Zilingo Philippines lays off entire team (Updated)

Putra Muskita co-reported this story.

Zilingo, the troubled fashion ecommerce startup, has laid off its entire team in the Philippines, multiple sources tell Tech in Asia.

A source close to the situation says that the remaining team consists of 19 people, all of whom are affected. The person says that before its recent challenges, the company employed between 35 to 40 people in the country.

Tech in Asia has reached out to Zilingo for comment.

Photo credit: Zilingo

Shiela Mauricio, Zilingo’s country manager for the Philippines, wrote in an email to the team that “saying goodbye to your home for four years, Z family, partners, clients, sellers [is sad] but unfortunately this is the reality and it is painful.”

“No business is perfect, failure happens and whatever the reasons why this situation happened, [it] was another challenging experience and part of life. I believe if [one] door closes, others definitely will open,” she added in the note, which was reviewed by Tech in Asia.

The source close to the situation says that the company decided to shut down its Philippine office because it wasn’t generating the revenue needed to keep it afloat. While the office had steady revenue streams, it was “still very far” from profitability, says the source.

The Sequoia-backed firm had delayed the salaries of its Philippine staff for over two months. As previously reported, Zilingo Philippines planned to sell office assets and production equipment as an alternative means to pay salaries.

The source close to the situation, however, confirmed that all the salaries have been paid and the company has followed all processes of the labor code in the Philippines in terms of severance.

“There is no decision taken with regard to the other country offices at the moment,” the person says. “Our aim is to ensure smooth functioning of our business.” Zilingo has offices in Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, and India.

Last week, a senior executive at Zilingo Philippines told Tech in Asia that the team was waiting for a final decision on closure.

“Everyone in the team, in all countries, is just waiting for the final direction: Should we close or what?” said the executive, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

While Zilingo founders Dhruv Kapoor and Ankiti Bose proposed a management buyout, a board meeting to decide on that option or liquidation had been adjourned in June. Since then, it’s unclear whether there have been any resolutions on that front.