OLX India (1), the online classified platform, has laid off nearly 250 people from its sales and support teams. While commenting on the movement, the company stated it is focusing on its omni channel platform Cash My Car and Assaanjobs, its recruitment marketplace.
The spokesperson of the OLX India stated that the company has ensured that the impacted team gets essential exit compensation and outplacement support.
Furthermore, the spokesperson added that the company is continually evolving to meet the market’s expectations and needs, and customers. Hence, the management is shifting their strategies and focusing on vital segments to offer more conveniences and services. The movement fell on the OLX sales team, which the company had doubled in the previous year to enhance its experience.
OLX Working On Different Strategies to Compete with Dominant Players
In November 2018, OLX had collaborated with FGC, Frontier Car Group, based in Germany, to launch its offline stores for used cars, Cash My Car. The company has planned to increase its footprint across 40 cities of India by the end of 2021. Recently, it also acquired Aasaanjobs, a Mumbai-based online recruitment marketplace for an undisclosed amount.
Lately, OLX has also been in a tough battle with the marketplace of Facebook across multiple geographics. Moreover, in Europe and Russia, it is currently leading with Avito.
Last year, Quikr, the OLX competitor, had fired approximately 2,000 people from its multiple verticles. It includes cars and bikes, Quikr Reality, jobs, and Quikr homes from all across India. The company has around 3,500 employees in the segments. Moreover, it had also acquired LaundryAnna, a Bengaluru-based online laundry services startup in 2019.
The revenue of OLX rose to 24.45 million USD in 2018 after a decade of presence in India. However, it exited multiple geographies by selling or merging the local business units with big players. In April 2019, it joined its Middle East business with EMPG, Emerging Markets Property Group. Simultaneously, it joined its US business with OfferUP.
