Hole Foods

1. What are the chief elements of the strategy that Whole Foods Market is pursuing?

The chief elements of the strategy that Whole Foods Market is pursuing are to offer the highest quality, least processed, most flavorful and naturally preserved foods available. This essentially means that Whole Foods Market strategy is to provide quality products that are free of preservatives and other non-essential “extras” to keep the products they offered as close to organic as possible. The company helped the industry gain acceptance among more and more consumers who have been becoming more and more concerned about the food they are eating. The CEO believes there is the opportunity for rapid growth in this market and he makes sure the company is highly selective about the products they sell and is committed to keeping the standards high and working on a sustainable agriculture.

2. Is the strategy well matched to recent developments and conditions in the natural and organic foods segment of the food retailing industry?

Absolutely. Since it is clearly the objective for Whole Foods to provide consumers with high quality, organic products that are free of hormones, pesticides, etc. and that is the direction a more health conscious consumer is looking for. It is clear that the natural and organic food segment will be taking off and is a rapidly growing industry. Whole Foods Market has been around since 1980 and over that time as grown into a company with more than 300 stores in North America and in the United Kingdom. I believe it is obvious that a company that gears ONLY toward organic products and is only slightly smaller than a grocer the size of Kroger (based on market cap) but with 2,100 less stores is a clear indication that this company is very in-tune with recent developments and conditions in the food retailing industry. This also shows that not only is the company currently in-tune, but has been in-tune and listening to its consumers for many years.

3. Do you...