Denver-based luxury vacation travel company Inspirato said Tuesday it has cut 15% of its workforce and will receive a $10 million capital infusion from a Bay Area private equity firm in its bid to engineer a turnaround.
One Planet Group LLC, founded by tech entrepreneur and investor Payam Zamani, agreed to invest $10 million in return for 2.9 million shares of common stock and a similar number of warrants.
Zamani will take over as CEO from Eric Grosse and replace Brad Handler as chairman, a role Handler has held since he founded the company with his brother Brent in 2010. Zamani will appoint three new directors to the seven-member board.
To cut $25 million a year in costs, the company said it would eliminate 15% of its workforce immediately and rework or terminate its unproductive vacation property leases.
The company, headquartered at 1544 Wazee St., has about 630 employees, which equates to about 95 employees being let go.
“While the decision to reduce our workforce was not easy, I’m grateful for the hard work and dedication of the entire team and am confident that under Payam Zamani’s leadership, Inspirato will continue to provide a world-class travel experience to its members for years to come,” David Kallery, president of Inspirato, said in a news release.
Inspirato offers members access to luxury vacation homes, stays at luxury hotels and resorts and custom-designed itineraries, like safaris.
After years of rapid growth, the company has struggled to maintain its membership base and the current round of layoffs is the company’s third in two years. Brent Handler stepped down as CEO last September.
On Tuesday, the company reported second quarter revenues of $67.4 million, down 20% from the same quarter a year earlier. Inspirato had a net loss of $15.4 million, compared to a net loss of $46.7 million a year ago. That 2023 number included a special non-cash charge of $30.1 million.
Inspirato went public three years ago and until late last year its shares were trading above $17. But this year shares have traded mostly under $4, aside from a brief spike in late July. Shares of the company closed at $3.59 on Tuesday after gaining 4.7% on the day.
The company’s share price has dropped so low that it faced a delisting from the Nasdaq stock exchange, but earlier this month Inspirato said it received a reprieve until Nov. 22 to comply with listing requirements.
