Whole Foods

[BossLady]

Not to mention Petty's in Utica Square..some of my relatives drive in from Bixby to shop there.

I take 35,000 sf to be fairly small for a Whole Foods, so I'm guessing they still don't expect a lot of productivity out of the OKC store? That's good, because the lower their expectations are, the higher they'll be exceeded in OKC, and the sooner we might get a second store in Norman or Downtown, but more likely..Norman.

I lived in Philadelphia for years and they had 2 Whole Foods and it wasn't nearly enough to handle the demand. Maybe they like it that way but if Philly only had two, I can't imagine them building another one in this area. We can always dream, right?

[Urban Pioneer]

I really enjoyed all of the speculating throughout the years.

Now we need something new to start speculation and rumors. What should it be?

Nordstrom

[metro]

could they put a whole foods wine and beer store in a separate bldg right next to it to skirt the archaic liquor laws?

Can we give the "archaic liquor laws" diatribe a rest? We've hashed it out a million times already.

Cash will go further in an emergency (think 2-3 day power outage) than a piece of plastic. Not to try and change the subject or anything.

Yeah, better yet we should all carry some gold coins around, after all gold is a greattt investment, considering it hasn't been used for currency since the Roman Empire.

Debit cards are murky waters, not all the Visa/MC rules apply to debit cards.

Explain why it's murky waters? They have the same protections as a CC, but they don't have the fees, etc. since you're directly debiting the money from your bank account.

never been to a whole foods, but 29,000 sq ft difference between okc and parklane is huge. is the wine and beer section that big? cant be...

I've been to numerous WF, including the ParkLane store, it is exceptionally large, and has a large beer/wine selection ,etc. It is also 2 stories, although no products are on the lower floor, it's just escalators (people and cart) that go to the parking garage, but I wonder the part that is actually theirs is included in the space. I'm guessing it is, as well they have 2 cafe areas, which we would be okay with just one cafe area.

I lived in Philadelphia for years and they had 2 Whole Foods and it wasn't nearly enough to handle the demand. Maybe they like it that way but if Philly only had two, I can't imagine them building another one in this area. We can always dream, right?

Philly is one AWESOME city. Just because they only have 2 stores, don't give your hopes up, many similar sized and smaller cities have more than 2 stores, (Denver, Nashville, Atlanta, Dallas, Miami, Connecticut, Albuquerque, Sante Fe, and on and on.)

[warreng88]

For comparison, the Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market on 23rd Street between Villa and Penn is right at 40,000 square feet. Whole Foods will be 35,000.

[metro]

Bummer considering I shop there somewhat frequently and feel that store is small, although WF is much better at using their space IMO, however the Tulsa store is decent sized and knowing ours will be bigger is slightly comforting, although just having a WF period is a big gift to us. It sounds like it is already beginning to raise the bar of a couple local grocers.

[diesel]

Bummer considering I shop there somewhat frequently and feel that store is small, although WF is much better at using their space IMO, however the Tulsa store is decent sized and knowing ours will be bigger is slightly comforting, although just having a WF period is a big gift to us. It sounds like it is already beginning to raise the bar of a couple local grocers.

I would be alot happier with one the size of Park Lane but then again, 35,000 is better than nothing.. Maybe we can provide enough business to them that they would want to open up other locations in the city..

[JerzeeGrlinOKC]

I lived in Philadelphia for years and they had 2 Whole Foods and it wasn't nearly enough to handle the demand. Maybe they like it that way but if Philly only had two, I can't imagine them building another one in this area. We can always dream, right?

Just remember that there are many in the suburban areas (check out Ardmore, Jekintown, Marlton (NJ), Devon, Lansdale). Philly proper is very small compared to OKC (Philly is only 135 square miles compared to 600 square miles for OKC). Although given the population of Philly + environs you may have a point. But there is also more competition for the market - Trader Joe's, many other upscale grocery stores (the standard for grocery stores out east is much higher than out here, the "regular" groceries are comparable to the Homeland on May and Britton).

I guess we'll just have to take it one store at a time ;-).

[Richard at Remax]

unreal. you guys finally get what you want and it's not big enough. Go figure

[metro]

You read too much into it worthycook, you failed to mention the part where I said

although just having a WF period is a big gift to us.

Just to clarify in case anyone reads too much into my quote (unless you were referring to someone else), I am STOKED just to have a WF period, even if it was the smallest in the nation.

[diesel]

You read too much into it worthycook, you failed to mention the part where I said Just to clarify in case anyone reads too much into my quote (unless you were referring to someone else), I am STOKED just to have a WF period, even if it was the smallest in the nation.

Ohh yeah I am stoked as well.. Too bad it will be another year and a few months before opening but will be well worth the wait..

[okclee]

We should all email Trader Joe's and make sure they got the memo WF's is coming to Okc.

Maybe it could lead to Okc getting another new organic grocer somewhere else in the metro.

http://www.traderjoes.com/about/loca...uests-form.asp

[Richard at Remax]

didn't refer to anyone specifically. just the overall tone I was getting from the thread.

[okclee]

I believe that WF's is trying to open smaller stores in the future. They believe smaller is better for long term "sustainability".

I have seen studies showing that bigger is better at first, but after ten years the smaller stores maintain while larger stores tend to under perform.

[metro]

They just put a WF sign up on the corner of Grand and Classen. I will get pics/video today!

[okclee]

What are the thoughts on this quote from Mr. McClendon?

“The addition of a Whole Foods Market to the Classen, Western, Grand and N.W. 63rd Street district contiguous to our corporate headquarters campus signifies a major step forward in our vision to create the most vibrant and dynamic urban environment for our employees and neighbors to live, work and play in Oklahoma."

I have seen him mention before about making the Chesapeake campus an "Urban environment."

[metro]

Fixing to upload the video to my video thread if you want to get perspective of the entire site, here are a few stills.

[BDP]

The addition of a Whole Foods Market to the Classen, Western, Grand and N.W. 63rd Street district contiguous to our corporate headquarters campus signifies a major step forward in our vision to create the most vibrant and dynamic urban environment for our employees and neighbors to live, work and play in Oklahoma.

Urban?

Anyway, I think 35,000 sf is a good size for it. I'm not a big fan of big grocery stores anyway and maybe it will force them to make some choices that our local businesses can fill and stay in business by complimenting rather than competing with Whole Foods. Besides, it will make their sales per square foot look good, which I think will help Chesapeake market Classen Curve.

[okclee]

McClendon has used the word "urban" to describe his campus more and more frequently.

It actually makes me think about the plans he has for this area. If he were to build an apartment tower or a hotel tower or both, if only we knew.

[MikeOKC]

Urban?

Anyway, I think 35,000 sf is a good size for it. I'm not a big fan of big grocery stores anyway and maybe it will force them to make some choices that our local businesses can fill and stay in business by complimenting rather than competing with Whole Foods. Besides, it will make their sales per square foot look good, which I think will help Chesapeake market Classen Curve.

Things like the quote above make me think: Live, Work, Play, mixed-use center ala The Shops at Legacy in Plano.

[Head]

I've only seen the Austin store. It is absolutely amazing (to a foodie)!
Aparrently, that's the flagship store.
I don't expect our store to be as big or elaborate, but it's going to be a Whole Foods!!!
YAY!!!

On a side note, I'm almost as glad that the speculation is over.

[Spartan]

It is really interesting how Legacy in Plano has some really impressive corporate clients, but here Chesapeake is doing it without anyone else just for themselves--granted, moving at a slower pace. It makes you wonder how large-scale the development that Whole Foods is a part of will be in the end.

I will say this, that I hope Rand doesn't design it lol. I doubt he will considering WF typically uses its own design services...but I wish they would somehow incorporate the dormers of the Chesapeake campus, which in my opinion, is an architectural masterpiece as far as corporate campuses go. I especially love how they're mixing in Rand's ultra-modern designs such as Building One, the parking garages along Classen, and the new office bldg u/c in front of 63rd--with the traditional Georgian architecture with prominent dormer windows lining the pediment. I love both, it's an interesting clash, and I think they clash well..they have a strong dialogue with eachother that conveys a sense of power AND open-mindedness.

[lasomeday]

That area has more corporate headquarters then you think, JMA and Midfirst are in the neighborhood. I am sure there are more but those are two big companies that will benefit from all that Chesapeake is doing.

[Spartan]

This is true. Would be cool if MidFirst decided they wanted to be a part of the development of the neighborhood.

[bluedogok]

I believe that WF's is trying to open smaller stores in the future. They believe smaller is better for long term "sustainability".

I have seen studies showing that bigger is better at first, but after ten years the smaller stores maintain while larger stores tend to under perform.

They were trending bigger until the economic downtown, I think when/if The Domain store fires back up it will probably be smaller than the 70,000sf that was originally proposed.

I will say this, that I hope Rand doesn't design it lol. I doubt he will considering WF typically uses its own design services...but I wish they would somehow incorporate the dormers of the Chesapeake campus, which in my opinion, is an architectural masterpiece as far as corporate campuses go. I especially love how they're mixing in Rand's ultra-modern designs such as Building One, the parking garages along Classen, and the new office bldg u/c in front of 63rd--with the traditional Georgian architecture with prominent dormer windows lining the pediment. I love both, it's an interesting clash, and I think they clash well..they have a strong dialogue with eachother that conveys a sense of power AND open-mindedness.

I interviewed with the firm that does most of the Whole Foods stores when I first moved to Austin, they are still doing stores for WF but have had a name change.

Stone Soup 6 Architecture

[metro]

That area has more corporate headquarters then you think, JMA and Midfirst are in the neighborhood. I am sure there are more but those are two big companies that will benefit from all that Chesapeake is doing.

What is JMA?