Fine on ELOMAS – NEOI AGONES EPIRO

The Competition Commission imposed a fine of 172,424 euros on the ELOMAS Supermarket Association for violating the Competition rules. The latter fell into the “soft” as it cooperated fully with the echelons of the Commission and finally submitted to the Settlement Process.

The case concerns the distribution market of supermarket items at retail level. From the available data it appears that ELOMAS received a series of written letters and protests from its members requesting the non-operation of one member’s stores in a geographical area operated by another member of the Group. The letters and protests in question referred to the general principle / rule of operation of the Group reflected in a decision of its General Assembly, according to which its members had to keep a certain geographical distance between their stores, and in particular at least 1000 meters in areas outside Athens and Thessaloniki and 300 meters within Athens and Thessaloniki.

In view of these findings, the Group filed a request to be included in the Dispute Settlement Procedure, expressly and unconditionally acknowledging that it had committed a violation of the geographical allocation of markets, which is in essence a restriction of competition, submitted a Dispute Settlement Proposal. The Plenary of the EA, by virtue of par. 39 of the above no. 790/2022 of its Decision, decided to accept the said Proposal and issued the above-mentioned Decision 852/2024, whereby:

– Finds that the ELOMAS Group violated articles 1 of Law 3959/2011 and 101 of the TFEU by taking a prohibited decision on the geographical distribution of markets among its members.

– Obliges the above-mentioned Group – which has already amended, by way of self-commitment, its Articles of Association and its Internal Regulation of Operation and Ethics, providing for the obligation to observe the rules of competition law on the part of its members with explicit reference to the prohibition of geographical distribution – to omit in the future the established violation of Articles 1 of Law 3959/2011 and 101 of the TFEU.

-Imposes a fine (reduced in view of the submission to the Settlement Procedure) of a total amount of 172,424 euros for the violation established.

It is noted that ELOMAS started in 1994. Today the Group has 26 members – supermarket chains with a total of 327 stores throughout Greece.