ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

The risks and uncertainties described below could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations and could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations and projections. You should read these Risk Factors in conjunction with "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in Item 7 and our Consolidated Financial Statements and related notes in Item 8. There also may be other factors that we cannot anticipate or that are not described in this report generally because we do not currently perceive them to be material. Those factors could cause results to differ materially from our expectations.

We face intense competition that could prohibit us from developing or increasing our customer base and generating revenue.

The industry within which we compete is highly competitive. We compete with companies that have greater capital resources, facilities and diversity of product lines. We compete in the specialty gardening industry, selling hydroponic and organic nutrients, soils and other gardening related products. Additionally, if demand for our hydroponic growing equipment and products continues to grow, we expect many new competitors to enter the market, as there are no significant barriers to retail sales of hydroponic growing equipment and related gardening products. More established gardening companies with much greater financial resources which do not currently compete with us may be able to easily adapt their existing operations to sales of hydroponic growing equipment. Due to this competition, there is no assurance that we will not encounter difficulties in generating or increasing revenues and capturing market share. In addition, increased competition may lead to reduced prices and/or margins for products we sell. Our competitors may also introduce new hydroponic growing equipment, manufacturers may sell equipment direct to consumers, and our distributers could cease sales of product to us.

If we need additional capital to fund our operations, we may not be able to obtain sufficient capital and may be forced to limit the scope of our operations.

If adequate additional financing is not available on reasonable terms, we may not be able to expand our retail or online operations and we may be forced to modify our business plans accordingly. There is no assurance that additional financing will be available to us. In connection with our growth strategies, we may experience increased capital needs and accordingly, we may not have sufficient capital to fund our future operations without additional capital investments. Our capital needs will depend on numerous factors, including (i) our profitability; (ii) the release of competitive products by our competition; (iii) the level of our investment in sales and marketing; and (iv) new store openings and or acquisitions. We cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain capital in the future to meet our needs. If we cannot obtain additional funding, we may be required to: (i) limit our expansion; (ii) limit our marketing efforts; and (iii) decrease or eliminate capital expenditures. Such reductions could materially adversely affect our business and our ability to compete. Moreover, even if we do find a source of additional capital, we may not be able to negotiate terms and conditions for receiving the additional capital that are favorable to us. Any future capital investments could dilute or otherwise materially and adversely affect the holdings or rights of our existing shareholders. We cannot give you any assurance that any additional financing will be available to us, or if available, will be on terms favorable to us.

Our business depends substantially on the continuing efforts of our executive officers and our business may be severely disrupted if we lose their services.

Our future success depends substantially on the continued services of our executive officers, especially our Chief Executive Officer, Darren Lampert, our President, Michael Salaman, our Chief Operating Officer, Joseph Prinzivalli and our Chief Financial Officer, Monty Lamirato. We do not maintain key man life insurance on any of our executive officers and directors. If one or more of our executive officers are unable or unwilling to continue in their present positions, we may not be able to replace them readily, if at all. Therefore, our business may be severely disrupted, and we may incur additional expenses to recruit and retain new officers.

If we are not successful in attracting and retaining highly qualified personnel, we may not be able to successfully implement our business strategy.

Our ability to compete in the highly competitive hydroponics and gardening industry depends in large part upon our ability to attract highly qualified managerial and sales personnel. In order to induce valuable employees to come and work for us or to remain with us, we intend to provide employees with stock options that vest over time. The value to employees of stock options that vest over time will be significantly affected by movements in our stock price that we will not be able to control and may at any time be insufficient to counteract more lucrative offers from other companies. Our success also depends on our ability to continue to attract, retain and motivate highly skilled junior, mid-level, and senior personnel.

In order to increase our sales and marketing infrastructure, we will need to grow the size of our organization, and we may experience difficulties in managing this growth.

As we continue to work to open and/or acquire additional retail store locations, we will need to expand the size of our employee base for managerial, operational, sales, marketing, financial and other resources. Future growth would impose significant added responsibilities on members of management, including the need to identify, recruit, maintain, motivate and integrate additional employees. In addition, our management may have to divert a disproportionate amount of its attention away from our day-to-day activities and devote a substantial amount of time to managing these growth activities. Our future financial performance and our ability to continue to grow our operation and compete in the hydroponics industry effectively will depend, in part, on our ability to effectively manage any future growth.

Litigation may adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

From time to time in the normal course of our business operations, we may become subject to litigation that may result in liability material to our financial statements as a whole or may negatively affect our operating results if changes to our business operation are required. The cost to defend such litigation may be significant and may require a diversion of our resources. There also may be adverse publicity associated with litigation that could negatively affect customer perception of our business, regardless of whether the allegations are valid or whether we are ultimately found liable. As a result, litigation may adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may not obtain insurance coverage to adequately cover all significant risk exposures.

We will be exposed to liabilities that are unique to the products we provide. We currently maintain property and casualty, automobile, and business interruption insurance and there can be no assurance that we will acquire or maintain insurance for certain risks, that the amount of our insurance coverage will be adequate to cover all claims or liabilities, or that we will not be forced to bear substantial costs resulting from risks and uncertainties of business. It is also not possible to obtain insurance to protect against all operational risks and liabilities. The failure to obtain adequate insurance coverage on terms favorable to us, or at all, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Federal practices could change with respect to providers of equipment potentially usable by participants in the medical cannabis industry, which could adversely impact us.

Cannabis growers utilize various products that we offer for sale. While we are not aware of any threatened or current federal or state law enforcement actions against any retailer of hydroponic equipment that might be used for cannabis growing or use we have heard that a number of years ago, law enforcement authorities did initiate raids at some retail stores where operators evidently knew they were selling hydroponic equipment directly to customers who indicated they intended to use it for the cultivation of recreational cannabis. Those raids took place in a different legal landscape, well before the legalization of medical or recreational cannabis by any state. We are unaware of any threatened or actual law enforcement activity, ever, against manufacturers or retailers of supplies marketed for usage by participants in the emerging cannabis industry.

A theoretical risk exists that our activities could be deemed to be facilitating the selling or distribution of cannabis in violation of the Federal Controlled Substances Act, or to constitute aiding or abetting, or being an accessory to, a violation of that Act. We believe, however, that such a risk is relatively low. Federal authorities have not focused their resources on such tangential or secondary violations of the Act, nor have they threatened to do so, with respect to the sale of equipment that might be used by cannabis gardeners, or with respect to any supplies marketed to participants in the emerging medical cannabis industry. We are unaware of such a broad application of the Controlled Substances Act by federal authorities, and we believe that such an attempted application would be unprecedented. Even though the Company sells hydroponic and garden supplies it may encounter difficulty in obtaining bank accounts with financial institutions because we are an ancillary business that service the cannabis industry.

If the federal government were to change its practices or were to expend its resources attacking providers of equipment that could be usable by participants in the medical or recreational cannabis industry, such action could have a materially adverse effect on our operations, our customers, or the sales of our products.

Cannabis remains illegal under federal law and a change in federal enforcement practices could significantly and negatively affect our cannabis cultivation and production business.

State laws legalizing medicinal and adult cannabis use are in conflict with the Federal Controlled Substances Act, which classifies cannabis as a Schedule-I controlled substance and makes cannabis use and possession illegal on a national level. The United States Supreme Court has ruled that the Federal government has the right to regulate and criminalize cannabis, even for medical purposes, and thus Federal law criminalizing the use of cannabis preempts state laws that legalize its use. While the prior Obama Administration has effectively stated that it is not an efficient use of resources to direct Federal law enforcement agencies to prosecute those lawfully abiding by state-designated laws allowing the use and distribution of medical and recreational cannabis, on January 4, 2018, the United States Attorney General announced the rescission of the Obama Administration’s policy, which indirectly negatively impacted our business.

Continued federal intervention in certain segments of the cannabis industry is disruptive to the industry and may have a negative impact on us.

Our products are sold to growers of various crops, including cannabis. Disruption to the cannabis industry could cause some potential customers to be more reluctant to invest in growing equipment, including equipment we sell. Currently, 29 states and the District of Columbia allow its citizens to use medical cannabis. Additionally, Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington, and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for adult recreational use, and additional recreational measures are expected to be pursued by other states in the future. Continued development of the cannabis industry is dependent upon continued legislative authorization of cannabis at the state level. Any number of factors could slow or halt progress in this area. Further, progress in the cannabis industry, while encouraging, is not assured. While there may be ample public support for legislative action, numerous factors impact the legislative process. Any one of these factors could slow or halt use of cannabis, which would negatively impact our business.

There can be no assurance that our intended operations will not violate state or federal law.

We have not requested or obtained any opinion of counsel or ruling from any authority to determine if our intended operations are in compliance with or violate any state or federal laws or whether we are assisting others to violate a state or federal law. In the event that our intended operations are deemed to violate any laws or if we are deemed to be others to violate a state or federal law, we could have liability that could cause us to modify or cease our operations.

Our past private placements were made pursuant to an exemption from registration.

Since 2014, various private placements conducted by the Company were made in reliance upon the so-called "private placement" exemption from registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) provided by Sections 4(a)(2) of the 1933 Securities Act, by Regulation D, Rule 506 adopted there under, and the exemptions from registration provided by the Blue-Sky laws of states in which our securities are offered. However, reliance upon these exemptions is highly technical and should not be viewed as a guarantee that such exemptions are indeed available. If for any reason the private placement exemption is not available for past private placements and no other exemption from registration is found to be available, the sale of the securities in such private placements would be deemed to have been made in violation of the applicable laws, thus requiring registration of those securities. As a remedy for such a violation, each investor would have the right to rescind its purchase and to have its full investment returned. If an investor requests return of its investment, it is possible that funds would not be available to us for that purpose, and that liquidation of us may be required. Any refunds made would reduce funds available to us for our operations. A significant number of requests for rescission would probably leave us without funds sufficient to respond to such requests or to proceed successfully with its activities.

There are a significant number of shares of common stock eligible for sale, which could depress the market price of such shares.

Our Registration Statement on Form S-1 has registered a total of 4,166,429 shares of our common stock, which includes 2,058,572 shares of common stock being sold by our shareholders and 2,107,857 shares of common stock underlying the warrants with an exercise price of $0.70 per share, available for sale in the public market. The availability of such a large number of shares of common stock for sale in the public market could harm the market price of the stock. Further, shares may be offered from time to time in the open market pursuant to Rule 144, and these sales may have a depressive effect as well.

We are under the obligation to repay our convertible promissory notes upon maturity.

On January 17, 2018, the Company completed a private placement of units of its securities and raised gross proceeds of $9,000,000 from certain accredited investors in the offering. Each unit consists of (i) a .1% unsecured convertible promissory note of the principal amount of $250,000, and (ii) a 3-year warrant entitling the holder to purchase 37,500 shares of Common Stock, at a price of $.01 per share or through cashless exercise. The principal and interest of the promissory notes will be due and payable by the Company in three years from the date of issuance. Inability to repay the promissory notes on maturity, if the promissory notes are neither converted nor extended, will result in the financial condition of the Company to be materially adversely affected.

The promissory notes are convertible into shares of the Company’s Common Stock at the holders’ option at $3 per share. If a large number of holders choose to convert their promissory notes, it may cause substantial dilution on other shareholders’ ownership of the Company’s securities.

If our existing stockholders sell substantial amounts of our common stock in the public market, or if the public perceives that such sales could occur, this could have an adverse impact on the market price of our common stock, even if there is no relationship between such sales and the performance of our business.

If product liability lawsuits are brought against us, we may incur substantial liabilities.

We face a potential risk of product liability as a result of any of the products that we offer for sale. For example, we may be sued if any product we sell allegedly causes injury or is found to be otherwise unsuitable during product testing, manufacturing, marketing or sale. Any such product liability claims may include allegations of defects in manufacturing, defects in design, a failure to warn of dangers inherent in the product, negligence, strict liability and a breach of warranties. Claims could also be asserted under state consumer protection acts. If we cannot successfully defend ourselves against product liability claims, we may incur substantial liabilities. Even successful defense would require significant financial and management resources. Regardless of the merits or eventual outcome, liability claims may result in:

We do not maintain any product liability insurance. Our inability to obtain and retain sufficient product liability insurance at an acceptable cost to protect against potential product liability claims could prevent or inhibit the commercialization of products we develop. e. Even if we obtain product liability insurance in the future, we may have to pay amounts awarded by a court or negotiated in a settlement that exceed our coverage limitations or that are not covered by our insurance, and we may not have, or be able to obtain, sufficient capital to pay such amounts.

We may acquire businesses or products, or form strategic alliances, in the future, and we may not realize the benefits of such acquisitions.

We may acquire additional businesses or products, form strategic alliances or create joint ventures with third parties that we believe will complement or augment our existing business. If we acquire businesses with promising markets or products, we may not be able to realize the benefit of acquiring such businesses if we are unable to successfully integrate them with our existing operations and company culture. We may encounter numerous difficulties in developing, manufacturing and/or marketing any new products resulting from a strategic alliance or acquisition that delay or prevent us from realizing their expected benefits or enhancing our business. We cannot assure you that, following any such acquisition, we will achieve the expected synergies to justify the transaction.

Risks Related to Our Common Stock

Our officers and directors will control our company for the foreseeable future, including the outcome of matters requiring stockholder approval.

At of the date hereof, our officers and directors collectively beneficially own approximately 18% of our outstanding shares of Common Stock on a primary basis and 23.44% of our outstanding shares in Common Stock if they exercise all their options and warrants. Certain of these individuals also have significant control over our business, policies and affairs as officers or directors of our company. Therefore, you should not invest in reliance on your ability to have any control over our company.

An investment in our company should be considered illiquid.

An investment in our company requires a long-term commitment, with no certainty of return. Currently there is only a very limited market for our common stock and we cannot guarantee that a liquid market for our common stock will develop in the near future. Moreover, we do not expect security analysts of brokerage firms to provide coverage of our company in the near future. In addition, investment banks may be less likely to agree to underwrite primary or secondary offerings on behalf of our company or its stockholders in the future than they would if we were to become a public reporting company by means of an initial public offering of common stock. If all or any of the foregoing risks occur, it would have a material adverse effect on our company.

Limited public market for our common stock currently exists, and an active trading market may not develop or be sustained.

As we are in our early stages, an investment in our company will likely require a long-term commitment, with no certainty of return. The Company was approved to start trading its common stock on the OTCQB Marketplace as of October 19, 2016, and commenced trading on November 11, 2016.  On October 10, 2017, the Company’s common stock started trading on OTCQX Best Market. There is currently is a limited public market for our common stock and there is no guarantee that any sustained trading market will develop in the near future or at all. In the absence of an active trading market:

The OTCQX Best Market is a relatively unorganized, inter-dealer, over-the-counter market that provides significantly less liquidity than NASDAQ or the NYSE American (formerly NYSE MKT, formerly NYSE AMEX). The market for our Common Stock may be illiquid and you may be unable to dispose of your shares of common stock at desirable prices or at all. Moreover, there is a risk that our common stock could be delisted from the OTCQX Best Market, in which case it might be listed on the so called “Pink Sheets”, which is even more illiquid than the OTCQX Best Market

The lack of an active market impairs your ability to sell your shares at the time you wish to sell them or at a price that you consider reasonable. The lack of an active market may also reduce the fair market value of your shares. An inactive market may also impair our ability to raise capital to continue to fund operations by selling shares and may impair our ability to acquire additional intellectual property assets by using our shares as consideration.

The market price of our common stock may be significantly volatile.

The market price for our common stock may be volatile and subject to wide fluctuations in response to factors including the following:

The securities market has from time to time experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that are not related to the operating performance of particular companies. These market fluctuations may also materially and adversely affect the market price of shares of our common stock.

Our common stock may be considered a “penny stock,” and thereby be subject to additional sale and trading regulations that may make it more difficult to sell.

The SEC has adopted rules that regulate broker-dealer practices in connection with transactions in penny stocks. Penny stocks are generally equity securities with a price of less than $5.00 (other than securities registered on certain national securities exchanges or authorized for quotation on certain automated quotation systems, provided that current price and volume information with respect to transactions in such securities is provided by the exchange or system). The OTCBB and OTCQX Best Market do not meet such requirements and if the price of our common stock is less than $5.00, our common stock will be deemed penny stocks. The penny stock rules require a broker-dealer, prior to a transaction in a penny stock not otherwise exempt from those rules, to deliver a standardized risk disclosure document containing specified information. In addition, the penny stock rules require that prior to effecting any transaction in a penny stock not otherwise exempt from those rules, a broker-dealer must make a special written determination that the penny stock is a suitable investment for the purchaser and receive (i) the purchaser’s written acknowledgment of the receipt of a risk disclosure statement; (ii) a written agreement to transactions involving penny stocks; and (iii) a signed and dated copy of a written suitability statement. These disclosure requirements may have the effect of reducing the trading activity in the secondary market for our common stock, and therefore stock holders may have difficulty selling their shares.  

FINRA sales practice requirements may also limit your ability to buy and sell our common stock, which could depress the price of our shares.

FINRA rules require broker-dealers to have reasonable grounds for believing that an investment is suitable for a customer before recommending that investment to the customer. Prior to recommending speculative low-priced securities to their non-institutional customers, broker-dealers must make reasonable efforts to obtain information about the customer’s financial status, tax status and investment objectives, among other things. Under interpretations of these rules, FINRA believes that there is a high probability such speculative low-priced securities will not be suitable for at least some customers. Thus, FINRA requirements make it more difficult for broker-dealers to recommend that their customers buy our common stock, which may limit your ability to buy and sell our shares, have an adverse effect on the market for our shares, and thereby depress our share price.

Our shareholders may face significant restrictions on the resale of their shares due to state “blue sky” laws.

Each state has its own securities laws, often called “blue sky” laws, which (1) limit sales of securities to a state’s residents unless the securities are registered in that state or qualify for an exemption from registration, and (2) govern the reporting requirements for broker-dealers doing business directly or indirectly in the state. Before a security is sold in a state, there must be a registration in place to cover the transaction, or it must be exempt from registration. The applicable broker-dealer must also be registered in that state.

We do not know whether our securities will be registered or exempt from registration under the laws of any state. A determination regarding registration will be made by those broker-dealers, if any, who agree to serve as market makers for our common stock. There may be significant state blue sky law restrictions on the ability of investors to sell, and on purchasers to buy, our securities. The resale market for our common stock could be limited, as the holders of our common stock may be unable to resell their shares without the significant expense of state registration or qualification.

The shares of our common stock may experience substantial dilution by exercises of outstanding warrants and options.

As of the date hereof, we had outstanding warrants to purchase an aggregate of 2,319,000, shares of our common stock at a weighted average exercise price of $2.34 per share, and options to purchase an aggregate of 1,923,000 shares of our common stock (out of which 1,733,498 are vested as of this date) at a weighted average exercise prices of $.79 per share. The 1,733,498 vested options have a weighted average exercise price of $.73 per share (the first $100,000 of options granted to each of our officers and directors may be deemed to be incentive stock options. The exercise of such outstanding options and warrants will result in substantial dilution of your investment. In addition, you may experience additional dilution if we issue common stock in the future. Any of such dilution may have adverse effect on the price of our common stock. 

We are an “emerging growth company,” and will be able take advantage of reduced disclosure requirements applicable to “emerging growth companies,” which could make our common stock less attractive to investors.

We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, or JOBS Act, and, for as long as we continue to be an “emerging growth company,” we intend to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements applicable to other public companies but not to “emerging growth companies,” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. We could be an “emerging growth company” for up to five years, or until the earliest of (i) the last day of the first fiscal year in which our annual gross revenues exceed $1 billion, (ii) the date that we become a “large accelerated filer” as defined in Rule 12b-2 under the Exchange Act, which would occur if the market value of our common stock that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the last business day of our most recently completed second fiscal quarter, or (iii) the date on which we have issued more than $1 billion in non-convertible debt during the preceding three year period. We cannot predict if investors will find our common stock less attractive if we choose to rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our common stock less attractive as a result of any choices to reduce future disclosure, there may be a less active trading market for our common stock and our stock price may be more volatile.

We incurred significantly increased costs and devote substantial management time as a result of operating as a public company, particularly after we are no longer deemed an “emerging growth company.”

As a public company, we incurred significant legal, accounting and other expenses that we did not incur as a private company. For example, we are required to comply with certain of the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, as well as rules and regulations subsequently implemented by the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the establishment and maintenance of effective disclosure and financial controls and changes in corporate governance practices. In addition, our management and other personnel need to divert attention from operational and other business matters to devote substantial time to these public company requirements.

However, for as long as we remain an “emerging growth company” as defined in the JOBS Act, we intend to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. We intend to take advantage of these reporting exemptions until we are no longer an “emerging growth company.”

Under the JOBS Act, “emerging growth companies” can delay adopting new or revised accounting standards until such time as those standards apply to private companies. We have irrevocably elected not to avail ourselves of this exemption from new or revised accounting standards and, therefore, we will be subject to the same new or revised accounting standards as other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies.” 

After we are no longer an “emerging growth company,” we expect to incur additional management time and cost to comply with the more stringent reporting requirements applicable to companies that are deemed accelerated filers or large accelerated filers, including complying with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

We cannot predict or estimate the amount of additional costs we may incur or the timing of such costs.

There may be limitations on the effectiveness of our internal controls, and a failure of our control systems to prevent error or fraud may materially harm our company.

Proper systems of internal controls over financial accounting and disclosure are critical to the operation of a public company. As we are a start-up company, we are at the very early stages of establishing, and we may be unable to effectively establish such systems, especially in light of the fact that we expect to operate as a publicly reporting company. This would leave us without the ability to reliably assimilate and compile financial information about our company and significantly impair our ability to prevent error and detect fraud, all of which would have a negative impact on our company from many perspectives.

Moreover, we do not expect that disclosure controls or internal control over financial reporting, even if established, will prevent all error and all fraud. A control system, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the control system’s objectives will be met. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, have been detected. Failure of our control systems to prevent error or fraud could materially adversely impact us.

We do not currently intend to pay dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future, and consequently, your ability to achieve a return on your investment will depend on appreciation in the price of our common stock.

We have never declared or paid cash dividends on our common stock and do not anticipate paying any cash dividends to holders of our common stock in the foreseeable future. Consequently, investors must rely on sales of their common stock after price appreciation, which may never occur, as the only way to realize any future gains on their investments. There is no guarantee that shares of our common stock will appreciate in value or even maintain the price at which our stockholders have purchased their shares.

Upon dissolution of our company, you may not recoup all or any portion of your investment.

In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of our company, whether voluntary or involuntary, the proceeds and/or assets of our company remaining after giving effect to such transaction, and the payment of all of our debts and liabilities will be distributed to the stockholders of common stock on a pro rata basis. There can be no assurance that we will have available assets to pay to the holders of common stock, or any amounts, upon such a liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of our Company. In this event, you could lose some or all of your investment.