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

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the no-deal dept.

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."

6 of 107 comments (clear)

  1. "We're stronger than ever" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    This sounds like something Baghdad Bob would have said. Groupon is dying, just like *BSD. Kids, this is what happens when your business model sucks.

    1. Re:"We're stronger than ever" by Z00L00K · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I still wonder why this became slashdot news. It's not for nerds, it's just about some marketing company selling all kinds of junk that is no different from what you get in any random outlet.

      --
      If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker would destroy civilization.
    2. Re:"We're stronger than ever" by LaurenCates · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Well, look at it like this: Groupon was at the forefront of a new business model, started because the internet enabled it. It wouldn't have worked as well by any other method of communication.

      The part that nerds might be interested in is how the wind shifts as to the ways people connect and do business. Are people looking to get deals in real-time? What's the turnaround time on a web-only deal to get the best possible value? Can you get a group of random strangers (rather than a group of friends) to all hop on a deal at once? Can you look at the data to see where this strategy works best, and where it works worst? Can you develop an alternate business model for sparsely-populated areas to get good deals the way people can in cities?

      There are always data to look at where money is involved. Always.

      --
      Some people don't believe in fairies. I don't believe in The Patriarchy.
  2. Re:Should've taken Google's $6B offer by Travis+Mansbridge · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's not so much that Groupon isn't useful, what they've always failed to do is convert the coupon users into repeat customers which frequently causes their clients to operate at a loss (making only the heavily-discounted deal and never cashing in on full-price sales).

  3. Bingo ! by eulernet · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I detected a Bullshit Bingo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

    Seriously, their business is to rip off small businesses.
    Their service can only be used once, because even dumb businesses realize instantly that it doesn't attract regular customers.

    "Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me."

  4. Groupon "family" by anti-pop-frustration · · Score: 5, Insightful

    but it’s not easy to lose some great members of the Groupon family

    Detestable corporate jargon. Your employer is not your family.