Amazon or Nike might want to take Peloton for a spin, as the fit-tech company changes CEO and cuts jobs
![Watching Peloton on Netflix, or Netflix on Peloton? [pixdeluxe/E+ via Getty Images]](https://cdn.robinhood.com/static_content/mwphzyq69oso/en-US/assets/files/3ns0bgvrMXZQDXVmTKuuPl_1_GettyImages-1034325764.jpg)
Just keep spinning... The Peloton saga is building more drama than Nemo's shark encounter. The latest: Peloton cofounder John Foley is stepping down as CEO as the former pandemic darling struggles with sagging demand for its connected fitness equipment. Peloton will also cut 2.8K jobs — a fifth of its corporate roles — to narrow losses. The severance package for those employees includes… a one-year Peloton membership (facepalm).
- New guy: Subscription star Barry McCarthy, former CFO of Netflix and Spotify, is taking over as chief exec. Foley's becoming exec chairman.
- New plan: Slash $800M in yearly costs. Last month, Peloton was reported to be pausing bike and treadmill production. It’s now winding down plans for its new Ohio factory.
- Key quote from its new CEO: "Where the company got over its skis is it built out a cost structure as if Covid was the new normal.” Read: way overestimated demand.
Peloton Prime... a perk that could warrant Amazon's coming price hike. Rumors are swirling that Amazon and Nike are interested in buying Peloton, whose shares have plunged 80% from their 2020 peak. One analyst said Apple is “aggressively involved” too. Peloton shares have soared 56% this week on reports of big suitors. Last month, activist investor Blackwells Capital dropped a 65-page deck calling for Peloton to fire Foley and sell itself. According to Blackwells:
A spin-quisition may be premature… While a Netflix-Peloton integration is fun to imagine, a few factors indicate Peloton might not sell itself yet. The shiny new CEO and the cost-slashing plan suggest Peloton wants to revive itself solo. No sales talks with suitors have been reported, and Foley and other PTON insiders would likely need to approve any deal (because: voting power). Meanwhile, regulatory scrutiny of Big Tech deals is mounting. Amazon’s MGM deal, announced in May, still hasn’t been OK’d.