Supie administrators say the company doesn't have enough funds to repay customers and that $800,000 to $900,000 in stock is ready to be returned to suppliers. Photo / The Spinoff
Supie administrators say the company doesn't have enough funds to repay customers and that $800,000 to $900,000 in stock is ready to be returned to suppliers. Photo / The Spinoff
Supie customers waiting on orders must make creditor claims against the company while administrators work to return $800,000 to $900,000 in stock to suppliers.
Nacey told the Heraldadministrators are currently contacting suppliers who have outstanding payments and stock due, starting with suppliers of perishable products.
“My understanding is there are around 400 suppliers. I’m not in a position to clarify how much is due to each,” he said.
Nacey said administrators have made contact with all suppliers of fresh produce and are “hoping stock can be returned to suppliers”.
He could not name specific suppliers, but said the cost price of current stock on hand at Supie is valued between $800,000 and $900,000.
Nacey confirmed that a majority of staff contracts were terminated on Monday morning, apart from those of four to five staff members who are assisting with the administration.
“We don’t have enough funds in the company to continue employing staff,” Nacey said.
While he could not put a number on customer orders waiting to be filled, Nacey said any customers who have outstanding orders with Supie are not likely to be refunded and will have to make a creditor claim against the company: “The company is not in a position to refund orders.”
He said customers are most likely to be refunded through their credit card company.
Nacey told the Herald any suppliers that have been named were not provided by the administrators.
Supie founder Sarah Balle has not responded to any requests for comment.
Former Supie staff member Anthony Bunce told the Herald Balle has not been in contact with any former staff members since Monday.
“It’s heartless and gutless from Sarah Balle,” Bunce said.
Supie founder Sarah Balle.
However, he said Supie’s operations and assistant operations managers “have not stopped supporting staff since they found out [about the job losses] and are still being supportive”.
On Monday, Bunce told the Herald former staff were upset and in tears following their removal from the Supie warehouse in Wiri.
“There’s still a bit of anger and frustration, but we’re overwhelmed by the support from the community,” Bunce told the Herald yesterday.
In the aftermath of Supie’s closure, Bunce said he started a Facebook group which now has around 60 members.
“The help and support for us has been amazing,” he said.
“A lot of recruitment and independent companies have reached out to us. Job-wise, we’re not worried,” Bunce said.
Bunce said smaller Supie suppliers with small outstanding payments have been paid back.
Supermarket competition
Consumer NZ chief executive Jon Duffy said the supermarket industry - dominated by Woolworths and Foodstuffs - was tough to break into and any new players would need a substantial sum of money.
“Supie was a brave challenger to the entrenched duopoly. Its closure is a stark reminder of how difficult it is to tackle the barriers to genuine competition in our supermarket sector,” Duffy said.
Consumer NZ chief executive Jon Duffy.
He said the Commerce Commission’s market study showed the supermarket duopoly has the wholesaling and retailing of groceries tied up.
“A new entrant is going to find it difficult to come in and buy their groceries from somewhere independently. The new grocery regime aims to open up wholesale to a degree, but only time will tell if this will be successful and encourage new entrants,” Duffy said.
“It’s clear that any new players will still need a substantial sum of money behind them to set up and succeed in the sector, which will be a barrier for many.”
Duffy said Supie was growing, with 20,000 customers in April last year and 55,000 this year.
“We don’t know all the reasons that have led to Supie’s failure. The Grocery Commissioner should carefully look to see if there has been any activity by the duopoly that could have contributed to Supie’s failure in an anti-competitive way, but it could simply be that this is a tough industry to break into, and [that] underlines the importance of evening the playing field out for new competitors,” he said.
Warehouse Group chief executive Nick Grayston.
Warehouse Group chief executive Nick Grayston said Supie’s closure “is another stark reminder of how challenging it is to offer affordable groceries and to change the market in New Zealand”.
In a statement, Grayston said, “We won’t be quiet about what we see is a lack of fairness. New Zealanders are struggling with high grocery prices. They need more than a list of priorities – they need more competition and to bring grocery prices down.”
Woolworths-owned Countdown and Foodstuffs were approached but declined to comment.
An anonymous staff member said he has set up a LinkedIn group to help former staff find jobs.
“Companies say they want to help Supie staff and that people can start tomorrow,” he said.
“We want people to know we’re receiving a lot of support. We’ve gone from trying to chase money to getting new jobs.”
On Friday, after the support was pulled, Ben Kepes and Hadleigh Ford quit the company’s board, leaving Balle as the sole director. Early estimates suggest it owes roughly $3 million and is likely to head to liquidation.
Alka Prasad is an Auckland-based business reporter covering small business and retail.
