Twiga Foods, the Kenyan e-commerce startup embroiled in legal battles with a cloud provider in early 2024, will lay off 59 employees as it restructures its business. This is the second round of job cuts at Twiga, which laid off 283 people in August 2023.
“These changes are crucial as Twiga accelerates towards profitability and continues its mission of revolutionising food distribution in Africa through innovative digital solutions,” the company said in a statement confirming the layoffs.
Twiga Foods will also open 25 new roles in the growth and innovation departments.
In a dramatic year for Twiga, cloud provider Incentro dragged it to court in 2024 for failing to pay a $261,000 cloud bill. It provided a glimpse into the startup’s struggles to pay vendors and staff, exposing cash flow issues. In March, founder and CEO Peter Njonjo left the business after it secured new funding, prompting speculation that he may have been pushed out.
Njonjo was replaced by Charles Ballard, an ex-Jumia executive, in May 2024.
“These adjustments will allow us to improve our service offering and lay a stronger foundation for sustainable growth in the years to come,” said Ballard.
In November 2023, Twiga raised $35 million in convertible bonds from new and existing investors like Creadev and Juven. Njonjo invested $1 million of his personal funds in that round.
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