Delhaize close to finishing switch to franchise ownership
Supermarket group Ahold Delhaize has already franchised 108 of its 128 supermarkets, and plans to complete the entire switch to a franchise model before the end of the year. Delhaize sparked controversy in Marchlast year when it announced plans to pr
Supermarket group Ahold Delhaize has already franchised 108 of its 128 supermarkets, and plans to complete the entire switch to a franchise model before the end of the year.
Delhaize sparked controversy in Marchlast year when it announced plans to privatise ownership of its supermarkets, kicking off a long and ongoing battle between management and unions.
Employees feared that switching to private ownership would jeopardise already deteriorating working conditions, with specific concerns related to wages and seniority benefits.
They responded to the announcement with strikes, supply blockades and protests. Management in turn was quick to involve the courts and law enforcement, breaking up such actions with aggression, according to unions.
But Delhaize said in its latest quarterly results that it has already sold the majority of its 128 supermarkets to independent buyers, expecting to complete the franchising of its supermarkets in the fourth quarter of this year and painting a rosy picture for shareholders.
De Tijd reports that the supermarket chain is garnering applause from investors for its solid profit margins, and chief executive Frans Muller is guarding those by closing unprofitable supermarkets in the United States, where labour rights are significantly weaker.
The most recent report noted that Delhaize sales globally rose 0.7% at constant exchange rates to €22.3 billion, with shares gaining more than 5% on the Amsterdam stock exchange.
“The rate of growth in the supermarket sector is normalising,” said Muller, who leads the mega-conglomerate that also includes Albert Heijn and online retailer Bol.
While Muller notes that sales went through the roof during the pandemic due to hoarding customers, a wave of inflation followed and narrowed profit margins.
The same period also squeezed employees of the chain grocer, who not only grappled with inflation themselves but also dealt with work shortages, an increase in temporary and student workers and overall increasingly deteriorating working conditions, unions said.
Management added that workers’ actions for better conditions and against the franchising plan also had an effect on profits, but declined to provide figures for this.
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