Bumble’s Brutal 30% Job Cuts Signal Dating App Industry’s Growing Pains

Since love isn’t enough to pay the bills in this economy, sometimes you have to break hearts — including those of your own employees. BumbleBMBL

announced it’s slashing 30% of its global workforce, sending shares soaring 25% as investors celebrated the cost-cutting measures. This downsizing comes just months after founder Whitney Wolfe Herd returned as CEO to rescue the struggling platform from its romantic recession.

• The dating app expects to pocket ~$40M in annual savings from these cuts, with plans to reinvest most of those funds into “product and technology development.”
• Despite the restructuring, Bumble raised its Q2 revenue guidance to $249M while also raising its adjusted EBITDA outlook to $88M-$93M.

Ghosted by love: This workforce reduction indicates the dating app industry’s struggle to adapt as younger generations shift their relationship habits. Both Bumble and rival Match GroupMTCH

— which operates Tinder and Hinge — have overhauled their executive teams this year while searching for revenue growth strategies. Match recently eliminated 13% of its staff to streamline operations and reduce expenses. Still, despite Bumble’s market cap having plunged from $7.7B at its 2021 debut to $673M as of Wednesday’s close, investors seem convinced this painful pruning will help Bumble bloom again.