Polestar lays off around 15 per cent of its workforce
Even before the annual sales figures for 2023 were announced, Polestar had already announced in November that it wanted to reduce its costs even further to increase margins again in the future. “As part of this business plan, we need to adjust the size of our business and operations. This involves reducing external spend and, regrettably, also our number of employees,” a spokesperson for the brand now explained. It is not yet known which locations or countries will be affected.
The business plan presented in November, which was drawn up under the leadership of the then CFO Johan Malmqvist, aimed for Polestar to break even in 2025. This would also reduce the company’s dependence on external financing from its main owners Volvo Cars and Geely, as Reuters writes. The above quote from the Polestar spokesperson was also given to the news agency in this context.
According to this business plan, a gross margin in the high teens should be achieved by 2025 (including the cost savings). And that with a total annual volume of around 155,000 to 165,000 vehicles – then also with the Polestar 3 and Polestar 4.
However, it is unclear whether this plan from November 2023 will last much longer – because CFO Malmqvist was not given much time to implement this plan. In January, Polestar replaced its heads of sales and finance. Experienced Volvo finance manager Per Ansgar has taken over the position on an interim basis until a permanent successor has been found. It is unclear whether the successor(s) will then present a new strategy.
Polestar currently only offers the Polestar 2 in Europe, which has been revised for the 2024 model year. The first units of the Polestar 4 have already been handed over to customers in China, and sales of the new model are due to start in Europe this week.
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