Blue Apron slims down its workforce
NEW YORK - Blue Apron is cutting about 320 jobs, less than four months after the meal-kit seller became a public company.
New York-based Blue Apron (APRN), which had nearly 5,400 employees in June, said Wednesday the layoffs represent about 6 percent of its workforce. The company said the cuts were at its corporate offices and warehouses where its meal kits are packed and shipped.
Blue Apron has been facing increasing competition. Amazon (AMZN), which recently bought grocer Whole Foods, is testing its own meal kits. And supermarket operator Albertsons recently bought rival Plated and plans to sell kits at its 2,300 stores.
Shares of Blue Apron, currently trading at $5.30, have lost nearly half their value since the company went public at the end of June. In Thursday premarket trading, the stock is 0.6 percent lower, down 3 cents.