Danish supermarket chain now stocking a school on its shelves

Vocational education courtesy of Dansk Supermarked

Dansk Supermarked – the chain that operates Netto, Bilka, Føtex and other supermarkets across the country – is getting set to offer its own brand of secondary education.

The training, a combination of a traditional boarding school and a vocational school, lasts for a year and will be offered at Viden Djurs in Grenå.

“You get a vocational education and many of the same benefits of being at a boarding school and making lifelong friends,” Christian Flø, the head of talent management and learning at Dansk Supermarked, told TV2.

Instant interns
Students immediately become apprentices for Dansk Supermarked – a fact that Flø will help them decide to choose the school.

“Many are opting out of choosing vocational schools because it has been difficult to find an internship,” he said.

Flø said that too few young people are completing a vocational education. He hopes that Dansk Supermarked’s new school will help to reverse that trend.

Attendance at the school is not free. The price tag is 7,500 kroner per month for room, board and the education.

Flø said that since the attendees are getting paid an apprentice wage of around 11,500 kroner per month before taxes, the education becomes essentially free.

Career track
The program is of course intended to kickstart careers at Dansk Supermarked while at the same time providing access to higher educations in subjects like marketing or finance.

The company hopes to open the inaugural class in August with at least 30 students.