New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is advancing plans to open five city-run grocery stores, prompting criticism from John Catsimatidis, chief executive of supermarket chain Gristedes. Catsimatidis argues that government-run shops would compete unfairly with private businesses, including supermarkets and bodegas, because they could benefit from public resources and different operating constraints.

The proposal is intended to improve access to affordable food, but critics say it could threaten existing local retailers rather than address underlying costs. Catsimatidis described the plan as government competing with “its own citizens” and called for it to be shelved, while the article presents the dispute as part of a wider debate over the city’s role in essential services.