Intermarché and Casino have been sentenced to fines totaling 4 million euros “for practices that restrict competition”, the Paris Court of Appeal announced on Wednesday. It had been seized by the Minister for the Economy in the face of “a significant imbalance in the rights and obligations of the parties”.
According to the court, the two brands had demanded from certain suppliers “additional investments without effective consideration and under the threat of reprisals”, the facts dating back to 2015. “We are not commenting on a court decision”, reacted a door -Casino’s word, saying “wait for the rest of the procedure”.
A heavier sentence
In detail, the companies Intermarché Casino Achats, Achats Marchandises Casino and ITM Alimentaire International were sentenced, in a first judgment, to a civil fine of 2 million euros. In a second judgment, the companies Achats Produits Casino and Intermarché Casino Achats were fined an additional 2 million euros. Monoprix was ordered to jointly pay this last fine of 500,000 euros.
The court specified that to determine the amount of the fines, it relied on the “market share” of the distributors, “the duration of the disputed practices, the amount of the financial benefits sought” or even “the impact of the attempted submission on commercial relations with their suppliers”.