A Delaware bankruptcy court on Monday approved supermarket Haggen’s plan to auction off the bulk of its stores in early November, in a process underpinned by tentative deals with two California grocery chains, the Seattle Times reported today. Haggen agreed to sell 36 stores to Gelson’s Market and to Smart & Final in two stalking-horse deals, designed to set a baseline price for the auction. The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) objected to the plan last week, in part because Smart & Final, which operates no-frills warehouses in southern California, does not have a collective bargaining agreement with the union’s local affiliates. UFCW, which does not object to the deal struck with union-friendly Gelson’s, wanted more time to find other buyers for the 28 stores Smart & Final agreed to purchase. Others, including potential landlords, also filed objections with the court.
