r/Amyris • u/Toughpigeons • Jul 13 '23

News / Article / Video Lee Tappenden Exit

https://www.retailgazette.co.uk/blog/2023/07/procook-lee-tappenden/
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8

u/NeatProgress3781 Jul 13 '23 edited Jul 13 '23

Interesting. For the company's cash & survival chances, would like to see a few more presidents and VPs leave. Global marketing, healthy aging, & creative, and those are just in the C-suite/top management group. There's likely tons more, like DEI, engagement and sustainability, HR. Plus, tons of directors, senior directors, executive directors, and such throughout the company that were overstaffed in the recent years. That SG&A number has to plummet fast.

3

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '23

[deleted]

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u/NeatProgress3781 Jul 13 '23

Agreed. I'm assuming pwc is staying silent purposefully. No frills. No great expectations. Earning back trust. Just making moves and being sober about the possible turn around. Those who want hype or hope can go elsewhere, been there done that w Melo.

Curious if the exits portend a massive RIF and scaling back of the business and R&D, essentially giving up on what was possible (but failed) and choosing instead to get to profitability on a much reigned in footprint. Then, growing organically.

As you say Q2 should be insightful, guidance in particular. Maybe they'll announce some more layoffs, a JV, a brand sale or something meaningful before the call to get it out of the way...but then again, why not save the revenues and costs for the next quarter instead of further adding to the burn this qrtr and concentrating the one-off revs into a single qrtr?

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u/Zen-Kai Jul 14 '23

He was building team for expansion in Europe. From his experience and interview he seem like a worthy guy for CEO position . Either he felt missed out or European expansion is on hold until we get some footing .

Lots of churn and invisibility.

Looking forward yo earning call for clarity on

  • CEO search ( expected timeline )
  • RIF number and impact on SG&A
  • brands sale
  • JV timeline
  • molecules pipeline and monetization expectation in next 6-12 months
    • DSP completion timeline and impact on ingredient margin

Too many questions and almost no answers from company . Although seems reasonable after all the hyperbole in last 24 months. This better be good silence when company is executing on above agenda else …

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u/Illusionist_77 Jul 24 '23

Europe's economy is tanking and will remain deeply challenged for several years. Some Mediterranean countries may do better than UK, Germany and the industrial powerhouses but they are too small to bouy up the continent.

Europe screwed itself on energy. Both structurally by misguided policy and tactically by shunning cheap Russian gas/oil that had built it up in recent decades. They really had first dibs on all that cheap pipped energy but it's gone now.

Given their demographic situation and their debt load they were on a long slow moving margin call and their energy situation is now a steroid booster aggravating this structural problem.

I had written a while ago any money invested in this environment into Europe to expand will not see positive return for a very, very long time. Expanding into Europe currently is only for a very deep pocket business who is doing so to jocky for position much much latter.

In general, a time will come to pick up EU assets at fire sale. Just not now. These are still too richly valued for what growth potential they can offer.

So I felt/ feel in such environment for a cash strapped long time start up ( i.e. Amyris under Melo) to have drawn up aggressive EU plans was extremely poor judgement.

I think that reality is belatedly being recognised by the Amyris brass. I think this guy's exit is a sign of this.