Cometeer: Layoffs Hits Across Departments at Flash-Frozen Coffee Brand

Cometeer, the Massachusetts-based maker of flash-frozen coffee pods, laid off a number of employees across departments last week in a move sources described as an attempt to cut costs.

The innovation-focused startup, founded in 2015 by CEO Matt Roberts and CTO Douglas Hoon, had grown to over 100 employees this year, following a $35 million funding round in 2021 that brought its total financing to around $100 million.

Several sources, speaking to NOSH anonymously due to contract agreements with the company, said that the most recent rounds of layoffs have been conducted on a rolling basis and that this was the third round this year, as a number of employees were previously let go this summer. In these two recent rounds, at least 10 people across the sales, marketing, operations and coffee quality departments have been impacted.

The layoffs mainly affected mid-level employees and were not based on performance or tenure, the sources said, but rather were “a bottom line decision” and where possible, though not always, the company seemed to prioritize cutting roles that it felt didn’t directly drive revenue. However, based on social media posts, a number of key team members in roles including supply chain, education and product quality appear to have been cut.

Sources said the decision seemed to be a turnaround by leadership from a rapid spending approach last year, during which a significant portion of the team was hired, and characterized the layoffs as a course correction stemming from a need to quickly cut costs.

Cometeer has aimed to straddle the line between operating as a traditional CPG business and an innovative food tech company, self-producing a line of precision-brewed and flash-frozen coffee pucks at its Gloucester, Mass. headquarters. The brand utilizes a proprietary brewing and freezing process that ultimately yields a product with the convenience of an instant coffee but the taste of a small-batch roasted, freshly brewed beverage. In recent months, the brand has significantly increased its media presence, including being named one of the Best Inventions of 2022 by TIME.

The layoffs arrive as Cometeer has sought to expand the business beyond its initial D2C-exclusive sales model and into retail accounts. In August, the brand made its first steps into brick-and-mortar with a launch in Erewhon stores in Southern California, introducing three exclusive four-pack varieties. In October, the brand launched into Sprouts stores with branded freezers in the coffee aisle.

Who was affected?

Many of those impacted by the layoffs shared the news on social media through LinkedIn and Twitter posts.

Head of Coffee Education Carly Green announced she was laid off on LinkedIn, adding that she will transition to consulting work in the coffee industry in the new year. Green joined Cometeer in summer 2021 and before that spent over five years as a coffee sourcing specialist and lab manager at Blue Bottle Coffee.

Rachel Apple, global supply chain manager – coffee, was also let go. In a LinkedIn post she called the coffee industry “a place for passionate/eclectic/beautiful people to come together,” but also noted the personal uncertainty that lies ahead.

Other Cometeer employees also announced their exit from the company last week on LinkedIn, but did not specify if they were laid off. Head of Quality Harsha Lakshmanan posted Friday that his time with the company had come to an end while Senior Manager of Growth Ben Steinberg said he was “rolling off the team” and is available for consulting work, noting he has “some sharp coworkers in the same boat.”

Last month, head of product design James Hobbs also left the company, accepting a new role as VP of Design at Course Studio.

Beyond the layoffs, CFO Alex Nomitch and Chief Brand Officer Zach Rueda both left Cometeer in April.

In November, Cometeer hired John Wahl as its new VP of sales. Wahl comes to the company from juice brand Pressed where he had held the same position since 2017.

The company told NOSH a statement is forthcoming. This article will be updated with comment from the company.