Funko’s CFO detailed the recent layoffs at Mondo, revealing that the business’ poster run will continue and expand the print run to a broader range.
Mondo tweeted a letter from Funko CEO Brian Mariotti explaining the plans for the company. Specifically, Mariotti wants to clear up some of the “misinformation” about Mondo’s firing and the future of the company. He started by revealing that Funko didn’t lay off most of Mondo’s employees, saying poster workers only accounted for about 10% of layoffs. He then addressed claims that the poster side of the business had been cut. “Mondo posters will continue, over time,” he said, “We feel that creating an extremely limited number of posters, most of which are 150 or less, will be limited.” unfairly restricting fan access. Many of these posters were purchased with the sole purpose of selling them at a much higher cost to the fans who really wanted them.”
Funko plans to expand Mondo’s product line
Mariotti revealed that Mondo will also expand its product line, both in terms of print volume and content range. “Our goal is to create larger sized versions (limited but not extremely limited) to allow more fans to participate in this world-class artistic expression, ” he said, noting that content will now include TV, anime, sports and music. In addition, Funko wants to develop Mondo vinyl works, planning to build a 70,000 square foot factory to produce them, in addition to holding live music events and selling records in San Diego. On top of that, 4,000 square feet of that space will be dedicated to the Mondo art exhibition.
As part of this expansion, Mariotti announced that the company is in the process of acquiring licenses for major pop culture IPs to expand Mondo’s collection division. According to Mariotti, some of these licenses have been the only ones that have been financially viable since Funko bought Mondo in 2022. Funko executives ended the letter by promising fans that the company The company will continue to support Mondo and its products.
Funko destroys 30 million dollars of products
In early March 2023, the company announced plans to destroy $30 million in unsold Funko products due to high inventories and plummeting profits. Mariotti announced the decision, revealing that it stemmed from the company’s poor 2022 operating results that cost the company $50 million, a 180% drop from its $17.4 million profit. last year. At that time, Mariotti revealed plans to cut 10% of the workforce to cut costs.
Funko blamed much of the problem on its new warehouse in Buckeye, AZ. Reportedly, an overload of Funko products at the Arizona distribution center has resulted in excessive storage costs. Those expenses spiked in Q4, leading to the company’s current predicament.
Source: Twitter