Peloton Interactive
The company issued a news release on Tuesday announcing that Peloton Co-Founder and current CEO John Foley would be replaced by former Netflix
"Today's leadership changes are the culmination of a succession planning process that the Board and John have worked on together over the last several months," said Karan Boone, lead independent director of Peloton, in a press statement.
"We all agree that Barry is uniquely suited to lead Peloton into its next chapter and that this leadership transition will best position Peloton for sustainable growth, profitability, and long-term success. Barry is a proven leader, well known for his financial acumen and record of driving transformative change at iconic companies including Netflix and Spotify," she added.
Foley has faced stiff pressure as the company's fortunes reversed through 2021, coming as a bitter end to the company's pandemic-driven bull run in 2020. It wasn't too recently that the firm attempted to fend off rumors that it was suspending production of its at-home fitness products, though it did so without explicitly dismissing them.
At the time, Foley mentioned that while layoffs had been the last resort, they were now in enough of a bind that it had become a viable option to Peloton leadership.
The company is now seeking to lay off some 2,800 employees, per the Wall Street Journal. According to the company, the layoffs wouldn't affect any of the names on Peloton's instructor roster.
This week, the company's stock has been seeing some degree of recovery, jumping by 20% on Monday compared to Friday's close. Perhaps spurred by the news of the forthcoming cost-cutting, stocks rose by an additional 25.28% on Tuesday.
In internal documents viewed by CNBC, Barry McCarthy told remaining staffers in a memo that he is "here for [Peloton's] comeback story."
