The country's top supermarket chain will not support Sysco if the foreign conglomerate is successful in acquiring Bahamas Food Services (BFS). Rupert Roberts, owner of the Super Value and Quality Supermarkets chains, said leaders need to focus on keeping the money here, otherwise "the boat springs a leak". Roberts, who is currently a "big customer" of BFS, said the country's other wholesalers would be in particular jeopardy. "I don't think it would be good for The Bahamas. It would destroy a lot of what we have," he revealed to Guardian Business.
"It would change the methods of doing business. I'm afraid they would be in competition with other wholesalers, and you don't know what they would do." Noting that other wholesalers would be essentially "wiped out", Roberts said he would rather see a local entity take over BFS and see "the money stay at home". He also expressed skepticism that the acquisition would lead to better prices.
The comments from Roberts come in response to indications last week that Sysco, with revenue over $39 billion in 2011, has begun negotiations to acquire BFS. According to Phil Lightbourne, owner of Phil's Food Services, the sale to Sysco would take BFS out of the retail market and make it exclusively a wholesaler that's capable of meeting the needs of all clients in the country, such as Atlantis and Baha Mar. He insists that the sale would also lead to new alternative products and cheaper prices.
Winston Rolle, the chairman of the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC), pointed out that BFS is already owned by a foreign entity. In fact, it is currently owned by the Frisch family out of Jacksonville, Florida. So from the perspective of keeping it local, Rolle argued there wouldn't be much difference. That said, the possibility of squeezing out others in the wholesale market is cause for concern. "We know the size of the organization and its capacity to do different things.
The various wholesalers are extremely concerned about it, as they should be," he said. "The buying power of Sysco and the markets they play in and the volumes they purchase at... it's a touchy situation. They have the capacity of doing quite a number of things to undercut persons here." Rick Lowe, the vice president of the Nassau Institute, disagreed with the BCCEC, saying other wholesalers are unlikely to be squeezed out. He said the deal would create more options for the consumer, which is ultimately better for everyone.
At the end of the day, "you want the consumers better off". Lightbourne has further argued that the sale would mean more jobs at BFS, more job security and a reputable company willing and able to pay its taxes and fees to the government. "Sysco is a wholesale supplier and will not affect the retail market," he told Guardian Business last Friday. "As a matter of fact, it is going to assist the retail market with its product brand, giving customers new alternative products at affordable prices." BFS has been operating in The Bahamas since 1971. It is the largest food distributor in the country and employs 300 Bahamians.
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