Whole Foods Market

Summary
A trip to the grocery store is an experience in and of itself when the grocery store is a Whole Foods Market. From the artfully displayed organic produce and exotic cheeses, to the aisles filled with natural and organic canned goods, grocery staples, cereal, baby products and cleaning supplies, shoppers quickly realize this is not an average grocery store. Whole Foods is, in fact, the largest natural food store in the world.
A declining economy and antitrust complaint from the FTC, dramatically affected Whole Food’s growth strategy and expansion plans. Swift and decisive action was necessary. Despite the challenges, Whole Foods has maintained its commitment to their mission: Whole Foods, Whole People, Whole Planet.
Company Information
Since 1980, Whole Foods Market (WFM) has grown from one store in Austin, Texas to 289 across the US, Canada and the United Kingdom by January of 2010. From their humble beginnings, Whole Foods has grown into “the leader in natural and organic foods movement across the United States” (Thompson, 2011). The company’s goal is to sell the highest quality natural and organic products on the market and an become international brand considered the best food retailer in each of the communities served (Whole Foods, 2008).
Ranging in size from 20,000 and 80,000 square feet, each Whole Foods store employs between 25 and 620 employees. Categorized as a food and drug store, perishable products accounted for approximately sixty seven percent of total sales (Whole Foods, 2008). The average Whole Foods store caries between 20,000 and 50,000 products (Thompson, 2011).

Figure 1 ("Whole Foods Market, 2012 Annual Report," 2012)
Whole Foods Market conducts business with a focus on ...

... middle of paper ...

... Grow Business Retrieved 11/09/2013, 2013, from http://www.greenbiz.com/news/2009/06/10/loans-whole-foods-help-small-producers-grow-business
Thompson, A. A. (2011). Whole Foods Market in 2012: Vision, Core Values, and Strategy. In Elizabethtown College, Corporate Strategy (pp. 382-418): Mcgraw-Hill.
Whole Foods. (2007). Whole Foods Market to sell Henry’s and Sun Harvest stores and California distribution center subject Retrieved 11/08/2013, 2013, from http://media.wholefoodsmarket.com/news/whole-foods-market-to-sell-henrys-and-sun-harvest-stores-and-california-dis
Whole Foods. (2008). Annual Report 2008., from http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/sites/default/files/media/Global/Company Info/PDFs/ar08.pdf
Whole Foods Market, 2012 Annual Report. (2012), from http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/sites/default/files/media/Global/Company Info/PDFs/2012-WFM_Annual_Report.pdf