Interest expense
Interest expense increased by $1,744, or 54.1%, in the thirteen weeks ended July 1, 2023 to $4,967, as compared to $3,223 in the thirteen weeks ended July 2, 2022. The increase is primarily due to a higher interest rate on the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility. We expect to incur higher interest expenses during fiscal 2023, as compared to the previous fiscal year, as a result of rising interest rates.
Taxes
The benefit for income taxes in the thirteen weeks ended July 1, 2023 was $3,586 as compared to a provision for income taxes of $4,233 in the thirteen weeks ended July 2, 2022. The effective tax rate for the thirteen weeks ended July 1, 2023 was 23.3%, as compared to 28.8% in the thirteen weeks ended July 2, 2022. The decrease in the effective tax rate was primarily related to the impact of discrete items on a pre-tax loss in the first quarter of fiscal 2023, as compared to pre-tax income in the first quarter of fiscal 2022.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
We have relied on cash flows from operations, a $100,000 asset-based revolving credit agreement (the “Revolving Credit Facility” as further discussed under “Revolving Credit Facility” below), and the 2019 Elfa Senior Secured Credit Facilities (as defined below) as our primary sources of liquidity.
Our primary cash needs are for merchandise inventories and direct materials, payroll, store leases, capital expenditures associated with opening new stores and updating existing stores, as well as information technology and infrastructure, including our distribution centers, and manufacturing facility enhancements. The most significant components of our operating assets and liabilities are merchandise inventories, accounts receivable, prepaid expenses, operating lease assets and other assets, accounts payable, operating lease liabilities, other current and noncurrent liabilities, taxes receivable and taxes payable. Our liquidity fluctuates as a result of our building inventory for key selling periods, and as a result, our borrowings are generally higher during these periods when compared to the rest of our fiscal year. Our borrowings generally increase in our second and third fiscal quarters as we prepare for our promotional campaigns and the holiday season. In fiscal 2023, we expect total capital expenditures to be in the range of $45,000 to $50,000 for technology infrastructure and software projects, existing store merchandising and refresh activities, our Elfa business, and new store development. The Company plans to open six new stores in fiscal 2023, primarily in the second half of fiscal 2023, and three new stores in fiscal 2024. We believe that cash expected to be generated from operations and the remaining availability of borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility and the 2019 Elfa Revolving Facilities will be sufficient to meet liquidity requirements, anticipated capital expenditures and payments due under our existing credit facilities for at least the next 12 months. In the future, we may seek to raise additional capital, which could be in the form of loans, bonds, convertible debt or equity, to fund our operations and capital expenditures. There can be no assurance that we will be able to raise additional capital on favorable terms or at all.
On August 1, 2022, our board of directors approved a stock repurchase program with authorization to purchase up to $30,000 of our common stock. Repurchases under the program may be made in the open market, in privately negotiated transactions or otherwise, with the amount and timing of repurchases to be determined at our discretion, depending on market conditions and corporate needs. Open market repurchases will be structured to occur in accordance with applicable federal securities laws, including within the pricing and volume requirements of Rule 10b-18 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). We may also, from time to time, enter into Rule 10b5-1 plans to facilitate repurchases of our shares under this authorization. This program does not obligate us to acquire any particular amount of common stock and may be modified, suspended or terminated at any time at the discretion of our board of directors. We expect to fund repurchases with existing cash on hand. We did not repurchase any shares of our common stock during the thirteen weeks ended July 1, 2023. As of July 1, 2023, $25,000 remains available to repurchase common stock under the share repurchase program.
At July 1, 2023, we had $12,155 of cash, of which $2,837 was held by our foreign subsidiaries. In addition, we had $71,830 of additional availability under the Revolving Credit Facility and approximately $10,202 of additional