Fashion

Layoffs: Marc Jacobs Reduces Corporate Team

By Donovan | June 10, 2020 0 Comments

Marc Jacobs Spring 2020 2020

NEW YORK, UNITED STATES — American fashion label Marc Jacobs reduced its headcount across design and other corporate departments in recent weeks as fallout from the coronavirus and disappointing sales in the months prior caused the LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton-owned brand to cut costs.

According to multiple sources, the brand cut around 60 jobs, including relatively recent high-profile hire Olympia Le-Tan, who relocated to New York from Paris to lead Marc Jacobs’ lower-priced line, The Marc Jacobs. While some sources said all that remains of Marc Jacobs’ design department is a skeleton runway collection staff and a handbag design department, a Marc Jacobs spokesman denied that and said all departments remain in place and continue to work on projects.

The spokesman said the cuts represent less than 10 percent of the brand’s global headcount, including retail associates. He issued the following statement: “Given the substantial impact of COVID-19 on the retail industry, we have made targeted changes that allow Marc Jacobs International to adapt to the evolving environment and continue forward on our path to refocus the business and highlight the creative innovation that has always defined our brand. This included making the difficult decision to eliminate certain roles and, for a small number of employees, reducing responsibilities.”

A source added that employees were notified of their firings in individual Zoom calls that lasted less than five minutes. Many of those laid off had relocated to New York from Europe to work for Marc Jacobs, and were left without visa sponsorship. Marc Jacobs extended 60 days of health insurance to employees beyond their termination date, according to a source.

It is understood that executives initially saw The Marc Jacobs line under Le-Tan’s stewardship as a path forward for the company, and projected it would eventually comprise up to 85 percent of sales. Le-Tan shaped the label, which launched in May 2019, as a quirky nod to Jacobs’ early design years. Products ranged from $95 to $1,200, and included partnerships with emblematic brands like The Peanuts, New York magazine and the Four Seasons Hotel.

The Marc Jacobs was given a global rollout and prominent space at the brand’s Madison Avenue flagship, as well as department store partners like Le Bon Marché and Isetan. In 2018, former Baja East designer John Targon was hired to develop a diffusion collection for Marc Jacobs, but left the company after 2 1/2 months (see it here) and the line never officially launched.

A source said that under Le-Tan’s tutelage, The Marc Jacobs encountered roadblocks, including low budgets and disagreements with the company’s internal merchandising team, which opted to push commercial product that was not too different from what is already available in the wider fashion market.

While Marc Jacobs – like many fashion and retail companies in the wake of COVID-19 – has had to cut staff, the spokesman said that all employees continue to receive their full pay during the coronavirus lockdowns.