Economy After Magic: The Gathering posts record profits in 2023 - Hasbro lays off 1,100 MTG employees two weeks before Xmas

[blackheart]

Hasbro laying off Wizards of the Coast staff is baffling — and could lead to a brain drain

Wizards of the Coast was founded in Renton, Wash., in 1990. (GeekWire File Photo / Kurt Schlosser) A new round of layoffs at Hasbro has impacted its

www.geekwire.com

A new round of layoffs at Hasbro has impacted its subsidiary Wizards of the Coast, despite Wizards’ strong recent performance and its status as a linchpin for Hasbro’s overall revenue stream. The result could spell trouble for both companies as they head into 2024.

Hasbro announced Monday that it would eliminate an additional 1,100 workers throughout its global operations, as part of what CEO Chris Cocks called a “strategic transformation.” This was on top of previously announced cuts in January.

It was initially unclear as to whether those layoffs would hit Renton, Wash.-based Wizards of the Coast, which seemed like it might’ve been protected given its value to Hasbro’s portfolio.

Cliffs:
-Hasbro's revenue and stock price haven't been doing so well as of late
-Hasbro laid off 1,100 Wizards of the Coast employees just 2 weeks before Christmas. After already laying off 800 earlier in the year
-Hasbro's gaming segment has been its only consistently profitable segment, growing revenue by 40% in Q3 alone
-Hasbro posted a gross profit of 3.9 billion in 2022
-In 2022 MTG recorded revenue exceeding 1 billion dollars for the first time ever

This type of shit never ceases to amaze me. How corporate executives can sleep at night after treating the people that make them millions of dollars and provide them with a luxurious life, with such disdain and contempt, is mind-blowing.

It's just so unbelievably short sighted. Even from a self interested perspective. What kind of business and work environment does this create in a company? When success is punished how is anyone going to strive to make your business successful?

 

[fungi]

Corporate executives have black hearts
So they sleep well.

 

[Fox by the Sea]

- CEO name - Chris Cocks

solid stuff from this company

 

[Rational Poster]

 

[Blayt7hh]

I’m kind of surprised wizards of the cost had 1900 employees to lay off. So does like basically no one work there now?

Does also seem like a bad idea to mak such massive cuts in a profitable department

 

[blackheart]

I’m kind of surprised wizards of the cost had 1900 employees to lay off. So does like basically no one work there now?

Does also seem like a bad idea to mak such massive cuts in a profitable department

Yeah I was surprised too. But I guess it makes sense with it being a billion dollar enterprise now, and also with how significantly they've expanded their product line in recent years.

 

[DarthChen731]

I'm not surprised motherfuckers

 

[USA!USA!]

I don't understand their business so I can't comment on the numbers, but laying people off right before xmas is about as shitty as you can treat people.

 

[blackheart]

I don't understand their business so I can't comment on the numbers, but laying people off right before xmas is about as shitty as you can treat people.

It feels like an intentional move meant to increase stock price - "hey look, we're fucking cold and ruthless over here. profits ahead! buy more shares?"

Obviously it would mean nothing to the company's revenues/profits to pay people another 2-4 weeks before letting them go. The timing has to be intentional.

 

[William Munny]

that sucks for them. hope they find a new job quick

 

[ColemanwastheGOAT]

The hobby sector had a huge boom due to covid, but it is coming to an end. Hasbro just got out in front of it. Lots of people in that field will be getting laid off in 2024.

 

[ColemanwastheGOAT]

It feels like an intentional move meant to increase stock price - "hey look, we're fucking cold and ruthless over here. profits ahead! buy more shares?"

Obviously it would mean nothing to the company's revenues/profits to pay people another 2-4 weeks before letting them go. The timing has to be intentional.

There was a massive revolt both among the fans and the industry over the roll out of the new DnD. I'm sure part of this is just Hasbro getting rid of the people they feel were on the wrong side of that.

I work in a related field and the DnD fans and people who work jobs related to DnD are some of the most toxic, entitled, clueless douchebags you'll ever meet. There's a huge crossover of communists and lgbt weirdos in that field and I wouldn't want to employ any of them either after how they acted this past year.

 

[ferrisjso]

This is the only TCG I have never been able to get into. I've tried several times its just mindnumbingly boring.

 

[blackheart]

There was a massive revolt both among the fans and the industry over the roll out of the new DnD. I'm sure part of this is just Hasbro getting rid of the people they feel were on the wrong side of that.

I work in a related field and the DnD fans and people who work jobs related to DnD are some of the most toxic, entitled, clueless douchebags you'll ever meet. There's a huge crossover of communists and lgbt weirdos in that field and I wouldn't want to employ any of them either after how they acted this past year.

Are you referring to the open game license fiasco?

The people that were on the wrong side of that issue, were the people that were pushing for the open game license policy to be changed, as WotC reversed their decision in the end. Communists and LGBT people would generally be the ones pushing back against the removal of the open game license - not the one's advocating for corporate profits with the policy change.

 

[blackheart]

This is the only TCG I have never been able to get into. I've tried several times its just mindnumbingly boring.

Really? Which ones have you been able to get into that you found more entertaining? I enjoy the more adult themes and art of MTG and I've never had an issue with its gameplay. I really don't have much experience with TCGs outside of MTG and Yu Gi Oh as a kid so I'd be curious to hear which ones you find more fun so I can check them out.

 

[Scerpi]

Hasbro laying off Wizards of the Coast staff is baffling — and could lead to a brain drain

Wizards of the Coast was founded in Renton, Wash., in 1990. (GeekWire File Photo / Kurt Schlosser) A new round of layoffs at Hasbro has impacted its

www.geekwire.com

Cliffs:
-Hasbro's revenue and stock price haven't been doing so well as of late
-Hasbro laid off 1,100 Wizards of the Coast employees just 2 weeks before Christmas. After already laying off 800 earlier in the year
-Hasbro's gaming segment has been its only consistently profitable segment, growing revenue by 40% in Q3 alone
-Hasbro posted a gross profit of 3.9 billion in 2022
-In 2022 MTG recorded revenue exceeding 1 billion dollars for the first time ever

This type of shit never ceases to amaze me. How corporate executives can sleep at night after treating the people that make them millions of dollars and provide them with a luxurious life, with such disdain and contempt, is mind-blowing.

It's just so unbelievably short sighted. Even from a self interested perspective. What kind of business and work environment does this create in a company? When success is punished how is anyone going to strive to make your business successful?

Are the layoffs across the entire company? Or just the Gaming Software division? There's 6,000 employees at Hasbro?

Sounds like Toy Sales are dragging the company down. Despite the success of BG3.

You made it sound like all the job cuts are from Wizards?

 

[ferrisjso]

Really? Which ones have you been able to get into that you found more entertaining? I enjoy the more adult themes and art of MTG and I've never had an issue with its gameplay. I really don't have much experience with TCGs outside of MTG and Yu Gi Oh as a kid so I'd be curious to hear which ones you find more fun so I can check them out.

I found Yugioh fascinating but the game operates like a mutating disease that gradually gets more and more complicated to the point you needed to dedicate your entire life to it to keep track of everything. And at some point most rational people realized they don't want that and quit. This is why people who play that game are so nerdy those are the only kind of people who are currently able to play. They need to stop making new cards to save their game but new cards are how you make money.

The Yugioh cards themselves are awesome. The diverse themes and themes of Yugioh are awesome theres probably something for everyone. Thats what drags people in.

I played Pokemon when I was like 5-6 but they have the opposite problem Yugioh has where every single year the old cards become useless and they start only selling new ones.

I remember I liked the prequel Star Wars cards but these were sadly discontinued before Episode III. I actually got into them after they were discontinued but mechanically I really liked that game.

 

[CantCucktheTuck]

Get Woke Get Fired Anyway

 

[Michaelangelo]

Damn, too bad this is the closest to the word laid these nerds will get

 

[ObsoleteSoul]

Burning my old Magic cards in solidarity!