Walmart-owned Bonobos trims workforce

Walmart continues to look for ways to stem losses in its U.S. e-commerce division led by CEO Marc Lore. Bonobos, the upscale menswear brand acquired by Walmart in 2017, confirmed Monday (Oct. 7) it laid off dozens of employees. The company did not disclose the number of workers impacted. Bonobos employs around 600 people throughout its corporate offices and 66 retail locations.

“Today we made the difficult decision to part ways with valued members of the Bonobos team,” a corporate spokesperson said in a statement. “These decisions are not taken lightly, but we believe they are necessary to set the brand and business up for long-term success.”

News of the Bonobos cutbacks was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. The decision comes on the heels of the sale of ModCloth, which was another unprofitable acquisition made by Lore and Walmart in the past 2.5 years.

Lore recently said the retail giant was re-evaluating its portfolio. He refuted reports that Walmart was looking to divest Bonobos earlier this year. Walmart paid $310 million for Bonobos in 2017, and the company reportedly continues to lose money.

Bonobos was founded in 2007 as an online seller of men’s pants and has over time expanded into shirts, suits and swimwear. Andy Dunn, Bonobos co-founder, previously stepped down as CEO to take a position with Walmart.com as senior vice president of digital consumer brands. He reports directly to Lore.