There have been many stories told about the Mattituck Waldbaum’s closing, but so far none have have really told the inside story. This is my story, my experience so far. Nobody is blameless really, including me. This is a David & Goliath story, I’m just not sure who David is yet. I know who Goliath is, though. That would be The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, also known as the A&P, your local grocery store.
Let’s start with me. I had been in the soda & beer business for most of my life before taking a job at the Mattituck A&P, my last job being a route driver for an owner of a 7UP route on the North Fork. It was a great job, and I loved it. The people on the North Fork were great, the area hadn’t really been discovered yet, one could drive from Riverhead (where I lived) to Mattituck in 15 minutes on the North Road, and I made many friends in all the places I stopped. Then came the economic downturn in the late 80s — and along with it, the decision by the family-owners of the 7UP Brooklyn Bottling Co. to sell out to a rival company, which already had routes in our area. One day we went to work and the warehouse was chained shut, and we were told we were all out of jobs.
So I took a part-time job with A&P and worked a few days here and there as a driver for other companies until I could find a steady job. But even after I found a full-time position, I found it hard to let go. I loved the grocery business, and my new job was in a very different capacity. So I decided to continue to work a few evenings at A&P, so I could still see all my fellow drivers and friends whom I missed. The hours on my new job allowed me to work evenings at the store, and everything was fine. I figured I’d work four or five years, and then be able to just work the full-time job. Twenty-six years later, I’m ready to retire from my county job, and I’m still at A&P — now called Waldbaum’s.
So, what happened?
Well, Goliath, the giant behemoth once known as A&P, who at one time employed more people than the government, had fallen on hard times. In 1986 it purchased the Waldbaum’s chain for $287 million. At the time, Waldbaum’s itself was the 12th largest supermarket chain in the country. But the times, they were a-changin’. A&P couldn’t compete with the new kids on the block, mainly Wal-Mart, and in the early ‘90s they converted all A&P stores on LI into Waldbaum’s stores. It didn’t help.
The new owner of A&P, (since 1981) was the Tengelmann Group from Germany, owned by Ervian Haub, who put his son Christian in as co-CEO in 1994, along with an Englishman, James Wood, as chairman. James Wood had previously run the Grand Union Supermarket chain, which is no longer with us as well. When Wood finally left in 2001, young Christian assumed total control of the American division of The Tengelmann Group. Things went from bad to worse, and in 2009 another investment group, the Yucaipa Investment Co., was quietly acquiring shares in a bid to take over.
In December of 2010, the company entered bankruptcy, and after much negotiating, emerged from Chapter 11 as a private entity, sowing the seeds for the future. Christian Haub went back to Germany, and the Tengelmann group wrote off any equity it had as a loss. Now it gets confusing. People in management changed positions so fast, it made employees wonder who was in charge. The rumors started. We were for sale. We were closing. Krogers was buying the whole chain. All rumors. In July of 2015 the company announced it was filing for Chapter 11 again, known in the bankruptcy biz as “Chapter 22,” from whence there is no return. We all know what happened next, but just in general. Stores were sold. Stores were closed. The union pledged to protect its members. People lost jobs. It affected you and me, whether you realize it or not.
Key Food
Key Food Stores Co-Op, Inc. is a cooperative of independently owned supermarkets. The Mattituck Waldbaum’s was purchased by the Dan’s Supreme group, one of the independent owners in the Key Food Co-Op. They plan to run the store in Mattituck as a Key Food Marketplace, one of the banners of the Key Food Group.
After the first round of bidding on A&P stores, where you had to place a minimum bid on at least five stores, the bidding was opened to any interested parties to bid on any number of stores. The Dan’s Supreme group were the winning bidders on the Mattituck and Center Moriches Waldbaum’s. They started moving in during October, and took over operations the week of Nov. 2, opening officially in Mattituck on Thursday, Nov. 5.
Now here’s the tricky part. As part of their agreement to purchase the Mattituck store, they agreed to take the employees as well, all Local 342 members, at their current salary and positions. However, Key Food said they would only take on so much payroll, meaning some employees had to go, in order to get the number down to the agreed amount of payroll. The judge and A&P agreed, and this is when the laying off began. Fourteen employees were told they were no longer employed by A&P, which meant they had no guarantee of a job with Key Food. Key Food “graciously” allowed them to interview for available jobs in the store, but without the same pay, hours or position as before. To my knowledge, most of the laid-off employees declined the job offers or declined to interview for their jobs. One laid-off meat wrapper has been recalled to work.
And what about part-time workers, who were actually the majority of workers? When I dropped by the store on Saturday Nov. 7 to see if I had a job, (I had been on a long-planned vacation for two weeks), I was interviewed on the spot and told they needed me to work a minimum of 28 hrs plus weekends to keep my job. We would stay on as Local 342 employees, but all new hires were to be in Local 1500. When I asked about salary, I was told I would keep my present wage. When I told the interviewer my hourly pay, he was very surprised at how much I made, and said they would give me a call in a couple of days to tell me when I was working. I’m still waiting.
So where does this leave us? The store is open for business, and the people have a place to buy their groceries. Some people are happy. Some people are out of a job. It’s all about business, not the people. It takes a toll on people when there is change, when you have to go through something like this, when you had planned on your future and thought everything was going to be fine. Key Food says they are going to buy locally and put in a cafe, and even have a guy making sushi for you. Maybe they’ll hire all the laid-off workers back eventually. They’ll probably do it without me. Good luck to them.
Len Van Vliet lives in Riverhead.
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