It was a tough day at Hurley today.
Sources tell us an estimated 60 employees were called into a meeting and told their positions were being eliminated.
New owners Bluestar Alliance are switching Hurley to a licensing model and have already signed a variety of new licenses for the Hurley brand.
Most of the marketing department, including the in-house creative and digital teams, were let go, as were most of the product team members who have not already been hired by a new licensee.
Employees were able to pack up their desks, and there was reportedly lots of weeping and hugging.
We are told a few finance, sales and marketing people remain. Product team members who have been hired by various licensees also remain on campus.
A caretaker GM put in place by the owners delivered the news to employees, we are told. The previous two-person Hurley human resources team had previously resigned so were not on hand.
Sources describe an almost surreal situation with the new owners, who come from the New York garment industry, and their lack of experience with the surf industry. Communication with the staff has been minimal, and people say they are in a state of limbo about the go-forward plan.
One bright spot is it appears those who are losing jobs will receive some sort of severance payments, sources told us.
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