MBS, one of Columbia’s biggest employers, lays off workers

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

One of Boone County's largest employers has laid off workers but isn't saying how many people have lost their jobs.

Barnes and Noble Education, owner of MBS Textbook Exchange, confirmed Tuesday that workers are being laid off at the company's Columbia distribution plant.

"Given the current macroeconomic environment and rapidly evolving dynamics in the higher education industry, today we announced that we would be making some organizational changes to strengthen our focus and efficiency and align our resources towards the highest growth opportunities ahead," BNED spokeswoman Carolyn Brown said in a statement. "In order to do this, the Company has made the difficult decision to reduce our workforce and reorganize a number of roles across our businesses. We believe our actions will position BNED for success and long-term sustainable growth and align our expenses to better reflect the current market environment, while enabling us to invest in our strategic priorities."

The company didn't say how many workers were laid off but several workers confirmed the layoffs with ABC 17 News. MBS employs 675 people, according to 2021 figures published by Regional Economic Development Inc. That's down from 730 the year before.

The company said the decision was made after it looked at the economic environment.

Barnes and Noble purchased MBS for about $175 million in 2017.

Barnes and Noble reported lower sales for the most recent quarter.