Last week, the world's most infamous e-cig manufacturer: Juul Labs Inc., announced that as it downsizes, it is relocating its headquarters from San Francisco to Washington, D.C..
Last November, the San Francisco-based manufacturer disclosed that as a result of a company review by Juul’s newly appointed CEO, it had planned to cut approximately 500 jobs by the end of 2019.
This move followed plans to reduce Juul’s marketing budget and invest heavily in ways to limit underage vaping. These cuts were made across several departments, and all employees received a severance, and any prorated bonuses which they were eligible for.
Subsequently, as it plans it’s relocation to the US capital, the firm is contemplating more layoffs (of up to 950 workers) as it faces multiple lawsuits, federal investigations and dwindling sales as a result of the current pandemic. In fact Juul’s valuation has dropped from $38 billion (as part of its partnership with Altria) to $12 billion.
The SF city council calls the relocation a “small victory”
Meanwhile, the San Francisco city council believes that Juul has addicted many teens to nicotine, hence have been doing their utmost to kill the business. Hence it comes as no surprise that they are pleased with the news of the relocation and believe that this is a victory for their city.
“It’s nice to see people win over profit, even if it’s a small victory. We never wanted Juul in San Francisco,” said Supervisor Shamann Walton.
Read Further: The San Francisco Chronicle