While rumors swirl that Nike, Amazon and other companies are interested in buying Peloton, the company's new CEO Barry McCarthy said he doesn't see a sale for the company in the "foreseeable future." Instead, he told the Financial Times, it's focusing on expanding its content. The company is also preparing to launch a rower, the FT reported, along with a weight-lifting system.
Of course, Peloton's future may not be up to its new CEO. McCarthy, who took on the role last week after John Foley resigned to become executive chairman, acknowledged that a vote to sell lies in the hands of the shareholders through super-voting stock, but he is "confident a large percentage of the votes" will be in favor of his leadership of the company. Blackwells Capital, a major investor in the company, last month urged Foley to step down and pressed the company to explore a sale.
“There are lots of other things I could be doing with my time that are quite lucrative than hanging out with a business that’s about to be sold," he said.
McCarthy's confidence comes during a rough year for Peloton. The company halted production of its bikes in January as demand for its equipment died down, and the company's market value tumbled from $50 billion to less than $8 billion in a year. The company also reportedly cut 41% of its sales and marketing staff in a layoff strategy called "Project Fuel." And along with Foley's departure, Mariana Garavaglia, Peloton's COO, left the company to join aerospace startup Relativity Space as its chief business and people officer, the startup announced Monday.
Climate TRACE's data show emissions at the facility-level.Image: Climate TRACE