Albert Heijn, the Dutch supermarket chain of troubled Dutch retailer Ahold, is in talks with supplier Unilever in an attempt to reach an agreement regarding a delay of payments.
A spokesman for Albert Heijn said the chain was already in talks with suppliers about the delay, while Unilever said it had not been notified about a delay of payments that it became aware of last week.
“We have noticed last week that payments were delayed. This is an unforeseen situation and we are considering which measures we can take,” Unilever spokesman Richard van der Eijk was quoted by Reuters as saying. He added that the company would likely first contact Albert Heijn to discuss the situation.
Albert Heijn spokesman Hans Koeleman said he was surprised by the Anglo-Dutch consumer products group’s reaction, saying the supermarket chain was already in talks with its 250 largest suppliers in the Netherlands, including Unilever.
“We started talks two weeks ago and those talks are still continuing,” Koeleman said.
Albert Heijn said on Friday that it would delay payments to suppliers in order to conserve capital and boost liquidity.
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