Culp, Inc.

Good morning and welcome to the CULP, Inc. First Quarter 2022 Earnings Conference Call. All participants will be in listen-only mode. Should you need assistance, please signal a conference specialist by pressing the star key followed by zero. After today's presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. To ask a question, you may press star, then one on your touchtone phone. To withdraw your question, please press star, then two. Please note this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Drew Anderson. Please go ahead.

Thank you. Good morning and welcome to the CULP conference call to review the company's results for the first quarter of fiscal 2022. As we start, let me state that this morning's call will contain forward-looking statements about the business, financial condition, and prospects of the company. Forward-looking statements are statements that include projections, expectations, or beliefs about future events or results or otherwise are not statements of historical fact. The actual performance of the company could differ materially from that indicated by the forward-looking statements because of various risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties are described in our regular SEC filings, including the company's most recent filings on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements made today, and each such statement speaks only as of today. We undertake no obligation to update or to revise forward-looking statements. In addition, during this call, the company will be discussing non-GAAP financial measurements. A reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measurements to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measurements is included in the tables The press release included is an exhibit to the company's 8K filed yesterday and posted on the company's website at Culp.com. A slide presentation with supporting summary financial information is also available on the company's website as part of the webcast of today's call. With that, I will now turn the call over to Yves Culp, President and Chief Executive Officer of Culp. Please go ahead, sir.

Good morning, and thank you for joining us today. I would like to welcome you to the CULP quarterly conference call with analysts and investors. With me on the call today are Ken Bolling, our Chief Financial Officer, and Boyd Chumley, President of our Upholstery Fabrics business. I'll begin the call today with some opening comments, and Ken will then review the financial results for the quarter. I will then update you on the strategic actions in each of our operating segments, And after that, Ken will review our second quarter and fiscal 2022 full-year business outlook. We will then be happy to take your questions. With first quarter, we are very pleased to report a solid start to fiscal 2022 with overall sales and operating income in line with expectations and sales reaching their highest first quarter level since fiscal 2003. Our results reflect strong top-line growth driven by higher demand for both our mattress and residential upholstery fabric products. In each of our businesses, we executed our product-driven strategy with a continued emphasis on design creativity and innovation. We also benefited from our expanded market reach and the continued resilience of our flexible global platform. Despite supply chain disruption and pressures on profitability, we are passionately dedicated to servicing the needs of our customers, and both of our divisions have excelled in using our robust platform and long-term supply relationships to make sure that we meet our customer commitments. We believe this is an advantage for Colt, as customer service is more important than ever in the face of supply chain disruption. While we are optimistic about the ongoing strength of our sales trends, We do continue to navigate headwinds relating to rising freight and raw material costs, labor shortages, our customer supply chain constraints for non-fiber components, and other pandemic-related challenges. Our previously implemented price increases for both of our businesses did help to offset certain inflationary pressures and foreign currency fluctuations to some extent during the first quarter. But with freight, raw material, and labor costs continuing to rise, we are now taking further pricing action via surcharges in both businesses during the second quarter to assist in covering these rapidly increasing costs. Despite these challenges, we continue to invest in our business and expand our capacity. With our diversified manufacturing and sourcing capabilities, along with our innovative products and digital design strategies, We expect to have additional opportunities to capture market share with new and existing customers. We are also excited about the September opening of our new innovation campus in downtown High Point, North Carolina, which will bring together our most innovative and creative minds and foster collaboration among our businesses. We believe this will be a transformative space for CULT and allow us to share best ideas across our divisions and better showcase our full, expansive product lines to our customers. Importantly, we have the financial strength to support our business in the current environment, and we believe we are well positioned for continued growth as market conditions evolve. We also remain grateful for the extraordinary efforts and resilience of our associates all around the world. We are extremely proud of their hard work, their adaptability, and their dedication in the face of ongoing challenges. I'll now turn the call over to Ken, who will review the financial results for the quarter.