Tesco CEO Sir Terry Leahy and Mark Price, the managing director of supermarket chain Waitrose, have become embroiled in a bitter public row after Price accused the retail giant of “using its financial might to stamp out rivals”.
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Sir Terry is understood to have written to Price demanding that he withdraw the remarks which were made in an interview with UK trade magazine The Grocer. The two men are also thought to have spoken last week after the interview was published.
A spokesperson for was quoted in the UK press saying: “Mr Price made some serious allegations about Tesco which were damaging and wrong.” However, the spokesperson would not comment on Sir Terry’s letter to Price.
Meanwhile, a Waitrose spokeswoman said that the company was “bemused” by the episode, adding that Price had spoken to Sir Terry and as far as Waitrose was concerned “the matter is over”.
It has also been reported that both companies are consulting their lawyers over the affair.
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By GlobalDataThe row has come as the major UK grocery chains await the publication of the preliminary findings of the Competition Commission’s inquiry into the supermarket sector.
Indeed, Price alluded directly to the investigation in the interview, saying: “The commission needs to realise what is happening. They [Tesco] are so aggressive and will buy everything to keep out the competition.”
