Bungling businessman (sic) Mark Finlayson has been removed as the president of Bahamas Supermarkets Limited (BSL) and has been replaced by his younger sister and brother – Nikki Finlayson-Boeuf and Rae Finlayson.
The siblings have been named Executive Vice-Presidents of BSL, and will be responsible for the operational management of the struggling City Market stores.
It was reported in a tabloid paper that the changes were ordered by family patriarch, Garet ‘Tiger’ Finlayson, over concerns regarding the depletion of the family’s investments under Mark Finlayson.
City Markets’ operating parent suffered a $16.6 million net loss for its 2011 financial year, more than double the previous year’s losses and prior to a $15.4 million charge labelled ‘extraordinary income’ which cut the bottom line’s red ink to $1.13 million.
The situation under Mark was worse than before the Finlayson’s bought the business from the ill-fated BSL Holdings for $1, plus the assumption of debts, in November, 2010.
City Markets’ current financial condition is unknown, as the financial accounts for the first quarter of its 2012 financial year have yet to be released.
Finlayson-Boeuf will spearhead operations at the Sea Grapes and Cable Beach stores while her brother Rae will take charge of the South Beach, Harbour Bay and Lucaya stores.
Taking a customer-centric approach, not seen with Mark Finlayson, the new management team will be accessible to customers.
“We intend to stay on track with what we promised our customers and that’s exactly why we thought it was important to be accessible to them,” said Finlayson-Boeuf in a company statement.
“On any given day customers at Sea Grapes or Cable Beach get to talk to me one-on-one, and the same is true with Rae at South Beach, Harbour Bay and Lucaya.”
The management shake-up comes after months of turmoil at the company.
In September, City Market permanently closed two locations in Grand Bahama and temporarily closed two more in New Providence.
Earlier this month, the company was embroiled in a legal dispute with U.S. pork and beef supplier, Kansas Packaging, which claimed it was owed over $80,000. City Market has since paid the past due amount and the lawsuit was dropped.
The managerial appointments follow ongoing renovations and upgrades to existing stores. City Market is also in the process of revamping its delicatessens and plans to reopen them in two weeks.
The stores will also feature pharmacies and new color-coordinated layouts.
Heading into the Christmas season, Rae Finlayson said in a statement that the company is focused on providing full services to all.
“Initially our focus was getting our two closed locations reopening (South Beach and Sea Grapes), and now that is done, we look forward to providing our customers with much anticipated service in our delicatessens, which will be open from 6:30pm to 8:00 pm in most locations,” he said.
Rae also thanked City Market’s loyal customers and pledged to move forward with the help of hard-working employees and steadfast suppliers.
The company has now moved its corporate headquarters from East-West Highway to the former Burns House property on JFK Drive/Bethel Avenue, a property owned by one of the Finlayson controlled companies, Associated Bahamian Distillers and Brewers (ABDAB).
As reported in a local paper, this raises numerous questions that have not been answered.
The former headquarters site on East-West Highway is owned by the City Markets’ employees’ pension fund which may not be receiving any rental income now that the company has moved out. The property is up for sale but it is not clear if a buyer has been found.
Rental payments were the main source of income for the pension fund, which has received no other payments from City Markets since 2007. With the fund’s main asset being illiquid real estate, some question the continued solvency of the pension fund.
