IV Media, the Eden Prairie-based parent company of home shopping network ShopHQ, will lay off 122 employees next month amid ongoing financial struggles.

The permanent layoffs should start Feb. 24, according to a WARN notice the company filed in December with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development. Several former employees, though, posted on social media site LinkedIn around Dec. 23 about being open to new positions after previously working at ShopHQ or its former parent company, iMedia Brands Inc.

Affected positions range from stylists and producers to a videographer and on-air host.

In its filing with the state, the company cited "changes in the direction of [its] business" as rationale for the workforce reduction.

In a statement Monday evening, the company called the layoffs "a necessary step as we transform and reposition the ShopHQ brand for long-term success."

"As consumer behavior shifts and more customers move away from traditional cable services, we are embracing new opportunities," the statement said. "By focusing on innovative strategies such as produced content, social selling, and video-on-demand, we are ensuring we meet our customers where they are and deliver the experiences they value most."

IV Media bought ShopHQ and associated brands from iMedia for $55 million in 2023, after iMedia filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. RNN National Media Group had initial agreed to purchase it, but the deal fell through because of iMedia's "failure to meet, or inability to meet, certain bankruptcy court milestones (as defined in the purchase agreement)," per SEC filings.

IV Media owner Manoj Bhargava said at the time he knew little about the businesses he was stepping into — the acquisition also included women's clothing retailer Christopher & Banks and leather goods brand J.W. Hulme Co. — but he planned to invest at least $20 million in ShopHQ. At the time, ShopHQ employed about 500 people.

Bhargava, the billionaire behind 5-Hour Energy drinks, has snapped up media brands, including TV and radio stations, through affiliates of his suburban Detroit-based Innovation Ventures.

Around the time of the iMedia sale, Bhargava acquired a majority stake in the publisher of Sports Illustrated. Within a year, the relationship devolved into a lawsuit alleging Bhargava and publisher Arena Group owed millions of dollars in missed payments.