'We grew our headcount too quickly': Michele Romanow's Clearco lays off 25 per cent of staff

Michele Romanow's startup Clearco is laying off 25 per cent of its workforce and says it is considering "strategic options" for its international operations.

A memo sent to staff at the e-commerce investing platform on Friday says the company increased its headcount too quickly in anticipation of continued economic growth.

The TV star of "Dragon's Den" and chairman Andrew D'Souza say they were building to match the growth of the economy and are now facing "significant headwinds" that didn't exist six months ago.

Clearco says 125 people of their 500-person team were affected by the cuts.

The memo says affected staff will receive severance pay, a two-year window to exercise equity, extended health coverage and assistance with job transition from the company's leadership team.

The reasoning behind the cuts at Clearco mirror recent layoffs announced at Shopify Inc. and speaks to a broader trend happening in the tech sector worldwide as exuberance around stocks has faded, inflation has soared and recession rumours have loomed.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 29, 2022.