EX-3.1 2 tv477575_ex3-1.htm EXHIBIT 3.1

 

Exhibit 3.1

 

AMENDED AND RESTATED CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION

OF

XCEL BRANDS, INC.

 

The original Certificate of Incorporation of Xcel Brands, Inc. (the “Corporation”) was filed by the Secretary of State on August 31, 1989 (the “Original Certificate”) and the name under which the Corporation was originally incorporated is Houston Operating Company. The Original Certificate was amended and restated on April 18, 2005, further amended and restated on December 1, 2011 and further amended and restated on November 6, 2014. This Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, which further amends and restates the Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation, as amended to date, was duly adopted by the written consent of the holders of a majority of the outstanding stock entitled to vote thereon in accordance with the provisions of Sections 141, 228, 242 and 245 of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware.

 

FIRST: The name of the Corporation is:

 

XCEL BRANDS, INC.

 

SECOND: The address of the Corporation's registered office in the State of Delaware is 251 Little Falls Drive, in the City of Wilmington, County of New Castle, 19808. The name of its registered agent at such address is Corporation Service Company.

 

THIRD: The purpose of the Corporation is to engage in any lawful act or activity for which a corporation may be organized under the laws of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware.

 

FOURTH: The total number of shares of capital stock which the Corporation shall have authority to issue is Fifty One Million (51,000,000) shares, of which Fifty Million (50,000,000) shares shall be Common Stock, par value $.001 per share, and One Million (1,000,000) shares shall be Preferred Stock, par value $.001 per share.

 

The Preferred Stock may be issued from time to time in one or more series. The Board of Directors of the Corporation is hereby expressly authorized to provide, by resolution or resolutions duly adopted by it prior to issuance, for the creation of each such series and to fix the designation and the powers, preferences, rights, qualifications, limitations and restrictions relating to the shares of each such series. The authority of the Board of Directors with respect to each series of Preferred Stock shall include, but not be limited to, determining the following:

 

1. the designation of such series, the number of shares to constitute such series and the stated value if different from the par value thereof;

 

2. whether the shares of such series shall have voting rights, in addition to any voting rights provided by law, and, if so, the terms of such voting rights, which may be general or limited;

 

3. the dividends, if any, payable on such series, whether any such dividends shall be cumulative, and, if so, from what dates, the conditions and dates upon which such dividends shall be payable, and the preference or relation which such dividends shall bear to the dividends payable on any shares of stock of any other class or any other series of Preferred Stock;

 

 

 

 

4. whether the shares of such series shall be subject to redemption by the Corporation, and, if so, the times, prices and other conditions of such redemption;

 

5. the amount or amounts payable upon shares of such series upon, and the rights of the holders of such series in, the voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up, or upon any distribution of the assets, of the Corporation;

 

6. whether the shares of such series shall be subject to the operation of a retirement or sinking fund and, if so, the extent to and manner in which any such retirement or sinking fund shall be applied to the purchase or redemption of the shares of such series for retirement or other corporate purposes and the terms and provisions relating to the operation thereof;

 

7. whether the shares of such series shall be convertible into, or exchangeable for, shares of stock of any other class or any other series of Preferred Stock or any other securities and, if so, the price or prices or the rate or rates of conversion or exchange and the method, if any, of adjusting the same, and any other terms and conditions of conversion or exchange;

 

8. the limitations and restrictions, if any, to be effective while any shares of such series are outstanding upon the payment of dividends or the making of other distributions on, and upon the purchase, redemption or other acquisition by the Corporation of, the Common Stock or shares of stock of any other class or any other series of Preferred Stock;

 

9. the conditions or restrictions, if any, upon the creation of indebtedness of the Corporation or upon the issue of any additional stock, including additional shares of such series or of any other series of Preferred Stock or of any other class; and

 

10. any other powers, preferences and relative, participating, optional and other special rights, and any qualifications, limitations and restrictions, thereof.

 

The powers, preferences and relative, participating, optional and other special rights of each series of Preferred Stock, and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions thereof, if any, may differ from those of any and all other series at any time outstanding. All shares of any one series of Preferred Stock shall be identical in all respects with all other shares of such series, except that shares of any one series issued at different times may differ as to the dates from which dividends thereof shall be cumulative.

 

FIFTH: Unless required by law or determined by the chairman of the meeting to be advisable, the vote by stockholders on any matter, including the election of directors, need not be by written ballot.

 

SIXTH: The Corporation reserves the right to increase or decrease its authorized capital stock, or any class or series thereof, and to reclassify the same, and to amend, alter, change or repeal any provision contained in the Certificate of Incorporation under which the Corporation is organized or in any amendment thereto, in the manner now or hereafter prescribed by law, and all rights conferred upon stockholders in said Certificate of Incorporation or any amendment thereto are granted subject to the aforementioned reservation.

 

SEVENTH: The Board of Directors shall have the power at any time, and from time to time, to adopt, amend and repeal any and all By-laws of the Corporation.

 

 

 

 

EIGHTH: 1. Indemnification

 

The Corporation shall, and does hereby, indemnify to the fullest extent permitted or authorized by the Delaware General Corporation Law or judicial or administrative decisions, as the same exists or may hereafter be amended or interpreted differently in the future (but, in the case of any such amendment or interpretation, only to the extent that such amendment or interpretation permits the Corporation to provide broader indemnification rights than permitted prior thereto), each person (including the current and future heirs, beneficiaries, personal representatives and estate of such person) who was or is a party, or is threatened to be made a party, or was or is a witness, to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (a "Proceeding") and whether the basis of such Proceeding is an allegation of an action in an official capacity of such person related to the Corporation or any other capacity while such person is serving as an officer, director, employee or agent of the Corporation, against any liability (which for purposes of this Article shall include any judgment, settlement, penalty or fine) or cost, charge or expense (including attorneys' fees) asserted against him or incurred by him by reason of the fact that such indemnified person (1) is or was a director, officer or employee of the Corporation or (2) is or was an agent of the Corporation as to whom the Corporation, by action of its Board of Directors, has agreed to grant such indemnity or (3) is or was serving, at the request of the Corporation, as a director, officer or employee of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise (including serving as a fiduciary of any employee benefit plan) or (4) is or was serving as an agent of such other corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise described in clause (3) hereof as to whom the Corporation, by action of its Board of Directors, has agreed to grant such indemnity. Each director, officer, employee or agent of the Corporation to whom indemnification rights under this Section 1 of this Article have been granted shall be referred to as an "Indemnified Person."

 

Notwithstanding the foregoing, except as specified in Section 3 of this Article, the Corporation shall not be required to indemnify an Indemnified Person in connection with a Proceeding (or any part thereof) initiated by such Indemnified Person unless such authorization for such Proceeding (or any part thereof) was not denied by the Board of Directors of the Corporation prior to sixty (60) days after receipt of notice thereof from such Indemnified Person stating his intent to initiate such Proceeding and only upon such terms and conditions as the Board of Directors may deem appropriate.

 

2. Advance of Costs, Charges and Expenses

 

Costs, charges and expenses (including attorneys' fees) incurred by an officer, director, employee or agent who is an Indemnified Person in defending a Proceeding shall be paid by the Corporation to the fullest extent permitted or authorized by the Delaware General Corporation Law or judicial or administrative decisions, as the same exists or may hereafter be amended or interpreted differently in the future (but, in the case of any such future amendment or interpretation, only to the extent that such amendment or interpretation permits the Corporation to provide broader rights to advance costs, charges and expenses than permitted prior thereto), in advance of the final disposition of such Proceeding, upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of the Indemnified Person to repay all amounts so advanced in the event that it shall ultimately be determined by final judicial decision that such person is not entitled to be indemnified by the Corporation as authorized in this Article and upon such other terms and conditions, in the case of an agent as to whom the Corporation has agreed to grant such indemnity, as the Board of Directors may deem appropriate. The Corporation may, upon approval of the Indemnified Person, authorize the Corporation's counsel to represent such person in any Proceeding, whether or not the Corporation is a party to such Proceeding. Such authorization may be made by the Board of Directors by majority vote, including directors who are parties to such Proceeding.

 

 

 

 

3. Procedure for Indemnification

 

Any indemnification or advance under this Article shall be made promptly and in any event within sixty (60) days upon the written request of the Indemnified Person (except in the case of a claim for an advancement of costs, charges or expenses, in which case the applicable period shall be twenty (20) days). The right to indemnification or advances as granted by this Article shall be enforceable by the Indemnified Person in any court of competent jurisdiction if the Corporation denies such request under this Article, in whole or in part, or if no disposition thereof is made within sixty (60) days or twenty (20) days, as may be applicable. Such Indemnified Person's costs and expenses incurred in connection with successfully establishing his right to indemnification or advancement of costs, charges or expenses, in whole or in part, in any such action shall also be indemnified by the Corporation. It shall be a defense to any such action that the claimant has not met the standard of conduct, if any, required by the Delaware General Corporation Law or judicial or administrative decisions, as the same exists or may hereafter be amended or interpreted differently in the future (but, in the case of any such future amendment or interpretation, only to the extent that such amendment or interpretation does not impose a more stringent standard of conduct than permitted prior thereto), but the burden of proving such defense shall be on the Corporation. Neither the failure of the Corporation (including its Board of Directors or any committee thereof, its independent legal counsel, and its stockholders) to have made a determination prior to the commencement of such action that indemnification of the claimant or advancement for the claimant is proper in the circumstances because he has met the applicable standard of conduct, if any, nor the fact that there has been an actual determination by the Corporation (including its Board of Directors or any committee thereof, its independent legal counsel, or its stockholders) that the claimant has not met such applicable standard of conduct, shall be a defense to the action or create a presumption that the claimant has not met the applicable standard of conduct.

 

4. Non-Exclusivity; Survival of Indemnification

 

The indemnification and advancement provided by this Article shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which those Indemnified Persons may be entitled under any agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors or recommendation of counsel or otherwise, both as to actions in such person's official capacity and as to actions in any other capacity while holding such office or position, and shall continue as to an Indemnified Person who has ceased to be a director, officer, employee or agent and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs, beneficiaries, personal representatives and the estate of such person. All rights to indemnification and advancement under this Article shall be deemed to be a contract between the Corporation and each Indemnified Person who serves or served in such capacity at any time while this Article is in effect. Any repeal or modification of this Article or any repeal or modification of relevant provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law or any other applicable laws shall not in any way diminish any rights to indemnification of such Indemnified Person, or the obligations of the Corporation arising hereunder, for claims relating to matters occurring prior to such repeal or modification.

 

5. Insurance

 

The Corporation may purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the Corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the Corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise (including serving as a fiduciary of an employee benefit plan) against any liability asserted against him and incurred by him in any such capacity or arising out of his status as such, whether or not the Corporation would have the power to indemnify him against such liability under the provisions of this Article or the applicable provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law.

 

 

 

 

6. Savings Clause

 

If this Article or any portion hereof shall be invalidated on any ground by any court of competent jurisdiction, then the Corporation shall nevertheless indemnify and advance costs to each Indemnified Person as to costs, charges and expenses (including attorneys' fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement with respect to any Proceeding, including an action by or in the right of the Corporation, to the full extent permitted by any applicable portion of this Article that shall not have been invalidated and as permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law.

 

NINTH: No director of the Corporation shall be personally liable to the Corporation or its stockholders for any monetary damages for breaches of fiduciary duty as a director, provided that this provision shall not eliminate or limit the liability of a director (i) for any breach of the director's duty of loyalty to the Corporation or its stockholders; (ii) for acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law; (iii) under Section 174 of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware; or (iv) for any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit. No repeal or amendment of this Article shall adversely affect any rights of any person pursuant to this Article Ninth which existed at the time of such repeal or amendment with respect to acts or omissions occurring prior to such repeal or amendment.

 

TENTH: The number of directors comprising the Board of Directors shall be such number as may be from time to time fixed by resolution adopted by the Board of Directors. A nominee for director shall be elected to the Board of Directors if a majority of the votes cast are in favor of such nominee's election; provided, however, that, if the number of nominees for director exceeds the number of directors to be elected, directors shall be elected by a plurality of the votes of the shares represented in person or by proxy at any meeting of stockholders held to elect directors and entitled to vote on such election of directors. Each director who is serving as a director on the date of this Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation shall hold office until the next annual meeting of stockholders after such date and until his or her successor has been duly elected and qualified, notwithstanding that such director may have been elected for a term that extended beyond the date of such next annual meeting of stockholders. At each annual meeting of stockholders after the date of this Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, directors elected at such annual meeting shall hold office until the next annual meeting of the stockholders. In the interim between annual meetings of stockholders or of special meetings of stockholders called for the election of directors and/or for the removal of one or more directors and for the filling of any vacancy in that connection, newly created directorships and any vacancies in the Board of Directors, including unfilled vacancies resulting from the removal of directors for cause or without cause, resignation, death, disqualification or other causes shall be filled for the remainder of the full term of the directors in which the new directorship is created or the vacancy occurred and until their successors are elected and qualified or until their earlier removal, only by the vote of a majority of the remaining directors then in office, although less than a quorum, or by the sole remaining director.

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have signed this Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation this 23rd day of October, 2017.

 

  XCEL BRANDS, INC.
       
  By:   /s/ James F. Haran  
  Name: James F. Haran
  Title: Chief Financial Officer