Sharpie, Yankee Candle parent Newell Brands is cutting jobs and closing stores
Newell Brands—the company behind Sharpie markers and Yankee Candle—just announced it's laying off 900 employees (about 3.8% of its workforce) and shutting down around 20 Yankee Candle stores in the US and Canada by January 2026.
About 10% of Newell's global professional and clerical employees will be affected by the job cuts.
Why the changes? It's all about saving money
The store closures are expected to affect only about 1% of Yankee Candle's sales, but Newell hopes this restructuring will help them save $110-130 million every year, even though it'll cost up to $90 million upfront.
The company is also bracing for a bigger-than-expected sales dip this quarter—mainly because growth slowed in Latin America.
Even after a tough year on the stock market, Newell's shares actually jumped 3% after sharing its new plan, showing investors have some hope for their turnaround efforts.