OnePlus Lays Off Workers In Europe, Calls It Part Of Strategic Restructuring

OnePlus has laid off several employees in regional offices in Europe. As per Engadget, the company has let go 80 percent of its employees in the UK, France, and Germany offices, leaving just a fraction of workers to manage the on-ground activities. OnePlus is calling the move a "normal restructuring" in order to focus on key markets.

Interestingly, Europe is a key market for OnePlus and such drastic layoffs signify something bigger than just normal restructuring. The same report also mentions a OnePlus spokesperson saying that the company is, in fact, hiring in the region and doing some strategic restructuring.

We did some digging and found a thread on OnePlus forums which seems to be a post from OnePlus to its employees. The post says, "As OnePlus enters its next phase of strategic growth, we have been evaluating our opportunities for long-term development and sustainability. We have decided to make some changes to the current organizational structure within Europe to better streamline our operations while continuing to meet the needs of our growing community. These changes only apply to Europe, which remains a key region for OnePlus where we are committed to bringing the best products and services to users as we have done since day one.

As part of our strategy, we are looking to capitalise on opportunities in the Nordic region and Benelux by hiring for new positions, relocating some existing European staff and further enhancing our capabilities in these strategic markets. At the same time, we are making organizational changes in some existing markets, specifically Germany, France and the UK."

Contrary to the reports of 80 percent layoffs, the same post mentions about 20 total employees affected by the restructuring in the three markets. OnePlus has mentioned that the company is doing everything it can to support such employees in the three markets. OnePlus is offering redundancy packages per local regulations to ensure a smooth transition through this process.

Notably, the restructuring has come in difficult times when the entire world is dealing with a similar crisis due to the COVID-19 outbreak. While OnePlus hasn't blamed it on the pandemic, the reports of the company struggling to meet targets in the European market are already making news.

According to Ben Wood, Chief Analyst at CCS Insight, "OnePlus has fallen into the trap of over-promising and under-delivering, which ironically is the complete opposite of how it behaved in the early days." If you recall, OnePlus started as a brand to offer value flagship smartphones to users who cannot afford premium handsets from Apple and Samsung. However, in this journey of providing premium smartphone experience to users, OnePlus has itself become one.

The OnePlus 8 starts at Rs. 41,999 in India, while the OnePlus 8 Pro comes at a starting price of Rs. 54,999. If you recall, the OnePlus One was unveiled in India in 2014 at a price of Rs. 21,999. There's no doubt that OnePlus smartphones have evolved to be one of the best Android devices in the market, however, the 20K price difference in the base pricing of the generational product is something even the loyal fans cannot ignore.

If OnePlus kept the same trend in motion, the OnePlus 9 Pro or the possibly the 10th generation OnePlus flagship might cost as much as the premium Apple flagship handset in the market. What would you prefer at the same asking price, an ultra-premium OnePlus handset or a smartphone from Apple and Samsung? Let us know in comments.

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