Item 1. Business

Overview

SpartanNash Company (together with its subsidiaries, “SpartanNash” or “the Company”) is a Fortune 400 company whose core businesses include distributing grocery products to independent grocery retailers (“independent retailers”), select national retailers, food service distributors, its corporate owned retail stores, and United States (“U.S.”) military commissaries. SpartanNash serves customer locations in 47 states and the District of Columbia, Europe, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Bahrain and Egypt. As of December 31, 2016, the Company operated 157 supermarkets, primarily under the banners of Family Fare Supermarkets, VG’s Food and Pharmacy, D&W Fresh Market, Sun Mart and Family Fresh Market . Through its Military division, SpartanNash is the leading distributor of grocery products to military commissaries in the United States. The Company operates three reportable business segments: Food Distribution, Military and Retail. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016, the Company generated net sales of approximately $7.7 billion.

Established in 1917 as a cooperative grocery distributor, Spartan Stores Inc. (“Spartan Stores”) converted to a for-profit business corporation in 1973. In January 1999, Spartan Stores began to acquire retail supermarkets in its focused geographic regions. In August 2000, Spartan Stores common stock became listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market under the symbol “SPTN.” On November 19, 2013, Spartan Stores merged with Nash-Finch Company (“Nash-Finch”) and the combined company was named SpartanNash Company. Unless the context otherwise requires, the use of the terms “SpartanNash,” and “the Company” in this Annual Report on Form 10-K refers to the surviving corporation SpartanNash Company and, as applicable, its consolidated subsidiaries.

On January 6, 2017, the Company acquired certain assets and assumed certain liabilities of Caito Foods Service (“Caito”), a leading supplier of fresh fruit and vegetables as well as value-added solutions for retailers, and its affiliate, Blue Ribbon Transport (“BRT”), which provides temperature-controlled distribution and logistics services throughout North America. The acquisition strengthens the Company’s fresh product offerings and value-added services, such as freshly-prepared centerplate and side dish categories, and also complements the Company’s existing supply chain network.

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The Company’s hybrid business model supports the close functioning of its Food Distribution, Military and Retail operations, optimizing the natural complements of each business segment while a lso enhancing the ability of the Company’s independent retailers to compete long-term in the grocery industry. The model produces operational efficiencies, helps stimulate distribution product demand, and provides sharper visibility and broader business gr owth options. In addition, the Food Distribution, Military and Retail diversification provides added flexibility to pursue the best long-term growth opportunities in each segment.

SpartanNash has established key management priorities for the longer-term strategy of the Company, including establishing a well-differentiated product offering for its Food Distribution, Military and Retail segments, and additional strategies designed to create value for its shareholders, retailers and customers. These priorities are:

Food Distribution:

Military:

Retail:

Supply Chain:

Food Distribution Segment

The Company’s Food Distribution segment uses a multi-platform sales approach to distribute grocery products to independent retailers, select national retailers, food service distributors, and the Company’s corporate owned retail stores. Total net sales from the Company’s Food Distribution segment, including sales to corporate owned retail stores that are eliminated in the consolidated financial statements, were approximately $4.4 billion for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016. As of the end of fiscal 2016, the Company believes it is the sixth largest wholesale distributor, in terms of annual revenue, to supermarkets in the United States.

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Customers. The Company’s Food Distribution segment supplies grocery products to a diverse group of approximately 2,1 00 independent retailers with operations ranging from a single store to supermarket chains with over 30 stores, food service distributors and the Company’s corporate owned retail stores. As of December 31, 2016, the Company operates in 47 states by leverag ing a platform of 17 distribution centers servicing the Food Distribution and Military segments. This extensive geographic reach drives economies of scale and provides opportunities for independent retailers to purchase products at competitive prices in or der to compete long-term in the grocery industry.

Through its Food Distribution segment, the Company also services select national retailers, including Dollar General. Sales to Dollar General are made to approximately 13,000 of its retail locations, with sales representing 11.2% and 10.7% of consolidated net sales for fiscal 2016 and 2015, respectively. Except for these two fiscal years, sales to this customer did not exceed 10% of consolidated net sales for any other year presented. The Company’s Food Distribution customer base is diverse, and no other single customer exceeded 5% of consolidated net sales in any of the years presented.

The Company’s five largest Food Distribution customers (excluding corporate owned retail stores) accounted for approximately 39% of total Food Distribution net sales for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016. In addition, approximately 83% of Food Distribution net sales for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016, including sales to corporate owned retail stores, are either covered under supply agreements with independent retailers or are intercompany sales.

The recent acquisition of Blue Ribbon Transport on January 6, 2017 expanded the Company’s capability to offer temperature-controlled distribution and logistics services throughout North America.

Products. The Company’s Food Distribution segment provides a selection of approximately 60,000 stock-keeping units (SKUs) of nationally branded and private brand grocery products (see “Marketing and Merchandising – Private Brands”) and perishable food products, including dry groceries, produce, dairy products, meat, delicatessen items, bakery goods, frozen food, seafood, floral products, general merchandise, beverages, tobacco products, health and beauty care products and pharmacy. With the acquisition of Caito, the product offering will include fresh protein-based foods, prepared meals, and value-added products such as fresh-cut fruits and vegetables and prepared salads. These product offerings, along with best in class services, allow independent retailers the opportunity to support the majority of their operations with a single supplier. Meeting consumers’ needs will continue to be SpartanNash’s priority as it executes its hybrid business model of Food Distribution, Military and Retail operations.

Additional Services. The Company offers and provides many of its independent Food Distribution customers with value-added services, including:

Military Segment

The Company’s Military segment contracts with manufacturers and brokers to distribute a wide variety of grocery products primarily to U.S. military commissaries and exchanges.

The distributed grocery products are delivered to over 160 military commissaries and over 440 exchanges located in more than 45 states across the United States and the District of Columbia, Europe, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Bahrain and Egypt. The Company’s distribution centers are strategically located among the largest concentration of military bases in the areas the Company serves and near Atlantic ports used to ship grocery products to overseas commissaries and exchanges. The Company’s Military segment has an outstanding reputation as a distributor focused on U.S. military commissaries and exchanges, based in large measure on its excellent service metrics, which include fill rate, on-time delivery and shipping accuracy.

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DeCA operates a chain of over 238 commissaries on U.S. military installations throughout the world that sell approximately $5.2 billion of grocery products annually. DeCA contracts with manufacturers to obtain grocery product s for the commissary system. Manufacturers either deliver the products to the commissaries themselves or, more commonly, contract with distributors such as SpartanNash to deliver the products. Manufacturers must authorize the distributors as their official representatives to DeCA, and the distributors must adhere to DeCA’s frequent delivery system (“FDS”) procedures governing matters such as product identification, ordering and processing, information exchange and resolution of discrepancies. The Company ob tains distribution contracts with manufacturers through competitive bidding processes and direct negotiations.

As of December 31, 2016, the Company has approximately 250 distribution contracts representing approximately 600 manufacturers that supply products to the DeCA commissary system and various exchange systems. Generally, larger contracts or those subject to a request-for-proposal process have definitive durations, whereas smaller contracts generally have indefinite terms; and all contract types allow for termination by either party without cause upon 30 days prior written notice to the other party. The contracts typically specify the commissaries and exchanges to supply on behalf of the manufacturer, the manufacturer’s products to be supplied, service and delivery requirements, and pricing and payment terms. The Company’s ten largest manufacturer customers represented approximately 43% of the Company’s Military segment sales for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016.

As commissaries need to be restocked, DeCA identifies the manufacturer with which an order is to be placed, determines which distributor is the manufacturer’s official representative for a particular commissary or exchange location, and then places a product order with that distributor under the auspices of DeCA’s master contract with the applicable manufacturer. The distributor selects that product from its existing inventory, delivers it to the commissary or commissaries designated by DeCA, and bills the manufacturer for the product shipped. The manufacturer then bills DeCA under the terms of its master contract. Overseas commissaries are serviced in a similar fashion, except that a distributor’s responsibility is to deliver products as and when needed to the port designated by DeCA, which in turn bears the responsibility for shipping the product to the applicable commissary or overseas warehouse.

After the Company ships a particular manufacturer’s products to commissaries in response to an order from DeCA, the Company invoices the manufacturer for the product price plus a drayage fee that is typically based on a percentage of the purchase price, but may in some cases be based on a dollar amount per case or pound of product sold. The Company’s order handling and invoicing activities are facilitated by procurement and billing systems developed specifically for the Military business, which address the unique aspects of its business, and provides the Company’s manufacturer customers with a web-based, interactive means of accessing critical order, inventory and delivery information.

On December 8, 2016, the Company was competitively awarded by DeCA to be the exclusive worldwide supplier of a variety of private brand products to U.S. military commissaries for the first time in the agency’s history. DeCA stated that its key selection criteria in choosing its partner were simplicity, ease and efficiency of implementation, cost savings, and ability to support and grow the program in the future. The Company will begin distribution of certain private brand products in the first half of fiscal 2017.

Retail Segment

As of December 31, 2016, the Company operated 157 corporate owned retail stores in the Midwest and Great Lakes regions primarily under the banners of Family Fare Supermarkets, VG’s Food and Pharmacy, D&W Fresh Markets, Sun Mart and Family Fresh Market . Retail banners and numbers of stores are more fully detailed in Item 2, “Properties,” of this report.

The Company’s neighborhood market strategy distinguishes its corporate owned retail stores from supercenters and limited assortment stores by emphasizing convenient locations, demographically-targeted merchandise selections, high-quality fresh offerings, customer service, value pricing and community involvement.

The Company’s corporate owned retail stores offer nationally branded and private brand grocery products (see “Marketing and Merchandising – Private Brands”), as well as perishable food products including dry groceries, produce, dairy products, meat, delicatessen items, bakery goods, frozen food, seafood, floral products, general merchandise, beverages, tobacco products and health and beauty care products. The private brand grocery products provide higher retail margins and may help improve customer loyalty by providing quality products at affordable prices. The Company also offered pharmacy services in 90 of its corporate owned retail stores as of December 31, 2016. The Company’s corporate owned retail stores range in size from approximately 14,000 to 89,800 total square feet, or on average, approximately 41,000 total square feet per store.

As of December 31, 2016, the Company operated 30 fuel centers primarily at its corporate owned retail stores operating under the banners Family Fare Quick Stop , D&W Quick Stop , VG’s Quick Stop, Forest Hills Quick Stop and Sun Mart Express Fuel . These fuel centers offer refueling facilities and in the adjacent convenience store, a limited variety of popular consumable products. The Company’s prototypical Quick Stop stores are approximately 1,100 square feet in size. The Company has experienced increased supermarket sales upon opening fuel centers and initiating cross-merchandising activities.

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The Company’s corporate owned retail stores are primarily the result of acq uisitions prior to June 2015, including the merger with Nash-Finch Company in November 2013. The following chart details the changes in the number of corporate owned retail stores over the last five fiscal years, including the transition year ended Decembe r 28, 2013:

During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016, the Company completed twelve major remodels, four of which were initiated in fiscal 2015, and also opened one new fuel center . In connection with the remodeling efforts, the Company converted eight corporate owned retail stores to the Family Fare Supermarkets banner.

The Company expects to continue making targeted capital investments during fiscal 2017 by performing a number of major remodels at select corporate owned retail stores and, if opportunities arise, by either opening additional fuel centers or entering into partnerships with existing fuel operations. The Company will continue to evaluate its store base and may close or sell up to ten stores during the course of 2017 depending on circumstances and opportunities. In February 2017, two low-performing stores were closed upon lease expiration. The Company evaluates proposed capital projects based on demographics and competition within each geographic area, and prioritizes projects based on their expected returns on investment. Approval of proposed capital projects requires a projected internal rate of return that meets or exceeds the Company’s policy; however, the Company may undertake projects that do not meet this standard to the extent they represent required maintenance or necessary infrastructure improvements. In addition, the Company performs a post completion review of financial results versus its expectation on all major projects. The Company believes that focusing on such measures provides an appropriate level of discipline in its capital expenditures process.

Supply Chain Network

The Company has further integrated its supply chain organization to optimize the network, increase asset utilization and leverage programs that will drive more value for its retailers, customers, and shareholders. The Company believes its distribution facilities are strategically located to efficiently serve current customers and also have the available capacity to support future growth. The Company continually evaluates inventory movement and assigns SKUs to appropriate areas within its distribution facilities to reduce the time required to stock and pick products and to achieve additional efficiencies.

The Company has several projects planned for the fiscal year ending December 30, 2017. These projects are designed to further integrate the Company’s supply chain capabilities across distribution centers and thereby increase efficiency of both inbound and outbound distribution operations. To demonstrate the Company’s commitment across the entire network, the Company has invested in uniformly branding all tractors with a new logo that embodies the Company’s tagline, “ Taking Food Places®. ” Newly purchased trailers will also receive the new logo layout. In 2017, the Company expects to complete the branding of all existing trailers within the SpartanNash supply chain. This will allow the Company to increase asset utilization by sharing resources across all facilities.

Supply Chain Functions . The Company’s distribution network is comprised of 17 distribution centers, which are utilized to service the Food Distribution and Military segments. The distribution centers provide for approximately 8.3 million total square feet of warehouse space.

The Company operates a fleet of approximately 500 over-the-road tractors, 500 dry vans, and 1,000 refrigerated trailers. Through routing optimization systems, the Company carefully manages the more than 50 million miles its fleet drives annually servicing military commissaries, exchanges, independent retailers, select national retailers and corporate owned retail stores. The Company is also expanding its effort to equip a portion of its refrigerated trailers with a refrigeration unit that has the capability to run on electric standby, offering an economical and environmentally friendly alternative to diesel fuel. The Company remains committed to the ongoing investment required to maintain a best in class fleet while focusing on low cost and environmentally friendly solutions.

Products

The Company offers a wide variety of grocery products, general merchandise and health and beauty care, pharmacy, fuel and other items and services. Consolidated net sales include the net sales of its Food Distribution business, which exclude sales to corporate owned retail stores, the net sales of its Military segment, and the net sales of its corporate owned retail stores and fuel centers in its Retail segment.

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Refer to Part II, Item 8 of this report under the Reporting Segment Information section in the notes to consolidated financial statements for additional information about the Company’s sales by type of similar products and services, which is herein incorporated by reference.

Reporting Segment Financial Data

More detailed information about the Company’s reporting segments can be found in Part II, Item 8 of this report under the Reporting Segment Information section in the notes to consolidated financial statements, which is herein incorporated by reference. All of the Company’s sales and assets are in the United States of America.

Discontinued Operations

Certain of the Company’s Food Distribution and Retail operations have been recorded as discontinued operations. Discontinued operations consist of certain locations that have been closed or sold.

Marketing and Merchandising

General. The Company continues to align its marketing and merchandising strategies with current consumer behaviors by delivering initiatives centered on personalization, value beyond price, and health and wellness – all designed to deliver a superior shopping experience for customers. These strategies seek to use consumer data and insights to deliver products, promotions, content and experiences to satisfy the consumer’s needs.

The Company believes that data from its “ yes ” loyalty program gives it competitive insight into consumer shopping behavior. This gives the Company the flexibility to adapt to rapidly changing conditions by making tactical and more effective adjustments to its marketing and merchandising programs. In fiscal 2016, the Company expanded its yes program to the remaining Family Fare stores in the Omaha market and to the remaining Family Fresh Markets stores in Minnesota and Wisconsin.  

The Company’s investment to further strengthen its knowledge of the consumer has continued to drive process improvements in several areas: a robust self-serve data tool that enables category managers to make consumer centric merchandising and marketing decisions; new Key Value Items analyses that align pricing for the most price sensitive items with the most price sensitive customer segments; the development of a customer strategy that will be used to guide its internal business processes and go-to market strategy; and the evolution of its customer segmentation that takes it beyond the purchase and transactional behavior to lifestyle. These accomplishments better position the Company to deliver a shopping experience that constantly responds to the changing needs of its consumers.  

The Company has been building tools and capabilities to enable relevant, personalized content across its marketing channels and focusing on expanding its digital, social and mobile capabilities. The Company also implemented a number of capabilities that enables it to more effectively target consumers and more efficiently develop and execute campaigns. This will help the Company to further build longer-term customer loyalty, maintain efficient marketing spend and increase return on investment, improve its sales growth opportunities, and further strengthen its business position. As the Company continues to build these capabilities, along with its other strategies, the Company will continue to share its marketing and merchandising learnings and best practices across its wholesale customer base.  

The Company believes it can differentiate itself from its competitors by offering a full set of services, from value added services in its Food Distribution segment to the inclusion of fuel centers and Starbucks Coffee or Caribou Coffee shops in certain corporate owned retail stores. The Company also provides consumers with fuel purchase discounts at fuel centers through its corporate owned retail stores or by partnering with third party fuel centers. In addition, the Company has refined its fuel promotions and executed several pilots to further enhance the program’s value to the customer.

As of December 31, 2016, the Company offered pharmacy services in 90 of its corporate owned retail stores and operates three free-standing pharmacy locations. The Company believes the pharmacy service offering in its corporate owned retail stores is an important part of the consumer experience. In its Michigan pharmacies and a number of its pharmacies in Minnesota and Nebraska, the Company offers free medications (antibiotics, diabetic medications and prenatal vitamins) along with generic drugs for $4 and $10, and food solutions for preventative health and education for its customers.

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As consumers increasingly emphasize health and wellness, the Company believes that it can be a provider and resource for products and services that will support their needs. In fiscal 2016, the Company continued to expand its offerings and partnerships and undertook the following key initiatives. First, the Company continued to expand its “Livi ng Well” product offerings through store-within-a-store and in-line merchandising concepts. Second, the Company established partnerships with health systems and providers to provide wellness specialists-led store tours to help educate consumers to make hea lthier food choices. Third, the Company increased its retail product offering and assortment for organic, gluten-free, meat-free, non-GMO products and other healthier food options. The Company is also proud to work with local farmers and vendors to provide as many locally grown produce and products possible in its stores.  

Private Brands. SpartanNash currently markets and distributes over 7,100 total private brand items primarily under the following brands: Spartan ™ and Our Family ™ (national brand equivalent or better grocery products); Open Acres ™ (fresh products); Top Care (health and beauty care); Tippy Toes (baby); Full Circle ™ (organic and wellness); B-leve (premium bath and beauty); PAWS Premium (pet supplies); and Valu Tim e (value) . Open Acres is a new proprietary “fresh” brand launched in fiscal 2016 that includes produce, meat, delicatessen items, bakery goods and seafood. The Company believes that its private brand offerings are some of its most valuable strategic assets, demonstrated through customer loyalty and profitability.

The Company has worked to develop a best in class private brand program. The Company added approximately 700 private brand products to its consumer offerings in the past year and plans to introduce approximately 300 additional new items in fiscal 2017. The Company’s products have been frequently recognized for excellence in packaging design and product development. These awards underscore the Company’s continued commitment to providing the consumer with quality products at exceptional value. The Company’s focus is and will continue to be the pursuit of new opportunities and expansion of private brand offerings to its customers.

Competition

The Company’s Food Distribution, Military and Retail segments operate in a highly competitive industry, which typically result in low profit margins for the industry as a whole. The Company competes with, among others, regional and national grocery distributors, large chain stores that have integrated wholesale and retail operations, mass merchandisers, e-commerce providers, limited assortment stores and wholesale membership clubs, many of whom have greater resources than the Company.

The primary competitive factors in the Food Distribution business include price, service, product quality, variety and other value-added services. The Company believes its overall service level, which is defined as actual units shipped divided by actual units ordered, is among industry leaders in terms of performance.

The Company is one of less than ten distributors in the United States with annual sales to the DeCA commissary system in excess of $100 million that distributes products via the frequent delivery system. The remaining distributors that supply DeCA tend to be smaller regional and local providers. In addition, manufacturers contract with others to deliver certain products, such as baking supplies, produce, delicatessen items, soft drinks and snack items, directly to DeCA commissaries and service exchanges. Because of the narrow margins in this industry, it is of critical importance for distributors to achieve economies of scale, which is typically a function of the density or concentration of military bases within the geographic area(s) a distributor serves. As a result, no single distributor in this industry, by itself, has a nationwide presence. Rather, distributors tend to concentrate on specific regions, or areas within specific regions, where they can achieve critical mass and utilize warehouse and distribution facilities efficiently. In addition, distributors that operate larger non-military specific distribution businesses tend to compete for DeCA commissary business in areas where such business would enable them to more efficiently utilize the capacity of their existing distribution centers. The Company believes the principal competitive factors among distributors within this industry are customer service, price, operating efficiencies, reputation with DeCA and location of distribution centers. The Company believes its competitive position is very strong with respect to all of these factors within the geographic areas where it competes.

The principal competitive factors in the retail grocery business include the location and image of the store; the price, quality and variety of the perishable products; and the quality, convenience and consistency of service. The Company believes it has developed and implemented strategies and processes that allow it to be competitive in its Retail segment. The Company monitors planned competitor store openings and uses established proactive strategies to respond to new competition both before and after the competitive store opening. Strategies to react to competition vary based on many factors, such as the competitor’s format, strengths, weaknesses, pricing and sales focus. During the past three fiscal years, 13 competitor supercenters opened in geographic areas in which the Company currently operates corporate owned retail stores with three additional openings expected to occur during fiscal 2017. As a result of these openings, the Company believes the majority of its supermarkets compete with one or more supercenters.

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Seasonality

In certain geographic areas, the Company’s sales and operating performance varies with seasonality. Many stores are dependent on tourism and therefore, are most affected by seasons and weather patterns, including, but not limited to, the amount and timing of snowfall during the winter months and the range of temperature during the summer months. The Company’s first quarter is typically its lowest sales quarter. Therefore, operating results are generally lower during this quarter. All fiscal quarters are 12 weeks, except for the Company’s first quarter, which is 16 weeks and will generally include the Easter holiday. The fourth quarter includes the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. Fiscal year ended January 3, 2015 contained 53 weeks; therefore, the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014 consisted of 13 weeks rather than 12 weeks.

Suppliers

The Company purchases products from a large number of national, regional and local suppliers of name brand and private brand merchandise. The Company has not encountered any material difficulty in procuring or maintaining an adequate level of products to serve its customers. No single supplier accounts for more than 5% of the Company’s purchases. The Company continues to develop strategic relationships with key suppliers and believes this will prove valuable in the development of enhanced promotional programs and consumer value perceptions.

Intellectual Property

The Company owns valuable intellectual property, including trademarks and other proprietary information, some of which are of material importance to its business.

Technology

Over the last year the Company has continued to focus on the integration of various key systems from the two merged companies, Spartan Stores and Nash Finch. The integration has proceeded well and is largely complete. During the last year there were additional projects completed to accommodate business operations that were unrelated to the integration of the two companies.

Supply Chain. During fiscal 2016, the Company standardized the Master Data Management systems resulting in standardized customer, vendor and item information; installed a new centralized suggested pricing system for support of its wholesale customers; standardized the inbound scheduling system across the entire distribution network; completed a pilot of a new environmental integrity monitoring system for its transportation fleet, which will be installed in 2017; began the implementation of a standard order management system across its distribution network, which will continue over the next two years; and completed the redesign and upgrade of the communications technology in support of its distribution center network. In the non-integration area, the Company continued with additional supply chain enhancement projects to support its national accounts business.

Retail Systems. During fiscal 2016, the Company standardized the space planning system for all retail locations and Food Distribution customers; enhanced its electronic payment system for fuel centers to support fleet payment cards; upgraded its loyalty systems as it expanded their use in the Omaha, Nebraska locations; continued to enhance the mobile loyalty application for customer use; and, deployed an integrated ordering system in the western retail locations in preparation for computer assisted ordering. In non-integration projects, the Company continued a multi-year customization effort for the major upgrade of point-of-sale (“POS”) software in preparation for a pilot in 2017; completed a major upgrade to its self-check-out systems; and enhanced its pharmacy systems for support of customer interaction through various mobile platforms.

Administrative Systems. During fiscal 2016, the consolidation on to a single accounts receivable system was substantially completed and will be implemented in the first quarter of 2017; the financial reporting and planning systems installation was completed; a major upgrade of the human resources and payroll system was completed; and consolidation on to a single electronic data interface (“EDI”) system was also completed.

Information Technology Infrastructure. The consolidation of four data centers to two data centers was completed in fiscal 2016 and major enhancements to the disaster recovery and non-stop processing capabilities between the two data centers were also implemented.

Associates

As of December 31, 2016, the Company employed approximately 14,700 associates, 8,300 on a full-time basis and 6,400 on a part-time basis. Of the 14,700 associates the Company employs, approximately 1,200 associates, or 8% of the total workforce, were represented by unions under collective bargaining agreements; the collective bargaining agreements covering these associates will either expire between October 2017 and September 2019 or have been extended on their own terms and have a contemplated expiration date in either January 2019 or February 2019. The Company considers its relations with its union and non-union associates to be good and have not had any material work stoppages in over twenty years.

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Regulation

The Company is subject to federal, state and local laws and regulations concerning the conduct of its business, including those pertaining to the workforce and the purchase, handling, sale and transportation of its products. Many of the Company’s products are subject to federal Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) and United States Department of Agriculture (“USDA) regulation. The Company believes that it is in substantial compliance in all material respects with the FDA, USDA and other federal, state and local laws and regulations governing its businesses.

Forward-Looking Statements

The matters discussed in this Item 1 include forward-looking statements. See “Forward-Looking Statements” at the beginning of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Available Information

The address of the SpartanNash web site is www.spartannash.com. The inclusion of the Company’s website address in this Form 10-K does not include or incorporate by reference the information on or accessible through the Company’s website, and the information contained on or accessible through those websites should not be considered as part of this Form 10-K. The Company makes its Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and other reports (and amendments to those reports) filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 available on the Company’s web site as soon as reasonably practicable after the Company electronically files or furnishes such materials with the SEC. Interested persons can view such materials without charge by clicking on “For Investors” and then “SEC Filings” on the Company’s web site. SpartanNash is a “large accelerated filer” within the meaning of Rule 12b-2 under the Securities Exchange Act.