many as 5,000 employees and customers were held at the company's Tewksbury headquarters and other locations demanding the reinstatement of Arthur T. Many supermarket, warehouse and corporate office workers including delivery truck drivers went on strike, leaving many shelves bare empty at many Market Basket locations. On July 20, seven employees were fired for their roles in organizing the protests. In the midst of the protests, Arthur T. offered to buy the entire company from his cousins, an offer that the board (controlled by Arthur S.'s family) said it would consider. The board was reportedly also reviewing additional offers. On July 28, 2014, The Boston Globe reported that Arthur T. Demoulas was the only remaining bidder for the 50.5% stake of the company held by the family of Arthur S. Demoulas. All previous offers by outside parties to buy the company had been withdrawn and the board was reportedly "furiously negotiating" with Arthur T. to resolve the situation. The board denied this report, claiming that several offers were still being considered. On August 17, 2014, Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick and New Hampshire governor Maggie Hassan met with both sides of the feud in an attempt to broker a deal. On August 22, Arthur T. and his sisters made a $1.5 billion offer for the 50.5% of shares owned by the opposing side of the family; several subsequent days of negotiations initially failed to reach an accord. Some analysts estimated the company to be in "dire" financial straits due to the weeks of protests. On August 27, 2014, the shareholders of Market Basket reached a deal to sell the remaining 50.5% shares of the company to Arthur T. Demoulas and his sisters for $1.5 billion. According to Fortune, Demoulas was backed by The Blackstone Group, a private equity firm that put up over $500 million towards the purchase price. However, according to the Boston Globe, a source reported the deal was funded with debt, not private equity. Felicia Thornton and Jim Gooch remained as the Chief Executives of the company but Arthur T. was given full operational authority until the deal closed. On December 12, 2014, it was announced that the deal was complete. Market Basket today As of January 2023, Market Basket operates 88 stores within four states - Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and Rhode Island. The chain's footprint encompasses an area radiating from Boston and stretching along the New