Nearly 150 Jobs Could Be Cut At Stamford Fairway Market

STAMFORD, CT — The Fairway Market on Canal Street and its adjacent wine and spirit store could be closing, resulting in nearly 150 workers being laid off, unless the grocery chain can secure a buyer for those sites, according to a letter sent by store officials to the state Department of Labor.

The letter, which was received by the department on Jan. 31, indicates that all Fairway locations that do not currently have a contract with a buyer, which includes the Stamford stores, will be closed.

"Any plant closings or mass layoffs which occur at the affected locations are currently expected to be permanent, as are all employment losses at those locations," Charles Farfaglia, Fairway's senior vice president of human resources, said in the letter.

According to the labor department's website, 147 workers will be affected by the potential layoffs, which would occur in late March/early April.

Last month, company officials denied a New York Post report that the grocery chain would file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and soon shutter its 14 stores.

"Despite reports, Fairway Market has no intention to file for chapter 7 or liquidate all of its stores," a representative said in a statement. "All 14 stores remain open for business."

See also: Stamford Market Denies Stores Will Close Amid Bankruptcy Reports

In the letter, Farfaglia notes that Fairway Group Holding Corp. "filed voluntary chapter 11 petitions for relief in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York" on Jan. 23.

The company dug itself out of Chapter 11 proceedings in 2016 by borrowing money and shifting ownership from Sterling Investment Partners to a consortium led by Blackstone's GSO Capital Partners.

The iconic market has been providing New Yorkers groceries since 1933 when the Glickberg family opened a small fruit and vegetable stand on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, according to the company website. The Stamford stores are the chain's sole locations in Connecticut.

Patch has reached out to Fairway for further information.