What Glossier got wrong –
Summary
Although the company focused on technology when it was really a beauty business, it is not hard to see these layoffs in the light of the public market tech meltdown. Pursuing those higher multiples means going to great lengths to show, both operationally and financially, that you “look” like a tech company. For a firm like Glossier, looking like a tech company is the difference between having a price-to-sales ratio of 5.44, like Estée Lauder, or 31.6, like MongoDB. Companies therefore often make product decisions to achieve a tech business profile — like investing in engineering or eschewing margin-hitting operations. Hunter Walk, for example, pointed out that pursuing software margins may be one reason social media companies avoid the cost center of human moderation.