they, are unable to identify and obtain alternative supply sources in a timely manner or at all, our business could be adversely affected. A significant increase in the price of raw materials that cannot be passed on to customers could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. Events such as COVID-19, the threat of political or social unrest, or the perceived threat thereof, may also have a significant impact on raw material prices and transportation costs for our products. In addition, the interruption in supply of certain key raw materials essential to the manufacturing of our products may have an adverse impact on our suppliers' ability to provide us with the necessary products needed to maintain our customer relationships and an adequate level of sales. See “Recent developments related to the global outbreak of the novel strain of the coronavirus known as “COVID-19.”

General economic conditions, including a prolonged weakness in the economy,macroeconomic downturn, may negatively affect consumer purchases, which could adversely affect our sales and the sales of our business partners, as well as our ability to access credit on terms previously obtained.

Our results, and those of our business partners to whom we sell, are dependent on a number of factors impacting consumer spending, including general economic and business conditions; consumer confidence; wages and employment levels; the housing market; consumer debt levels; availability of consumer credit; credit and interest rates; fuel and energy costs; energy shortages; taxes; general political conditions, both domestic and abroad; and the level of customer traffic within department stores, malls and other shopping and selling environments. Consumer product purchases, including purchases of our products, may decline during recessionary periods. Further, historically, credit markets and the financial services industry have experienced disruption

Based on the number of shares of our common stock outstanding as of December 31, 2018, plus the additional Convertible Preferred Stock subsequently issued to Harbin,2019, the shares of Convertible Preferred Stock owned by Harbin plus accumulated and unpaid dividends on such shares represent approximately 40.1%41% of the voting rights of our common stock, on an as-converted basis, so Harbin will have the ability to significantly influence the outcome of any matter submitted for the vote of our stockholders. Pursuant to the Stockholders Agreement between the Company and Harbin, Harbin has the right to designate up to five directors (each an “Investor Designee”) to the Board.Board, at least two of whom must be Independent Investor Designees. The number of Investor Designees may be adjusted from time to time, not to exceed five, in accordance with the terms of the Stockholders Agreement, to equal Harbin or its assigns’ proportionate ownership of the Company, rounded up to the nearest whole number of directors. When Harbin’s ownership of the Company falls below 15% of the outstanding common stock on as-converted basis, Harbin will no longer have the right to designate directors. Each of the Investor Designees is required to be reasonably satisfactory to the Company’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Harbin and its affiliates may have interests that diverge from, or even conflict with, those of our other stockholders. For example, Harbin and its affiliates may have an interest in directly or indirectly pursuing acquisitions, divestitures, financings or other transactions that, in their judgment, could enhance their other equity investments, even though such transactions might involve risks to us.

Our senior executives are instrumental in setting our strategic direction, operating our business, identifying, recruiting and training key personnel, identifying opportunities and arranging necessary financing. In addition, other key employees below the executive level, who are skilled professionals with deep knowledge of our business, are critical to the execution and success of our strategy. Our success also depends on the continued contributions of our store and field associates. We must attract, train and retain a large and growing number of qualified associates.

Losing the services of any of these groups of individuals could adversely affect our business and we may be unable to identify candidates of sufficient experience and capabilities in a timely fashion or at all, which could negatively impact our business and operations. Further, our ability to control labor and benefit costs is subject to numerous external factors, including regulatory changes, prevailing wage rates, and healthcare and other insurance costs. We compete with other retail and non-retail businesses for these store and field associates and invest significant resources in training and motivating them. There is no assurance that we will be able to attract or retain qualified store and field associates in the future, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We are not insured for a significant portion of our claims exposure, which could materially and adversely affect our operating income and profitability.

We have procured insurance independently for the following areas: (1) general liability; (2) product liability; (3) directors and officers liability; (4) network security and privacy liability; (5) property losses; (6) workers' compensation; (7) employment practice; and (8) various other areas. In addition, although we believe that we will continue to be able to obtain insurance in these areas in the future, because of increased selectivity by insurance providers, we may only be able to obtain such insurance at increased rates and/or with reduced coverage levels. Furthermore, we are self-insured for other areas, including: (1) physical

Our franchisees are independent operators and we have limited influence over their activities, including their implementation of strategic marketing and advertising programs.

Our revenues substantially depend upon our franchisees' sales volumes, profitability and financial viability. The support of our franchisees is critical for the success of our marketing programs and other strategic initiatives we seek to undertake, and the successful execution of these initiatives will depend on our ability to maintain alignment with our franchisees. However, our franchisees are independent operators and we cannot control many factors that impact the profitability of their stores. Pursuant to the franchise agreements, we can, among other things, mandate signage, equipment and hours of operation, establish operating procedures and approve suppliers, distributors and products, as well as certain strategic initiatives. However, the quality of franchise store operations may be diminished by any number of factors beyond our control, and we need the active support of our franchisees if the implementation of our strategic initiatives is to be successful. Consequently, franchisees may not successfully operate stores in a manner consistent with our standards and requirements or standards set by federal, state and local governmental laws and regulations. In addition, franchisees may not hire and train qualified managers and other personnel. Our efforts to build alignment with franchisees may result in a delay in the implementation of our marketing and advertising programs and other key initiatives. Although we believe that our current relationships with our franchisees are generally good, there can be no assurance that our franchisees will continue to support our marketing programs and strategic initiatives.

While we ultimately can take action to terminate franchisees that do not comply with the standards contained in our franchise agreements, any delay in identifying and addressing problems could harm our image and reputation, and our franchise revenues and results of operations could decline.

Additionally, we have limited influence over their ability to invest in other businesses or incur excessive indebtedness. In some cases, these franchisees have used the cash generated by their stores to expand their other businesses or to subsidize losses incurred by such businesses. Additionally, as independent operators, franchisees do not require our consent to incur indebtedness. Consequently, our franchisees have in the past, and may in the future, experience financial distress as a result of over leveraging. To the extent that our franchisees use the cash from their GNC stores to subsidize their other businesses or experience financial distress, due to over leverage or otherwise, it could negatively affect (1) our operating results as a result of delayed or reduced payments of royalties, advertising fund contributions and rents for properties we lease to them, (2) our future revenue, earnings

Our use of derivative instruments for hedging purposes may result in financial losses.

We may from time to time utilize derivative instruments to manage our exposure to fluctuations in fuel and certain other commodity prices, interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates. We could recognize losses on these contracts or fail to recognize the benefits intended by these contracts as a result of volatility in the market values of the underlying commodities or to the extent that a counterparty fails to perform. In the absence of actively-quoted market prices and pricing information from external sources, the valuation of these instruments involves judgment or use of estimates. Furthermore, changes in the value of derivatives designated under hedge accounting to the extent not fully offset by changes in the value of the hedged transaction can result in ineffectiveness losses that may have an adverse effect on our results of operations.

We evaluate goodwill and our indefinite-lived brand intangible asset for impairment on at least an annual basis. We evaluate property and equipment and definite-lived intangible assets for recoverability when indicators of impairment exist. We will recognize an impairment charge if: our indefinite-lived brand intangible asset has a carrying value that exceeds its estimated fair value; our goodwill has a carrying value for an applicable reporting unit that exceeds its fair value; or our property and equipment and definite-lived intangible assets have estimated future undiscounted cash flows that are less than the applicable carrying values. In assessing fair value, we rely primarily on a discounted cash flow analysis, as well as other generally accepted valuation methodologies. These analyses rely on the judgments and estimates of management, which involve inherent uncertainties. Impairment losses are significantly affected by estimates of future operating cash flows and estimates of fair value as well as the Company's total market capitalization. Estimates of future operating cash flows are identified from strategic long-term plans, which are based upon experience, knowledge, and expectations; however, these estimates can be affected by such factors as future operating results, future store profitability, future volumes, revenue and expense growth rates and asset disposal values and future economic conditions, all of which can be difficult to predict accurately. Any significant deterioration in macroeconomic conditions could affect the fair value of our long-lived assets and could result in future impairment charges, which would adversely affect our results of operations. For example, we recorded long-lived asset impairment charges of $38.2 million during the year ended December 31, 2018. While we currently believe that the fair values of our long-lived assets exceed their respective carrying values, changes in our estimates and assumptions regarding the future performance of our business could result in further impairment charges, which may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and overall financial condition.

Our holding company structure makes us dependent on our subsidiaries for our cash flow and subordinates the rights of our stockholders to the rights of creditors of our subsidiaries in the event of an insolvency or liquidation of any of our subsidiaries.

Holdings is a holding company and, accordingly, substantially all of our operations are conducted through its subsidiaries. Holdings' subsidiaries are separate and distinct legal entities. As a result, Holdings' cash flow depends upon the earnings of its subsidiaries. In addition, Holdings depends on the distribution of earnings, loans or other payments by its subsidiaries. Holdings' subsidiaries have no obligation to provide it with funds for its payment obligations. If there is an insolvency, liquidation or other reorganization of any of Holdings' subsidiaries, Holdings' stockholders will have no right to proceed against their assets. Creditors of those subsidiaries will be entitled to payment in full from the sale or other disposal of the assets of those subsidiaries before Holdings, as a stockholder, would be entitled to receive any distribution from that sale or disposal.

The price of our common stock historically has been volatile.

The market price for our common stock has varied during the twelve-month period ended December 31, 20182019 between a high of $5.26$3.34 on January 18, 2018November 11, 2019 and a low of $2.25$1.35 on December 21, 2018.June 6, 2019. Our stock price is likely to continue to be volatile and subject to significant price and volume fluctuations in response to market and other factors, including those additional factors discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” in this Annual Report, as well as: variations in our quarterly operating results from our expectations or those of securities analysts or other investors; revisions in analyst estimates or announcements by us or our competitors of significant acquisitions, strategic partnerships, joint ventures or capital commitments; or the sale of substantial amounts of our common stock.

Our current and historical effective tax rate may not be indicative of future rates.

As of December 31, 2018,2019, there were 8,3837,532 GNC store locations globally (including distribution centers where retail sales are made). In our U.S. and Canada segment substantially all of our stores are located on leased premises that typically range in size from 1,000 to 2,000 square feet. Most all of our domestic franchisees are located on premises GNC leases and then subleases to our respective franchisees. All of our franchise storeslocations in the international markets are owned or leased directly by our franchisees. No single store is material to our operations. The table below presents our consolidated stores by location in the U.S. and international countries as of December 31, 2018.2019.

In our Manufacturing / Wholesale segment, there are 2,1831,759 GNC franchise "store-within-a-store" locations under our strategic alliance with Rite Aid.

In addition to the above, we own and lease the following locations to support our store operations:

The proceedings associated with the majority of these personal injury cases, which generally seek indeterminate money damages, are in the early stages, and any liabilities that may arise from theseThese matters are not probable or reasonably estimable at this time.currently stayed pending final resolution.

We are contractually entitled to indemnification by our third-party vendor with regard to these matters, although our ability to obtain full recovery in respect of any such claims against us is dependent upon the creditworthiness of our vendor and/or its insurance coverage and the absence of any significant defenses available to its insurer.

Since March 31, 2011, our common stock has been traded on the NYSE under the symbol "GNC." As of March 7, 2019,20, 2020, there were 83,965,93984,608,976 shares of common stock outstanding, the closing price of our common stock was $2.46$0.46 per share, and we had 12 stockholders of record (including 7 holders of restricted stock).

(2) In August 2015, the Board approved a $500.0 million multi-year repurchase program in addition to the $500.0 million multi-year program approved in August 2014, bringing the aggregate share repurchase program to $1.0 billion of Holdings' common stock. As of December 31, 2018,2019, $197.8 million remains available for purchase under the program.

The selected consolidated financial data presented below as of December 31, 20182019 and 20172018 and for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 2017 and 20162017 are derived from our audited Consolidated Financial Statements and Footnotes included in this Annual Report. The selected consolidated financial data presented below as of December 31, 2017, 2016 2015 and 20142015 and for the years ended December 31, 20152016 and 20142015 are derived from our audited Consolidated Financial Statements and Footnotes not included in this Annual Report.

You should read the following discussion in conjunction with Item 6, "Selected Financial Data" and our audited Consolidated Financial Statements and the related notes included in Item 8, "Financial Statements and Supplementary Data." The discussion in this section contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. See Part I, Item 1A, "Risk Factors" in this Annual Report for a discussion of important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described or implied by the forward-looking statements contained herein.

We are a global health and wellness brand with a diversified, multi-channelomni-channel business. Our assortment of performance and nutritional supplements, vitamins, herbs and greens, health and beauty, food and drink and other general merchandise features innovative private-label products as well as nationally recognized third-party brands, some of which are exclusive to GNC. We derive our revenues principally from: product sales through our company-owned stores; the interneton-line primarily through our websites,website, GNC.com and prior to the sale of its assets on September 30, 2017, LuckyVitamin.com, as well as third-party websites; domestic and international franchise activities; and prior to the formation of the Manufacturing JV, sales of products manufactured in our facility to third parties. We sell products through a worldwide network of approximately 8,4007,500 locations operating under the GNC brand name.

We believe the competitive strengths that position us as a leader in the specialty nutritional supplement space include our: well-recognized brand; stable base of long-term customers; geographically diverse store base; proprietary product and innovation capabilities; and differentiated service model designed to enhance the customer experience.