Spin

In October 2022, micromobility company Spin, owned by Tier Mobility and employing over 700 people, laid off approximately 78 employees, representing about 10% of its workforce. The layoffs, which included several executives and primarily affected white-collar staff at its San Francisco headquarters, were driven by lower-than-expected U.S. demand post-pandemic, economic challenges like inflation, and a tightening venture capital funding environment. CEO Philip Reinckens cited a "perfect storm" of industry issues, including supply chain constraints and the war in Ukraine, forcing the company to prioritize cash preservation and profitability. Concurrently, Spin exited its remaining Canadian market in Kelowna and Seattle, where it had operated scootershare programs.

Spin, the e-scooter-sharing startup owned by Ford, is laying off a quarter of its workforce as part of a major restructuring to pursue profitability. The company is exiting nearly all open permit markets globally, where multiple operators compete without fleet caps, citing an unsustainable "race to the bottom" on pricing and an inability to maintain service quality. This shift will involve winding down operations in several U.S. markets and entirely in Germany, Portugal, and Spain by around February 22nd. Moving forward, Spin will concentrate on limited vendor markets in the U.S., Canada, and the UK, where cities select partners through procurement processes—a model that reportedly doubles its revenue. The layoffs, while unspecified in exact numbers, reflect the company's strategic pivot away from highly competitive open markets.