The situation around Amstor hypermarkets remains tense. So far, the retail chain’s stores have not resumed their operations throughout Ukraine. Today, at their meeting with Amstor’s staff members in Zaporozhye the representatives of Smart-Holding (Amstor’s primary shareholder) tried to reassure the company’s employees: they called on the team to get back to work and resist the ex-manager’s provocations.
There are three parties to the conflict around Amstor retail chain: Smart-Holding, the primary shareholder of Amstor owning 70% of the company’s shares, company’s personnel and Amstor’s ex-manager and minority shareholder (15%) Vladimir Vagorovskiy.
Smart-Holding blames suspended operations of hypermarkets on Mr. Vagorovskiy. They say that in such a way he is trying to conceal massive embezzlements committed under his close supervision. The ex-manager is attempting to destabilize the situation in the company, intimidate Amstor’s employees and force them to sabotage their work. At the same time, the main shareholder’s representatives say that Mr. Vagorovskiy is spending holidays at a prestigious European resort and refuses any contacts. Today, Smart-Holding arranged a meeting with Amstor’s team in Zaporozhye.
‘Mr. Vagorovskiy, taking advantage of the current situation, started funnelling money out of the company and establishing other entities. At the moment, having access to the servers he is blocking the operations of our hypermarkets. That is why I need your help: if you know where that button is, let us switch it on and carry on with our work. I am asking you to continue your usual work, and we shall take all steps together to resume normal operation of the company,’ said Alexey Pertin, the Chairman of the Supervisory Board at Smart-Holding.
From the outset, the employees were distrustful towards the main shareholder’s representatives. The discussion was heated and high-pitched.
However, Smart-Holding and Amstor’s staff are basically in the same boat. People need to keep their jobs and get their salaries in due time. The primary shareholder pursues the same goal, along with the retail chain’s further development, as it has made major investments in the company and therefore is interested in its uninterrupted operation and profits. So far, Smart-Holding has filed a complaint to the law-enforcement authorities and addressed the company’s employees asking them to maintain stable operation of Amstor Group’s subsidiaries, to resist Mr. Vagorovskiy’s provocations, to refrain from fulfilling his unlawful orders and resume the operations of Amstor hypermarkets. Now the decision is up to the company’s employees.
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