Superquinn axes 80 jobs to cut costs

UP to 80 jobs are to go at Superquinn as part of a cost cutting exercise, it confirmed yesterday.

Since October last, 40 jobs have been axed and another 40 jobs have been targeted to go in the months ahead.

Superquinn, which is the smaller of the supermarket giants in Ireland with just 19 stores against 70 for Tesco, denied it is under pressure to cut costs in order to shore up falling profits.

Eamonn Quinn, senior director of the chain founded by his father, Senator Feargal Quinn, also dismissed persistent rumours that Sainsburys, the British retail giant, is about to bid for the business.

Mr Quinn laughingly dismissed that rumour. “When I was 16 years of age, and that was some time ago, the local parish priest came up to me and said he was sorry to hear the business had been sold,” he said.

However, Mr Quinn confirmed that the group is tackling its cost base and that it was an ongoing issue.

Superquinn employs 5,700 in 19 stores compared with 10,000 in 70 stores in the case of Tesco.

Superquinn is a different animal with a lot of in-store activities such as bakery and extensive meat counters, said Mr Quinn.

However Mr Quinn refused to confirm or deny that the group’s trading performance slipped last year. “We are a private company and do not disclose our profits or our sales figures,” he said.

In 2001 the group invested 35 million in a new central distribution centre in Blanchardstown. That requires suppliers to deliver to the centre as required and has resulted in a significant loss of jobs.

Suppliers have also been impacted by the move and Mr Quinn said he was not surprised to hear that concerns existed among some of them about the state of the company.

Some of them will have more people on hand than they need as a result of the dramatic shift to centralised distribution by the supermarket, said Mr Quinn. The change is quite significant and it is not surprising that it has led to rumours of discontent among some suppliers to the group, he said.

Insiders believe that Superquinn has become top heavy and argue that its pay structure is higher than its competitors.

Allegations that founder Feargal Quinn has “taken his eye off the ball” have increased fears that the company could hit a bumpy patch in the future.

Tesco, Dunnes Stores and Musgraves, through its franchise stores, have been performing strongly in Ireland and paying close attention to costs.

The concern is that Superquinn is not being as vigilant on the cost front and that has some suppliers worried, according to sources.