DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2020
DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS [Abstract]
DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS	1. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. (“TLFA,” “we,” “our,” “us,” the” Company,” “Tandy,” or “Tandy Leather” mean Tandy Leather Factory, Inc., together with its subsidiaries.) is one of the world’s largest specialty retailers of leather and leathercraft-related items. Founded in 1919 in Fort Worth, Texas, the Company introduced leathercrafting to millions of American and later Canadian and other international customers and has built a track record as the trusted source of quality leather, tools, hardware, supplies, kits and teaching materials for leatherworkers everywhere. Today, our mission remains to build on our legacy of inspiring the timeless art and trade of leatherworking. What differentiates Tandy from the competition is our high brand awareness and strong brand equity and loyalty, our network of retail stores that provides convenience, a high-touch customer service experience, a hub for the local leathercrafting community and our 100-year heritage. We believe that this combination of qualities is unique to Tandy and gives the brand competitive advantages that are very difficult for others to replicate. We sell our products primarily through company-owned stores and through orders generated from our four websites: tandyleather.com, tandyleather.ca, tandyleather.eu and tandyleather.com.au. We also manufacture leather lace, cut leather pieces and most of the do-it-yourself kits that are sold in our stores and on our websites. We also offer production services to our business customers such as cutting (“clicking”), splitting, and some assembly. We maintain our principal offices at 1900 Southeast Loop 820, Fort Worth, Texas 76140. The Company currently operates a total of 106 retail stores. There are 95 stores in the United States (“U.S.”), ten stores in Canada and one store in Spain. The Nasdaq Global Market (“Nasdaq”) suspended trading in the Company’s stock on Nasdaq as of August 13, 2020. Our stock has since traded on the OTC Link (previously “Pink Sheets”) operated by OTC Markets Group under the symbol “TLFA.” Nasdaq denied the Company’s appeal of its decision to suspend trading in the Company’s stock and the Company’s stock was formally delisted on February 9, 2021. We intend to reapply for Nasdaq listing after we have made our required Exchange Act filings. Any such listing would be subject to Nasdaq approval. Certain reclassifications may have been made to prior period financials in order to conform to the current period presentation. COVID-19 In late 2019, COVID-19 was detected in Wuhan, China and has since spread to other parts of the world, including the U.S. On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. Federal, state, and local governments have since implemented various restrictions, including travel restrictions, border closings, restrictions on public gatherings, quarantining of people who may have been exposed to the virus, shelter-in-place restrictions and limitations on business operations. As previously announced and for the health and safety of employees and customers, on March 17, 2020, the Company made the decision to begin temporary store closures. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 shifted our strategic focus to company survival and cash preservation. We began closing stores on March 18, 2020 and by April 2, 2020, we temporarily closed all stores to the public. While we pivoted to serve customers online, the Company experienced significant decreases in demand for its products in the second and third quarters of 2020, negatively impacting net sales. In response, we took immediate action to mitigate the impact of temporary store closures on our cash flows by: (i) furloughing 406 Tandy employees, comprising two-thirds of the Tandy work force, (ii) temporarily cutting corporate salaries, with deeper cuts for the Executive Leadership Team, (iii) negotiating abatements, deferrals and other favorable lease terms with landlords, and (iv) negotiating longer payment terms with our key product vendors. By June 2020, we also permanently closed nine stores with expiring leases and/or negative cash flows, creating additional savings in operating expenses. Due to our size, we were not eligible for the Paycheck Protection Program administered through the Small Business Administration. Also, due to our not being current on financial filings with the SEC, we were not able to obtain loans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act. During the second quarter of 2020, the Company borrowed $0.4 million through the Spanish government’s Institute of Official Credit Guarantee for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, a COVID-19 relief program. The term of the agreement is for five years and the interest rate is fixed at 1.5%. Based on the terms of the loan agreement, we make interest-only payments for the first two years and monthly principal and interest payments for the remainder of the term of the agreement. In Canada, we participated in the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (“CECRA”) program for rent relief. This program provided for a 75% reduction in the store rent for included stores for the months of April, May and June 2020. We received total rent abatements under the program of $0.05 million. Nine stores were permanently closed during 2020 as leases expired or early terminations were negotiated, including at locations where we believe we can retain a majority of customers through geographically proximate stores and/or our enhanced website platform. After these permanent closures, Tandy operates 106 stores, including ten in Canada and one in Spain. On May 22, 2020, our Fort Worth flagship store reopened to the public, the beginning of a phased approach to reopening our stores with limited hours, new protocols for sanitizing, social distancing, wearing masks and taking daily temperatures of employees. During the third quarter of 2020, all 106 of Tandy’s stores had reopened to the public and the store re-openings were well received by our employees and customers. During the fourth quarter of 2020 and into the present, we continue to manage through the pandemic as we saw increased spikes in COVID-19 infections, and continue to see varying levels of infection rates, and are forced to close certain stores or move certain stores to “curbside only” operations. With the rapid spread of the Delta variant of COVID-19 during the third quarter of 2021, we have experienced an increasing number of these shutdowns. We believe that the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines in 2021 has offset these closures somewhat, but it is difficult to predict whether these vaccines will be adopted by further large numbers of Americans or whether current or future vaccines will remain effective against Delta or other future variants of the virus. We expect that at least some further infections and temporary store shutdowns will continue for the foreseeable future. While we previously fulfilled our web orders out of our retail stores, we have built a centralized web fulfillment capability in our Fort Worth distribution center and will be fulfilling web orders primarily through Fort Worth going forward. Both our e-commerce business and stores, during the limited period since reopening, have been performing above last year sales levels, but the future remains uncertain, and more store closures and/or other ongoing effects of the pandemic on the economy or employment market could cause a material negative impact on future sales. As part of the Company’s accounting policy for long-lived asset impairments, we believe the COVID-19 impact on the Company’s results of operations, cash flows and financial position and the ongoing uncertainty the virus has created around future operating results represented a triggering event during the first quarter of 2020 and continued throughout 2020. For fiscal year 2020, the Company recorded impairment expense of $1.1 million, primarily related to property and equipment and operating lease assets for certain stores that underperformed to a level where the cash flows they generate will not be sufficient to cover their respective asset carry values.

1. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS

Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. (“TLFA,” “we,” “our,” “us,” the” Company,” “Tandy,” or “Tandy Leather” mean Tandy Leather Factory, Inc., together with its subsidiaries.) is one of the world’s largest specialty retailers of leather and leathercraft-related items. Founded in 1919 in Fort Worth, Texas, the Company introduced leathercrafting to millions of American and later Canadian and other international customers and has built a track record as the trusted source of quality leather, tools, hardware, supplies, kits and teaching materials for leatherworkers everywhere. Today, our mission remains to build on our legacy of inspiring the timeless art and trade of leatherworking.

What differentiates Tandy from the competition is our high brand awareness and strong brand equity and loyalty, our network of retail stores that provides convenience, a high-touch customer service experience, a hub for the local leathercrafting community and our 100-year heritage. We believe that this combination of qualities is unique to Tandy and gives the brand competitive advantages that are very difficult for others to replicate.

We sell our products primarily through company-owned stores and through orders generated from our four websites: tandyleather.com, tandyleather.ca, tandyleather.eu and tandyleather.com.au. We also manufacture leather lace, cut leather pieces and most of the do-it-yourself kits that are sold in our stores and on our websites. We also offer production services to our business customers such as cutting (“clicking”), splitting, and some assembly. We maintain our principal offices at 1900 Southeast Loop 820, Fort Worth, Texas 76140.

The Company currently operates a total of 106 retail stores. There are 95 stores in the United States (“U.S.”), ten stores in Canada and one store in Spain.

The Nasdaq Global Market (“Nasdaq”) suspended trading in the Company’s stock on Nasdaq as of August 13, 2020. Our stock has since traded on the OTC Link (previously “Pink Sheets”) operated by OTC Markets Group under the symbol “TLFA.” Nasdaq denied the Company’s appeal of its decision to suspend trading in the Company’s stock and the Company’s stock was formally delisted on February 9, 2021. We intend to reapply for Nasdaq listing after we have made our required Exchange Act filings. Any such listing would be subject to Nasdaq approval.

Certain reclassifications may have been made to prior period financials in order to conform to the current period presentation.

COVID-19

In late 2019, COVID-19 was detected in Wuhan, China and has since spread to other parts of the world, including the U.S. On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. Federal, state, and local governments have since implemented various restrictions, including travel restrictions, border closings, restrictions on public gatherings, quarantining of people who may have been exposed to the virus, shelter-in-place restrictions and limitations on business operations. As previously announced and for the health and safety of employees and customers, on March 17, 2020, the Company made the decision to begin temporary store closures. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 shifted our strategic focus to company survival and cash preservation. We began closing stores on March 18, 2020 and by April 2, 2020, we temporarily closed all stores to the public. While we pivoted to serve customers online, the Company experienced significant decreases in demand for its products in the second and third quarters of 2020, negatively impacting net sales.

In response, we took immediate action to mitigate the impact of temporary store closures on our cash flows by: (i) furloughing 406 Tandy employees, comprising two-thirds of the Tandy work force, (ii) temporarily cutting corporate salaries, with deeper cuts for the Executive Leadership Team, (iii) negotiating abatements, deferrals and other favorable lease terms with landlords, and (iv) negotiating longer payment terms with our key product vendors. By June 2020, we also permanently closed nine stores with expiring leases and/or negative cash flows, creating additional savings in operating expenses.

Due to our size, we were not eligible for the Paycheck Protection Program administered through the Small Business Administration. Also, due to our not being current on financial filings with the SEC, we were not able to obtain loans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act. During the second quarter of 2020, the Company borrowed $0.4 million through the Spanish government’s Institute of Official Credit Guarantee for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, a COVID-19 relief program. The term of the agreement is for five years and the interest rate is fixed at 1.5%. Based on the terms of the loan agreement, we make interest-only payments for the first two years and monthly principal and interest payments for the remainder of the term of the agreement. In Canada, we participated in the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (“CECRA”) program for rent relief. This program provided for a 75% reduction in the store rent for included stores for the months of April, May and June 2020. We received total rent abatements under the program of $0.05 million.

Nine stores were permanently closed during 2020 as leases expired or early terminations were negotiated, including at locations where we believe we can retain a majority of customers through geographically proximate stores and/or our enhanced website platform. After these permanent closures, Tandy operates 106 stores, including ten in Canada and one in Spain.

On May 22, 2020, our Fort Worth flagship store reopened to the public, the beginning of a phased approach to reopening our stores with limited hours, new protocols for sanitizing, social distancing, wearing masks and taking daily temperatures of employees. During the third quarter of 2020, all 106 of Tandy’s stores had reopened to the public and the store re-openings were well received by our employees and customers. During the fourth quarter of 2020 and into the present, we continue to manage through the pandemic as we saw increased spikes in COVID-19 infections, and continue to see varying levels of infection rates, and are forced to close certain stores or move certain stores to “curbside only” operations. With the rapid spread of the Delta variant of COVID-19 during the third quarter of 2021, we have experienced an increasing number of these shutdowns. We believe that the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines in 2021 has offset these closures somewhat, but it is difficult to predict whether these vaccines will be adopted by further large numbers of Americans or whether current or future vaccines will remain effective against Delta or other future variants of the virus. We expect that at least some further infections and temporary store shutdowns will continue for the foreseeable future.

While we previously fulfilled our web orders out of our retail stores, we have built a centralized web fulfillment capability in our Fort Worth distribution center and will be fulfilling web orders primarily through Fort Worth going forward. Both our e-commerce business and stores, during the limited period since reopening, have been performing above last year sales levels, but the future remains uncertain, and more store closures and/or other ongoing effects of the pandemic on the economy or employment market could cause a material negative impact on future sales.

As part of the Company’s accounting policy for long-lived asset impairments, we believe the COVID-19 impact on the Company’s results of operations, cash flows and financial position and the ongoing uncertainty the virus has created around future operating results represented a triggering event during the first quarter of 2020 and continued throughout 2020. For fiscal year 2020, the Company recorded impairment expense of $1.1 million, primarily related to property and equipment and operating lease assets for certain stores that underperformed to a level where the cash flows they generate will not be sufficient to cover their respective asset carry values.