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Shiseido Americas announced it would undertake a “wide-ranging and significant reduction” to its workforce in an internal memo from interim chief executive Alberto Noé to staff on Wednesday. First reported by the anonymous Instagram account Estée Laundry, the company confirmed to The Business of Beauty that it had made the “difficult decision to eliminate certain roles” but declined to detail the nature or scope of these layoffs, and said affected employees would receive transitional support.
The Japanese conglomerate owns premium brands such as Nars and Drunk Elephant, and also makes fragrances for fashion houses like Tory Burch and Narciso Rodriguez. Its layoffs follow other beauty giants such as Coty and Estée Lauder Companies, which have both detailed plans to reduce their workforces as the market cools and growth becomes more elusive.
“Shiseido Americas finds itself deeply challenged on multiple fronts. Despite our best efforts and hard work, business performance has declined significantly through 2024, and the 2025 outlook remains bleak,” said Noé in the memo.
In April, it installed Noé, previously head of its EMEA region, as interim CEO for the Americas in addition to his prior responsibilities, replacing Ron Gee who departed the company.
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The Tokyo-based conglomerate has over 2,000 US employees across facilities in Ohio, Texas, Florida and Canada, with headquarters in New York City.
In its first-quarter earnings reported in May, Shiseido’s net sales declined 8.5 percent, with a particular deceleration at Drunk Elephant, which declined 65 percent. Its profits and sales have declined as it faces headwinds including a sluggish Chinese market and softened demand for its core brands.
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