Benzinga - by Anusuya Lahiri, Benzinga Editor.
Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) eliminated a recently established marketing team, moving away from a move towards traditional advertising that CEO Elon Musk had approved less than a year earlier, as part of broader company layoffs.
The U.S. “growth content” team, led by senior manager Alex Ingram and under the supervision of Jorge Milburn, consisting of approximately 40 employees, was cut as part of the ongoing layoffs.
Tesla terminated the offices of Ingram and Milburn. However, Tesla maintains a smaller marketing team in Europe, Bloomberg cites familiar sources.
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Significant layoffs also affected Tesla’s design studio and employees in Hawthorne, California, Bloomberg writes.
These layoffs mark a step back from Tesla’s initial move into advertising. Traditionally avoiding traditional advertising channels like TV, radio, print, or online ads, Tesla, under Musk’s direction last year, decided to explore advertising, with Ingram beginning to form the growth team around four months ago.
As Tesla navigates a shift to Musk’s vision of a robotaxi future, investors have been pressing to prioritize marketing amid slowing global EV sales growth and increasing competition.
Musk recently announced that these layoffs would impact over 10% of Tesla’s global workforce, with reports suggesting that reductions in some areas could reach about 20%, potentially exceeding 20,000 layoffs.
Tesla’s shares declined on Monday after it announced price reductions for its vehicles in the U.S., Germany, and China.
In response to slowing demand and after reporting weak quarterly results for two consecutive quarters, Tesla extended its price cuts to other key markets, including China and Germany, according to Reuters.
Tesla stock plunged 43% year-to-date. Investors can gain exposure to the stock via Tidal ETF Trust II The Meet Kevin Pricing Power ETF (NYSE:PP) and Vanguard Consumer Discretion ETF (NYSE:VCR).
Price Action: TSLA shares traded lower by 3.54% at $141.92 on the last check Monday.
Also Read: Tesla Is Navigating Free FSD Trials, Gigafactory Challenges, and Governance Hurdles: Analyst
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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