(LibertyInsider.org) – A popular global toymaker has announced additional cuts to its workforce just months after laying off nearly 800 workers. Hasbro is reportedly planning to reduce its remaining workforce by about 20%, a move that is expected to affect around 1,100 jobs.
According to The Washington Post, Hasbro’s Chief Executive Chris Cocks confirmed the upcoming cuts in a regulatory filing on December 11. The CEO reportedly said the layoffs won’t occur all at once but over an 18 to 24-month period instead. The company’s main goal is to shave budgets down by approximately $300 million annually over the next two years.
Cocks also commented on the cause of the cuts in the same document. Toy sales were expected to rise this year after reaching “historic, pandemic-driven highs” but entered a severe slump instead. Not even the upcoming holiday season, typically a boon for toymakers, was enough to correct the losses.
Statistics from S&P Capital IQ highlight Hasbro’s volatile financial journey over the past few years. Although the toymaker enjoyed a sharp 51% revenue increase in early 2020, it almost immediately experienced a progressively worsening downturn afterward. By the third quarter of 2023, the company’s quarterly revenue had fallen by a dismal 10% compared to the same period in 2023.
Hasbro, the entity facing these significant workforce reductions, is a household name in the toy industry. As an umbrella company, it owns several iconic brands, including Monopoly, Play-Doh, Dungeons & Dragons, Nerf, and My Little Pony. It wasn’t immediately clear how the cuts would affect each specific brand.
Part of the problem is that consumers are tightening their budgets in reaction to economic struggles. An increase in the cost of necessities, such as shelter, groceries, and utilities, leaves many Americans with less expendable income to work with this holiday season.
Toy makers typically rely on the pre-Christmas rush for a significant portion of their yearly reported income. Failures during this period can be disastrous for companies like Hasbro, but repeated year-to-year downturns only serve to amplify the problem.
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