German supermarket chain Rewe has announced that the company will freeze the complaint procedure against rival Edeka's acquisition of ageing supermarket chain Kaiser's Tengelmann. The Rewe Group brought the complaint forward due to competition concerns, which resulted in Edeka offering some Berlin stores to the company.
On 8 November, the spokesman of the Rewe Group, Martin Brüning, issued a statement:"The negotiations with Edeka about conciliation are still challenging," said Brüning. "Therefore, an agreement about the appropriate amount of Kaiser's Tengelmann stores to be given to Rewe could not be achieved yet."
Rewe brought the motion to halt the complaint procedure forward in order to continue with negotiations. That gives both parties more time for an agreement on the issue.
Rewe will only abandon the complaint when a mandatory agreement that secures the interests of Rewe and creates fair market competition in the food trade is achieved.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Fabian Novakovics. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
