5.	INVENTORIES

The Company’s total inventories, net of reserves, consisted of the following as of March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014:

	March 31, 2015			December 31, 2014
Raw materials	$	5,410,016		$	4,917,399
Work-in-process		6,141,611			6,292,679
Finished goods		26,890,920			27,985,067
Finished goods on consignment		219,769			677,484
Less inventory reserves		(1,138,000	)		(934,000	)
Total	$	37,524,316		$	38,938,629

Current portion	$	13,927,427		$	13,320,639
Long-term portion		23,596,889			25,617,990
Total	$	37,524,316		$	38,938,629

Inventories are stated at the lower of cost or market on an average cost basis. Inventory costs include direct material and labor, inbound freight, purchasing and receiving costs, inspection costs, and warehousing costs. Any inventory on hand at the measurement date in excess of the Company’s current requirements based on historical and anticipated levels of sales is classified as long-term on the Company’s consolidated balance sheets. The Company’s classification of long-term inventory requires it to estimate the portion of on-hand inventory that can be realized over the next 12 months and does not include precious metal, labor, and other inventory purchases expected to be both purchased and realized over the next 12 months.

The Company’s work-in-process inventories include raw SiC crystals on which processing costs, such as labor and sawing, have been incurred; and components, such as metal castings and finished good moissanite jewels, that have been issued to jobs in the manufacture of finished jewelry. The Company’s moissanite jewel manufacturing process involves the production of intermediary shapes, called “preforms,” that vary depending upon the size and shape of the finished jewel. To maximize manufacturing efficiencies, preforms may be made in advance of current finished inventory needs but remain in work-in-process inventories. As of March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014, work-in-process inventories issued to active production jobs approximated $1.61 million and $2.05 million, respectively.

The Company’s jewels do not degrade in quality over time and inventory generally consists of the shapes and sizes most commonly used in the jewelry industry. In addition, the majority of jewel inventory is not mounted in finished jewelry settings and is therefore not subject to fashion trends nor is obsolescence a significant factor. The Company has very small market penetration in the worldwide jewelry market, and the Company has the exclusive right in the U.S. through mid-2015 and in many other countries through mid-2016 to produce and sell created SiC for use in jewelry applications. In view of the foregoing factors, management has concluded that no excess or obsolete loose jewel inventory reserve requirements existed as of March 31, 2015.

The Company manufactures finished jewelry featuring moissanite. Relative to loose moissanite jewels, finished jewelry is more fashion oriented and subject to styling trends that could render certain designs obsolete. The majority of the Company’s finished jewelry featuring moissanite is held in inventory for resale and consists of such basic designs as stud earrings, solitaire and three-stone rings, pendants, and bracelets that tend not to be subject to significant obsolescence risk due to their classic styling. In addition, the Company manufactures small individual quantities of designer-inspired moissanite fashion jewelry as part of its sample line that are used in the selling process to its wholesale customers.

In 2011, the Company began purchasing fashion finished jewelry comprised of base metals and non-precious gemstones for sale through Lulu Avenue^®, the direct-to-consumer home party division of its wholly owned operating subsidiary, Charles & Colvard Direct, LLC. This finished jewelry is fashion oriented and subject to styling trends that may change with each catalog season, of which there are several each year. Typically in the jewelry industry, slow-moving or discontinued lines are sold as closeouts or liquidated in alternative sales channels. The Company reviews the finished jewelry inventory on an ongoing basis for any lower of cost or market and obsolescence issues. The Company identified certain fashion finished jewelry inventory that could not be sold due to damage or branding issues and established an obsolescence reserve of $429,000 as of March 31, 2015 and $250,000 as of December 31, 2014, for the carrying costs in excess of any estimated scrap values. As of December 31, 2014, the Company identified $31,000 of finished jewelry featuring moissanite that required an obsolescence reserve.

Periodically, the Company ships finished goods inventory to wholesale customers on consignment terms. Under these terms, the customer assumes the risk of loss and has an absolute right of return for a specified period. Finished goods on consignment at March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014 are net of shrinkage reserves of $26,000 and $53,000, respectively, to allow for certain loose jewels and finished jewelry on consignment with wholesale customers that may not be returned or may be returned in a condition that does not meet the Company’s current grading or quality standards.

Total net loose jewel inventories at March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014, including inventory on consignment net of reserves, were $30.97 million and $31.95 million, respectively. The loose jewel inventories at March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014 include shrinkage reserves of $9,000 and $17,000, respectively, with $8,000 and $17,000 of shrinkage reserves on inventory on consignment at March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014, respectively. Loose jewel inventories at March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014 also include recuts reserves of $216,000.

Total net jewelry inventories at March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014, including inventory on consignment net of reserves, finished jewelry featuring moissanite manufactured by the Company since entering the finished jewelry business in 2010, and fashion finished jewelry purchased by the Company for sale through Lulu Avenue^®, were $6.50 million and $6.93 million, respectively. Jewelry inventories consist primarily of finished goods, a portion of which the Company acquired as part of a January 2009 settlement agreement with a former manufacturer customer to reduce the outstanding receivable to the Company. Due to the lack of a plan to market this inventory at that time, a jewelry inventory reserve was established to reduce the majority of the acquired jewelry inventory value to scrap value, or the amount the Company would expect to obtain by melting the gold in the jewelry and returning to loose-jewel finished goods inventory those jewels that meet grading standards. The scrap reserve established for this acquired inventory at the time of the agreement is adjusted at each reporting period for the market price of gold and has generally declined as the associated jewelry is sold down. At March 31, 2015, the balance decreased to $96,000 from $101,000 at December 31, 2014 as a result of sell down of the inventory during the quarter and change in gold prices. Because the finished jewelry the Company began manufacturing in 2010 after it entered that business was made pursuant to an operational plan to market and sell the inventory, it is not subject to this reserve. The finished jewelry inventories at March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014 also include shrinkage reserves of $231,000 and $192,000, respectively, including shrinkage reserves of $18,000 and $36,000 on inventory on consignment, respectively; and a repairs reserve of $157,000 and $127,000, respectively.

The need for adjustments to inventory reserves is evaluated on a period-by-period basis.