Big blow for Australian surfwear giants Billabong and Quiksilver as dozens of employees lose their jobs just before Christmas.
Billabong and Quicksilver owner Boardriders lays off 70 workers
Most are located at the company’s Burleigh Heads office on the Gold Coast.
Staff were laid off in an effort to cut costs amid the economic downturn
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Iconic Australian surfwear giants Billabong and Quicksilver suffered another major hit just before Christmas, with their parent company Boardriders cutting 70 jobs at the company’s Asia-Pacific headquarters on the Gold Coast.
The company, now owned by US private equity firm Oaktree Capital Management, laid off staff as part of an effort to cut costs amid a global economic downturn.
Staff are mainly based in the company’s Burleigh Heads office, with the cuts representing more than a quarter of Boardriders’ Asia-Pacific staff.
Boardriders, the owner of Billabong and Quiksilver, has laid off 70 Australian employees just before Christmas.
Job cuts account for more than a quarter of Boardriders Asia-Pacific staff
“Boardriders has announced a reorganization of its global operations to enable the company to respond swiftly to the market and its customers in the face of an uncertain and changing economic landscape,” Boardriders said in a statement published by the action sports industry website Shop. -Eat- Browse.
‘As a result of the reorganization, the company has announced that it has eliminated 110 positions in the Americas and 60 in Asia Pacific. The reorganization will reduce complexity across the value chain and take more advantage of the global platform the company has built.”
Boardriders CEO Arne Arens said: “I am confident these changes will put us on the path to achieving our goals and creating a more agile company fit to adapt to the evolving environment.”
“Losing talented employees is always difficult and I want to recognize the staff that leave for their contribution to Boardriders,” he added.
“Moving forward, we are fully focused on setting Boardriders up for success.”
The company eventually went global, before facing a financial crisis and being bought by Boardriders in 2018.
Billabong was formed by Gold Coast surfboard maker Gordon Merchant and his wife Rena, who made boardshorts on their Burleigh Heads kitchen table in 1973.
The company eventually went global, before facing a financial crisis and being bought by Boardriders in 2018.