Waitr stock is trading near an all-time low after Waitr Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:WTRH) announced a fresh round layoffs and a shift from hourly employment to a contractual model.
CEO Troubles
The troubled food delivery service, which targets underserved markets such as Louisiana, endured a difficult year in 2019, marked by leadership turnover and a number of layoffs. The company has cycled through three CEOs since the resignation of its founder Chris Meaux back in August. He was replaced by Adam Price, who had to contend with the resignation of two board members, the board President, and the Chief Financial Officer, before departing himself. The appointment of Adam Grimwald at the beginning of the year failed to spur any change in Waitr stock.
To further exacerbate the crisis engulfing the company, Waitr has quietly laid off an undisclosed number of its staff and publicly announced that it intends to refocus its operations in its home market of Lafayette. The company, which is one of Louisiana’s largest employers, plans to retain 150 positions, which were previously slated to be outsourced to Mexico.
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“One of our key strategic initiatives is the elevation of the entire customer experience,” said Carl Grimstad, CEO of Waitr. “We believe that one way to achieve that is to retain, as well as add to, our customer service and dispatch teams here in Lafayette, the heart of Waitr’s business. This will ensure the highest levels of service for our customers, drivers and restaurant partners.” Waitr stock is currently trading for just $0.34.
Long Way Back for Waitr Stock?
In addition to refocusing on Lafayette, Waitr has also announced a change in its employment model for its drivers from hourly employees to independent contractors in a cost-cutting move that will help it deliver on its US$30 million in savings promised to investors in late 2019. The change is expected to impact about 13,000 drivers across the US. With Waitr stock down from $13.86 less than a year ago, it looks like a long way back for the embattled firm.
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