Another Joe Takes Reins at Allbirds; Latest on TikTok
Photo by Bloomberg via Getty ImagesWe’re in one of those news cycles where everything makes way for one dominant story, which right now is TikTok. Don’t worry—if you’re not fascinated by the to-ban-or-not-to-ban debate, it will eventually fade from the headlines. But not just yet: Instead, over the next few days, TikTok will become an even bigger story, as the House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on the ban-or-sell bill on Wednesday. Read down for our summary of today’s TikTok developments.
Otherwise, let’s catch up with the latest episode of the Allbirds soap opera, the story of how a comfortable-shoe startup became a Silicon Valley–beloved consumer brand before falling from grace after its IPO. When we last checked in last spring, as the company was grappling with sales declines, one of Allbirds’ co-founders and co-CEOs, Tim Brown, had stepped down. In this week’s episode, the company’s other co-founder and co-CEO, Joey Zwillinger, is exiting after just 10 months as the sole occupant of the top job. Things didn’t improve under his watch. Allbirds’ revenue fell 14.5% in the most recent quarter and about the same for the entire year, the company said today. And this year, Allbirds projects, revenue will fall as much as 25%.
Another Joe is replacing Zwillinger, effective on Friday (though given how bad things are, perhaps he shouldn’t be waiting around for a couple more days to take over). Joe Vernachio, who had been chief operating officer since mid-2021, will both “oversee all operations and continue advancing Allbirds’ strategic transformation plan,” whatever that means. Shareholders, among others, will be praying for a miracle. Allbirds’ stock fell to around 76 cents in after-hours trading, giving the company a market capitalization of just $116 million. Yet it went public at $15 a share in November 2021, and in the days after the IPO—a period that was the top of the market before interest rates began rising—the stock got as high as $26! If you invested around that time, owning Allbirds is a lot worse these days than having a stone in your shoe.
TikTok Update
As promised, here’s a rundown of today’s TikTok news developments. Here at The Information, we reported that ByteDance shareholders are mostly keeping their distance from the pro-TikTok lobbying. Investors don’t see much upside in sticking their necks out on what’s a polarizing issue.
Otherwise, Bloomberg reported that TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew was in Washington lobbying against the bill; Bloomberg also reported that what we suggested yesterday was likely: that TikTok plans to launch a full-throated legal fight if the bill becomes law. Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal delved more into the issue we’ve all reported—how the bill caught ByteDance and TikTok off guard.
In Other News
- Stockholm-based private equity firm EQT is considering raising a new buyout fund focused on Asia and could begin seeking commitments from investors later this year, Bloomberg reported.
- Amazon has outlined several changes to how it operates in Europe to comply with EU rules that went into effect this month, joining other big tech firms including Apple and Google that the Digital Markets Act covers (more here).
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More detailsMartin Peers is a columnist and co-executive editor of The Information, where he has worked since 2014. He was managing editor from 2015 through 2021. He previously worked for The Wall Street Journal and Daily Variety, among other publications. He is based in New York and is on Twitter @mvpeers.