Sainsbury’s chief executive Justin King has issued a rallying cry to nearly 1,000 senior staff, following the Qatar Investment Authority’s withdrawal of its £10.6 billion takeover bid for the retail chain.
In an internal memo sent out after the bid was abandoned yesterday, King urged his next in command to stick to their business as usual attitude.
“So, what next?” he said. “I always say this, but it’s true: for us it has to be ‘business as usual’. We have over 16 million customers who come to shop with us every week, and they have high expectations of the service we provide.”
Industry pundits say King will need to be even more confident when he faces analysts at Sainsbury’s head office in central London next Wednesday to present half-year results. Sources at rival retailers said King faced an uphill challenge in getting staff to refocus on the key Christmas season and forget about the abandoned takeover bid.
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