"Panevėžys residents, who came to shop at the
"Mere" store on Ramygalos Street on Monday, found the doors locked.
For some shoppers, its closure was an unpleasant surprise - some came here
every week, while others called the store their main one due to lower prices
and a convenient location. All chain stores in Lithuania were hastily closed
after the European Union imposed sanctions on the owners of the Russian
"Svetofor Group".
Panevėžys residents were upset
A laconic sign was hung on the door of the store located on
Ramygalos Street, in the territory of the trade base: "Due to technical
difficulties, the store will not be open until July 27." However, its
doors remained locked on Monday.
Valentinas, a Panevėžys resident met outside the store, said
he had heard that its name might change.
“I used to come here once a week. The food wasn’t really my
thing, but I liked the various vitamin drinks, cookies, sweets, and small
items. The household chemicals were cheaper here. I’ll come back next time, but
not today,” the man said.
Alma, who came to the store with her friend Žydre, had also
heard talk about a possible name change.
Alma, who came to the store with her friend Žydre, had also
heard talk about a possible name change. / Photo by R. Ančerevičius
“Judging from the sign on the door, it looked like it was
supposed to open on Monday, but it was closed. My friend likes to shop here,”
the woman said.
Žydre did not hide that the store’s closure saddened her.
“Everything suited me here because it was cheaper. The
selection was also satisfactory – I found what I needed. It’s sad that it’s
closed,” the woman from Panevėžys said.
Her friend Alma added that although she rarely shopped at
the store, she had bought detergents and spices here.
She called the store her main one
Aloyzas, who lives nearby in Pažagieniai, was even more
disappointed.
“How sad that it’s closed. This store was my main one,
because I live nearby – I could come shopping in ten minutes. I used to find
everything here – clothes, shoes, and food. I’ve been shopping since it opened,
maybe two years or more. But whatever you do, you won’t cry. We’ll wait, maybe
it will open, we’ll have to talk to the potters,” the man smiled.
Janina, a resident of Panevėžys, who arrived at the closed
store with her relatives, also didn’t expect to find the door locked.
Janina, a resident of Panevėžys, who arrived at the closed
store with her relatives, also didn’t expect to find the door locked. / Photo
by R. Ančerevičius
“We used to come every week, usually on weekends. And today
we came specially. We will come the next day too – maybe it will be open?” –
the woman hoped.
“Small consumers are being abused”
Vidmantas, who used to come to “Mere” to shop about once a
month, was more critical of the store’s closure.
“The Ukrainian sweets here were both delicious and cheap.
It’s just a shame that some products were sold in large quantities, for
example, packaged per kilogram. Other goods were similar to those in other
stores, only here maybe a little cheaper,” the man said.
He said he had heard that the stores were closed due to
sanctions announced by the EU.
“I was still surprised that they closed. In my opinion,
small consumers are being abused in this case,” said Vidmantas.
Employees promised help
Deputy Minister of Economy and Innovation Paulius Petrauskas
told LRT radio on Monday that if necessary, employees of Mere stores will be
provided with help in finding a new job.
“Before initiating the entire sanctions process, we had
discussions to provide those employees with exceptional help in moving or
finding a new job,” the vice minister said.
According to him, other retail chains are currently looking
for about 2.4 thousand employees, so former Mere employees could move to work
in other chains. The Employment Service departments have already been informed
about the situation.
According to P. Petrauskas, more than 250 people worked in
Mere stores. According to Sodra, the company that manages the chain, Valientė,
had 262 employees.
Sanctions imposed
Russian businessman Sergey Šnaider, who owns the Mere retail
chain, has been included in the EU list of sanctioned persons.
According to the Ministry of Economy and Innovation, from
July 23, all funds and economic resources owned, managed or controlled by the
sanctioned owners of Svetofor Group must be frozen in the EU. They are also
prohibited from directly or indirectly providing funds or other economic
resources.
A Mere representative confirmed to BNS that not all stores
of the chain in Lithuania are open due to technical difficulties, but did not
comment on whether they are temporarily closed and whether this is directly
related to the sanctions.
On Monday, the Mere website was no longer operational, and
the network's Facebook account was also deleted.
The report submitted to the Center of Registers indicates
that Valientė's revenue grew by 16.2 percent last year - to 75.8 million euros,
while net profit decreased by 14 percent and reached 1 million euros.
The company has been operating in Lithuania since 2019. The
founders and co-owners of Svetofor Group own more than 2.2 thousand stores in
Russia and other countries, operating under the Svetofor, Mere and MyPrice
brands.”
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