It was announced on Monday that Supervalu essentially terminated the employment of their CEO Craig Herkert, replacing him temporarily with Chairman of the Board Wayne Sales. This move is part of recent news that Supervalu plans to sell some or all of the company in the next few months. Herkert, who we told you in a previous post came from Walmart, definitely took on a company that was in dire financial straits when he assumed the role as CEO of Supervalu. Unfortunately he really missed the boat when it came to ensuring that the brand and identity of the existing company was recognized by the average consumer.
In particular, Herkert pushed a business model that included expansion of the non-union, primarily franchise-owned Save-A-Lot stores. This banner is made up entirely of stores that sell discounted food and products, something that Herkert placed all of energy into in the hopes that this division would be the most profitable during the economic recession. As it turns out, our banner, Shoppers Food and Pharmacy, is quite successful considering the competition in the area.
We’ve talked about this before on the blog but we are still number 3 in the DC Metro area, following behind Giant and Safeway. Keep in mind that we don’t operate any stores in the District of Columbia and that bolsters our numbers even more.
We aren’t quite sure what’s in our future related to the potential sale that Supervalu is considering. We’ll be waiting for word from the local union about this as soon as they receive information from our employer. In the meantime, don’t believe the rumors going around and leave nothing up to speculation. It’s clear our company is in turmoil but amidst all of this we still managed to secure a strong and fair contract. We’ll get through this just like we have in the past–together. Let’s remind Supervalu and our customers what solidarity looks like!
