Farfetch founder José Neves has stepped down from the business following its £400m rescue by Korean ecommerce company Coupang.
Neves exited the retailer with immediate effect, a memo to workers explained on Thursday, according to the Telegraph.
The founder led Farfetch to a £4.92bn US listing back in 2018. However, the business’s shares collapsed following its flotation, with investors wiped out under the rescue deal.
Neves’ key lieutenants are also leaving the online retailer under a management clear-out, with chief operating officer Luis Teixeira and chief financial officer Tim Stone understood to have exited.
Neves will remain at the retailer in a consultancy position, however Coupang’s existing management will run Farfetch for the time being and the founder will not be directly replaced.
Workers at the retailer were informed that job cuts would start in the UK and other countries on Monday and across Portugal on Friday.
A memo read: “After careful consideration we have decided to streamline the business to allow us to operate from a position of financial strength.
“While it’s never easy to go through this process, this was a necessary decision to secure the future of our business.”
Subscribe to Retail Gazette for free
Sign up here to get the latest news straight into your inbox each morning
A company spokesman added: “As we assessed key priorities and resources across the business, we made the difficult but necessary decision to reduce global headcount and redundant roles.
“This decision secures the future of the business and as a result, Farfetch can now operate from a position of strength and focus on what we do best: deliver exceptional experiences for brands, boutiques and customers.”
In December, Farfetch was sold to Coupang which agreed to pump £397.2m in emergency funding into the online luxury retailer as part of a pre-pack administration process.
The move came after rapid expansion at the company left it unable to cover its debts and facing potential administration.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
