Nike has laid off employees in its European headquarters in Netherlands as part of its effort to cut costs, reported Bloomberg. As per the report, the Nike campus in the Netherlands which is located in the city of Hilversum, just outside of Amsterdam, and known internally as European Headquarters is home to more than 2,000 employees.
As part of a plan to slash $2 billion in cost, Nike is planning to layoff about 2% of its global workforce. At its global headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon about 750 employees were let go. Meanwhile, a Nike subsidiary in Boston also eliminated some staff.
As per Bloomberg, Nike's CEO John Donahoe in an internal memo mentioned that the planned cuts in Europe, the Middle East and Africa would take place in different timelines than those in its home market.
Starting in February, the staff cuts in North America occured in two phases. However, the layoffs in Europe did not start until recently due to differences in local labor laws. Europe, the Middle East and Africa accounted for about $13.4 billion in revenue for Nike, or around 26% of its global sales, last year.
“The actions that we’re taking put us in the position to right-size our organization to get after our biggest growth opportunities as interest in sport, health and wellness have never been stronger", a Nike Spokesperson told Bloomberg.
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