Virtual brand company Nextbite laid off employees for a second time this year as part of a restructuring.
The company, which provides delivery-only concepts and supporting technology for restaurants, did not say how many people lost their jobs or what parts of the organization were affected.
“As a fast growth startup, we must adapt to the changing restaurant market and are restructuring our organization to strategically focus on current opportunities, both in technology and virtual restaurants,” CEO and founder Alex Canter said in a statement.
The news was first reported by Business Insider.
It comes four months after Denver-based Nextbite cut “less than 10%” of its workforce in response to what Canter called “rapidly evolving industry changes.” It’s part of a wave of layoffs at tech companies of all kinds this year.
Nextbite offers 18 delivery-only concepts that restaurants can license and serve from their existing kitchens. It has been growing quickly behind a $120 million investment in 2020 led by big tech investor SoftBank. It hired more than 300 employees last year and has been fleshing out its leadership ranks even as it downsizes. Just last week, it appointed former Red Robin CEO Denny Marie Post as co-president, marking the start of what it said is a new growth phase.
Nextbite has also expanded its clientele beyond small restaurant operations to include large chains. It recently developed two virtual brands for IHOP, Thrilled Cheese and Super Mega Dilla, a strategy that it will continue to pursue.
“We have sharpened our focus to make it easy for multi-unit restaurants to be successful with virtual brand offerings, and [Post] is the ideal executive to lead us in this next phase of growth,” Canter said in a statement last week.
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