Cabela’s Inc. reduced its workforce by approximately 10% at its corporate headquarters in Sidney, NE. After completing a review of its organizational structure, the company decided to reduce staffing levels in selected areas. The company expects approximately two-thirds of the reduction to come from leaving open positions vacant and one-third of the reduction to come from job eliminations. CAB is offering severance payments and outplacement assistance to affected employees.
“This workforce reduction is an effort to reduce costs and improve efficiencies,” said Dennis Highby, Cabela’s president and CEO. “While this was a difficult and challenging decision, I believe it was necessary given the macroeconomic environment we are facing. We dont expect these changes to impact customer service.”
Joe Arterburn, a media spokesman for Cabelas, told SEW the cuts were in response to the recent economic downturn. “Basically, we had to make some necessary adjustments to assure that staffing is in line with our sales volume and business strategy,” Arterburn said.
Arterburn added that the company would not currently discuss which positions were eliminated or in which individual departments the cuts took place, saying only that the action was corporate-wide.
Arterburn called the cuts a “sensitive employee issue,” and declined to identify exactly how many employees were affected by the cuts, but a report by the Omaha World Herald indicates that Cabela’s employs around 1,500 people in its Sidney office. This would suggest the number of cuts made was roughly 150.
Recently, management for Cabelas noted that the company had seen an “uptick” in the amount of bad debts of credit card customers, and concern was expressed regarding increasing spreads on financing. Likewise, Cabelas reported in July that second quarter same-store sales dropped 1.7%.
The struggling economy has caused layoffs at other outdoor retailers, as well. In early August, Bass Pro Shops laid off thirty employees at its Springfield, MO headquarters. Like Cabelas, management at Bass Pro cited “pressures of the economy” as the primary factor.
Cabelas, which calls itself “the Worlds Foremost Outfitter of hunting, fishing and outdoor gear,” was founded by Dick Cabela in 1961 and currently carries approximately 225,000 SKUs.
