GameStop Cuts More Jobs As Part Of Third Round Of Layoffs In 2022

Video game retailer GameStop has announced a round of layoffs due in part to inflation and "weakened consumer confidence" about the market, according to its CEO. This big move comes a few months after GameStop management fired its CFO and made cuts at Game Informer, among other places inside the company.

In a memo obtained by Kotaku, CEO Matt Furlong said GameStop recently completed another phase of its "transformation" effort that will help the company "operate with increased efficiency." As part of this process, Furlong said the company came to a realization about the "right level of corporate staff" required to reach its profitability and growth goals, and is making these cuts as a result.

Axios, which was first to report on the layoffs at GameStop, said the team working on the company's blockchain/NFT projects were "heavily impacted." The exact number of job cuts was not disclosed. A software engineer said on LinkedIn that the round of cuts was "big," affecting "lots" of people.

In 2021 and the first half of 2022, GameStop hired more than 600 people for corporate positions as it accelerated plans for its business transformation. GameStop has now enacted at least three rounds of major layoffs so far in 2022.

Reggie Fils-Aime, the former Nintendo of America president who served on GameStop's board of directors for a period of time, has criticized GameStop management for not allowing him to attend planning sessions to map out GameStop's future.

GameStop stock is trading at around $25 today, which--while down massively compared to the boom related to the short-squeeze situation--is up significantly from where it was in 2000. In the past five years, GameStop's share price has surged by more than 400%. GameStop will release its next earnings report on December 7, so keep checking back for more.

A GameStop meme stock movie is in the works with Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Sebastian Stan, and Pete Davidson set to star.