CALLICOON, NY — One employee-owned company is buying another: The four Peck’s Markets in Sullivan County are under contract to be sold to PSK Supermarkets.

“In 2023, we took a vote of the associates to see if they were interested in selling the company, which they were,” said Lee Reimer, who runs the four stores with his team of more than 200 associates. Arthur Peck started the first Peck’s Market in the 1970s in Narrowsburg; the company became employee-owned in 1983 and over the years expanded to add Callicoon, Jeffersonville, Livingston Manor and Eldred locations. (The Narrowsburg store was sold many years ago and is not part of the Peck’s Market group.)

“We wanted to make sure that we would only consider a company to sell the business to if they were going to provide a good working environment for our people with the possibility of growth for the teams,” Reimer said. “We did not want to sell out to a big chain because we were concerned that they would not care about our people or the communities the way we do.”

The transition will take place after Labor Day.

PSK Supermarkets is also a family-run company owned by its employees. The founder, Paul Katz, started with a fruit stand in the Bronx in the 1940s. In 1956, he had saved up enough money to buy his first grocery store on 204th Street. His son Sydney, who could often be seen delivering orders on his bicycle as a child, joined his dad in 1962. The father-and-son team built up the business to seven grocery stores over the years. 

In 1987, Sydney’s sons, Daniel and Noah, joined the business, and the family started opening up full-sized supermarkets throughout New York City and upstate New York. Today they operate 14 supermarkets from Brooklyn, to Harlem, to Dutchess and Columbia County. Stores do business as Foodtown, Freshtown and Pathmark.

Noah Katz said that in 2020, after he and Daniel saw how hard their employees worked keeping the shelves full and servicing customers, they decided to become employee-owned, under an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP).

Today, Noah is the president and CEO of PSK. He provided more details, below:

What will happen to Peck’s associates?

PSK has offered every Peck’s associate their job, with the same pay and benefits. The Peck’s Market name will not change.

How did PSK become interested in Peck’s?

Last winter, Peck’s approached Noah Katz, and it turned out to be the perfect match. In fact, the Peck’s vote to sell to PSK was unanimous among all the associates. Not a single employee voted no.

How do associates share in profits?

Employees of ESOPs earn allocations of company shares every year. They accumulate the shares and redeem them for the cash value when they retire.

Noah said, “We have always attributed the success of our company to the hard work of our associates; they are amazing people. That is why the ESOP works so well. The associates have the ownership stake in the upside of all their hard work.”

One employee-owned company purchasing another employee-owned company is extremely rare. The associates with stock at Peck’s will receive the proceeds from the sale from all their hard work over the years. Then they can do it all over again at PSK. The longer the associates stay on at PSK, the more stock they can earn over their career in the larger company.

Are the associates on board with the change?

The associates at Peck’s are very excited about this transition. Jeff Gombita, who has worked in the stores since he was a young man, said, “All the associates are looking forward to this great opportunity for everyone. The Peck’s associates get the rewards from the sale of the company for all our hard work over the years, plus we get to be part of a great new larger company that operates with the same family run values as us.

“The customers also win because the prices will be more aggressive with the larger company. We are very happy that PSK is keeping everyone working in the new company. That was very important to us.”

How will the change affect prices, service and products?

Lee Reimer and Noah Katz have identified a theme for the transition: “Keep everything going.”

“We will start the process of lowering many prices based on our lower cost structure from the Allegiance Coop,” said Noah. “We will also be running a very aggressive weekly sale, which we do in all our stores.”

PSK is part of a large buying coop called Allegiance Retail Services. Its 135 member stores can buy groceries at the same truckload prices as all the major chains.

“This lets us pass on the savings to customers and go head-to-head with every major chain in the region,” said Katz. “Peck’s shoppers will save money after the transition due to our lower cost and pricing strategy.” 

Will PSK keep local vendors?

PSK will also be keeping all the local vendors. PSK, just like Peck’s, is a very charitable company. PSK will continue all the charitable relationships and giving in the communities of the Peck’s stores. They do this now in their other stores.

Once the stores are transitioned and the associates have learned some of the new systems, a remodel plan will be developed starting next year.

PSK stores have fully remodeled delis, bakeries, fruit and vegetable departments, butcher shops and more. The Peck’s stores will start to receive these upgrades.

PSK also has its Fresh Points program: Shoppers earn 10 points per dollar on every order with their club card. The points add up and the point totals are always on the register receipt. Then, shoppers redeem their points for free and discounted groceries. For example, PSK has shoppers who have never paid for milk or eggs because that is how some shoppers decide to use their points. Points can also be used for free gas for your car, gift cards and groceries.

Katz said, “We are thrilled to team up with the Peck’s associates and serve these wonderful communities. We thank everyone for giving us the chance to serve you and we look forward to being part of the community for decades to come.”

Editor's note: The information for this story was taken from a statement submitted by PSK Supermarkets president Noah Katz after the River Reporter submitted a list of questions.