Robot vacuum cleaner maker iRobot has announced to cut around 7 percent of its workforce or about 85 employees.
The maker of the Roomba robot vacuum had 1,254 employees as of December 31, 2022.
Announcing its fourth-quarter results, the company said that it has initiated a new restructuring program that is expected to deliver net annualized savings of approximately $14 million.
“As part of this restructuring, the company plans to reduce its workforce by approximately 7 percent, or approximately 85 employees, primarily by streamlining certain functions across the company,” said iRobot.
In addition to the reduction in force, iRobot’s 2023 operating plan incorporates scaled-back working media and other demand-generation activities, limited investment in non-robotic product categories, and “minimal new hiring plans in 2023”.
The revenue for the fourth quarter of 2022 was $357.9 million, compared with $455.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2021.
Full-year 2022 revenue of $1,183.4 million declined 24 percent from $1,565.0 million in 2021, said the company.
In August last year, the consumer robot company, acquired by Amazon for $1.7 billion, laid off 10 percent of its workforce — nearly 140 workers.
The company had said that to better align its cost structure with near-term revenue, it was in the process of initiating a “restructuring of its operations”.
iRobot introduced the first Roomba robot vacuum in 2002 and has sold millions of robots worldwide for cleaning, mapping, and navigation.
