CoachUp, the Boston-based online coaching service backed by NBA star Steph Curry, has had layoffs.
In a LinkedIn post published Friday morning, CoachUp Director of Marketing/Creative Ryan Light said he had his last day on Thursday and that he and 15 other employees "are now all on the market." He said the other impacted employees worked in writing, videography, development, product and customer service. As of last October, CoachUp had 35 full-time employees, according to a story in Forbes.
"CoachUp was the best job I've ever had & was a magical place - gonna miss working there - but super excited about my next adventure," Light said in his public LinkedIn post.
CoachUp CEO John Kelley confirmed the layoffs in a statement sent Friday afternoon:
It has been a tough couple of days for CoachUp, as we let go a number of very talented employees who've been a big part of our success thus far. We've been pleased with growth across our platform -- our topline revenue has tripled over the past two years, we have more than 20,000 coaches, and our customer satisfaction scores and repeat purchase rates are outstanding. But with our growth and maturation as a company comes an obligation to demonstrate profitability. Our difficult actions today are geared toward aligning our resources toward those activities that we know can sustain growth while also putting the company on path to near-term profitability. I appreciate the many contributions of the co-workers and friends affected by today's decision. If you're part of the Boston innovation community and are looking for smart, talented and dedicated people, there are some great free agents available and I'm eager to help with introductions.
The layoffs come a little over a year after founder Jordan Fliegel stepped aside from his full-time leadership role as president and handed over the day-to-day responsibilities completely to Kelley, who joined in January 2015. Fliegel, who remains on CoachUp's board, joined New York daily fantasy sports startup Draft as co-CEO last fall.
CoachUp has raised a total of $9.4 million over two rounds, and it has gained national attention, thanks in part to Curry, the NBA star who has invested in the company and appeared in videos produced by CoachUp. Other investors include General Catalyst Partners, Founder Collective, HubSpot co-founder Dharmesh Shah and Lola co-founder Paul English.
Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that Jordan Fliegel is still chairman of CoachUp. He no longer has that role, but he remains on the company's board.
