Alibaba-owned e-commerce platform Daraz Group is reducing its workforce in the Indian subcontinent by 11% due to the ‘current market reality’, a media report  said quoting the Chief Executive Officer Bjarke Mikkelsen. The suggested job losses could affect about 300 employees

A difficult market environment, the Ukraine crisis, supply chain disruptions, soaring inflation, higher taxes and fewer government subsidies are attributed as the reasons for the job cuts.

Mikkelsen has written a letter to the employees explaining the reasons for the layoffs. The letter has been published on the company’s website.

Pakistan and Bangladesh are the group’s biggest markets. It also operates in Sri Lanka and Nepal.

“Both Bangladesh and Pakistan have a similar number of staff impacted since both of them are similar in market size,” Mikkelsen was quoted as saying in a media interview. He indicated that there would be 100 cuts from each of these countries.

Daraz Pakistan, founded in 2012 was acquired by Chinese giant Alibaba in 2018. It has 100,000 small and medium companies in Pakistan on its e-commerce platform.

Mikkelsen said the company will now refocus on its core e-commerce business, simplify operations, and boost product innovation and automation.

According to Mikkelsen, there would be no hiring freeze, especially in sustainable growth areas: “If this requires new hires for certain functions, we will be proceeding with them.”

Daraz would be looking into “digitising as many retailers as possible”, he said.

• Based on a report in The Star, Malaysia