BROOKS SPORTS LIMITED

UK Tax Strategy

November 2023

Overview

Brooks Sports, designs, manufactures, and sells running shoes, apparel, and accessories for men and women. The company was founded in 1914 and is based in Seattle. The UK business is owned by Brooks Sports B.V and the ultimate parent company is Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

This tax strategy applies to Brooks Sport Limited (UK) and has been approved by the Board of Brooks Sports Limited.

Publication of this strategy is considered as satisfying Para 22 (2), Schedule 19 of the UK Finance Act 2016 in respect of Brooks’s financial year ending 31 December 2023

Governance

At Brooks Sport we seek to comply with all relevant UK tax laws, rules, regulations and reporting and disclosure requirements. We seek to ensure that all decisions are taken at an appropriate level, with diligent professional care and judgment and supported with documentation that evidences the facts, conclusions and risks involved.

Overall responsibility for tax risk management, governance is with the Finance director and the Board. Senior Management is updated regularly on their responsibilities in relation to tax, changes in tax law and any significant risks.

Operational responsibility for tax compliance, risk management and general tax matters (Corporation tax, Value Added Tax, Employment tax matters and PAYE) falls to the tax function managed by the Accounting manager.

Broader tax responsibilities relating to specific tax processes and data requirements may sit within other departments such as Finance, Human Resources, Compliance and Operations.

Approach to tax risk management

We look to maintain compliance with tax laws and legislation via a strong system of internal governance that requires documented internal processes and controls, using appropriately qualified and experienced staff. Tax is managed by the business in a manner that is consistent with other areas of operational risk by introducing and maintaining appropriate monitoring and management procedures across the organisation. The business does not have a fixed monetary level of acceptable risk but seeks to minimise the risk of operational failure by undertaking the following activities:

• Monitoring – The tax function is responsible for identifying relevant changes in the tax regime and ensuring systems and processes are updated appropriately. External tax consultants are involved in significant business changes in order to confirm that tax matters have been appropriately considered.
• Management – Brooks Sport has established tax processes and controls in place to manage specifically identified tax risk. Operation and development of these controls is subject to continuous improvement/enhancement.
• Communication – The tax function is responsible for communicating tax risk within the organisation.

Attitude to planning

Our approach to tax planning focuses on the effective management of the group’s tax position in line with the broader commercial objectives.
We seek to utilise certain reliefs and incentives in the jurisdictions that we operate however we only adopt a tax position where it is in line with the groups commercial activities and when we believe is more likely than not to be settled in our favour following full disclosure of relevant facts to HMRC. Where the tax treatment is significant or uncertain we may obtain professional opinions from external tax advisors.

We shall not use artificial structures that are unrelated to the Company’s business for the sole purpose of reducing the tax burden.

All transactions must be fully justifiable and have a business purpose or commercial rationale.

We shall obtain professional opinions from external tax advisors on any matters where the amount of tax involved is significant / tax treatment is uncertain.

Working with HMRC

At Brooks Sport, we seek to manage our tax affairs responsibly and transparently and in a way which is compatible with the requirements for HMRC’s low tax risk classification by working pro-actively with HMRC, this includes:

• being open and timely with HMRC about compliance management
• raising material issues, uncertainties and/or irregularities with HMRC as they arise
• promptly responding to HMRC question and queries
• providing appropriate resources to deal with our tax obligations
• maintaining clear accountabilities up to and including the Board for the management of tax

We shall never deliberately conceal or knowingly misrepresent issues to HMRC. If we discover errors, we shall disclose them as soon as reasonably practical.

Approved by resolution of the board on November 1st 2023