OnePlus smartphones appear to be not doing too well in European markets, as Engadget reports the company has announced "significant redundancies" across many regional offices, including the UK, France and Germany.
According to "sources close to the matter," OnePlus has downsized regional offices by as much as 80%, leaving skeletal teams of "around three people" in some countries. The company has already done something similar in other European offices earlier last year, with the downsizing (and eventual complete laying off) of teams in Spain and Italy, followed by "large turnover" of UK staff.
In turn OnePlus confirms it is streamlining operations in Europe through an official forum post by European Head of strategy Tuomas Lampen. The post states the company is making "organisational changes" in Germany France and the UK, leading to the firing of 20 employees in the three markets. However the company also plans to relocate staff in other European offices, and is also looking to hire more employees in the Nordic region and Benelux.
According to analyst CCS Insight, OnePlus' European are the result of a failure to expand beyond a "finite" number of fans. It also pivoted from midrange devices to premium flagship, a move found alienating by some of the core fan base. CCS Insight describes the OnePlus 7 line-up as a "peak OnePlus" moment, with the OnePlus 7 Pro 5G being a "firework product" that failed to sell, especially when compared to 5G devices from more established vendors like Samsung.
Go OnePlus Update on Strategic Changes in Europe
Go OnePlus Downsizes European Teams to Focus on Key Markets (Engadget)