CARS24 to Slash 120 More Jobs Amid Major Restructuring Drive

According to media reports, used vehicle marketplace CARS24 is currently laying off an additional 120 workers from its non-core verticals as part of a reorganisation exercise, more than a month after it let off 200 workers.

The non-core verticals of the Delhi NCR-based startup are being shut down or scaled down. According to the reports, it is doing this by closing its business-to-business automotive replacement parts platform, "Inspare", which will cause 80 workers to lose their employment.

The firm has requested staff members from Inspare's operations, sales, procurement, catalogue, and other teams to find new employment opportunities after informing them of its decision to shut down operations.

Vikram Chopra Announcing the Shut-Down of Inspare on LikedIn

According to a LinkedIn post by CARS24 founder Vikram Chopra, Inspare, which was in the "pilot" stage, has been shut down. He did not, however, reveal how many workers were affected by this choice. According to Chopra's tweet, the business believed the market was prepared for change. And the more it promoted adoption, the more obvious it was that it wasn't.

A severance payout is being offered to the affected employees in accordance with their notice period. According to a media source, 40 workers at the startup's "FourDoor" auto repair and maintenance platform have also been let go.

Questions concerning the layoffs at FourDoor were also not answered by CARS24. According to one of the sources, the reorganisation effort entails laying off more than 120 workers from CARS24's non-core business sectors.

Notably, Chopra stated earlier this month in another LinkedIn post that customers would not be able to access two of CARS24's platforms: FourDoor and the on-demand driver hiring tool AutoPilot. Chopra said these services are still crucial to the brand's main transaction engine when it made the announcement.

However, the business is reducing its customer-facing operations and strengthening its support for the remaining business units. He went on to say that CARS24 was in discussions with the workers in these verticals about giving them other positions based on their "skills and ambitions".

Due to their difficulties turning a profit, the startup is shutting down activities in these verticals. According to one of the individuals, companies that are not making money are being shut down.

Financial Outlook of CARS24

Chopra, Ruchit Agarwal, Gajendra Jangid, and Mehul Agrawal founded CARS24, an online marketplace for used car sales and purchases, in 2015. The IPO-bound business also entered the new car industry earlier this year.

200 workers were let go by the startup last month as part of a reorganisation that started as soon as it bought the domestic auto forum Team-BHP. The Singaporean parent company of the Delhi NCR-based startup invested INR 250 Cr in CARS24 last year.

Since its founding, the company has raised over $1.3 billion from investors like SoftBank, Alpha Wave Global, and Commercial Bank of Dubai, among others. In its most recent funding round, CARS24 was valued at $3.2 billion.