Supervalu tied to secret Walmart opposition

http://twincities.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2010/06/07/daily8.html?ana=yfcpc

Supervalu tied to secret Walmart opposition
Supervalu Inc. is among several large grocery retailers that have funded secretive oppositions to new Walmart stores, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday.

The Eden Prairie-based grocery was one client of Saint Consulting Group, which uses political and legal means -- often clandestinely -- to block Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s developments.

In one case, Saint delayed a proposed Walmart Supercenter in suburban Chicago to protect nine Supervalu-owned Jewel-Osco grocery stores in surrounding cities.

Former Saint employees told the Journal that managers, under fake names, would coordinate calling blitzes to local politicians, hire attorneys and traffic experts to delay the projects and train grocery workers to speak out against Wal-Mart land-use requests.

Supervalu declined to comment on the report.

Read more: Supervalu tied to secret Walmart opposition - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal