DoorDash Eliminates 1,250 Positions to Curb Escalating Costs

DoorDash Inc. announced on Wednesday that it will eliminate around 1,250 positions, or 6% of its total workforce, as a cost-cutting measure in response to declining demand.

DoorDash ramped up hiring to accommodate the surge of orders from those confined to their homes during the height of the pandemic, but a sudden fall in demand from inflation-conscious customers has caused the company's expenses to skyrocket.

"We should have been more vigilant in monitoring the expansion of our employees... It is my fault. As a result, operating expenses skyrocketed" CEO Tony Xu noted in a note to colleagues that was posted on the company's website.

If nothing was done, our operating expenses would continue to exceed our revenue, given how quickly we employed.

In morning trade, the shares of the corporation, which has declined by over 64 percent this year, was up approximately 5 percent.

DoorDash employs around 20,000 individuals and has delivery partnerships with Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) and Shake Shack (NYSE:SHAK).

Given the prospect of a faster-than-expected decrease in consumer spending, a stronger focus on its cost structure is a positive sign, according to Angelo Zino, an analyst at CFRA Research.

In the first week of this month, DoorDash reported a quarterly financial loss of $295 million, which raised concerns about the future viability of delivery companies as economies recover.

The British meal delivery firm Deliveroo said at the end of October that its revenue growth would fall short of projections.

In recent weeks, DoorDash has joined Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN), Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META), and Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) in laying off hundreds of employees in preparation for a potential economic downturn.

Xu noted that reducing non-headcount operating expenses "would not close the gap" while stressing that DoorDash has been more resilient than other e-commerce enterprises.