Migros Supermarket Ltd – organisation in place, 150 job cuts

At the beginning of the year, the Board of Directors instructed the Executive Board of Migros Supermarket Ltd to formulate a new organisational structure. The Executive Board developed this structure together with a project team composed of representatives from all divisions and an external consulting team. The Board of Directors of Migros Supermarket Ltd has approved this structure. The Migros Supermarket Ltd employees were informed in a live stream on Tuesday morning (21 May 2024).

Job cuts unfortunately unavoidable

The aim of the new organisation is to simplify processes, streamline structures and clarify roles. “We want to become simpler and faster – that’s what we’ve geared the organisation towards,” explains Peter Diethelm, CEO of Migros Supermarket Ltd. Unfortunately, the realignment needed for this means that the loss of around 150 full-time jobs is unavoidable. There will also be redundancies. The jobs will be cut at the Limmatplatz site in Zurich. Peter Diethelm: “I am aware that redundancy is stressful and painful for the affected employees. It affects many valued and long-standing colleagues. I believe it’s important we provide all affected employees with comprehensive and professional support in their search for alternative employment.”

Social plan with generous benefits

The Migros Group has finalised a comprehensive national social plan with internal and external social partners to cushion the impact of redundancies as far as possible (see press release dated 15 May 2024). Employees affected by the job cuts at Migros Supermarket Ltd will receive individual benefits depending on their length of service and age, among other factors. They will also receive support in their search for new positions within and outside Migros from HR and specialised external partners.

Management change in the Fresh Produce division

There will be a management change in the Fresh Produce division of Migros Supermarket Ltd. For personal reasons, Sandra Stöckli has decided to step down from her management role at the end of June and leave Migros at the end of August. The two divisions Food and Fresh Produce will be merged into a single division, with the aim of further simplifying procedures and standardising processes in the current divisions. Miriam Richter, Head of Food & Procurement Management since March, will head the new Fresh Produce & Food division. Strategic Procurement and the Migros offices in Asia will report directly to the CEO of Migros Supermarket Ltd. “I very much regret Sandra Stöckli’s decision and would like to thank her for her enormous commitment as Head of the Fresh Produce division and as my deputy. At the same time, I am delighted that Miriam Richter will be taking over as head of the new, integrated division and wish her every success,” explains Peter Diethelm, CEO of Migros Supermarket Ltd.

Change in the electronics range and discontinuation of Nutri-Score

The planned sale of Melectronics will also lead to changes in around 50 larger Migros supermarkets. At these locations, the integrated Melectronics sales areas will be reduced to a basic range of electronics products. The future range will continue to include a selection of important everyday products. This includes, for example, a range for personal and dental care, kitchen appliances and coffee machines, cleaning equipment, watches, batteries, printer cartridges, and data storage media.

There will also be a change to the labelling of food products in the Migros range. The voluntary Nutri-Score nutrition label will be discontinued and gradually removed from Migros products. Experience since its introduction three years ago has shown that the benefits are too small in relation to the high costs. Comprehensive information on the nutritional values of the products can still be found on the packaging of all Migros products.

FoodNow food delivery service to be discontinued

As part of its focus on its core business, Migros has decided to discontinue the FoodNow food delivery service at the end of May. With this delivery service launched in 2020, Migros tested the market for quick and easy food deliveries. Despite around 600 restaurant partners, considerable growth in orders and expansion of the delivery area, it was unfortunately not possible to achieve the business targets.