A better way to CEO: Blue Apron founder Matt Salzberg steps aside
Meal-kit company Blue Apron has a new CEO: Brad Dickerson. Founder and former chief Matt Salzberg will become executive chairman of the company’s board. Dickerson has previously served as COO and CFO of Under Armour.
The change in leadership comes as the company continues to struggle on multiple fronts. After a disappointing IPO earlier this year, Blue Apron’s stock has dropped from $10 per share to under $3 per share. (In after-hours trading today, the company’s stock was up 2.5%.) Blue Apron’s public offering was marred by Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods. At that point, Amazon already offered meal kits on its site. But in July, the Everything Store filed for a U.S. trademark on a service that pre-preps meals for customers, further stoking fears for shareholders.
In addition to its inevitable competition against Amazon, Blue Apron also battles high costs. When it filed its intent to go public in March, the company reported astronomical spending on acquiring customers—$94 per person. It’s prospectus alone caused Fast Company to ask whether this company would even be around in five years. Not long after its debut as a public company, Blue Apron was hit with a lawsuit, accusing it of misleading prospective shareholders. And in the last quarter, the company revealed more problems: An expansion into a new warehouse was costing more than expected.
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