Peloton, the beleaguered at-home gym equipment maker, is laying off about 500 employees in the company’s latest effort to bolster its deteriorating finances.
The company will be left with around 3,825 employees after the latest round of job cuts, which account for around 12 percent of its work force, according to Ben Boyd, a Peloton spokesman. This is Peloton’s fourth round of layoffs this year. At the end of June 2021, the company employed more than 6,700 people.
The job cuts were first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
The layoffs are the company’s most recent attempt to restructure its operations after the huge growth it recorded during the height of the pandemic faded as lockdowns lifted and economies reopened. Peloton’s stationary bikes and fitness classes became popular when people were isolated at home and gyms were closed, but it has since has run into financial difficulties because of supply chain issues and falling demand.
Barry McCarthy was appointed chief executive in February, replacing John Foley, a co-founder of Peloton, who said it had been a “humbling time” for the company as he stepped aside. Peloton said in July that it would outsource all of its manufacturing to an overseas company and more executive departures came in September. The company reported a $1.2 billion loss in its latest quarter, its sixth losing quarter in a row.
Shares of Peloton have lost three-quarters of their value this year. At the end of June, the company reported that it had access to over $1 billion in cash on its balance sheet. Mr. McCarthy told The Wall Street Journal that “there comes a point in time when we’ve either been successful or we have not.”
