Former Market Basket chief executive Arthur T. Demoulas sought to return the crippled chain to normal operations Sunday night by offering to resume control of the business at midnight while he continues to negotiate to buy the company from rival family members. The Market Basket board issued a statement saying it encouraged shareholders like Demoulas “to continue providing constructive proposals.” CONTINUE READING BELOW Below is the full statement: Related Statement from Arthur T. Demoulas’s spokeswoman Video: An overview of the dispute A long shopping list for restocking “Demoulas Market Basket is considering strategic alternatives directly with parties in private conversations. We encourage the B shareholders, including Arthur T. Demoulas, to continue providing constructive proposals. Following the Board’s evaluation of all of offers, it will convey its recommendations to the Company’s shareholders who have the final decision as to which strategic alternative, if any, to accept. The Board fully supports the current management team in their efforts to ensure that Market Basket’s normal business operations resume immediately for the benefit of its customers, associates, vendors and communities.” The move came hours before a deadline the company set for employees loyal to Demoulas to return to work or risk being fired and replaced. It was not immediately clear whether the offer was intended to help save those workers from being fired Monday. In a brief and oblique statement, the ousted head of the family grocery empire said he has offered to “move immediately to return to work” and rehire top managers who had been fired for organizing the remarkable protest on his behalf to “stabilize and begin to restore the business.” The move comes as Demoulas has been furiously negotiating with his cousin and main rival, Arthur S. Demoulas, to buy out his half of the multi-billion dollar chain. CONTINUE READING BELOW Arthur T.’s statement ratchets up pressure on rival shareholders to take action by offering himself as an immediate solution to the company’s rapidly crumbling fortunes. Representatives of the company’s board did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Demoulas’s offer Sunday night. The offer appears timed to head off an ugly showdown between the executives his cousin hired to replace Demoulas, and the thousands of loyal employees whose protest has all but brought business at the 71 Market Basket stores to a standstill. Arthur T.’s statement said that his side of the family has “been working around the clock to pursue their offer to buy the 50.5% of shares in [Demoulas Super Markets] they do not own for a full and fair price,” the statement said. As part of his proposal, Arthur T. offered “to move immediately to return to work in advance of the completion of the stock purchase and work to bring back his full team to stabilize and begin to restore the business.” He offered to do so starting “as soon as midnight [Sunday].” The statement said Arthur T. was “hopeful” the crisis would be resolved, but said it was “critical” the company’s board accept his offer. “Time is of the essence,” the statement said. Former employees applauded the move. “He’s doing that out of compassion for us, I’m sure,” said Steve Paulenka, a top Market Basket supervisor who was among eight employees fired in July. “I would not be that magnanimous if I were in his position.” The company’s directors have acknowledged that Arthur S. is considering selling his ownership stake to Arthur T., but it is unclear how likely he is to do so. In the meantime, the grocery chain that industry specialists estimate is worth $3 billion to $3.5 billion remains crippled. The shelves at many stores are bare as workers have refused to deliver goods. And customers, either in solidarity with workers or out of frustration with missing grocery items, are also largely staying away. As a result, managers have said sales at some stores have plummeted as much as 75 percent since Demoulas’s firing. Store managers loyal to Arthur T. said they hoped the offer was a signal that behind-the-scenes negotiations are leaning Arthur T.’s way. “We all fully believe that Arthur T’s going to be running this company again,” said John Garon, a manager at the Burlington Market Basket. “He continues to give full and fair offers to the other side of the family. He’s saying, ‘Hey, I’m ready to go back tonight and fix the big mess you guys said I created.’ It would be the best-case scenario for all involved.” But Garon cautioned that undoing the damage of the past month would not happen overnight. “There’s a lot of work to do first,” he said. “If we hear the news, we’re going to have more work to do than we’ve ever had in our lives to get our stores up and running and full.” Paulenka said he had mixed emotions about the statement. Paulenka and other fired employees have organized several rallies, and said Friday they plan to sue the company’s current management for wrongful termination and other alleged offenses. “I would be disappointed and encouraged at the same time,” he said. “Encouraged because it sounds like we’re further along to the boss purchasing everything, but I’m disappointed because it’s still unclear.” Paulenka said he would not declare victory until a potential sale to Arthur T. was finalized, but he and other fired managers said they were ready to return to work at a moment’s notice. “When and if that word comes, I’m ready at a moment’s notice,” said Tom Gordon, a former grocery supervisor who was fired by the company’s new leaders. “I would take a shower, shave, put a suit on, and go back to work.” Boston Globe
Posted on: Mon, 04 Aug 2014 03:21:35 +0000
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