Governors express hope that agreement will be reached in Market Basket standoff
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Arthur T. Demoulas submitted a final offer to buy the Market Basket grocery chain on Friday as the negotiations over the embattled company appeared to be entering a decisive stage.
The details of the offer were not available, but the bid represents a last-ditch effort by Arthur T. to work out a deal with rival family members and regain control of the $4.6 billion grocery empire.
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It was unclear whether any other bidders would submit final offers on Friday. Delhaize Group SA, the parent of Hannaford supermarkets, has continued to express interest in buying the company.
Market Basket's board of directors is scheduled to meet Saturday to discuss the final bids and the broader crisis facing the company, which is losing millions of dollars due to an employee walk-out that has brought its operations to a halt.
The standoff over the company began in late June, when Arthur T. Demoulas was fired as president of the company by a board of directors controlled by his cousin, Arthur S. Demoulas. In addition to the employee walk-out, the job action caused some customers to boycott the chain while others have stayed way because it has no fresh food for sale.
Arthur T. has offered to buy the 50.5 percent of the company owned by Arthur S. and relatives on his side of the family. But the parties have been unable to reach a deal after several weeks of acrimonious negotiations.
Last Sunday, Governor Deval Patrick of Massachusetts and Governor Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire met with both men to broker an agreement, as both states are home to thousands of Market Basket's employees. Both governors reported significant progress and got Arthur T. and Arthur S. to push for an agreement by the end of this week. However, it remained unclear whether they will stick to that deadline.
Casey Ross can be reached at cross@globe.com.
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