For those unfamiliar with Market Basket, it's a small, regional grocery chain with 71 stores in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine. For decades, two members of the family that owns Market Basket—Arthur T. Demoulas and Arthur S. Demoulas—have been fighting for control of the business.
The Demoulas family is a Greek-American family that controls DeMoulas Super Markets, Inc., the company that operates the Market Basket chain of supermarkets. Beginning in 1990, two sides of the Demoulas family fought for control of DeMoulas Super Markets.
On August 27, 2014, the shareholders of Market Basket reached a deal to sell the remaining 50.5% shares of the company to Arthur T. Demoulas and his sisters for $1.5 billion.
— Market Basket's board of directors on Friday shared an update on the status of the investigation into suspended CEO Arthur T. Demoulas. The Tewksbury-based grocery chain's board placed Demoulas on paid administrative leave on May 28 over allegations that he had been considering leading a work stoppage.
The public pressure campaign worked, and a deal was reached weeks later to sell the Market Basket chain to Arthur T. Demoulas for nearly $1.6 billion, bringing the saga to an end. Demoulas' spokesperson said Wednesday the company paid off the $1.6 billion in debt financed to purchase the company in December of 2024.
Longtime Market Basket employee says company culture has changed
Is Market Basket still in debt?
Demoulas' leadership in December of 2024, the company paid off $1.6 billion in debt that financed the purchase of the company in 2014," a Demoulas spokesperson said Wednesday. However, the board said the sisters provided most of the money that allowed Market Basket to repay the $1.6 million they were loaned in 2014.
in the battle for Market Basket dominance are sisters Caren Demoulas Pasquale, Frances Demoulas Kettenbach, and Glorianne Demoulas Farnham. They control 60% of the company's shares, compared to Arthur T.'s 28%.
The Market Basket family saga continues. Eight weeks ago, the local supermarket chain placed popular CEO Arthur “Artie” T. Demoulas on leave, citing oversight concerns and disputed succession plans. The board alleges that Demoulas has been planning a work stoppage to disrupt the business.
The company's board has placed its CEO, Arthur T. Demoulas, on leave — a move that comes a decade after an attempt to oust Demoulas was thwarted partly by an employee strike. In the current controversy, the board cited oversight concerns and disputed succession plans as it announced its move against Demoulas.
Market Basket's board of directors has fired two suspended executives who are loyal to suspended CEO Arthur T. Demoulas. Joseph Schmidt, director of operations, and Tom Gordon, grocery director, were both fired Tuesday in the latest chapter in the struggle for control of the popular supermarket chain.
Even with the low prices and the high salaries, Market Basket is reported to be quite profitable - making an estimated $217m in profit on $4.6bn of revenues last year.
A Market Basket spokesperson said the Department of Homeland Security asked for the I-9s of employees in 2023 and that the investigation found the paperwork had not been properly updated, leading to the workers' suspensions.
It is known, however, that Demoulas offered $1.6 billion in his buyout proposal. Since this sale was initially announced, Market Basket has opened three new stores and created 1,300 new jobs, according to NECN.
Customers and employees boycotted the company. The board of directors said this cost the company millions of dollars. Top leaders at Market Basket are exchanging blows after CEO Arthur T. Demoulas and other leaders were suspended, after the board of directors accused them of planning a work stoppage.
The Demoulas family landed on FORBES' list of America's Richest Families in July with a net worth we then pegged at $2.2 billion, but the combined net worth of the family's warring factions is now even higher due to the transaction valuing the company at $3.5 billion, some of which will be owned by a private equity ...
Demoulas) sued Telemachus Demoulas, alleging that they had been defrauded out of their shares in the company. Arthur S. Demoulas later filed a second suit, this time alleging that Telemachus Demoulas had diverted assets from the jointly owned family company to ones controlled by him and his children.
The Market Basket is a local, family-owned specialty market focused on delivering the best in gourmet food. Founded by Anthony Chernalis in 1960, the Wyckoff, New Jersey store that was focused on prime meats and off premise catering grew into the flagship store located in Franklin Lakes New Jersey.
Who is Arthur T. Demoulas? Though Demoulas is the CEO of Market Basket, he is a minority shareholder who owns 28% of the company. Three of his sisters each own a 20% share, while the remaining 12% is in a trust for the family's grandchildren.
The brand known today as 12 Baskets began in 2002. By November 2025, it will clock 23 remarkable years—the same year Michael Owolabi Afolaranmi, its founder and Chairman, celebrates his 50th birthday. That alone is a testimony in numbers: a company and a calling birthed in the same season of a man's life.
Prime meats, grade A poultry and prepared meat items are the foundation of The Market Basket Meat Department. We carry pork and veal products that are grain fed as well as organic chicken and all-natural turkey sourced from Pennsylvania Dutch country.
