E-commerce Industry Braces for Layoffs

February 6, 2024

2023 was a devastating year for tech industry layoffs. Though we’re only two months into 2024, it looks like it could bring more of the same.

The tech industry faced a shocking number of layoffs in 2023. According to some reports, over 1,000 tech companies laid off over a quarter of a million workers.

The ecommerce sector has also been affected. According to a report by Cara Salpini of Retail Dive, nearly 50 major retailers, including Amazon, announced layoffs in 2023.

Unfortunately, we’re not out of the woods yet, and more layoffs have been announced for 2024. Some of the biggest cuts so far include:

• Wayfair plans to lay off over 1,650 workers (Gabe Hauari and Mike Snider, USA Today).
• eBay will cut 9% of its workforce, REI will cut 357 roles, and Macy’s will close five stores and lay off over 2,000 employees (Katishi Maake, Retail Brew).
• Ecommerce and fintech company Bolt announced it would cut 29% of its staff ( Economic Times).

Layoffs are usually announced at the beginning of the year, so we could see more as 2024 progresses.

According to an article by Daniela Coppola of Statista, “E-commerce job losses primarily involve logistics workers.”

Coppola added, “Higher automation and widespread use of artificial intelligence ( AI) will affect the job market of white-collar workers, too.”

Other major factors include the reopening of brick-and-mortar stores after the pandemic and the adverse economic situation in North America and Europe.

However, not all ecommerce companies are struggling.

LeadGenius analyzed over 2,000 companies and found that some ecommerce companies are reversing the trend and are hiring instead. So, the ecommerce landscape is not entirely bleak.