Bumble Struggles To Survive — CEO Says It's Time To Reconsider Its Women-First Message

Bumble Inc. BMBL, a women-centric dating app, is grappling with financial turbulence, marked by recent layoffs and a plummeting stock price.

Standing apart from dating apps such as Tinder, Bumble’s model revolved around allowing women ​​to make the first move. After women receive a match, it's up to them to send the first message to the connection within 24 hours or the match disappears. 

Since its initial public offering (IPO) in 2021, where it debuted at $75 per share, Bumble’s stock has been on a downward trajectory, hitting its lowest point at $10.41 on March 14. 

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Despite revenue growing from $903.5 million in 2022 to $1.05 billion last year, the company continues to struggle with significant net losses, tallying $1.9 million in 2023. Revenue primarily flows in from subscriptions and in-app purchases.

The company recently announced it's laying off 370 employees, which accounts for about 30% of its workforce and signals the company’s struggle to realign its operations amid financial turbulence. 

This decision comes on the heels of the resignation of Bumble Founder Whitney Wolfe Herd from her role as CEO last year. She is succeeded by former Slack CEO Lidiane Jones.

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Jones wasted no time in advocating for a pivotal shift in Bumble’s core model, wanting to eliminate the requirement for women to send the first message. 

“It feels like a burden for a subset of our customers today,” Jones told Fortune. 

The company plans to experiment with various iterations of this change, aiming for a revamped app launch in the second quarter of 2024.

Amid these internal transformations, Bumble faces stiff competition from industry giants like Match Group Inc. MTCH, which oversees multiple dating apps, including Bumble rivals Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid and Plenty of Fish. Even Match Group has seen a dip in its stock price, which is down over 8% this year.

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