Dapper Labs CEO Roham Gharegozlou’s lavish spending and the propensity to intimidate staff reportedly resulted in substantial employee turnover and a decline in monthly sales.
Dapper Labs CEO’s lavish lifestyle linked to declining monthly sales
According to CryptoSlam, Dapper’s NBA Top Shot collection has experienced a drop in trade. Its monthly sales fell from a peak of $224 million in February 2021 to only $2.8 million last month.
While this happened, Gharegozlou leased mansions anytime he traveled. According to some interviewed staff members, the CEO once rented a $85 million property in Beverly Hills. Another interviewee claimed that Gharegozlou seemed more focused on generating buzz as the bear market started.
Gharegozlou flew on private aircraft and spent heavily in lavish hotels while running the firm that was once valued at $7.6 billion.
As such, he focused on celebrity endorsements rather than creating new products. While the celebrity collaborations made for interesting press releases, they did not produce real value for the business. These raised concerns about his priorities claimed the source.
Dapper’s layoffs and toxic work environment
Several former workers said that Gharegozlou found delegating or ceding control of even minor things challenging. They stated the CEO was eager to participate in every choice that might be made, even to the point of micromanaging.
According to the source, it was typical for newly hired senior personnel to stay only a few months in 2022. Another insider reported that Gharegozlou tended to humiliate workers on Slack. He would even yell at employees during video conversations. As a result, they claimed this contributed to a ” bullying ” culture that compounded employee anxiety.
CEO links layoffs to restructuring, not financial issues
Dapper Labs used the excuse that the business was expanding too quickly in November when it made its first significant layoffs. It further claimed that employee layoffs were required for Dapper to continue operating.
Yet as of late, the CEO has begun to associate restructuring with fresh job layoffs. The layoffs, according to him, are concentrated on personnel in units that might not be compatible with its forward-looking ambitions.
