Groupon Is Closing Operations In 7 Countries, Laying Off 1,100

New submitter joesreviewss writes: Groupon is laying off about 10% of its workforce and is shutting down operations in seven countries. 1,100 people worldwide will be let go and the company will take a pre-tax charge of $35 million in the process. A Groupon statement reads in part: "Let’s be clear: these are tough actions to take, especially when we believe we’re stronger than ever. We’re doing all we can to make these transitions as easy as possible, but it’s not easy to lose some great members of the Groupon family. Yet just as our business has evolved from a largely hand-managed daily deal site to a true ecommerce technology platform, our operational model has to evolve. Evolution is hard, but it’s a necessary part of our journey. It’s also part of our DNA as a company and is one of the things that will help us realize our vision of creating the daily habit in local commerce."

Comments

Yet another company that does not need to exist

[bradley13]

Just how did a simplistic business like GroupOn ever come to have thousands of employees?

Our dealings with them were unpleasant, but at least short. GroupOn wanted us to offer insane discounts, i.e., for us to sell as a huge loss. We asked ourselves: what kind of customer is that going to attract? The answer is clear: extreme bargain seekers, who will never come back and pay our normal prices. No thanks, go away.

They are just another crappy coupon business, only "on a computer". Whoopie.