Market Basket's PR Nightmare

Crisis managers weigh in on how all parties involved have handled the drama

The family dispute at Market Basket is now a full-blown crisis.

Arthur T. Demoulas has offered to buy the company, but his cousin Arthur S. Demoulas has control of the company and his new management team wants workers to end their rallies, making plans to replace workers who have walked off the job or been fired.

Richard Nicolazzo, founder and managing partner of Nicolazzo & Associates, a Boston strategic communications management firm, says this situation is unprecedented.

"You need to figure out fundamentally what is the strategy on each side, what is the communication strategy, and what is the legal strategy. I think that both sides have been very managed by the strategies they're pursuing," he said.

Judy Rakowsky, senior vice president of Crisis & Strategic Communications for Liberty Square Group, says Arthur T. needs to show his concern for his workers.

"He also hasn't shown what he stands for," she said. "If he gets the company, what's he going to do with it? What are the principles he's fighting for?"

Nicolazzo says Arthur T. has been able to use leverage with the image he has with employees and customers because they identify with him.

"He may think that's enough to accomplish his objective in the short term," he said.

What about Arthur S. Demoulas' side?

"The only thing I can say is that this has been a scorched earth approach to a fight like nothing we've seen here," Rakowsky said. "These guys have been fighting bareknuckles, burning through law firms, PR firms to just keep ... they want to fight each other. So at this point, I think neither side is ready to give up anything." 

The drama at the New England supermarket chain started when the company's board fired Arthur T. Demoulas in June. Thousands of employees started holding rallies in mid-July in an effort pressure management to either reinstate Arthur T. or accept his offer to buy the company. Hundreds of warehouse workers and drivers have refused to deliver food to the chain's 71 stores for two weeks, leaving store shelves empty and sending customers elsewhere.

The Boston Globe is reporting that the Belgium-based parent of the Hannaford supermarket chain has also offered to buy all or part of Market Basket.

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