Rewe Group has said that it supports the statement made by the German federal state North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), which requests that German Minister of Economic Affairs Sigmar Gabriel make the preservation of workplaces his first priority.
Edeka's proposed takeover of Tengelmann supermarket chain Kaiser's currently looks unlikely, after both retailers failed to convince Germany's Monopolies Commission to give it the green light.
Gabriel, however, has the authority to re-evaluate the decision of the German Competition Authority regarding the acquisition.
“We ask Mr Gabriel to consider the situation of all the affected colleagues before coming to a decision,” NRW Minister of Economics Garrelt Duin said in a statement, as reported by Finanzen.net.
Rewe Group advocates the statement, commenting on its website, 'A dependable protection of workplaces has to be first priority. In contrast to Edeka, which aims to reduce workplaces, we are willing to take over all stores, or the stores in North Rhine-Westphalia, guaranteeing the protection of these workplaces.'
© 2015 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Maike Baeumer. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
