Stores for sale

Unimarkt closes: 620 employees lose their jobs

All Unimarkt stores are to be sold or closed.(Bild: Jauschowetz Christian)

The next bad news in the Upper Austrian economy: all Unimarkt branches are to be sold. 620 employees are threatened with redundancy and have been registered with the AMS. However, there is a glimmer of hope for at least some of those affected. Unimarkt boss Andreas Hämmerle comments in the "Krone" newspaper.

The food retailer Unimarkt, based in Traun, wants to sell all of its 90 or so locations - franchise and company-owned - and withdraw from the market. And this after the company's 50th anniversary celebrations. 120 employees at the head office and 500 in the stores have been registered with the AMS early warning system. The company had already closed 24 locations the previous year, as well as one logistics location.

Decision by the end of the year
A decision on who will take over which locations should be made by the end of the year. "We are already in talks with other retail companies. There is a lot of interest because dedicated retail locations are now a rare commodity," says Unimarkt Managing Director Andreas Hämmerle in an interview with Krone. "If we can pass the locations on to other retail companies, the local supply will remain where we are and if the stores continue to operate, there will also be jobs there." According to Hämmerle, the UNI Group's wholesale and logistics operations are not affected.

The Unimarkt boss cites a "mixed situation" as the reason for the sell-off: "We have a two percent market share, so our competitors have other options. We are in the third year of the recession and our customers have less money in their pockets" - all of which led to the "strategic decision". "We are doing this with a steady hand," says Hämmerle. "The important thing is that the Unimarkt stores are still open. Our shelves are full and we are continuing to operate as normal."

All Unimarkt stores are to be sold or closed.(Bild: Jauschowetz Christian)

Employees are now being informed
The registrations with the Arbeitsmarktversive (AMS) are a legally prescribed measure. The staff representatives have been involved and employees will be informed "in a town hall meeting" on Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, the trade union advises: "Don't sign anything". Wolfgang Gerstmayer, Managing Director of the GPA Upper Austria, told the "Krone": "You shouldn't terminate employment contracts prematurely. We are trying to get a social plan. Nothing should be terminated prematurely now, we first need to get a picture of the situation." A meeting between the union and Unimarkt management has been scheduled for Thursday.