Minneapolis, MN -
By Sarah Hoxie
12.12.12
Supervalu is suing to keep a former executive from possibly sharing secrets in his new position with Unified Grocers Inc., a major competitor.
Leon Bergmann, who was President of Independent Business at Supervalu, notified Supervalu CEO Wayne Sales in October via letter of his intention to resign, according to a report in the Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal.
Bergmann re-emerged last week in the position of Senior Vice President of Sales at Supervalu's largest competitor in the Western United States, Unified Grocers Inc. Supervalu filed a lawsuit in Hennepin County District Court after the Unified Grocers announcement and sought an order barring Bergmann from working for the company. His new employment would violate his confidentiality agreement and a 12-month non-compete, the company claimed. The suit also accuses Unified Grocers of intentionally interfering with the agreements.
According to the Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal, Supervalu's lawsuit said Mr. Bergmann will inevitably "exploit his extensive knowledge" of Supervalu's pricing, strategy and customer information to compete with Supervalu, the report stated.
In addition, Unified Grocers, sued to invalidate the non-compete agreement .
Supervalu
