Whole Foods

[Dekoung]

I just recently read a story in the WSJ about Whole Foods woes. Of course part of the problem is the economic downturn. But WF is increasingly losing market share to the chain groceries who are devoting more space to organics,etc. The article talked abut how WF is giving tours to shoppers in some stores to dilute the perception WF is so pricey. The writer said that the better value items are in the center of the store and the perimeter areas have the expensive items which is obvious I think to anyone shopping there. The writer said WF is very unhappy with its common nickname of Whole Paycheck.

The Wild Oats in Tulsa was so successful that it expanded. After it became WF I heard from one of the employees that WF was planning to build a larger store in South Tulsa. I imagine that is on hold now. But according to that person, the Tulsa store is one of the best performing given its size and location.

This has nothing to do with WF's locations but is interesting. I also read in the WSJ some months ago about how the WF owner would anonymously get on the Wild Oats financial message board before the buyout and badmouth WO.

I lived in Tulsa for years but since I now live in Norman, I would prefer a WF to come here but if OKC I would take that. Actually I want a Trader Joe's in the area but that is even less a possibility.

I would not talk about Tulsa not supporting Saks. It may not carry all the labels that other Saks do but I was told by someone who would know that last Christmas season it was a top Saks performer in sales. And if it were not supported then it would not have lasted this long.

[Kandyegirl]

Hi all ~

We were just talking about Whole Foods. A great friend from high school was in town over the weekend. She now lives in Dallas. We talked about all the cool, new stuff happening in OKC ( lofts downtown, more galleries opening, etc ). That led into our hopes for getting a Whole Foods. I've heard rumors that it could be part of the development at NW 36th & Broadway Ext. And... of course... I've also heard that our liquor laws are the reason they haven't already opened a store here.

XO ~
Kandye

One easy mouse click will feed the hungry....
http://www.hungersite.com

[amylynn5656]

The liquor laws MIGHT have something to do with it, seeing as not offering wine / liquor in the store might be a risk in a small market. However....

I recently moved back to OKC from Boulder, CO - where one of Whole Foods corporate offices is located (I believe the main one is in Austin). Anyways, Boulder has (basically) the same liquor laws that OKC does (they do have a refrigerated section in their liquor stores, but you can only buy low point beer in a grocery store and they only recently allowed liquor stores to open on Sundays).

Although Boulder was an early-adopter of the health food craze (its never really been a "craze" to them, IMO) Boulder is still a seasonal college town where you can't get liquor at the grocery store. And that's where a corp office is? Doesn't make sense to blame the liquor laws in OKC.

Like I said, I don't think not being able to sell liquor is a main factor in this - I think its probably just a cost issue in a weak economy. As shipping prices continue to increase, it becomes harder to ship such specialty goods far distances. Furthermore, I don't think our local growers that would contribute to a Whole Foods are able to produce the quantity required to support a store.

All of that being said, I'd LOVE LOVE LOVE to have a Whole Foods in OKC. Unique fresh ingredients are a scarcity here. Not to mention what a testament that would be to our continuing growth.

[CCOKC]

I heard a piece about Whole Foods on NPR last week. They are having financial difficulties right now due to the fact that food prices have gone up so much in the last year and their prices are just too high for most grocery shoppers. They are more likely than not to shut stores down than to be opening new ones until the economy gets better.

[metro]

amylynn, I agree it's not our liquor laws that are preventing us to have a Whole Foods, it's a scared national economy.

Kandyegirl, it's really not so much lofts being built downtown. Almost everything being built is condos or apartments. There are a few lofts going up though at Maywood Lofts, it is the only loft development right now.

[mecarr]

I agree Whole Foods is nice, but why so much focus on them for a grocery store? There are plenty of other good chain stores around.

[progressiveboy]

I agree Whole Foods is nice, but why so much focus on them for a grocery store? There are plenty of other good chain stores around.

I'm thinking because WF has the reputation of carrying quality, organic foods in addition it's selection, plus being part of the green enviornment. I believe OKC is starving for a "quality" grocery store. I personally would not call Homeland or Buy for Less quality grocery stores. I think OKC would do well with a Central Market. I also think a Tom Thumb "Signature Market" would be good.

[amylynn5656]

I'm thinking because WF has the reputation of carrying quality, organic foods in addition it's selection, plus being part of the green enviornment. I believe OKC is starving for a "quality" grocery store. I personally would not call Homeland or Buy for Less quality grocery stores. I think OKC would do well with a Central Market. I also think a Tom Thumb "Signature Market" would be good.

Agreed.

One thing we are forgetting here is that Whole Foods is not just a grocery store. Its a restaurant as well - with several prepared food choices to take home or eat right there in the store cafe. Furthermore, as phenomenons like the Food Network and (grr) Rachel Ray continue to grow, people are looking for more diverse options - and fresher ingredients.

[metro]

I'm thinking because WF has the reputation of carrying quality, organic foods in addition it's selection, plus being part of the green enviornment. I believe OKC is starving for a "quality" grocery store. I personally would not call Homeland or Buy for Less quality grocery stores. I think OKC would do well with a Central Market. I also think a Tom Thumb "Signature Market" would be good.

I agree we could use more "quality" grocery stores in OKC, especially a Whole Foods. Progressiveboy, have you been to any of our organic or natural grocers in OKC lately? There not Whole Foods, but it's a start and part of the same movement. Again, Buy For Less is pretty much a hispanic grocery store with hispanic type grocery products. We do have much more besides, Homeland, Buy For Less and WalMart. Crest is also a very nice local chain we have here.

Here are a few in case you may not be aware:

Akin's Natural Foods - Home Page

The Crescent Market - Good Things to Eat

Native Roots Market - Home

Forward Foods

Gourmet Food Store – Oklahoma – Local Gourmet Food Store and Shop Information

Super Cao Nguyen Market :: Home Page

[progressiveboy]

Metro, Since I have not lived in OKC for several years (9) to be exact. the only one I am familar with is Crescent Market as I used to work in that general vicinity. I did like that market since it did, and I am assuming still does carry lots of different items you do not find in a regular grocery store. The other stores you mention I am not familar with. I also use to frequent on occasion "Kamps". Excellent meat market.

[CCOKC]

Bill Kamp left Kamp's years ago and has his own place on North Western just east of Nichols Hills. I take my family there to get meat since I am a vegetarian but they also carry a lot of local things in there like Soup Soup, Christian Cheese etc. That store can be added to Metro's list. When my daugher was in Ballet on Classen I would use the hour to visit Kamp's, Crescent, Seasonal Cellars, and the bread shop which I can't remember the name right now. That is some good food shopping right there. I used to shop at Albertson's for my big shopping and have become so frustrated with the Homeland I just hate to go in there. I do most of my shopping at the farmer's market and Braums and my back yard now. Twice I have bought meat at Homeland that smelled really bad when I got it home. To my family that is, meat always smells bad to me. I also just joined the OK food coop and look forward to buying a lot of stuff from them.

From what I understand the old Kamp's does not have a grocery in it anymore. Am I correct in this?

[metro]

Correct from what I can tell, it appears to be a restaurant/deli now and live music dinners on certain nights.

[bluedogok]

I thought the holdup in getting a Whole Foods in Oklahoma had to do with the state's liquor laws, meaning that whole foods couldn't sell wine in their stores. I guess that doesn't make sense since Tulsa seems to have a Whole Foods (or is it wild oats?)

I would be careful not to link the increasing chatter about an OKC Whole Foods with the chances of it actually happening. I think more and more people are talking about how it would be cool, but I haven't seen much evidence that Whole Foods is considering OKC, unfortunately.

A Whole Foods that I have been to in Boston had no alcohol in it, so it just depends on the market. I think Boston still holds onto the "package store" concept. It is definitely a big component that they would like to have.

Whole Foods is opening new stores, just not as many and most are upgrades to existing locations. There is a relocation planned for the one in North Austin as they have gone to the bigger store concept that was developed at their HQ store in Downtown Austin which is about 3x larger than the current Gateway location.

I have been told that OKC is on the expansion list but there was no definite timetable....as previously stated, they are in a "wait and see" mode for many things because of the economy and the Wild Oats merger. I dare say that the Wild Oats merger was probably not a good thing for them at the time that it occurred.

[metro]

There is a poll on Home | Urban Neighbors about how far you would drive to shop at a Whole Foods. Please take the poll if you have time, important people are watching the results!

[ronronnie1]

I've been to WholeFoods in Dallas, and it was nice. But really I don't get the hype. I don't understand why it's so important to have one in OKc. Don't get me wrong, if a WholeFoods is build in OKc, great. But I'm not losing sleep over it.

And Progressiveboy, out of those "5 new skyscrapers" planned for Dallas, I know that at least two of them have been canceled. Canceled as in never gonna happen. I'm just sayin'...

[southernskye]

This is the list of stores in development for the next 2 years. Okc isn't on that list and as much as I would love to see one here, I'm not holding my breath.

I sure will enjoy going and wandering around in the downtown Austin one in a couple weeks. My son and I are riding the train down during spring break.

[bluedogok]

In other Whole Foods news, they settled with the FTC.

Austin Business Journal - Whole Foods settles case with FTC
Friday, March 6, 2009, 9:29am CST | Modified: Friday, March 6, 2009, 1:39pm

Whole Foods Market Inc. announced Friday that it had reached a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission over the commission's antitrust challenge to the Austin grocer's 2007 acquisition of Wild Oats Markets Inc.

In keeping with FTC protocol, the settlement agreement has been placed on public record for a 30-day comment period that ends April 6. After that the FTC will issue a final ruling.

Under the terms of the agreement, a third-party divestiture trustee has been appointed to market for sale:

* leases and related assets for 19 non-operating former Wild Oats stores, 10 of which were closed by Wild Oats prior to the merger and nine of which were closed by Whole Foods Market;
* leases and related fixed assets (excluding inventory) for 12 operating acquired Wild Oats stores and one operating Whole Foods Market store; and
* Wild Oats trademarks and other intellectual property associated with the Wild Oats stores.

The trustee will have six months to market the assets to be sold and another six months beyond that for any good faith offers not finalized during the initial period. According to Whole Foods, the only other obligations on the company imposed by the settlement are in support of the divestiture process.

”We are pleased to have reached a mutually-satisfactory agreement with the FTC," said Whole Foods CEO John Mackey. Mackey added, "it will be business as usual in the 13 operating stores to be marketed for sale."

Employees at the stores that are being sold will either receive a guaranteed job offer in another store or an enhanced severance package from Whole Foods, Mackey said.

As for how the settlement will affect Whole Foods' financial results, the company said it expects to record a non-cash charge of up to $19 million related to the sale of the 13 operating stores. The combined stores had sales of about $31 million in the first quarter of fiscal year 2009, or about 1.3 percent of the company's stotal sales of $2.5 billion.

Whole Foods' (Nasdaq: WFMI) shares climbed 1 percent to $11.87 on Friday after news of the settlement hit Wall Street.

Whole Foods closed on its purchase of Boulder, Colo.-based Wild Oats in August 2007 after an FTC antitrust challenge to the deal was blocked by a U.S. District Court judge. Last year, an appeals court ruled that that judge had erred in blocking the challenge, which allowed the FTC to reopen the case. An administrative hearing on the antitrust case was scheduled for April 6, but the two sides agreed in January to halt litigation in an attempt to negotiate a resolution.

The addresses for the 13 operating stores offered for sale are:

* 7133 N. Oracle Rd., Tucson, Ariz.
* 8688 E. Raintree Dr., Scottsdale, Ariz.
* 2584 Baseline Rd., Boulder, Colo.
* 1651 Broadway St., Boulder, Colo.
* 3180 New Center Pt., Colorado Springs, Colo.
* 5910 S. University Blvd., Littleton, Colo.
* 9229 N Sheridan Blvd., Westminster, Colo.
* 340 N. Main St., West Hartford, Conn.
* 4301 Main St., Kansas City, Mo.
* 1090 St. Francis Dr., Santa Fe, NM
* 7250 W. Lake Mead Blvd., Las Vegas, Nev.
* 19440 N.W. Cornell Rd., Hillsboro, Oreg.
* 6930 S. Highland Dr., Salt Lake City, Utah

[Decious]

I understand that people like Whole Foods Market, but I'm not sure it's worth all of the fuss that it receives. It's not like it's some super exclusive outfit. There are locations in Omaha, Little Rock and several in New Mexico. It's not our market size or demographics that have caused them to stay away. It's something else.

Just out of curiosity I'd really like to know what it is. Tulsa wasn't in their plans either. That store is a product of circumstance in the form of a Wild Oats conversion post acquisition.