VF Corporation, the parent company of brands including Supreme, The North Face, Timberland, and Vans, has cut 600 jobs globally.
According to Portland Business Journal, VF Corp. announced yesterday that it had eliminated 600 office-based roles. The slashed positions are said to be evenly split between 300 current employees and 300 open job listings.
An internal letter from VF Corp. chairman, president, and CEO Steve Rendle obtained by the outlet expounded on the cuts but did not mention which locations or brands were affected by the layoffs. “We’re working to improve those areas of the business that need attention,” Rendle reportedly wrote. He said the company would take “a strategic and thoughtful approach to new roles going forward.”
An unnamed employee reportedly said the cuts had “no disproportionate impact” on any single location. Portland Business Journal pegs VF’s total number of worldwide employees at around 35,000, with 26,000 of those being office roles. This puts the number of cuts at around 1.7 percent of its global workforce.
While brands like The North Face experience record sales, Vans has struggled in recent years, with a noted sharp decline in China. Meanwhile, during a May earnings call, Rendle was optimistic about Supreme and hinted at opening new locations in Asia.
