NWL · CIK 814453
What Newell Brands Inc. told the SEC could break it.
Newell's disclosures center on input costs and the channels at either end of its consumer-products business. Its products draw on a broad commodity basket — resin, corrugate, glass, plastic, and metals like steel, aluminum, and copper — leaving margins exposed to price swings, and that import-heavy sourcing collided with new U.S. tariffs (chiefly on China) that added about $174 million of incremental cash tariff cost in 2025. On the sell side, two retailers carry a growing share of revenue: Amazon rose to roughly 17% of 2025 net sales and Walmart was about 13%. A sharper supply dependency sits in its Baby business, which relies on a single supplier for products making up a majority of that unit's sales — a supplier that also owns the intellectual property for many of them.
4 self-disclosed vulnerabilities, pulled from its own filings, each in the company’s words, with the source. This is the risk register almost nobody reads.
In its own words
What could break it.
Commodity & input dependence
- resin, corrugate, glass, plastic, steel, stainless steel, aluminum, copper and other materialsmedium
Products require a broad basket of commodities — resin, corrugate, glass, plastic, polystyrene, nylon, paper, tin plate, wood, rubber, and metals (steel, stainless steel, aluminum, copper) — exposing margins to input-price and capacity volatility.
“The Company's product offerings require the purchase of resin, corrugate, glass, plastic, expanded polystyrene, nylon, paper, sawdust, tin plate, wax, wood, natural rubber, electrical components, glass fiber, magnesium, adhesives, various paper-related packaging materials and metals, including steel, stainless steel, aluminum and copper.”
SEC filing →As of 2026
Customer concentration
- Amazon (17%, rising) and Walmart (13%) retail concentrationmedium
Amazon grew to ~17% of net sales in 2025 (from 13% in 2023) and Walmart was ~13%, concentrating a meaningful share of revenue in two retail customers.
“The Company's largest customer in 2025, Amazon, accounted for approximately 17%, 15% and 13% of net sales in 2025, 2024 and 2023, respectively.”
SEC filing →As of 2026
Regulatory & policy
- U.S. tariffs (esp. China) — $174M incremental cash tariff cost in 2025medium
New U.S. tariffs (most significantly on China) plus retaliatory tariffs added ~$174M of incremental cash tariff cost in 2025 ($114M in COGS), since Newell sources a significant amount of products from outside the U.S.
“The Company incurred incremental cash tariff cost of approximately $174 million in 2025 due to the currently announced and imposed tariffs as well as retaliatory tariffs on U.S. exports, prior to any offsetting impact from mitigating actions.”
Sole-source dependency
- Baby business unit (L&D segment) single source of supply for majority of its salesmedium
The Baby business unit relies on a single source of supply for products comprising a majority of its sales, and that supplier owns the intellectual property for many of those products — a concentrated, IP-locked single-source dependency.
“For example, the Baby business unit within the Company's L&D segment has a single source of supply for products that comprise a majority of its sales and which owns intellectual property rights in respect to many of those products.”
SEC filing →As of 2026
The hidden graph
Who it depends on, and who depends on it.
Relationships surfaced from filings, including ones disclosed by the other side, which is how the non-obvious ones come to light.
Its customers
The ODP Corporation (Office Depot)
“The Company's top-ten customers in 2025 included (in alphabetical order): Amazon.com Inc., Costco Wholesale Corporation, Grainger Inc., Office Depot Inc., Staples Inc., Target Corporation, The Home Depot Inc., The Kroger Co., Uline Inc. and Walmart Inc.”
Cited →“The Company's top-ten customers in 2025 included (in alphabetical order): Amazon.com Inc., Costco Wholesale Corporation, Grainger Inc., Office Depot Inc., Staples Inc., Target Corporation, The Home Depot Inc., The Kroger Co., Uline Inc. and Walmart Inc.”
Cited →“Walmart Inc. and subsidiaries (“Walmart”), the Company's second largest customer in 2025, accounted for approximately 13%, 14% and 15% of net sales in 2025, 2024 and 2023, respectively.”
Cited →
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