(1)   Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(o) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

(2)   Includes the offering price of shares of common stock that may be sold if the over-allotment option granted by the Registrant to the underwriters is exercised.

(3)   Calculated pursuant to Rule 457(o) based on an estimate of the proposed maximum aggregate offering price.

The Registrant hereby amends this Registration Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the Registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the Registration Statement shall become effective on such date as the Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.

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As used in this prospectus, unless the context otherwise requires, references to:

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"we," "us," "our" and "The Container Store" refer to the consolidated operations of The Container Store Group, Inc., and its consolidated subsidiaries;

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"The Container Store, Inc." refer to The Container Store, Inc., a Texas corporation and our wholly-owned subsidiary;

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"TCS" refer to our TCS segment, which consists of our retail stores, website and call center;

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"Elfa" refer to our Elfa segment, which consists of our Sweden-based corporate group that designs and manufactures component-based shelving and drawer systems that are customizable for any area of the home, including closets, kitchens, offices and garages; and

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"LGP" refer to Leonard Green & Partners, L.P.

You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus or in any free writing prospectus we may authorize to be delivered or made available to you. Neither we nor the underwriters have authorized anyone to provide you with different information. The information in this prospectus is accurate only as of the date of this prospectus, regardless of the time of delivery of this prospectus, or any free writing prospectus, as the case may be, or any sale of shares of our common stock.

For investors outside the United States: We are offering to sell, and seeking offers to buy, shares of our common stock only in jurisdictions where offers and sales are permitted. Neither we nor the underwriters have done anything that would permit this offering or possession or distribution of this prospectus in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required, other than in the United States. Persons outside the United States who come into possession of this prospectus must inform themselves about, and observe any restrictions relating to, the offering of the shares of common stock and the distribution of this prospectus outside the United States.

Basis of presentation

Our fiscal year is the 52- or 53-week period ending on the Saturday closest to February 28. Our last five completed fiscal years ended on March 2, 2013, February 25, 2012, February 26, 2011, February 27, 2010 and February 28, 2009, respectively. For ease of reference, we identify our fiscal years in this prospectus by reference to the calendar year prior to the one in which the fiscal year ends. For example, "fiscal 2012" refers to our fiscal year ended March 2, 2013. The fiscal year ended March 2, 2013 included 53 weeks, whereas the fiscal years ended February 25, 2012, February 26, 2011, February 27, 2010 and February 28, 2009 included 52 weeks. The first half of fiscal 2013 ended on August 31, 2013 and the first half of fiscal 2012 ended on August 25, 2012, and both included twenty six weeks.

Presentation of certain financial measures

Certain financial measures presented in this prospectus, such as EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, net working capital, Adjusted EBITDA margin, comparable store sales, average ticket, four-wall Adjusted EBITDA, four-wall Adjusted EBITDA margin, total initial cash investment, pre-tax payback period and annualized return on invested capital are not recognized under accounting principles generally

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accepted in the United States, which we refer to as "GAAP." We define these terms, other than EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA, as follows:

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"net working capital" means, as of any date, current assets (excluding cash and cash equivalents) less current liabilities (excluding the current portion of long-term debt and revolving lines of credit).

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"Adjusted EBITDA margin" means, for any period, the Adjusted EBITDA for that period divided by the net sales for that period.

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net sales from our stores are included in "comparable store sales" beginning on the first day of the sixteenth full fiscal month following each store's opening. When a store is relocated, we continue to consider sales from that store to be comparable store sales. Net sales from our website and our call center are also included in calculations of comparable store sales.

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"average ticket" for any period is calculated by dividing (a) net sales of merchandise by our TCS segment (or, if average ticket is being calculated with respect to the elfa® Custom Design Center, the net sales of merchandise from the elfa® Custom Design Center) for that period (regardless of whether such net sales are included in comparable store sales for such period) by (b) the number of transactions for that period comprising such net sales.

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"four-wall Adjusted EBITDA" means, for any period for a given store, the Adjusted EBITDA for that period for that store, before allocation of corporate selling, general and administrative expenses allocated to that store.

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"four-wall Adjusted EBITDA margin" means, for any period for a given store, the four-wall Adjusted EBITDA for that period for that store, divided by the net sales for that period for that store.

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"total initial cash investment" means, for a given store, our initial cash investment in that store, which consists of initial inventory, pre- and grand opening expenses and capital investment, net of tenant allowances.

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"pre-tax payback period" means, for a given store, the number of years it takes for the cumulative four-wall Adjusted EBITDA from that store from its opening to equal our total initial cash investment in that store. For stores that have not paid back yet, we assume that the future four-wall future Adjusted EBITDA for that store will be comparable to its historical four-wall Adjusted EBITDA.

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"annualized return on invested capital" means, for a given store, a percentage calculated by dividing (a) the total four-wall Adjusted EBITDA for that store from the store opening date through the end of the most recently completed fiscal year by (b) our total initial cash investment in that store, and dividing that quotient by the number of years that store has been open.

For definitions of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA and reconciliations of those measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures, see "Summary Historical Consolidated Financial and Other Data." The use of certain of these measures is also discussed under "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—How We Assess the Performance of Our Business."

Trademarks, trade names and service marks

This prospectus includes our trademarks, trade names and service marks, such as "The Container Store," "Contain Yourself" and "elfa," which are protected under applicable intellectual property

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laws and are our property. This prospectus also contains trademarks, trade names and service marks of other companies, which are the property of their respective owners. Solely for convenience, trademarks and trade names referred to in this prospectus may appear without the ®, ^TM or ^SM symbols, but such references are not intended to indicate, in any way, that we will not assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, our rights or the right of the applicable licensor to these trademarks, trade names and service marks. We do not intend our use or display of other parties' trademarks, trade names or service marks to imply, and such use or display should not be construed to imply, a relationship with, or endorsement or sponsorship of us by, these other parties.

Market and industry data

Unless otherwise indicated, information contained in this prospectus concerning our industry and the markets in which we operate is based on information from independent industry and research organizations and other third-party sources (including industry publications, surveys and forecasts), and management estimates. Management estimates are derived from publicly available information released by independent industry analysts and third-party sources, as well as data from our internal research, and are based on assumptions made by us upon reviewing such data and our knowledge of such industry and markets, which we believe to be reasonable. Although we believe the data from these third-party sources is reliable, we have not independently verified any third-party information. In addition, projections, assumptions and estimates of the future performance of the industry in which we operate and our future performance are necessarily subject to uncertainty and risk due to a variety of factors, including those described in "Risk Factors." These and other factors could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in the estimates made by the independent parties and by us.

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Risk factors

You should carefully consider the risks described below, together with all of the other information included in this prospectus, before making an investment decision. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected by any of these risks or uncertainties. In that case, the trading price of our common stock could decline, and you may lose all or part of your investment.

Risks related to our business

An overall decline in the health of the economy and consumer spending may affect consumer purchases of discretionary items, which could reduce demand for our products and materially harm our sales, profitability and financial condition.

Our business depends on consumer demand for our products and, consequently, is sensitive to a number of factors that influence consumer spending generally and for discretionary items in particular. Factors influencing consumer spending include general economic conditions, consumer disposable income, fuel prices, recession and fears of recession, unemployment, war and fears of war, inclement weather, availability of consumer credit, consumer debt levels, conditions in the housing market, interest rates, sales tax rates and rate increases, inflation, consumer confidence in future economic conditions and political conditions, and consumer perceptions of personal well-being and security. For example, the 2008-2009 economic downturn led to decreased discretionary spending, which adversely impacted our business and resulted in declining sales trends. In addition, a decrease in home purchases has led and may continue to lead to decreased consumer spending on home-related products. Prolonged or pervasive economic downturns could slow the pace of new store openings or cause current stores to close. Adverse changes in factors affecting discretionary consumer spending have reduced and may continue to further reduce consumer demand for our products, thus reducing our sales and harming our business and operating results. In particular, consumer purchases of discretionary items, such as our elfa® closet systems, tend to decline during recessionary periods when disposable income is lower.

Costs and risks relating to new store openings could severely limit our growth opportunities.

Our growth strategy depends on opening stores in new and existing markets. We must successfully choose store sites, execute favorable real estate transactions on terms that are acceptable to us, hire competent personnel and effectively open and operate these new stores. Our plans to increase our number of retail stores will depend in part on the availability of existing retail stores or store sites. A lack of available financing on terms acceptable to real estate developers or a tightening credit market may adversely affect the number or quality of retail sites available to us. We cannot assure you that stores or sites will be available to us, or that they will be available on terms acceptable to us. If additional retail store sites are unavailable on acceptable terms, we may not be able to carry out a significant part of our growth strategy.

If we are unable to source and market new products to meet our high standards and customer preferences or are unable to offer our customers an aesthetically pleasing shopping environment, our results of operations may be adversely affected.

Our success depends on our ability to source and market new products that both meet our standards for quality and appeal to customers' preferences. A small number of our employees, including our buying team, are primarily responsible for both sourcing products that meet our high specifications and identifying and responding to changing customer preferences. Failure to source

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and market such products, or to accurately forecast changing customer preferences, could lead to a decrease in the number of customer transactions at our stores and a decrease in the amount customers spend when they visit our stores. In addition, the sourcing of our products is dependent, in part, on our relationships with our vendors. If we are unable to maintain these relationships we may not be able to continue to source products at competitive prices that both meet our standards and appeal to our customers. We also attempt to create a pleasant and appealing shopping experience. If we are not successful in creating a pleasant and appealing shopping experience we may lose customers. If we do not succeed in introducing and sourcing new products that consumers want to buy or maintaining good relationships with our vendors, or are unable to provide a pleasant and appealing shopping environment or maintain our level of customer service, our sales, operating margins and market share may decrease, which would adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We have experienced net losses in the past and we may experience net losses in the future.

We experienced net losses of $45.1 million, $30.7 million and $0.1 million in fiscal 2010, fiscal 2011 and fiscal 2012, respectively. These net losses are inclusive of intangible asset impairments at our Elfa segment in the amounts of $52.4 million, $47.0 million, $15.5 million in fiscal 2010, fiscal 2011 and fiscal 2012, respectively. We may experience net losses in the future, and we cannot assure you that we will achieve profitability in future periods.

We depend on a single distribution center for all of our stores.

We handle merchandise distribution for all of our stores from a single facility in Coppell, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, Texas. We use independent third party transportation companies as well as leased trucks to deliver our merchandise to our stores and our clients. Any significant interruption in the operation of our distribution center or the domestic transportation infrastructure due to natural disasters, accidents, inclement weather, system failures, work stoppages, slowdowns or strikes by employees of the transportation companies, or other causes could delay or impair our ability to distribute merchandise to our stores, which could result in lower sales, a loss of loyalty to our brands and excess inventory and would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Our business depends upon the successful operation of our distribution center, as well as our ability to fulfill orders and to deliver our merchandise to our customers in a timely manner.

Our facilities and systems, as well as those of our vendors, are vulnerable to natural disasters and other unexpected events, and as a result we may lose merchandise and be unable to effectively deliver it to our stores and result in delay shipments to our online customers.

Our retail stores, corporate offices, distribution center, infrastructure projects and direct-to-customer operations, as well as the operations of our vendors from which we receive goods and services, are vulnerable to damage from earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, fires, floods, power losses, telecommunications failures, hardware and software failures, computer viruses and similar events. If any of these events result in damage to our facilities or systems, or those of our vendors, we may experience interruptions in our business until the damage is repaired, resulting in the potential loss of customers and revenues. In addition, we may incur costs in repairing any damage beyond our applicable insurance coverage.

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We rely upon independent third-party transportation providers for substantially all of our product shipments and are subject to increased shipping costs as well as the potential inability of our third-party transportation providers to deliver on a timely basis.

We currently rely upon independent third-party transportation providers for substantially all of our product shipments, including shipments to and from all of our stores. Our utilization of these delivery services for shipments is subject to risks, including increases in fuel prices, which would increase our shipping costs, and employee strikes and inclement weather which may impact a shipping company's ability to provide delivery services that adequately meet our shipping needs. If we change the shipping companies we use, we could face logistical difficulties that could adversely affect deliveries and we would incur costs and expend resources in connection with such change. Moreover, we may not be able to obtain terms as favorable as those received from independent third-party transportation providers, which in turn would increase our costs.

Our business depends in part on a strong brand image. If we are not able to protect our brand, we may be unable to attract a sufficient number of customers or sell sufficient quantities of our products.

We believe that the brand image we have developed has contributed significantly to the success of our business to date. We also believe that protecting The Container Store brand is integral to our business and to the implementation of our strategies for expanding our business. Our brand image may be diminished if we do not continue to make investments in areas such as marketing and advertising, as well as the day-to-day investments required for store operations, catalog mailings, online sales and employee training. Our brand image may be further diminished if new products fail to maintain or enhance our distinctive brand image. Furthermore, our reputation could be jeopardized if we fail to maintain high standards for merchandise quality, if we fail to maintain high ethical, social and environmental standards for all of our operations and activities, if we fail to comply with local laws and regulations or if we experience negative publicity or other negative events that affect our image or reputation, some of which may be beyond our ability to control, such as the effects of negative publicity regarding our vendors. Any failure to maintain a strong brand image could have an adverse effect on our sales and results of operations.

If we fail to successfully anticipate consumer preferences and demand, or to manage inventory commensurate with demand, our results of operations may be adversely affected.

Our success depends in large part on our ability to identify, originate and define storage and organization product trends, as well as to anticipate, gauge and react to changing consumer demands in a timely manner. Our products must appeal to a range of consumers whose preferences cannot always be predicted with certainty. We cannot assure you that we will be able to continue to develop products that customers respond to positively or that we will successfully meet consumer demands in the future. Any failure on our part to anticipate, identify or respond effectively to consumer preferences and demand could adversely affect sales of our products. If this occurs, our sales may decline, and we may be required to mark down certain products to sell the resulting excess inventory, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

In addition, we must manage our merchandise in stock and inventory levels to track consumer demand. Much of our merchandise requires that we provide vendors with significant ordering lead time, frequently before market factors are known. In addition, the nature of our products requires us to carry a significant amount of inventory prior to peak selling seasons. If we are not able to

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anticipate consumer demand for our different product offerings, or successfully manage inventory levels for products that are in demand, we may experience:

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back orders, order cancellations and lost sales for products that are in high demand for which we did not stock adequate inventory; and

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overstock inventory levels for products that have lower consumer demand, requiring us to take markdowns or other steps to sell slower moving merchandise.

As a result of these and other factors, we are vulnerable to demand and pricing shifts and to misjudgments in the selection and timing of merchandise purchases.

New stores in new markets, where we are less familiar with the target customer and less well-known, may face different or additional risks and increased costs compared to stores operated in existing markets or new stores in existing markets. We also may not be able to advertise cost-effectively in new or smaller markets in which we have less store density, which could slow sales growth at such stores.

Successful expansion increases the complexity of our business and we may not be able to effectively manage our growth, which may cause our brand image and financial performance to suffer.

Our expansion in new and existing markets may present competitive, distribution, merchandising and regulatory challenges that differ from our current challenges, including competition among our stores, diminished novelty of our store design and concept, added strain on our distribution center, additional information to be processed by our management information systems and diversion of management attention from operations, such as the control of inventory levels in our stores. We also cannot guarantee that we will be able to obtain and distribute adequate product supplies to our stores or maintain adequate warehousing and distribution capability at acceptable costs. New stores also may have lower than anticipated sales volumes relative to previously opened stores during their comparable years of operation, and sales volumes at new stores may not be sufficient to achieve store-level profitability or profitability comparable to that of existing stores. To the extent that we are not able to meet these various challenges, our sales could decrease, our operating costs could increase and our operating profitability could be impacted.

Our business requires that we lease substantial amounts of space and there can be no assurance that we will be able to continue to lease space on terms as favorable as the leases negotiated in the past.

We do not own any real estate at our TCS segment. Instead, we lease all of our store locations, as well as our corporate headquarters and distribution center in Coppell, Texas. Our stores are leased from third parties and generally have an initial term of ten to fifteen years. Many of our lease agreements also have additional five-year renewal options. We believe that we have been able to negotiate favorable rental rates and tenant allowances over the last few years due in large part to the state of the economy and higher than usual vacancy rates in a number of regional malls and shopping centers. These trends may not continue, and there is no guarantee that we will be able to continue to negotiate such favorable terms. Many of our leases have early cancellation clauses, which permit the lease to be terminated by us or the landlord if certain sales levels are not met in specific periods or if the shopping venue does not meet specified occupancy standards. In addition to fixed minimum lease payments, most of our store leases provide for additional rental payments based on a percentage of sales, or "percentage rent," if sales at the respective stores exceed

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specified levels, as well as the payment of common area maintenance charges, real property insurance and real estate taxes. Many of our lease agreements have defined escalating rent provisions over the initial term and any extensions. Increases in our already substantial occupancy costs and difficulty in identifying economically suitable new store locations could have significant negative consequences, which include:

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requiring that a greater portion of our available cash be applied to pay our rental obligations, thus reducing cash available for other purposes and reducing our operating profitability;

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increasing our vulnerability to general adverse economic and industry conditions; and

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limiting our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to changes in, our business or in the industry in which we compete.

Additional sites that we lease may be subject to long-term non-cancelable leases if we are unable to negotiate our current standard lease terms. If an existing or future store is not profitable, and we decide to close it, we may nonetheless be committed to perform our obligations under the applicable lease including, among other things, paying the base rent for the balance of the lease term. Moreover, even if a lease has an early cancellation clause, we may not satisfy the contractual requirements for early cancellation under that lease. In addition, if we are not able to enter into new leases or renew existing leases on terms acceptable to us, this could have an adverse effect on our results of operations.

We will require significant capital to fund our expanding business, which may not be available to us on satisfactory terms or at all. We plan to use cash from operations to fund our operations and execute our growth strategy. If we are unable to maintain sufficient levels of cash flow, we may not meet our growth expectations or we may require additional financing which could adversely affect our financial health and impose covenants that limit our business activities.

We plan to continue our growth and expansion, including opening a number of new stores, remodeling existing stores and upgrading our information technology systems and other infrastructure, as opportunities arise. Our plans to expand our store base may not be successful and the implementation of these other plans may not result in expected increases in our net sales even though they increase our costs. We will require significant capital to support our expanding business and execute on our growth strategy.

We currently primarily depend on cash flow from operations and the Revolving Credit Facility to fund our business and growth plans. Upon the closing of this offering we expect that we will continue to primarily depend on cash flow from operations and our Revolving Credit Facility to fund our business and growth plans. If our business does not generate sufficient cash flow from operations to fund these activities, we may need additional equity or debt financing. If such financing is not available to us, or is not available on satisfactory terms, our ability to operate and expand our business or respond to competitive pressures would be curtailed and we may need to delay, limit or eliminate planned store openings or operations or other elements of our growth strategy. If we raise additional capital by issuing equity securities or securities convertible into equity securities, your ownership would be diluted.

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Disruptions in the global financial markets may make it difficult for us to borrow a sufficient amount of capital to finance the carrying costs of inventory and to pay for capital expenditures and operating costs, which could negatively affect our business.

Disruptions in the global financial markets and banking systems have made credit and capital markets more difficult for companies to access, even for some companies with established revolving or other credit facilities. Under the Revolving Credit Facility, each member of the syndicate for the Revolving Credit Facility is responsible for providing a portion of the loans to be made under the facility. Factors that have previously affected our borrowing ability under the Revolving Credit Facility have included the borrowing base formula limitations, adjustments in the appraised value of our inventory used to calculate the borrowing base and the availability of each of the lenders to advance its portion of requested borrowing drawdowns under the facility. If, in connection with a disruption in the global financial markets or otherwise, any participant, or group of participants, with a significant portion of the commitments in the Revolving Credit Facility fails to satisfy its obligations to extend credit under the facility and we are unable to find a replacement for such participant or group of participants on a timely basis (if at all), our liquidity and our business may be materially adversely affected.

Our costs may change as a result of currency exchange rate fluctuations.

In fiscal 2012, approximately 79% of our merchandise was manufactured abroad based on cost of merchandise purchased. The prices charged by foreign manufacturers may be affected by the fluctuation of their local currency against the U.S. dollar. We source goods from various countries, including China, and thus changes in the value of the U.S. dollar compared to other currencies may affect the costs of goods that we purchase.

Our largest exposure to currency exchange rate fluctuations is between the U.S. dollar and Swedish krona. The TCS segment purchases all products from the Elfa segment in Swedish krona. Approximately 19% of our U.S. dollar merchandise purchases in the TCS segment in fiscal 2012 were originally made in Swedish krona from our Elfa segment.

If we are unable to effectively manage our online sales, our reputation and operating results may be harmed.

E-commerce has been our fastest growing business over the last several years and continues to be a growing part of our business. The success of our e-commerce business depends, in part, on factors over which we may not control. We must successfully respond to changing consumer preferences and buying trends relating to e-commerce usage. We are also vulnerable to certain additional risks and uncertainties associated with our e-commerce websites, including: changes in required technology interfaces; website downtime and other technical failures; costs and technical issues as we upgrade our website software; computer viruses; changes in applicable federal and state regulations; security breaches; and consumer privacy concerns. In addition, we must keep up to date with competitive technology trends, including the use of new or improved technology, creative user interfaces and other e-commerce marketing tools such as paid search and mobile applications, among others, which may increase our costs and which may not succeed in increasing sales or attracting customers. Our competitors, some of whom have greater resources than us, may also be able to benefit from changes in e-commerce technologies, which could harm our competitive position. Our failure to successfully respond to these risks and uncertainties might adversely affect the sales in our e-commerce business, as well as damage our reputation and brands.

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Competition, including internet-based competition, could negatively impact our business, adversely affecting our ability to generate higher net sales and our ability to obtain favorable store locations.

While our differentiated product offerings have limited direct competition, similar items can be found in a variety of retailers. We compete primarily based on level of service and by product quality and selection. Competitive products can be found in mass merchants ( e.g. , Walmart and Target), as well as specialty retail chains ( e.g. , Bed Bath & Beyond and Crate & Barrel). Some of our competitors, particularly the mass merchants, are larger and have greater financial resources than we do. We also face competition from internet-based retailers ( e.g. , Amazon), in addition to traditional store-based retailers. This could result in increased price competition since our customers can more readily search and compare similar products.

Our ability to obtain merchandise on a timely basis at competitive prices could suffer as a result of any deterioration or change in our vendor relationships or events that adversely affect our vendors or their ability to obtain financing for their operations.

We believe our vendor relationships are critical to our success. We do not have long-term contracts with any of our vendors and we generally transact business on an order-by-order basis, operating without any contractual assurances of continued supply, pricing or access to new products. Any of our vendors could discontinue supplying us with desired products in sufficient quantities for a variety of reasons.

The benefits we currently experience from our vendor relationships could be adversely affected if our vendors:

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discontinue selling merchandise to us;

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enter into exclusivity arrangements with our competitors;

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sell similar merchandise to our competitors with similar or better pricing, many of whom already purchase merchandise in significantly greater volume and, in some cases, at lower prices than we do;

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raise the prices they charge us;

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change pricing terms to require us to pay on delivery or upfront, including as a result of changes in the credit relationships some of our vendors have with their various lending institutions;

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lengthen their lead times; or

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initiate or expand sales of storage and organization products to retail customers directly through their own stores, catalogs or on the internet and compete with us directly.

We historically have established excellent working relationships with many small- to mid-size vendors that generally have more limited resources, production capacities and operating histories. Market and economic events that adversely impact our vendors could impair our ability to obtain merchandise in sufficient quantities. Such events include difficulties or problems associated with our vendors' business, finances, labor, ability to export or import, as the case may be, merchandise, costs, production, insurance and reputation. There can be no assurance that we will be able to acquire desired merchandise in sufficient quantities on acceptable terms or at all in the future, especially if we need significantly greater amounts of inventory in connection with the growth of our business. We may need to develop new relationships with larger vendors, as our current vendors

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may be unable to supply us with needed quantities and we may not be able to find similar merchandise on the same terms from larger vendors. If we are unable to acquire suitable merchandise in sufficient quantities, at acceptable prices with adequate delivery times due to the loss of or a deterioration or change in our relationship with one or more of our key vendors or events harmful to our vendors occur, it may adversely affect our business and results of operations.

There is a risk that our vendors may sell similar or identical products to our competitors, which could harm our business.

Although many of our products are sold by our vendors only to The Container Store, products related to the majority of our non-elfa® sales are not sold to us on an exclusive basis. Of the non-elfa® products that we purchase on an exclusive basis, none of these products are sold pursuant to agreements with exclusivity provisions. As a result, most of our vendors have no obligation to refrain from selling similar or identical products to our competitors, some of whom purchase products in significantly greater volume, or entering into exclusive arrangements with other retailers that could limit our access to their products. Our vendors could also initiate or expand sales of their products through their own stores or through the Internet to the retail market and therefore compete with us directly or sell their products through outlet centers or discount stores, increasing the competitive pricing pressure we face.

We depend on key executive management.

We depend on the leadership and experience of our key executive management. The loss of the services of any of our executive management members could have a material adverse effect on our business and prospects, as we may not be able to find suitable individuals to replace such personnel on a timely basis or without incurring increased costs, or at all. We do not maintain key-man life insurance policies on any of our executive officers. We believe that our future success will depend on our continued ability to attract and retain highly skilled and qualified personnel. There is a high level of competition for experienced, successful personnel in the retail industry. Our inability to meet our staffing requirements in the future could impair our growth and harm our business.

If we are unable to find, train and retain key personnel, including new employees that reflect our brand image and embody our culture, we may not be able to grow or sustain our operations.

Our success depends in part upon our ability to attract, motivate and retain a sufficient number of store employees, including general managers and store managers, who understand and appreciate our customers, products, brand and corporate culture, and are able to adequately and effectively represent our culture and establish credibility with our customers. Our planned growth will require us to hire and train even more personnel to manage such growth. If we are unable to hire and retain personnel capable of consistently providing a high level of customer service, as demonstrated by their enthusiasm for our culture, understanding of our customers and knowledge of the merchandise we offer, our ability to open new stores may be impaired, the performance of our existing and new stores could be materially adversely affected and our brand image may be negatively impacted. There is a high level of competition for experienced, qualified personnel in the retail industry and we compete for personnel with a variety of companies looking to hire for retail positions. Our growth plans could strain our ability to staff our new stores, particularly at the store manager level, which could have an adverse effect on our ability to maintain a cohesive and consistently strong team, which in turn could have an adverse impact on our business. If we are unable to attract, train and retain employees in the future, we may not be able to serve our

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customers effectively, thus reducing our ability to continue our growth and to operate our existing stores as profitably as we have in the past.

Labor activities could cause labor relations difficulties for us.

None of our U.S.-based employees is currently subject to a collective bargaining agreement. As we continue to grow and enter different regions, unions may attempt to organize all or part of our employee base at certain stores or within certain regions. Responding to such organization attempts may distract management and employees and may have a negative financial impact on individual stores, or on our business as a whole.

As of September 1, 2013, approximately 53% of Elfa's employees (6% of our total employees) were covered by collective bargaining agreements. A dispute with a union or employees represented by a union, including a failure to extend or renew our collective bargaining agreements, could result in production interruptions caused by work stoppages. If a strike or work stoppage were to occur, our results of operations could be adversely affected.

Higher health care costs and labor costs could adversely affect our business.

With the passage in 2010 of the U.S. Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act , we are required to provide affordable coverage, as defined in the Act, to all employees, or otherwise be subject to a payment per employee based on the affordability criteria in the Act. Many of these requirements will be phased in over a period of time, with the majority of the most impactful provisions affecting us presently anticipated to begin in the second quarter of fiscal 2015. Additionally, some states and localities have passed state and local laws mandating the provision of certain levels of health benefits by some employers. Increased health care and insurance costs could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition changes in federal or state workplace regulations could adversely affect our ability to meet our financial targets.

We are subject to risks associated with our dependence on foreign imports for our merchandise.

In fiscal 2012, excluding purchases for Elfa, we purchased approximately 26% of our merchandise from vendors located in the United States and approximately 74% from vendors located outside the United States (including approximately 44% from vendors located in China). In addition, some of the merchandise we purchase from vendors in the United States also depends, in whole or in part, on vendors located outside the United States. As a result, our business depends on global trade, as well as trade and cost factors that impact the specific countries where our vendors are located, including Asia. Our future success will depend in part upon our ability to maintain our existing foreign vendor relationships and to develop new ones. While we rely on our long-term relationships with our foreign vendors, we have no long-term contracts with them and transact business on an order by order basis. Additionally, many of our imported products are subject to existing duties, tariffs and quotas that may limit the quantity of some types of goods which we may import into the United States. Our dependence on foreign imports also makes us vulnerable to risks associated with products manufactured abroad, including, among other things, risks of damage, destruction or confiscation of products while in transit to our distribution centers located in the United States, charges on or assessment of additional import duties, tariffs and quotas, loss of "most favored nation" trading status by the United States in relation to a particular foreign country, work stoppages, including without limitation as a result of events such as longshoremen strikes, transportation and other delays in shipments, including without limitation as a result of heightened security screening and inspection processes or other port-of-entry limitations or restrictions in the

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United States, freight cost increases, economic uncertainties, including inflation, foreign government regulations, trade restrictions, including the United States retaliating against protectionist foreign trade practices and political unrest, increased labor costs and other similar factors that might affect the operations of our vendors in specific countries such as China.

An interruption or delay in supply from our foreign sources, or the imposition of additional duties, taxes or other charges on these imports, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations unless and until alternative supply arrangements are secured.

In addition, there is a risk that compliance lapses by our vendors could occur which could lead to investigations by U.S. government agencies responsible for international trade compliance. Resulting penalties or enforcement actions could delay future imports/exports or otherwise negatively impact our business. In addition, there remains a risk that one or more of our foreign vendors will not adhere to applicable legal requirements or our global compliance standards such as fair labor standards, the prohibition on child labor and other product safety or manufacturing safety standards. The violation of applicable legal requirements, including labor, manufacturing and safety laws, by any of our vendors, the failure of any of our vendors to adhere to our global compliance standards or the divergence of the labor practices followed by any of our vendors from those generally accepted in the United States, could disrupt our supply of products from our vendors or the shipment of products to us, result in potential liability to us and harm our reputation and brand, any of which could negatively affect our business and operating results.

Because of our international operations, we could be adversely affected by violations of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and similar worldwide anti-bribery and anti-kickback laws.

We source a significant portion of our products from outside the United States. The U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and other similar anti-bribery and anti-kickback laws and regulations generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to non-U.S. officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. While our vendor compliance agreements mandate compliance with applicable law, we cannot assure you that we will be successful in preventing our employees or other agents from taking actions in violation of these laws or regulations. Such violations, or allegations of such violations, could disrupt our business and result in a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

We face risks related to our indebtedness.

Our leverage could adversely affect our ability to raise additional capital to fund our operations, limit our ability to react to changes in the economy or our industry, expose us to interest rate risk associated with our variable rate debt and prevent us from meeting our obligations under our notes and credit facilities. As of August 31, 2013, we had total outstanding debt of $392.2 million and an additional $68.6 million of availability under the Revolving Credit Facility and the Elfa Revolving Credit Facility. Our high degree of leverage could have important consequences to us, including:

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making it more difficult for us to make payments on our debt;

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increasing our vulnerability to general economic and industry conditions;

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•

requiring a substantial portion of cash flow from operations to be dedicated to the payment of principal and interest on our debt, thereby reducing our ability to use our cash flow to fund our operations, capital expenditures, and future business opportunities;

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exposing us to the risk of increased interest rates as our borrowings under the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility, the Revolving Credit Facility and the Elfa Senior Secured Credit Facilities are at variable rates;

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restricting us from making strategic acquisitions or causing us to make non-strategic divestitures;

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requiring us to comply with financial and operational covenants, restricting us, among other things from placing liens on our assets, making investments, incurring debt, making payments to our equity or debt holders and engaging in transactions with affiliates;

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limiting our ability to obtain additional financing for working capital, capital expenditures, product development, debt service requirements, acquisitions, and general corporate or other purposes; and

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limiting our ability to adjust to changing market conditions and placing us at a competitive disadvantage compared to our competitors who may be less highly leveraged.

In addition, a failure by us or our subsidiaries to comply with the agreements governing our indebtedness could result in an event of default under such indebtedness, which could adversely affect our ability to respond to changes in our business and manage our operations. Upon the occurrence of an event of default under any of the agreements governing our indebtedness, the lenders could elect to declare all amounts outstanding to be due and payable and exercise other remedies as set forth in the agreements. If any of our indebtedness were to be accelerated, there can be no assurance that our assets would be sufficient to repay this indebtedness in full, which could have a material adverse effect on our ability to continue to operate as a going concern. See "Description of Indebtedness."

We have debt service obligations and may incur additional indebtedness in the future, which may require us to use a substantial portion of our cash flow to service debt and limit our financial and operating flexibility in important ways.

As of August 31, 2013, we had total outstanding debt of $392.2 million and an additional $68.6 million of availability under the Revolving Credit Facility and the Elfa Revolving Credit Facility. We will continue to have debt service obligations following the completion of this offering. We may incur additional indebtedness in the future. Our indebtedness, or any borrowings under any future debt financing (including the Revolving Credit Facility) will require interest payments and need to be repaid or refinanced, could require us to divert funds identified for other purposes to debt service and would create additional cash demands and could impair our liquidity position and add financial risk for us. Diverting funds identified for other purposes for debt service may adversely affect our business and growth prospects. If we cannot generate sufficient cash flow from operations to service our debt, we may need to refinance our debt, dispose of assets or issue equity to obtain necessary funds. We do not know whether we would be able to take any of these actions on a timely basis, on terms satisfactory to us, or at all.

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Our level of indebtedness has important consequences to you and your investment in our common stock. For example, our level of indebtedness may:

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require us to use a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to pay interest and principal on our debt, which would reduce the funds available to us for working capital, capital expenditures, expansion plans and other investments and other general corporate purposes;

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limit our ability to pay future dividends;

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limit our ability to obtain additional financing for working capital, capital expenditures, expansion plans and other investments, which may limit our ability to implement our business strategy;

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heighten our vulnerability to downturns in our business, the storage and organization retail industry or in the general economy and limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business; or

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prevent us from taking advantage of business opportunities as they arise or successfully carrying out our plans to expand our store base and product offerings.

We cannot assure you that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operations or that future borrowings will be available to us in amounts sufficient to enable us to make payments on our indebtedness or to fund our operations.

Our fixed lease obligations could adversely affect our financial performance.

Our fixed lease obligations will require us to use a significant portion of cash generated by our operations to satisfy these obligations, and could adversely impact our ability to obtain future financing to support our growth or other operational investments. We will require substantial cash flows from operations to make our payments under our operating leases, all of which provide for periodic increases in rent. As of March 2, 2013, our minimum annual rental obligations under long-term operating leases for fiscal 2013 and fiscal 2014 through fiscal 2015 are $62.5 million and $123.5 million, respectively. If we are not able to make the required payments under the leases, the lenders or owners of the stores may, among other things, repossess those assets, which could adversely affect our ability to conduct our operations. In addition, our failure to make payments under our operating leases could trigger defaults under other leases or under agreements governing our indebtedness, which could cause the counterparties under those agreements to accelerate the obligations due thereunder.

Material damage to, or interruptions in, our information systems as a result of external factors, staffing shortages and difficulties in updating our existing software or developing or implementing new software could have a material adverse effect on our business or results of operations.

We depend largely upon our information technology systems in the conduct of all aspects of our operations. Such systems are subject to damage or interruption from power outages, computer and telecommunications failures, computer viruses, security breaches, fire and natural disasters. Damage or interruption to our information systems may require a significant investment to fix or replace them, and we may suffer interruptions in our operations in the interim. In addition, costs and potential problems and interruptions associated with the implementation of new or upgraded systems and technology or with maintenance or adequate support of existing systems could also disrupt or reduce the efficiency of our operations. Any material interruptions or failures in our information systems may have a material adverse effect on our business or results of operations.

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We also rely heavily on our information technology staff. If we cannot meet our staffing needs in this area, we may not be able to fulfill our technology initiatives while continuing to provide maintenance on existing systems.

We rely on certain software vendors to maintain and periodically upgrade many of these systems so that they can continue to support our business. The software programs supporting many of our systems were licensed to us by independent software developers. The inability of these developers or us to continue to maintain and upgrade these information systems and software programs would disrupt or reduce the efficiency of our operations if we were unable to convert to alternate systems in an efficient and timely manner.

We are vulnerable to various risks and uncertainties associated with our websites, including changes in required technology interfaces, website downtime and other technical failures, costs and technical issues as we upgrade our website software, computer viruses, changes in applicable federal and state regulation, security breaches, legal claims related to our website operations and e-commerce fulfillment and other consumer privacy concerns. Our failure to successfully respond to these risks and uncertainties could reduce website sales and have a material adverse effect on our business or results of operations.

There are claims made against us from time to time that can result in litigation that could distract management from our business activities and result in significant liability or damage to our brand.

From time to time we are involved in litigation, claims and other proceedings relating to the conduct of our business, including but not limited to consumer protection class action litigation, claims related to our business, or employment practices and claims of intellectual property infringement. In addition, from time to time, we are subject to product liability and personal injury claims for the products that we sell and the stores we operate. Our purchase orders generally require the vendor to indemnify us against any product liability claims; however, if the vendor does not have insurance or becomes insolvent, we may not be indemnified. In addition, we could face a wide variety of employee claims against us, including general discrimination, privacy, labor and employment, Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, and disability claims. Any claims could also result in litigation against us and could also result in regulatory proceedings being brought against us by various federal and state agencies that regulate our business, including the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Often these cases raise complex factual and legal issues, which are subject to risks and uncertainties and which could require significant management time. Litigation and other claims and regulatory proceedings against us could result in unexpected expenses and liability and could also materially adversely affect our operations and our reputation.

Product recalls and/or product liability, as well as changes in product safety and other consumer protection laws, may adversely impact our operations, merchandise offerings, reputation, results of operations, cash flow and financial condition.

We are subject to regulations by a variety of federal, state and international regulatory authorities, including the Consumer Product Safety Commission. In fiscal 2012, we purchased merchandise from approximately 700 vendors. If our vendors fail to manufacture or import merchandise that adheres to product safety requirements or our quality control standards, our reputation and brands could be damaged, potentially leading to increases in customer litigation against us. It is possible that one or more of our vendors might not adhere to product safety requirements or our quality

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control standards, and we might not identify the deficiency before merchandise is sold. Any issues of product safety, could cause us to recall some of those products. If our vendors are unable or unwilling to recall products failing to meet product safety requirements or our quality standards, we may be required to recall those products at a substantial cost to us. Furthermore, to the extent we are unable to replace any recalled products, we may have to reduce our merchandise offerings, resulting in a decrease in sales, especially if a recall occurs near a seasonal period.

Moreover, changes in product safety or other consumer protection laws could lead to increased costs to us for certain merchandise, or additional labor costs associated with readying merchandise for sale. Long lead times on merchandise ordering cycles increase the difficulty for us to plan and prepare for potential changes to applicable laws. In particular, The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 imposes significant requirements on manufacturing, importing, testing and labeling requirements for some of our products. In the event that we are unable to timely comply with regulatory changes, significant fines or penalties could result, and could adversely affect our reputation, results of operations, cash flow and financial condition.

Failure to protect the integrity and security of individually identifiable data of our customers and employees could expose us to litigation and damage our reputation.

We receive and maintain certain personal information about our customers and employees, including credit card information. The use of this information by us is regulated at the international, federal and state levels, and is subject to certain contractual restrictions in third party contracts. Although we have implemented processes to protect the integrity and security of personal information, there can be no assurance that this information will not be obtained by unauthorized persons or used inappropriately. If the security and information systems of ours or of our business associates are compromised or our business associates fail to comply with these laws and regulations and this information is obtained by unauthorized persons or used inappropriately, it could negatively affect our reputation as our customers and employees have a high expectation that we will adequately safeguard and protect their personal information, including their credit card information, as well as our results of operations and financial conditions. Any compromise or failure could result in litigation against us or the imposition of penalties. As privacy and information security laws and regulations change, we may incur additional costs to ensure we remain in compliance.

Changes in statutory, regulatory, accounting, and other legal requirements could potentially impact our operating and financial results.

We are subject to numerous statutory, regulatory and legal requirements, domestically and abroad. Our operating results could be negatively impacted by developments in these areas due to the costs of compliance in addition to possible government penalties and litigation in the event of deemed noncompliance. Changes in the regulatory environment in the area of product safety, environmental protection, privacy and information security, wage and hour laws, among others, could potentially impact our operations and financial results.

We lease all of our properties at the TCS segment and the group headquarters and sales offices at the Elfa segment, and each is classified as an operating lease. The Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") has issued an exposure draft that will revise lease accounting and require many leases currently considered to be operating leases to instead be classified as capital leases. The primary impact to this exposure draft would be that such leases would be recorded on the balance sheet as debt, and they currently have an off-balance sheet classification as operating leases. The

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timeline for effectiveness of this pronouncement, as well as the final guidelines and potential financial impact, are unclear at this point.

If our operating and financial performance in any given period does not meet the guidance that we provide to the public, our stock price may decline.

We may provide public guidance on our expected operating and financial results for future periods. Although we believe that this guidance provides investors and analysts with a better understanding of management's expectations for the future and is useful to our stockholders and potential stockholders, such guidance is comprised of forward-looking statements subject to the risks and uncertainties described in this report and in our other public filings and public statements. Our actual results may not always be in line with or exceed the guidance we have provided, especially in times of economic uncertainty. If, in the future, our operating or financial results for a particular period do not meet our guidance or the expectations of investment analysts or if we reduce our guidance for future periods, the market price of our common stock may decline as well.

Our total assets include intangible assets with an indefinite life, goodwill and trademarks, and substantial amounts of property and equipment. Changes in estimates or projections used to assess the fair value of these assets, or operating results that are lower than our current estimates at certain store locations, may cause us to incur impairment charges that could adversely affect our results of operation.

Our total assets include intangible assets with an indefinite life, goodwill and trademarks, and substantial amounts of property and equipment. We make certain estimates and projections in connection with impairment analyses for these long lived assets, in accordance with FASB ASC 360, "Property, Plant and Equipment" ("ASC 360"), and ASC 350, "Intangibles—Goodwill and Other" ("ASC 350"). We also review the carrying value of these assets for impairment on an annual basis and whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of the asset may not be recoverable in accordance with ASC 360 or ASC 350. We will record an impairment loss when the carrying value of the underlying asset, asset group or reporting unit exceeds its fair value. These calculations require us to make a number of estimates and projections of future results. If these estimates or projections change, we may be required to record additional impairment charges on certain of these assets. If these impairment charges are significant, our results of operations would be adversely affected. We recorded impairment charges of $0.4 million, $15.6 million and $15.5 million related to the elfa® trade name in fiscal 2010, fiscal 2011 and fiscal 2012, respectively. We also recorded goodwill impairment charges of $52.0 million, $31.5 million and $0 related to the Elfa segment in fiscal 2010, fiscal 2011 and fiscal 2012, respectively. See "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and Note 2 to our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this prospectus.

Significant increases in raw material prices or energy costs may adversely affect our costs, including cost of merchandise.

Any future increases in commodity prices for raw materials that are directly or indirectly related to the production of our products, such as the prices of steel, oil, resin and pulp, may adversely affect our costs. Furthermore, the transportation industry may experience a shortage or reduction of capacity, which could be exacerbated by higher fuel prices. Our results of operations may be adversely affected if we or our vendors are unable to secure, or are able to secure only at significantly higher costs, such commodities or fuel.

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Fluctuations in our tax obligations and effective tax rate and realization of our deferred tax assets, including net operating loss carryforwards, may result in volatility of our operating results.

We are subject to income taxes in various U.S. and certain foreign jurisdictions. We record tax expense based on our estimates of future payments, which may include reserves for uncertain tax positions in multiple tax jurisdictions, and valuation allowances related to certain net deferred tax assets, including net operating loss carryforwards. At any one time, many tax years are subject to audit by various taxing jurisdictions. The results of these audits and negotiations with taxing authorities may affect the ultimate settlement of these issues. We expect that throughout the year there could be ongoing variability in our quarterly tax rates as events occur and exposures are evaluated.

In addition, our effective tax rate in a given financial statement period may be materially impacted by a variety of factors including but not limited to changes in the mix and level of earnings, varying tax rates in the different jurisdictions in which we operate, fluctuations in the valuation allowance, timing of the utilization of net operating loss carryforwards, or by changes to existing accounting rules or regulations. Further, tax legislation may be enacted in the future which could negatively impact our current or future tax structure and effective tax rates.

Our operating results are subject to quarterly and seasonal fluctuations, and results for any quarter may not necessarily be indicative of the results that may be achieved for the full fiscal year. As a result, the market price of our common stock may fluctuate substantially.

Our quarterly results have fluctuated in the past and may fluctuate significantly in the future, depending upon a variety of factors, including, among other things, our product offerings, promotional events, store openings, the weather, remodeling or relocations, shifts in the timing of holidays, timing of catalog releases or sales, timing of delivery of orders, competitive factors and general economic conditions. As a result of these quarterly and seasonal fluctuations, the market price of our common stock may fluctuate substantially.

In addition, we historically have realized, and expect to continue to realize, higher Adjusted EBITDA in the fourth quarter of our fiscal year due to the Annual elfa® Sale. In fiscal 2012, we recorded Adjusted EBITDA of $35.0 million in the fourth fiscal quarter or approximately 39.9% of our fiscal 2012 Adjusted EBITDA.

Our comparable store sales and quarterly results have fluctuated significantly in the past based on a number of economic, seasonal and competitive factors, and we expect them to continue to fluctuate in the future. Since the beginning of fiscal 2008, our quarterly comparable store sales growth has ranged from a decrease of 13.7% to an increase of 12.9%. This variability could cause our comparable store sales and quarterly results to fall below the expectations of securities analysts or investors, which could result in a decline in the market price of our common stock.

Accordingly, our results of operations may fluctuate on a seasonal basis and relative to corresponding periods in prior years. Moreover, we may take certain pricing or marketing actions that could have a disproportionate effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations in a particular quarter or selling season. These initiatives may disproportionately impact results in a particular quarter and we believe that comparisons of our operating results from period to period are not necessarily meaningful and cannot be relied upon as indicators of future performance.

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Material disruptions at one of our Elfa manufacturing facilities could negatively affect our business.

Elfa operates four manufacturing facilities: two in Sweden, one in Poland and one in Finland. A material operational disruption in one of our Elfa manufacturing facilities could occur as a result of any number of events including, but not limited to, major equipment failures, labor stoppages, transportation failures affecting the supply and shipment of materials and finished goods, severe weather conditions and disruptions in utility services. Such a disruption could negatively impact production, customer deliveries and financial results.

Our failure or inability to protect our intellectual property rights could diminish the value of our brand and weaken our competitive position.

We attempt to protect our intellectual property rights, both in the United States and in foreign countries, through a combination of copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, trade dress and unfair competition laws, as well as confidentiality procedures, and assignment and licensing arrangements. Our failure to obtain or maintain adequate protection of our intellectual property rights for any reason could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. Further, we cannot assure you that competitors or other third parties will not infringe our intellectual property rights, or that we will have adequate resources to enforce our intellectual property rights.

In addition, intellectual property protection may be unavailable or limited in some foreign countries where laws or law enforcement practices may not protect our intellectual property rights as fully as in the United States, and it may be more difficult for us to successfully challenge the use of our intellectual property rights by other parties in such countries and our competitive position may suffer.

If third parties claim that we infringe upon their intellectual property rights, our operating results could be adversely affected.

We face the risk of claims that we have infringed third parties' intellectual property rights. Any claims of intellectual property infringement, even those without merit, could (i) be expensive and time consuming to defend; (ii) cause us to cease making, licensing or using products or methods that allegedly infringe; (iii) require us to redesign, reengineer, or rebrand our products or packaging, if feasible; (iv) divert management's attention and resources; or (v) require us to enter into royalty or licensing agreements in order to obtain the right to use a third party's intellectual property. Any royalty or licensing agreements, if required, may not be available to us on acceptable terms or at all. A successful claim of infringement against us could result in our being required to pay significant damages, enter into costly license or royalty agreements, or stop the sale of certain products, any of which could have a negative impact on our operating results and harm our future prospects.

Risks related to this offering and ownership of our common stock

We are controlled by investment funds managed by LGP, whose interests in our business may be different from yours.

Upon the closing of this offering and after giving effect to the Exchange, LGP will own approximately                  shares, or         %, of our outstanding common stock. LGP will, for the foreseeable future, have significant influence over our reporting and corporate management and affairs, and will be able to control virtually all matters requiring stockholder approval. LGP is able to,

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subject to applicable law, and the voting arrangements with management described in "Certain relationships and related party transactions," designate a majority of the members of our board of directors and control actions to be taken by us and our board of directors, including amendments to our certificate of incorporation and bylaws and approval of significant corporate transactions, including mergers and sales of substantially all of our assets. The directors so elected will have the authority, subject to the terms of our indebtedness and our rules and regulations, to issue additional stock, implement stock repurchase programs, declare dividends and make other decisions. It is possible that the interests of LGP may in some circumstances conflict with our interests and the interests of our other stockholders, including you.

We are a "controlled company" within the meaning of the New York Stock Exchange listing requirements and as a result, will qualify for and intend to rely on exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements. You will not have the same protection afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to such corporate governance requirements.

Because of the aggregate voting power over our Company held by certain affiliates of LGP and certain members of management, we are considered a "controlled company" for the purposes of the New York Stock Exchange listing requirements. As such, we are exempt from the corporate governance requirements that our board of directors, our compensation committee and our nominating and corporate governance committee meet the standard of independence established by those corporate governance requirements. The independence standards are intended to ensure that directors who meet the independence standard are free of any conflicting interest that could influence their actions as directors.

Following this offering, we intend to utilize these exemptions afforded to a "controlled company." Accordingly, you will not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the corporate governance requirements of the New York Stock Exchange.

Our anti-takeover provisions could prevent or delay a change in control of our Company, even if such change in control would be beneficial to our stockholders.

Provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws as well as provisions of Delaware law could discourage, delay or prevent a merger, acquisition or other change in control of our Company, even if such change in control would be beneficial to our stockholders. These include:

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authorizing the issuance of "blank check" preferred stock that could be issued by our board of directors to increase the number of outstanding shares and thwart a takeover attempt;

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a provision for a classified board of directors so that not all members of our board of directors are elected at one time;

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the removal of directors only for cause;

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no provision for the use of cumulative voting for the election of directors;

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limiting the ability of stockholders to call special meetings;

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requiring all stockholder actions to be taken at a meeting of our stockholders (i.e. no provision for stockholder action by written consent); and

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establishing advance notice requirements for nominations for election to the board of directors or for proposing matters that can be acted upon by stockholders at stockholder meetings.

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In addition, the Delaware General Corporation Law, to which we are subject, prohibits us, except under specified circumstances, from engaging in any mergers, significant sales of stock or assets or business combinations with any stockholder or group of stockholders who owns at least 15% of our common stock.

Finally, we understand that, substantially concurrently with the closing of this offering, the affiliates of LGP which own our common stock, and Kip Tindell, Sharon Tindell and Melissa Reiff (the "management directors") intend to enter into a voting agreement. Pursuant to the terms of this agreement, for so long as such LGP affiliates and the management directors collectively hold at least          % of our outstanding common stock, or the agreement is otherwise terminated in accordance with its terms, such affiliates of LGP will agree to vote their shares of our common stock in favor of the election of the management directors to our board of directors upon their nomination by the nominating and corporate governance committee of our board of directors and the management directors will agree to vote their shares of our common stock in favor of the election of the directors affiliated with LGP upon their nomination by the nominating and corporate governance committee of our board of directors. Upon the closing of this offering, the parties to this agreement will collectively hold approximately                  shares, or         %, of our outstanding common stock. See "Certain relationships and related party transactions—Voting agreement."

The provision of our certificate of incorporation requiring exclusive venue in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware for certain types of lawsuits may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.

Our certificate of incorporation, as it will be in effect upon the closing of this offering, will require, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers or other employees to us or our stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against us arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our certificate of incorporation or the bylaws or (iv) any action asserting a claim against us governed by the internal affairs doctrine will have to be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware. Although we believe this provision benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law in the types of lawsuits to which it applies, the provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.

Taking advantage of the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to "emerging growth companies" may make our common stock less attractive to investors.

The JOBS Act provides that, so long as a company qualifies as an "emerging growth company," it will, among other things:

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be exempt from the provisions of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requiring that its independent registered public accounting firm provide an attestation report on the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting;

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be exempt from the "say on pay" and "say on golden parachute" advisory vote requirements of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Customer Protection Act (the "Dodd-Frank Act");

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certain disclosure requirements of the Dodd-Frank Act relating to compensation of its executive officers and be permitted to omit the detailed compensation discussion and analysis from proxy statements and reports filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"); and

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•

instead provide a reduced level of disclosure concerning executive compensation and be exempt from any rules that may be adopted by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board requiring mandatory audit firm rotations or a supplement to the auditor's report on the financial statements.

We currently intend to take advantage of the reduced disclosure requirements regarding executive compensation. We have irrevocably elected not to take advantage of the extension of time to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards available under Section 107(b) of the JOBS Act. If we remain an "emerging growth company" after fiscal 2013, we may take advantage of other exemptions, including the exemptions from the advisory vote requirements and executive compensation disclosures under the Dodd-Frank Act and the exemption from the provisions of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We cannot predict if investors will find our common stock less attractive if we elect to rely on these exemptions, or if taking advantage of these exemptions would result in less active trading or more volatility in the price of our common stock. Also, as a result of our intention to take advantage of some or all of the reduced regulatory and reporting requirements that will be available to us as long as we qualify as an "emerging growth company," our financial statements may not be comparable to companies that fully comply with regulatory and reporting requirements upon the public company effective dates.

We will incur increased costs as a result of becoming a public company.

As a public company, we will incur significant legal, accounting, insurance and other expenses that we have not incurred as a private company, including costs associated with public company reporting requirements. We also have incurred and will incur costs associated with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and related rules implemented by the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). The expenses incurred by public companies generally for reporting and corporate governance purposes have been increasing. We expect these rules and regulations to increase our legal and financial compliance costs and to make some activities more time-consuming and costly, although we are currently unable to estimate these costs with any degree of certainty. In estimating these costs, we took into account expenses related to insurance, legal, accounting, and compliance activities, as well as other expenses not currently incurred. These laws and regulations could also make it more difficult or costly for us to obtain certain types of insurance, including director and officer liability insurance, and we may be forced to accept reduced policy limits and coverage or incur substantially higher costs to obtain the same or similar coverage. These laws and regulations could also make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified persons to serve on our board of directors, our board committees or as our executive officers. Furthermore, if we are unable to satisfy our obligations as a public company, we could be subject to delisting of our common stock, fines, sanctions and other regulatory action and potentially civil litigation.

Failure to establish and maintain effective internal controls in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act could have a material adverse effect on our business and stock price.

We are not currently required to comply with the rules of the SEC implementing Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and are therefore not required to make a formal assessment of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting for that purpose. Upon becoming a public company, we will be required to comply with the SEC's rules implementing Sections 302 and 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which will require management to certify financial and other information in our quarterly and annual reports and provide an annual management report on the effectiveness of controls over financial reporting. Though we will be required to disclose changes made in our internal controls and procedures on a quarterly basis, we will not be required to make

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our first annual assessment of our internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 until the year following our first annual report required to be filed with the SEC. However, as an emerging growth company, our independent registered public accounting firm will not be required to formally attest to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 until the later of the year following our first annual report required to be filed with the SEC or the date we are no longer an emerging growth company. At such time, our independent registered public accounting firm may issue a report that is adverse in the event it is not satisfied with the level at which our controls are documented, designed or operating.

To comply with the requirements of being a public company, we may need to undertake various actions, such as implementing new internal controls and procedures and hiring additional accounting or internal audit staff. Testing and maintaining internal control can divert our management's attention from other matters that are important to the operation of our business. In addition, when evaluating our internal control over financial reporting, we may identify material weaknesses that we may not be able to remediate in time to meet the applicable deadline imposed upon us for compliance with the requirements of Section 404. For example, a material weakness was identified during fiscal 2012 relating to the accounting for the elfa® trade name. We are taking steps to remediate this material weakness and expect to do so by the end of fiscal 2013. If we identify additional material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting or are unable to comply with the requirements of Section 404 in a timely manner or assert that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, or if our independent registered public accounting firm is unable to express an opinion as to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our common stock could be negatively affected, and we could become subject to investigations by the stock exchange on which our securities are listed, the SEC or other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources.

We do not currently expect to pay any cash dividends.

The continued operation and expansion of our business will require substantial funding. Accordingly, we do not currently expect to pay any cash dividends on shares of our common stock. Any determination to pay dividends in the future will be at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend upon results of operations, financial condition, contractual restrictions, restrictions imposed by applicable law and other factors our board of directors deems relevant. Additionally, the obligors under the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility, the Revolving Credit Facility and the Elfa Senior Secured Credit Facilities are currently restricted from paying cash dividends, and we expect these restrictions to continue in the future. Accordingly, if you purchase shares in this offering, realization of a gain on your investment will depend on the appreciation of the price of our common stock, which may never occur. Investors seeking cash dividends in the foreseeable future should not purchase our common stock.

Substantial future sales of our common stock, or the perception in the public markets that these sales may occur, may depress our stock price.

Sales of substantial amounts of our common stock in the public market after this offering, or the perception that these sales could occur, could adversely affect the price of our common stock and could impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional shares. Upon the closing of this offering, we will have                   shares of common stock outstanding. The shares of common stock offered in this offering will be freely tradable without restriction under the Securities Act, except for any shares of our common stock that may be held or acquired by our directors,

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executive officers and other affiliates, as that term is defined in the Securities Act, which will be restricted securities under the Securities Act. Restricted securities may not be sold in the public market unless the sale is registered under the Securities Act or an exemption from registration is available. Current holders of our common stock have rights, subject to certain conditions, to require us to file registration statements covering their shares or to include their shares in registration statements that we may file for ourselves or other stockholders. See "Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions—Stockholders Agreement."

We and each of our executive officers and directors and certain shareholders, including LGP, which collectively will hold         % of our outstanding capital stock upon the closing of this offering and after giving effect to the Exchange, have agreed with the underwriters, subject to certain exceptions, not to dispose of or hedge any of the shares of common stock or securities convertible into or exchangeable for, or that represent the right to receive, shares of common stock during the period from the date of this prospectus continuing through the date 180 days after the date of this prospectus, except with the prior written consent of J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Barclays Capital Inc. and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC. See "Underwriting."

All of our shares of common stock outstanding as of the date of this prospectus may be sold in the public market by existing stockholders 180 days after the date of this prospectus, subject to applicable limitations imposed under federal securities laws. See "Shares Eligible for Future Sale" for a more detailed description of the restrictions on selling shares of our common stock after this offering.

In the future, we may also issue our securities if we need to raise capital in connection with a capital raise or acquisitions. The amount of shares of our common stock issued in connection with a capital raise or acquisition could constitute a material portion of our then-outstanding shares of our common stock.

Our common stock may be volatile or may decline regardless of our operating performance, and you may not be able to resell your shares at or above the initial public offering price.

After this offering, the market price for our common stock is likely to be volatile, in part because our shares have not been traded publicly. In addition, the market price of our common stock may fluctuate significantly in response to a number of factors, most of which we cannot control, including:

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quarterly variations in our operating results compared to market expectations;

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changes in preferences of our customers;

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announcements of new products or significant price reductions by us or our competitors;

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size of the public float;

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stock price performance of our competitors;

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fluctuations in stock market prices and volumes;

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default on our indebtedness;

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actions by competitors or other shopping center tenants;

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changes in senior management or key personnel;

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•

changes in financial estimates by securities analysts;

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the market's reaction to our reduced disclosure as a result of being an emerging growth company under the JOBS Act;

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negative earnings or other announcements by us or other retail home goods companies;

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downgrades in our credit ratings or the credit ratings of our competitors;

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issuances of capital stock; and

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global economic, legal and regulatory factors unrelated to our performance.

Numerous factors affect our business and cause variations in our operating results and affect our net sales and comparable store sales, including consumer preferences, buying trends and overall economic trends; our ability to identify and respond effectively to trends and customer preferences; actions by competitors and other shopping center tenants; changes in our merchandise mix; pricing; the timing of our releases of new merchandise and promotional events; the level of customer service that we provide in our stores; changes in sales mix among sales channels; our ability to source and distribute products effectively; inventory shrinkage; weather conditions, particularly during the holiday season; and the number of stores we open in any period.

The initial public offering price of our common stock will be determined by negotiations between us and the underwriters based upon a number of factors and may not be indicative of prices that will prevail following the closing of this offering. Volatility in the market price of our common stock may prevent investors from being able to sell their common stock at or above the initial public offering price. As a result, you may suffer a loss on your investment.

In addition, stock markets have experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have affected and continue to affect the market prices of equity securities of many retail companies. In the past, stockholders have instituted securities class action litigation following periods of market volatility. If we were involved in securities litigation, we could incur substantial costs and our resources and the attention of management could be diverted from our business.

If you purchase shares of common stock sold in this offering, you will incur immediate and substantial dilution.

If you purchase shares of common stock in this offering, you will incur immediate and substantial dilution in the amount of $             per share based upon an assumed initial public offering price of $             per share (the midpoint of the estimated price range set forth on the cover of this prospectus), which is substantially higher than the pro forma net tangible book value per share of our outstanding common stock. In addition, you may also experience additional dilution, or potential dilution, upon future equity issuances to investors or to our employees, consultants and directors under our stock option and equity incentive plans. See "Dilution."

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Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements

This prospectus contains forward-looking statements. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.

In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as "may," "will," "should," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "could," "intends," "target," "projects," "contemplates," "believes," "estimates," "predicts," "potential" or "continue" or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. The forward-looking statements in this prospectus are only predictions. We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. We believe that these factors include, but are not limited to, the following:

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overall decline in the health of the economy, consumer spending, and the housing market;

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our inability to manage costs and risks relating to new store openings;

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our inability to source and market new products to meet consumer preferences;

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our failure to achieve or maintain profitability;

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our dependence on a single distribution center for all of our stores;

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our vulnerability to natural disasters and other unexpected events;

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our reliance upon independent third-party transportation providers;

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our inability to protect our brand;

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our failure to successfully anticipate consumer preferences and demand;

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our inability to manage our growth;

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inability to locate available retail store sites on terms acceptable to us;

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our inability to maintain sufficient levels of cash flow to meet growth expectations;

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disruptions in the global financial markets leading to difficulty in borrowing sufficient amounts of capital to finance the carrying costs of inventory to pay for capital expenditures and operating costs;

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fluctuations in currency exchange rates;

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our inability to effectively manage our online sales;

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competition from other stores and internet-based competition;

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our inability to obtain merchandise on a timely basis at competitive prices as a result of changes in vendor relationships;

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vendors may sell similar or identical products to our competitors;

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•

our reliance on key executive management;

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our inability to find, train and retain key personnel;

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labor relations difficulties;

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increases in health care costs and labor costs;

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our dependence on foreign imports for our merchandise;

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violations of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and similar worldwide anti-bribery and anti-kickback laws; and

•

our indebtedness may restrict our current and future operations.

These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this prospectus and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions described in the "Risk Factors" section and elsewhere in this prospectus. Because forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, some of which cannot be predicted or quantified, you should not rely on these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. The events and circumstances reflected in our forward-looking statements may not be achieved or occur and actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Except as required by applicable law, we do not plan to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements contained herein after we distribute this prospectus, whether as a result of any new information, future events or otherwise.

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The exchange

Holders of our preferred stock are entitled to a preferential payment upon certain distributions by us to holders of our capital stock (referred to as the liquidation preference), equal to the purchase price for such share ($1,000.00) plus accrued and unpaid dividends from August 16, 2007, the date of the LGP acquisition, on the outstanding liquidation preference at a rate of 12% per annum, compounded quarterly. Upon the closing of this offering, a dividend in the aggregate amount of $              million, which we refer to as the "Dividend," will be paid from the net proceeds from this offering as follows: (i) first, on a pro rata basis to the holders of our senior preferred stock, which shall reduce the liquidation preference of each such share of our senior preferred stock until such liquidation preference has been reduced to $1,000.00 per share and (ii) second, on a pro rata basis to the holders of our junior preferred stock, which will reduce the liquidation preference of each such share of our junior preferred stock.

As required by our existing stockholders agreement, each holder of our preferred stock will exchange each outstanding share of such holder's preferred stock for a number of shares of common stock determined by dividing (a) the liquidation preference amount of such preferred stock on the date of the Dividend (and after giving effect to the payment of the Dividend) by (b) the initial public offering price in this offering. References to the "Exchange" throughout this prospectus refer to the exchange of our preferred stock for our common stock.

As of September 1, 2013, as adjusted to give effect to the reduction resulting from the Dividend the liquidation preference per share of our senior preferred stock would have been $1,000.00 and the liquidation preference per share of our junior preferred stock would have been $             . These liquidation preference amounts are calculated as follows:

The number of shares of common stock actually issued in the Exchange will be calculated using the liquidation preference as of the closing date of this offering. The liquidation preference will accrue at a rate of $242,311.28 per day (which rate will increase to $249,742.16 as of October 1, 2013) in the aggregate, which represents $105,745.53 per day (which rate will increase to $108,988.39 as of October 1, 2013) with respect to the shares of senior preferred stock and $136,565.75 per day (which rate will increase to $140,753.77 as of October 1, 2013) with respect to the shares of our junior preferred stock, for each day on or after September 1, 2013 and to, but excluding, the closing date of this offering. Such accrual of the liquidation preference compounds on a quarterly basis, and as a result, the rate of accrual will increase on the first day of the next calendar quarter.

Assuming an initial public offering price of $             per share (the midpoint of the range set forth on the front cover of this prospectus) and the liquidation preference as of September 1, 2013 after giving effect to the payment of the Dividend,                    shares of common stock will be

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outstanding immediately after the Exchange. The actual number of shares of common stock that will be issued as a result of the Exchange is subject to change based on the initial public offering price and the closing date of this offering.

The following table sets forth the computation of the exchange ratio as of September 1, 2013 for each share of our senior preferred stock and our junior preferred stock, based on the above assumptions:

Because the number of shares of common stock issued in the Exchange will be determined by reference to the initial public offering price in this offering, a change in the assumed initial public offering price would have a corresponding impact on the number of outstanding shares of common stock presented in this prospectus after giving effect to this offering. The following number of shares of our common stock would be outstanding immediately after the Exchange and giving effect to this offering, assuming (i) the initial public offering prices for our common stock shown below and (ii) the liquidation preference per share as of September 1, 2013 after giving effect to the payment of the Dividend, as described above:

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Use of proceeds

We estimate that the net proceeds to us from this offering, after deducting the underwriting discount and estimated offering expenses, will be approximately $              million (or $              million if the underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional shares in full), assuming the shares are offered at $             per share (the midpoint of the estimated price range set forth on the cover of this prospectus).

Each $1.00 increase or decrease in the assumed initial public offering price of $             per share (the midpoint of the estimated price range set forth on the cover of this prospectus) would increase or decrease, as applicable, the net proceeds we receive from this offering by approximately $              million (or $              million if the underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional shares in full), assuming the number of shares offered by us, as set forth on the cover of this prospectus, remains the same and after deducting the estimated underwriting discount and estimated offering expenses. We may also increase or decrease the number of shares we are offering. An increase of 1,000,000 shares in the number of shares offered by us, together with a concomitant $1.00 increase in the assumed initial public offering price of $             per share, which is the midpoint of the price range set forth on the cover of this prospectus, would increase the net proceeds to us from this offering by approximately $             after deducting underwriting discounts and estimated offering expenses payable by us. Conversely, a decrease of 1,000,000 shares in the number of shares offered by us together with a concomitant $1.00 decrease in the assumed initial public offering price of $             per share, which is the midpoint of the price range set forth on the cover of this prospectus, would decrease the net proceeds to us from this offering by approximately $              million after deducting underwriting discounts and estimated offering expenses payable by us.

We intend to use the net proceeds that we receive from this offering as follows:

•

(i) first, to pay a dividend to holders of our senior preferred stock, which will reduce the liquidation preference of such shares until such liquidation preference is reduced to $1,000.00 per share and (ii) second, to pay the remainder as a dividend to holders of our junior preferred stock, which will reduce the liquidation preference of such shares (see "—Dividend and Exchange of Preferred Stock" above); and

•

if the underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional shares, we intend to use the net proceeds that we receive to repay a portion of the outstanding borrowings under the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility (as such term is defined under "Description of Indebtedness").

As of August 31, 2013, $361.3 million was outstanding under the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility. Borrowings under the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility had a weighted average interest rate of 6.42% for fiscal 2012. The Senior Secured Term Loan Facility accrues interest at the rate of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) + 4.25%, subject to a LIBOR floor of 1.25%, and matures on April 6, 2019. On April 8, 2013, The Container Store, Inc. entered into the Increase and Repricing Transactions, which were effected pursuant to an amendment to the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility. The additional $90.0 million of borrowings was used to finance a dividend distribution to holders of our senior preferred stock in the amount of $90.0 million, which was paid on April 9, 2013. See "Description of Indebtedness."

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