LEVI STRAUSS & CO

Overview

From our California Gold Rush beginnings, we have grown into one of the world's largest brand-name apparel companies. A history of responsible business practices, rooted in our core values, has helped us build our brands and engender consumer trust around the world. Under our Levi's®, Dockers®, Signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™ and Denizen® brands, we design, market and sell – directly or through third parties and licensees – products that include jeans, casual and dress pants, tops, shorts, skirts, dresses, jackets, footwear, and related accessories for men, women and children around the world. Our newest brand, Beyond Yoga®, acquired in 2021, is a body positive, premium athleisure apparel brand focused on quality, fit and comfort for all shapes and sizes.

Our Levi's Brands business, which includes the Levi's, Signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™ and Denizen®brands, is presented in our financial statements under the caption of Levi's Brands and is defined geographically in three reportable segments: Americas, Europe and Asia. The Dockers® and Beyond Yoga® businesses are presented in our financial statements under the caption of Other Brands.

Our Global Reach

Our products are sold in more than 110 countries. We service our customers through our global infrastructure, developing, sourcing and marketing our products around the world. Although our brands are recognized as authentically “American”, we derived over half of our net revenues from outside the United States in fiscal year 2023.

Our products are sold in over 45,000 retail locations worldwide, including approximately 3,200 brand-dedicated stores and shop-in-shops. In the United States, chain retailers and department stores have traditionally been the primary distribution channels for our Levi's® and Dockers® products. Outside the United States, department stores, specialty retailers, franchised or other brand-dedicated stores and shop-in-shops have traditionally been our primary distribution channels. Levi's® and Dockers® products are also sold through our brand-dedicated company-operated retail stores and through our global digital business, which includes our company-operated e-commerce sites as well as the online businesses of our wholesale customers, including those of traditional wholesalers as well as pure-play (online-only) wholesalers. Beyond Yoga® products are sold in the United States primarily through specialty retailers, pure-play wholesalers, brand-dedicated company-operated retail stores and a company-operated brand dedicated e-commerce site. We distribute Signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™ and Denizen® brand products primarily through mass channel retailers in the Americas, including the e-commerce sites operated by some of our key wholesale customers and other pure-play customers.

We were founded in San Francisco, California in 1853 and were incorporated in Delaware in 1970. We conduct our operations outside the United States through foreign subsidiaries. Our primary corporate office is located at Levi's Plaza, 1155 Battery Street, San Francisco, California 94111, and our main telephone number is (415) 501-6000.

Our website –www.levistrauss.com – contains additional and detailed information about our history, our products and our commitments. Financial news and reports and related information about our company can be found athttp://investors.levistrauss.com.

We file or furnish electronically with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). We make copies of these reports available free of charge through our investor relations website as soon as reasonably practicable after we file or furnish them with the SEC. The SEC maintains a website at www.sec.gov that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding Levi Strauss and other issuers that file electronically with the SEC.

Information contained on or accessible through our websites is not incorporated into, and does not form a part of, this Annual Report or any other report or document we file with the SEC, and any references to our websites are intended to be inactive textual references only.

Our Business Strategies

We aspire to be the world's best apparel company, famous for our brands and values. Our business strategies are focused on our fundamental advantages and prioritize the most important areas that we believe will drive long-term success. We believe these strategies over the long term will set us up to deliver annual net revenue growth of approximately 6-8%, reaching approximately $9 billion to $10 billion in total company net revenue, and to grow Adjusted EBIT margins to approximately 15% over the long term, all while living our mission of delivering profits through principles.

The following three “where to play” choices serve as our strategic framework for what we intend to achieve:

•Brand Led: Our brands are authentic, original and loved by consumers the world over. We plan to continue elevating and strengthening all of our brands through integrating product, design, positioning, marketing and consumer experience to ensure they are the “Center of Culture”. We will drive growth in women's and tops through a sharpened focus on denim dressing and denim lifestyle, building end-to-end capability in key lifestyle apparel categories beyond jeans. We believe these actions will strengthen loyalty with our existing fans while also creating new lifelong ones.

•DTC First: We believe our direct-to-consumer (“DTC”) channels allow us to showcase the fullest expression of our brands and drive category diversification while also enhancing connections with the consumer. As a result, we plan to continue building a harmonized omni-channel marketplace where each channel reinforces the other, driving consumer engagement and increasing their satisfaction. This requires increased investments in our stores, expanding our brick-and-mortar retail footprint with a focus on mainline expansion, technology to win with the consumer and our people, and enhancing our in-store, ecommerce and omni-channel capabilities to further elevate the shopping experience. In addition to our DTC initiatives, we will also focus on our wholesale channel, partnering with customers that are focused on delivering high quality results and service to our consumers, while also elevating our Levi’s®brand.

•Further Diversify our Portfolio: We plan to accelerate growth in international markets, with a focus on high-growth markets. We plan to achieve growth expectations in under-penetrated parts of our business such as tops and women's, expanding our addressable market.

Our success will be driven not just by what we do, but how we do it. Our three strategic choices are supported by a foundation of the following three “how to win” choices:

•Digital Transformation: Our vision for enterprise-wide digital transformation is to create a superior consumer experience and drive profitability through digital technology, data and artificial intelligence ("AI"), and new ways of working. We have been investing, and plan to continue to invest in key omni-channel capabilities, digital tools across the business and upgrading our enterprise resource planning system, all of which create a more simplified work environment. We believe these efforts will contribute towards growing our digital footprint and achieving higher operating margins.

•Operational Excellence: We will continue to look for ways to embrace agility, reduce complexity and further streamline our ways of working. This includes taking steps to improve our speed to market calendar with a focus on servicing consumer demand globally and creating fewer touch points as merchandise goes to market. We believe these actions will drive efficiencies, reduce lead times and allow us to respond quickly to changes in consumer demand while also improving our inventory turns, working capital and cash conversion cycle.

•Financial Discipline: We plan to continue to manage our costs aggressively so that we can invest in the areas that will drive growth and help us deliver Adjusted EBIT margins of 15% over the long term. As we grow net revenues and gross margins, we plan to drive leverage on our investments, improve our structural economics across channels, and deliver Returns on invested capital of greater than 23% over the long term.

Our ability to deliver our long term goals assumes no significant worsening of inflationary pressures, supply chain disruptions, foreign currency impacts and the impact of geopolitical conflict. If any of these impacts change significantly, the timing of when we achieve our long term goals will be affected.

We define Return on invested capital as the trailing four quarters of Adjusted net income before interest and after taxes divided by the average trailing five quarters of total invested capital. We define total invested capital as total debt plus shareholders' equity less cash and short-term investments. For more information on our calculation of Adjusted EBIT margin and Adjusted net income, see “Item 7 – Management’s Discussion and Analysis – Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”

Our Brands and Products

We offer a broad range of products including jeans, casual and dress pants, activewear, tops, shorts, skirts, dresses, jackets, footwear and related accessories. Across all of our brands, pants – including jeans, casual pants, dress pants and activewear – represented 68%, 67% and 67% of our total units sold in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively. Tops – including shirts, sweaters, jackets, dresses and jumpsuits – represented 26%, 26% and 25% of our total units sold in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively. The remainder of our products are footwear and accessories. Men's products generated 64%, 65% and 65% of our net revenues in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively. Women's products generated 34%, 33% and 33% of our net revenues in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively. The remainder of our products are non-gendered. Products other than denim bottoms – which include tops, footwear and accessories and pants excluding jeans – represented 39%, 38%, and 37% of our net revenues in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

Levi's® Brand

The Levi's® brand epitomizes classic, authentic American style and effortless cool. Levi's® is an authentic and original lifestyle brand and the #1 brand globally in jeanswear (measured by total retail sales). Since their inception in 1873, Levi's® jeans have become one of the most recognizable garments in the world – reflecting the aspirations and earning the loyalty of people for generations. Consumers around the world instantly recognize the distinctive traits of Levi's® jeans, including the Arcuate Stitching Design and the Red Tab Device. The Levi's® brand continues to evolve to meet the tastes of today's consumers, driven by its distinctive pioneering and innovative spirit. Our range of leading jeanswear, other apparel items and accessories for men, women and children is available in more than 110 countries, allowing individuals around the world to express their personal style.

The Levi's® brand encompasses a range of products. Levi's® Red Tab™ products are the foundation of the brand, consisting of a wide spectrum of jeans and jeanswear offered in a variety of fits, fabrics, finishes, styles and price points intended to appeal to a broad spectrum of consumers. The line includes the iconic 501® jean, the original and best-selling five-pocket jean of all time. In 2023, we celebrated the 150 th anniversary of the 501® jean. The line also incorporates a full range of jeanswear fits and styles designed specifically for women. Sales of Red Tab™ products represented the majority of our Levi's® brand net revenues globally in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021. We offer premium products around the world under the Levi's® brand, including a range of premium pants, tops, shorts, skirts, jackets, footwear, and related accessories.

Our Levi's® brand products accounted for 87% of our net revenues in each of the fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively, approximately half of which were generated in our Americas segment in each of these years.

Signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™ and Denizen® Brands

In addition to our Levi's® brand, we offer the Signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™ and Denizen® brands, which are focused on value-conscious consumers who seek quality craftsmanship and great fit and style at affordable prices. We offer denim jeans, casual pants, tops and jackets in a variety of fits, fabrics and finishes for men, women and children under the Signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™ brand through the mass retail channel primarily in the United States and Canada. The Signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™ was introduced in 2003. The Denizen® brand was introduced in the United States starting in 2011, and includes a variety of jeans to complement active lifestyles and to empower consumers to express their aspirations, individuality and attitudes. The Denizen® brand is sold through wholesale accounts primarily within the United States.

Our Signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™ and Denizen® brand products collectively accounted for 5%, 6% and 8% of our net revenues in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

Dockers® Brand

Founded in 1986, the Dockers® brand sparked a revolution in the way millions of men dressed around the world, shifting from the standard issue suit to a more casual look. Today, the Dockers® brand continues to be the authority on khaki and offers a wide range of apparel and accessories, for men and women, with no compromises in quality – always superior comfort and versatile style. While the brand remains focused on the classic khaki style and its founding principles, Dockers® has evolved its offerings to include more variety and appeal to a broader set of shoppers in both their professional and personal lives. There are approximately 100 company-operated retail stores – predominately in the south of Europe and Latin America. Of the 36 new stores opened in fiscal year 2023, two are in the U.S. and the remaining international.

Our Dockers® brand products accounted for 5% of our net revenues in each of the fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021 and are sold in more than 50 countries.

Beyond Yoga® Brand

Our Beyond Yoga® brand is a body positive, premium athleisure apparel brand focused on quality, fit and comfort for all shapes and sizes. Beyond Yoga® was founded in 2005 to promote body positivity, honoring and celebrating every body from XXS-4X. The brand produces clothing that fosters well-being in luxuriously soft, no-hassle care fabrics for styles that keep up with the toughest workouts and beyond. Beyond Yoga® is about more than just comfort and performance; the brand has created an inclusive community centered on body positivity, the celebration of diversity, and giving back to causes in which it believes. The company is female-founded, female-run and nearly 90% female-led. The brand has six total stores with a majority of openings happening within 2023, including its first door outside of California located in Chicago. We acquired the Beyond Yoga® brand in the fourth quarter of 2021.

Our Beyond Yoga® brand products accounted for 2% of our net revenues in both fiscal year 2023 and fiscal year 2022.

Licensing

The appeal of our brands across consumer groups and our global reach enable us to license our Levi's® and Dockers® trademarks for a variety of product categories in multiple markets globally, including footwear, belts, wallets, bags, outerwear, sweaters, dress shirts, kidswear, sleepwear and hosiery. Licensing accounted for 1%, 1% and 2% of our total net revenues in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

We enter into licensing agreements with our licensees covering royalty payments, product design and manufacturing standards, marketing and sale of licensed products, and protection of our trademarks.

Sales, Distribution and Customers

We recognize wholesale revenue from sales of our products through third-party retailers such as department stores, specialty retailers, third-party e-commerce sites and franchise locations dedicated to our brands. We also sell our products directly to consumers through a variety of formats, including our own company-operated mainline and outlet stores, company-operated e-commerce sites and select shop-in-shops located in department stores and other third-party retail locations.

We seek to make our products available where consumers shop, providing both in-store and online shopping experiences, as well as offering products that are appropriately tailored for our wholesale customers and their retail consumers. We take care to select wholesale customers and distributors that we believe will represent our brands in a manner consistent with our values and growth strategies. Sales to our top ten wholesale customers totaled 28%, 31% and 32% of our net revenues in fiscal years 2023, 2022, and 2021, respectively. No single customer represented 10% or more of our net revenues in any of these years.

We also sell our products directly to consumers through shop-in-shops located in certain of our wholesale customers’ and other third-party retail locations. Typically, this format is conducted on a concession basis, whereby the inventory continues to be owned by us (not the retailer) until ultimate sale to the end consumer. The salespeople involved in these transactions are generally our employees and not those of the retailer. We recognize revenue in the amount of the sale to the end consumer, while paying our partners a commission. We operated approximately 550 of these shop-in-shops as of November 26, 2023.

Dedicated Stores and E-commerce Sites

We believe retail stores dedicated to our brands are important for the growth, visibility, availability and commercial success of our brands, and they are an increasingly important part of our “DTC First” strategy. Our brand-dedicated stores are either operated by us or by independent third parties such as franchisees. In addition to the dedicated stores, we maintain brand-dedicated e-commerce sites that sell products directly to consumers.

Company-operated brick-and-mortar retail stores. Our company-operated retail stores, comprising both mainline and outlet stores, generated 29%, 26% and 25% of our net revenues in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively. As of November 26, 2023, we had 1,172 company-operated stores located in 37 countries. The majority of the stores are dedicated to the Levi's® brand, with 412 stores in the Americas, 291 stores in Europe, and 366 stores in Asia. We had 97 Dockers® brand-dedicated stores globally and we opened six Beyond Yoga® stores during the year. During 2023, we added 152 company-operated stores and closed 69 stores.

Franchised and other stores. Franchised, licensed, or other forms of brand-dedicated stores operated by independent third parties sell Levi's® and Dockers® products in markets outside the United States. There were approximately 1,200 of these stores as of November 26, 2023, and they are a key element of our international distribution. In addition to these stores, we consider our network of brand-dedicated shop-in-shops, which are located within department stores and may be either operated directly by us or third parties, to be an important component of our retail distribution in international markets. Outside the United States, approximately 120 of these shop-in-shops were operated by third parties as of November 26, 2023.

E-commerce sites. We maintain brand-dedicated e-commerce sites, includingwww.levi.com, www.dockers.com andwww.beyondyoga.com, that sell products directly to consumers across multiple markets around the world. These sites represented 9%, 7% and 8% of total net revenues in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively; and 20%, 19% and 21% of DTC channel net revenues in fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

Information contained on or accessible through our websites is not incorporated into, and does not form a part of, this Annual Report or any other report or document we file with the SEC, and any references to our websites are intended to be inactive textual references only.

Seasonality of Sales

We typically achieve our largest quarterly revenues in the fourth quarter. In fiscal year 2023, our net revenues in the first, second, third and fourth quarters represented 27%, 22%, 24% and 27%, respectively, of our total net revenues for the year. In fiscal year 2022, our net revenues in the first, second, third and fourth quarters represented 26%, 24%, 24% and 26%, respectively, of our total net revenues for the year.

We typically achieve a significant amount of revenues from our DTC channel on the Friday following Thanksgiving Day, which is commonly referred to as Black Friday. Due to the timing of our fiscal year end, a particular fiscal year might include one, two or no Black Fridays, which could impact our net revenues for the fiscal year. Fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021 each included one Black Friday.

We use a 52- or 53- week fiscal year, with each fiscal year ending on the Sunday that is closest to November 30 of that year. Certain of our foreign subsidiaries have fiscal years ending November 30. Each fiscal year generally consists of four 13-week quarters, with each quarter ending on the Sunday that is closest to the last day of the month of that quarter. Fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021 were 52-week years, ending on November 26, 2023, November 27, 2022 and November 28, 2021, respectively. Each quarter of fiscal years 2023, 2022 and 2021 consisted of 13 weeks. The fourth quarter of 2024 will consist of 14 weeks and end on December 1, 2024.

The level of our working capital reflects the seasonality of our business and varies throughout the year to support our seasonal and holiday revenue patterns as well as business trends.

Effects of Inflation

Inflationary pressures negatively impacted our net revenues, operating margins and net income in fiscal years 2022 and 2023, including increased costs of labor, products, and beginning in July 2022, a slowdown in consumer demand for our products. We implemented price increases on many of our products in the latter half of 2022 to mitigate the effect of higher costs. If these inflationary pressures continue, our revenue, operating margins and net income will be impacted in 2024. For more information regarding risks we face with respect to inflation, see “Item 1A – Risk Factors”.

Marketing and Promotion

Our marketing is rooted in globally consistent brand messages that reflect the unique attributes of our brands, including the Levi's® brand as the authentic and original jeanswear brand and Dockers® brand as the definitive khaki. We continually strengthen our portfolio of brands and our positioning at the center of popular culture with a diverse mix of marketing initiatives to drive consumer demand, such as through social media and digital and mobile outlets, sponsorships, product placement in leading fashion magazines and with celebrities, television and radio advertisements, personal sponsorships and endorsements, and selective collaborations with key influencers, integrating ourselves with significant cultural events, and on-the-ground efforts such as street-level events and similar targeted “viral” marketing activities. We also connect with sport and music fans across the world, including through the naming rights to the stadium for the San Francisco 49ers, which we secured in 2013.

We are focused on strengthening our brands globally. Through product and communications, our plan is to drive impact and engage the hearts and minds of our consumers while connecting directly and delivering the best experience possible through our DTC channel. In 2023, our Levi’s mobile app continued to achieve increased engagement with monthly active users up throughout the year and we deepened our direct, personalized relationships with our consumers through the expansion of our global loyalty programs. In 2023, we celebrated the 150 th anniversary of the 501® jean anchored in a brand campaign called The Greatest Story Ever Worn. The campaign included a Levi’s® 501® Experience, an immersive pop-up in San Francisco, where fans could see everything from the oldest pair of Levi’s® jeans on display to denim worn by pop culture icons, including the Rolling Stones, Lauryn Hill, Leon Bridges, Steve Jobs and Harvey Milk. Throughout the year, we delivered product freshness and innovation to the 501® family, from limited-edition product drops like the reimagined 1873 “XX Waist Overalls” (the Levi’s® brand’s first blue jeans) to mainline product newness with the Men’s 501® ‘54 and the Women’s 501® ‘81 to new innovations like our Plant-Based 501®, a hemp-cotton blend Selvedge 501® and a Circular 501® jean.

Our marketing organization includes both global and commercial marketing teams. Our global marketing team is responsible for developing a toolkit of marketing assets and brand guidelines to be applied across all marketing activities, including media, engagement, brand environment and in-store activation. Our commercial marketing teams adapt global tools for local relevance and execute marketing strategies within the markets where we operate.

We also use our websites, includingwww.levi.com, www.dockers.com, and www.beyondyoga.com in relevant markets to enhance consumer understanding of our brands and help consumers find and buy our products. Information contained on, or that can be accessed through, these websites is not intended to be incorporated by reference into this Annual Report and references to our website addressed in this Annual Report are inactive textual references only.

Sourcing and Logistics

Organization. Our global sourcing and logistics organizations are responsible for taking a product from the design concept stage through production to delivery to our customers. Our objective is to leverage our global scale to achieve product development and sourcing efficiencies and reduce total product and distribution costs while maintaining our focus on product quality, local service levels and working capital management. Our presence in more than 110 countries enables us to leverage our global scale for product development and sourcing while using our local expertise to tailor products and retail experiences to individual markets.

Product procurement. We source nearly all of our products through independent contract manufacturers. We may have minimum inventory purchase commitments, including fabric commitments, with suppliers that secure a portion of material needs for future seasons. The remainder is sourced from our company-operated manufacturing and finishing plants. See "Item 2 – Properties" for more information about these manufacturing facilities.

Sources and availability of raw materials. The principal fibers used in the majority of our products include cotton, synthetics and man-made cellulosics that are used to produce fabrics of 100% composition or blends. The prices we pay our suppliers for our products are dependent in part on the market price for raw materials used to produce them, primarily cotton. The price and availability of cotton may fluctuate substantially, depending on a variety of factors, including the effects of inflation. Current price fluctuations impact the cost of our products in future seasons due to the lead time of our product development cycle. Fluctuations in product costs can cause a decrease in our profitability.

Sourcing locations. We use numerous independent contract manufacturers located throughout the world for the production and finishing of our garments. We conduct assessments of political, social, environmental, economic, trade, labor and intellectual property protection conditions in the countries in which we source our products before placing production in those countries and on an ongoing basis. We also monitor ongoing global trade regulations to optimize our supply chain networks in response to changes in tariffs or other trade policies around the world.

In fiscal year 2023, we sourced product from independent contract manufacturers located in approximately 32 countries around the world, with no more than 30% sourced from any single country, in line with our updated sourcing strategy for the post-COVID environment. We sourced products in North and South Asia, the Americas, including the United States, Europe and Africa.

Sourcing practices. Our sourcing practices include these elements:

•We require all third-party vendors, including licensees and their authorized subcontractors, who manufacture or finish products for us to contribute to our sustainability goals and to follow all established policies and guidelines. They must comply with our code of conduct relating to supplier working conditions as well as environmental, employment and sourcing practices.

•Our supplier code of conduct covers employment practices such as wages and benefits, working hours, health and safety, working age and discriminatory practices, environmental matters such as wastewater treatment and solid waste disposal, and ethical and legal conduct. We regularly evaluate and refine our code of conduct processes.

•We regularly assess manufacturing and finishing facilities against our supplier code of conduct through periodic on-site facility inspections and improvement activities, including use of independent monitors to supplement our internal staff. We integrate review and performance results into our sourcing decisions. We encourage collaboration among apparel companies in factory monitoring and improvement.

•We regularly disclose the names and locations of our vendors to provide transparency into our supply chain.

Logistics. We use company-operated and third-party distribution facilities to warehouse and ship products to our wholesale customers, retail stores and e-commerce customers. For more information, see “Item 2 – Properties”.

Distribution center activities include receiving finished goods from our contract manufacturers and plants, inspecting those products, preparing them for retail presentation, and shipping them to our customers, our e-commerce consumers, and to our own stores. Our distribution centers maintain a combination of replenishment and seasonal inventory. In certain locations around the globe, we have consolidated our distribution centers to service multiple countries.

Competition

The global apparel industry is highly competitive and fragmented. It is characterized by low barriers to entry, brands targeted at specific consumer segments, many regional and local competitors, and an increasing number of global competitors. Additionally, the company competes for consumers’ discretionary spend with businesses in other product and experiential categories such as technology, restaurants, travel and media content. Principal competitive factors include:

•anticipating and responding to changing consumer preferences and buying trends in a timely manner, and ensuring product availability at wholesale and DTC channels;

•developing high-quality, innovative products with relevant designs, fits, finishes, fabrics, style and performance features that meet consumer desires and trends;

•maintaining favorable and strong brand name recognition, loyalty and appeal through strong and effective marketing support and consumer intelligence in diverse market segments;

•identifying and securing desirable new retail locations and presenting products effectively at company-operated retail and franchised and other brand-dedicated stores;

•ensuring high-profile product placement at retailers;

•anticipating and responding to consumer expectations regarding e-commerce shopping and shipping;

•optimizing supply chain cost efficiencies and product development cycle lead times;

•withstanding prolonged periods of adverse economic conditions or business disruptions;

•adapting to changes in technology, including the successful utilization of data analytics, artificial intelligence and machine learning;

•sourcing sustainable and traceable raw materials at cost-effective prices;

•recruiting and retaining employees to operate our retail stores, distribution centers and various corporate functions;

•protecting our intellectual property;

•providing attractive, reliable, secure and user-friendly digital commerce sites;

•creating products at a range of price points that appeal to the consumers of both our wholesale customers and our dedicated retail stores and e-commerce sites situated in each of our geographic regions; and

•generating competitive economics for wholesale customers, including retailers, franchisees, and licensees.

We believe we compete favorably with respect to these factors.

We face competition from a broad range of competitors at the global and local levels in diverse channels across a wide range of retail price points, and some of our competitors are larger and have more resources in the markets in which we operate. Our primary competitors include vertically integrated specialty stores, jeanswear brands, khakiwear brands, athletic and activewear companies, retailers' private or exclusive labels, and certain e-commerce sites.

Government Regulations

Our business activities are global and are subject to various federal, state, local, and foreign laws, rules and regulations. For example, substantially all of our import operations are subject to complex trade and customs laws, regulations and tax requirements such as sanctions orders or tariffs set by governments through mutual agreements or unilateral actions. In addition, the countries in which our products are manufactured or imported may from time to time impose additional duties, tariffs or other restrictions on our imports or adversely modify existing restrictions. Changes in tax policy or trade regulations, or the imposition of new tariffs on imported products, could have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations. In addition, we are subject to changing regulatory restrictions and requirements, including in the areas of data privacy, sustainability and responses to climate change. Compliance with laws, rules and regulations has not had, and is not currently expected to have, a material effect on our capital expenditures, results of operations and competitive position. For more information on the potential impacts of government regulations affecting our business, see “Item 1A – Risk Factors”.

Intellectual Property

We have more than 6,200 trademark registrations and pending applications in approximately 180 jurisdictions worldwide, and we acquire rights in new trademarks according to business needs. Substantially all of our global trademarks are owned by Levi Strauss & Co. or its wholly-owned affiliates. We regard our trademarks as one of our most valuable assets and believe they have substantial value in the marketing of our products. The Levi's®, Dockers®, Beyond Yoga® and 501® trademarks, the Arcuate Stitching Design, the Tab Device, the Two Horse® Design, the Housemark and the Wings and Anchor Design are among our core trademarks.

We protect these trademarks by registering them with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and with governmental agencies in other countries, particularly where our products are manufactured or sold. We work vigorously to enforce and protect our trademark rights by engaging in regular market reviews, helping local law enforcement authorities detect and prosecute counterfeiters, issuing cease-and-desist letters against third parties infringing or denigrating our trademarks, opposing registration of infringing trademarks, and initiating litigation as necessary. We are currently pursuing nearly 350 infringement matters around the world. We also work with trade groups and industry participants seeking to strengthen laws relating to the protection of intellectual property rights in markets around the world.

As of November 26, 2023, we had 65 issued U.S. patents, 15 issued foreign patents and 48 U.S. patent applications pending. Our patents expire between 2025 and 2042. We also had 29 international and foreign patent applications pending. We will continually assess the ability to patent new intellectual property as we develop technologies that we believe are innovative, such as our F.L.X. technology.

History and Corporate Citizenship

Our story began in San Francisco, California in 1853 as a wholesale dry goods business. We invented the blue jean 20 years later. In 1873, we received a U.S. patent for “waist overalls” with metal rivets at points of strain. The first product line designated by the lot number “501” was created in 1890.

In the 19 th and early 20 th centuries, our work pants were worn primarily by cowboys, miners and other working men in the western United States. Then, in 1934, we introduced our first jeans for women, and after World War II, our jeans began to appeal to a wider market. By the 1960s, they had become a symbol of American culture, representing a unique blend of history and youth. We opened our export and international businesses in the 1950s and 1960s, respectively. The Dockers® brand helped drive “Casual Friday” in the 1990s and has been a cornerstone of casual menswear for more than 30 years.

Today, descendants of the family of Levi Strauss continue to be actively involved in our company. Our Class B common stock is primarily owned by these descendants and their relatives and trusts established for their behalf. In order to facilitate a forum for frequent, open and constructive dialogue between us and these stockholders, the family members have organized a family council, which engages with us on topics of mutual interest, such as our industry, governance, ownership and philanthropy. Management shares information and interacts with the family members, including the family council, in a manner consistent with all applicable laws and regulations.

Throughout this long history, we have upheld our strong belief that we can help shape society through civic engagement and community involvement, responsible labor and workplace practices, philanthropy, ethical conduct, environmental stewardship and transparency. We engage in a “profits through principles” business approach and constantly strive to set higher standards for ourselves and the industry. Our milestone initiatives over the years include: integrating our factories prior to the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; developing a comprehensive supplier code of conduct that requires safe and healthy working conditions before such codes of conduct became commonplace among multinational apparel companies; offering benefits to same-sex partners in the 1990s, long before most other companies; offering up to eight weeks of paid family leave to help ease the strain on U.S.-based employees caring for an immediate family member with a serious medical condition in 2020; and in 2023, expanding pregnancy leave benefits to provide 12 weeks of paid leave to both U.S. and Canada-based employees.

Environmental, Social and Governance and Human Capital

Environmental, Social and Governance

To advance our progress on environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) initiatives and ensure we meet stakeholder expectations for ESG commitments and performance, we hold ourselves accountable to a holistic sustainability strategy. The intent of our sustainability strategy is to be a leader in transparency and impact, to accelerate the circular economy ecosystem, and to increase collaboration in the apparel industry by inspiring employees, communities and value chain partners to join our journey toward an inclusive and regenerative industry in which all people are treated with dignity and respect.

In 2023, we released our 2022 sustainability goals and progress update report, which included updates and progress against our 16 people- and planet- first goals in areas that together demonstrate the scope and ambition of our work in this space and illustrate our commitment to bettering the world we all share. The goals include targets tied to various areas across our sustainability strategy and collectively reflect our guiding philosophy of profits through principles. Our sustainability strategy centers on three main pillars — climate, consumption, and community. Our climate pillar encompasses environmental impacts, including climate action, water stewardship and biodiversity; our consumption pillar encompasses circular economy, resale and upcycling initiatives, use of sustainable fibers, safer chemicals and waste and plastic reduction; and our community pillar encompasses social and societal impacts, including diversity, equity and inclusion, employee support and development, supply chain transparency, investing in our communities through advocacy and volunteering. Our aim is to continue fortifying each pillar, to deliver meaningful progress while evolving our efforts to ensure our business becomes more sustainable.

Human Capital Management

As of November 26, 2023, we employed approximately 19,100 people, approximately 9,500 of whom were located in the Americas, 4,500 of whom were located in Europe, and 5,100 of whom were located in Asia. As of such date, approximately 1,600 of our employees were associated with the manufacturing and procurement of our products, 10,200 worked in retail, including seasonal employees, 2,100 worked in distribution and 5,200 were other non-production employees. As of November 26, 2023, approximately 5,300 of our employees were represented by a labor union or covered by a collective bargaining agreement. We have not experienced any work stoppages, and we consider our relations with our employees to be good.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. We believe in living our values: originality, empathy, integrity and courage. This means we strive to create a workplace where everyone feels valued, empowered and welcomed to be their authentic selves. We are committed to building a workforce that better represents our consumers while ensuring that every employee feels a true sense of belonging and is as diverse as the communities we serve. This includes improving our representation in our corporate and leadership ranks, ensuring we are an inclusive culture and advocating externally in support of racial justice. In 2023, we launched our second annual diversity, equity and inclusion (“DE&I”) Impact Report. The report reflects our commitment to fully and transparently communicate our progress in making our company more diverse and inclusive. It includes details on our progress, including the hiring and retaining of talented professionals from underrepresented groups and our continued efforts to understand the identities, intersectionalities and experiences of our people across our corporate, retail, distribution centers and plants worldwide.

Pay Equity. To help fulfill our commitment to fair and equitable compensation, we conduct an independent pay equity audit every other year for our U.S. non-union population, with the most recent audit completed in 2022. We use the data to identify potential adjustments to be incorporated into our annual performance review process for different groups in the U.S. population, including corporate and retail employees as well as distribution center management. The study considered job level, performance, experience, and other factors such as promotions and location of jobs. Our audit confirmed that we do not have any systemic pay differences across gender and ethnicity. We are expanding our pay equity audits to include new markets. We’re also focused on eliminating bias and increasing transparency in pay practices and salary ranges and ensuring objectivity around compensation rewards.

Total Rewards. Our benefits are designed to help employees and their families stay healthy, meet their financial goals, protect their income and help them balance their work and personal lives. These benefits include health and wellness, paid time off, parental leave, employee assistance, competitive pay, career growth opportunities, paid volunteer time, product discounts, and a culture of recognition. Each year, the Compensation and Human Capital Committee conducts a review of our compensation and benefits programs to assess whether the programs are aligned with our business strategies, the competitive practices of our peer companies and our shareholders’ interests.