Supermarket cuts goods range over high prices
Coop, the supermarket chain, has decided not to stock certain products after the firm and manufacturers failed to agree on slashing prices.
The move, revealed in newspaper announcements on Sunday, comes shortly after an appeal by Economics Minister Johann Schneider-Ammann to businesses, supervisory bodies and consumers to help lower the prices of imported goods.
The minister made the comments after presiding over a round table on August 10 to discuss how best the economy could deal with the recent surge in the value of the franc, particularly against the euro and dollar.
Coop, the number two supermarket retailer in Switzerland, said it would cut 95 brand-name products, representing a turnover of SFr30 million ($39 million). Purchasing and marketing boss Jürg Peritz told the SonntagsZeitung that the company wanted to “send a signal” with its decision.
Already on August 12, Coop, Spar and the discounter Denner, which belongs to market leader Migros, announced price reductions on certain goods.
Migros spokesman Urs Peter Naef was quoted on the Swiss news agency on Sunday as saying the chain would make a decision on whether to take goods out of its product range “by next week at the earliest”.
Cabinet is due to discuss economic issues next week.
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