Countdown cleared

The Herald reports:

The competition watchdog has found no evidence that Countdown and its Australian-owned parent Progressive Enterprises used intimidation against suppliers.

The Commerce Commission said that based on the evidence it gathered during a nine-month investigation it “does not believe that Progressive has breached any of the laws it enforces and it will not be taking any action against Progressive”.

So was it much ado about nothing?

Countdown from all accounts is an aggressive company when it comes to supplier negotiations. But that doesn’t mean they have broken the law, and indeed it seems they have not.

However there is a lesson to them perhaps that if you upset your suppliers to the extent they go running to MPs and the media, well your corporate reputation can get damaged.