Enjoy Technology
The architect of the Apple Store took retail to the doorstep; the company lasted under a year as a listed firm
- Founded
- 2014
- Closed
- 2022
- Lifespan
- 8 years
- Peak valuation
- $1.2 billion
- Became a unicorn
- 2021
- Country
- United States
- City
- Palo Alto
- Sector
- Retail
- Founders
- Ron Johnson
- Investors
- Kleiner Perkins, Oak Investment Partners, Andreessen Horowitz, Marquee Raine Acquisition
- At its peak
- An enterprise value of about USD 1.2 billion in its 2021 SPAC merger
- Cause of closure
- Business model failed
What did it do?
Enjoy Technology was started in Palo Alto in 2014 by Ron Johnson, who built Apple's retail business. Staff it called mobile stores took products such as phones to customers' homes, set them up and sold them. It worked with AT&T and, in some cities, Apple in the US, BT in the UK and Rogers in Canada.
Why did it shut down?
Revenue in 2020 rose 32 per cent to USD 60.3 million, while the loss widened from USD 89.7 million to USD 157.8 million. The Marquee Raine merger announced in April 2021 implied an enterprise value of USD 1.2 billion and up to USD 454 million of gross proceeds. The plan was revenue above USD 1 billion in 2025, which meant growing 78 per cent a year. The company listed in October 2021 and filed for Chapter 11 in Delaware on 30 June 2022. Asurion provided financing of up to USD 55 million and took over part of the assets on 31 August 2022.
The story
Ron Johnson was a legend of retail. He had built the Apple Store and then run JCPenney. In 2014 he came back in Palo Alto with a new idea: the store would come to the customer. Andreessen Horowitz joined a USD 30 million round led by Kleiner Perkins and Oak Investment Partners.
Enjoy's staff took the new phone to your home, set it up and sold it. AT&T, BT, Rogers and, in some cities, Apple signed on. But the model was expensive. In 2020 it lost USD 157.8 million on USD 60.3 million of revenue.
In April 2021 the deal with Marquee Raine was announced, with an enterprise value of USD 1.2 billion and a goal of more than USD 1 billion of revenue in 2025. The company listed in October 2021.
It did not last a year. On 30 June 2022 Enjoy filed for Chapter 11 in Delaware. Asurion provided a bridge loan and up to USD 55 million of financing, and bought part of the assets on 31 August 2022. Reuters reported that a judge approved a USD 110 million sale. Retail's great showman could not make the sums work at the doorstep.
Lessons for founders
- When retail means sending people to the door, revenue and field costs grow together. Do not add cities until a single visit pays for itself.
- Promising USD 1 billion for 2025 on USD 60 million of revenue writes a share story, not a business. The picture you give public investors starts competing with you in the very first quarter.
- When a business rests on a few big distribution partners, they hold the bargaining power. Without your own customers and margin you remain their shop window.
Sources
- Marquee Raine Acquisition Corp. Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1 (SEC, 2021-04-28)
- Ex-SPAC Led by Former Apple Executive Goes Bankrupt, Plans Sale (Bloomberg Law, 2022-06-30)
- Enjoy Technology Form 8-K: Bankruptcy or Receivership (SEC filing via MarketScreener, 2022-06-30)
- Ron Johnson’s Enjoy Gets Ready for Wall Street (WWD via Yahoo Finance, 2021-10-14)
- Enjoy Technology (Wikipedia, 2026)
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