By EARYEL BOWLEG


Tribune Staff Reporter


ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

SUPER VALUE staff mobilised “almost immediately” after owner Rupert Roberts urgently needed blood, the company’s president Debra Symonette said yesterday, as word spread of a health crisis involving one of the country’s most prominent businessmen.

Flyers circulated across social media over the weekend appealing for blood donations. The Tribune understands Mr Roberts has since been airlifted to Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, where he is in the intensive care unit.

Ms Symonette declined to disclose his medical condition but described staff as “very optimistic” and said he is “very much loved by his staff”, a loyalty she suggested explained the swift response.

“We’re just praying for him and hoping that everything will turn out for the best,” she said.

Inside the country’s largest all-Bahamian food store chain, she said, employees have rallied. A team is in place and staff are “all pulling together as usual” while being kept updated.

Mr Roberts founded Super Value and built it into the country’s largest all-Bahamian food store chain. He has also been a central figure in banking and commercial development for decades.

He was appointed chairman of Commonwealth Bank Limited after Bahamianisation and served from 1984 to 1992, overseeing rapid expansion after stagnation in the final years of foreign ownership, according to the bank.

During his tenure, the bank relocated its head office to 610 East Bay Street, opened branches in Oakes Field and Marsh Harbour, grew total assets by more than 700 percent to over $125 million, and increased net income from $1.3 million in 1984 to $4 million in 1992.