Whole Food Market in 2008:Vision, Core Values and Strategy

Whole Foods Market has prided itself in the selection of the products it sells and uses by quality, taste, value, and production processes strengthening their business further. They have carried out this key strategy by tasting every product before they purchased them, sourcing from local, organic farmers, requiring livestock and seafood items from farmers to be raised humanely and raised on pasturelands, well water, wholesome grains, and not use steroids, hormones or byproducts. Keeping products at high quality, great taste, comparable prices, and environmentally friendly will allow repeat customers and word-of-mouth advertising to increase the value of Whole Foods Market. (Thompson, 2012)

* Whole Foods Market was founded in 1980 working with natural and healthy foods in Austin, Texas; it’s one of the world’s largest of natural and organic foods supermarkets. In 2009, the sales total $8 billion and had 289 stores in the U.S. The Whole Foods Market plans to come up with strategies to help improve the company but to do so understanding the core values plays a major role in the company’s planning. The strategies

During the changes in strategic initiatives, it is also important for the company to keep Whole Foods Market’s mission and its

Barbara Farfan (n.d.) explains that, “Whole Foods Core Values define how Whole Foods leaders and employees interact with their products, customers, employee team, shareholders, communities, suppliers, and align everyone behind the mission of improving health in general.” For example, Whole Foods believes in satisfying their consumers by selling the highest quality of natural and organic products obtainable. The company strives to maintain the highest standards of quality, not only in the products they offer but in supporting excellence in the development their employees, communities, and the environment. Whole Foods direct core values as listed on the company website (2015 Whole Foods Market IP. L.P.), also

Whole Food goes by a management philosophy called conscious capitalism meaning "the ethical treatment of customers, employees, and the environment is the main mission and basis for organizational culture (Cheretis& Mujtaba 2014,p.7)." This is a management philosophy that was created by the CEO of Whole Foods, John Mackey. The philosophy was made to empower people, which is the customer, employer and investors. The three aspects will improve socialism as a whole. It's a win-win for the entire system and he value that is shown to employees in this system ignites enthusiasm to work. It’s just a trickle-down effect for the customer to feel valued and profit begins for the shareholder. People is what makes a successful business and Mackey shows

In response to your request for a thorough analysis of the strategic position of Whole Foods Markets, and the industry in which it operates, an analysis has been performed and the results can be found below. In conclusion, a recommendation for Whole Foods Markets, based on the analysis, will be given.

When considering factors that make Whole Foods an appealing company, I would have to say first, that comes to mind is their approach to fostering strong value in their employees. The thought process behind taking care of your employees and working as a team is something I hold dear to my heart. I grew up in the military as a young adult where teamwork is key to success. The way this company utilizes this approach to management is ideal for building a committed and strong work force.

As of September 2015 Whole Foods Incorporated had 431 stores in the United States, Britain and Scotland. Over the years since its inception Whole Foods Incorporated has grown steadily recording high revenues that have made it to be recognized as a Fortune 500 company. It has accomplished this by sticking to its original mission of retailing organic foods in a market where other retail stores mainly retail processed foods that are high in calories and hydrogenated fats. During the 2008 recession, revenues in Whole Foods Inc. dropped as this company struggled to meet its operation costs with a receding number of shoppers, this caused the company to close some of its stores in Britain for failing to meet is profitability targets (Market, 2008).

Many Americans today are making the decision to eat and buy organic products and food. Organic food are grown without the use of pesticides or chemicals and do not contain additives, pesticides, pesticides, antibiotics or hormones. The fruits and vegetables are fresher healthier and contain fundamental minerals that are prone to reduce heart disease, osteoporosis and other health issues. As a result, it can have a grave impact on your mental and emotional health as well as the environment. Due to these factors, John Mackey’s, CEO of Whole Foods is dedicated to promote the vitality and well being of all individuals by supplying the highest quality, of wholesome foods available, flavorful, least processed where customers can shop in an enjoyable

(b) How Whole Foods Market ® incorporates most if not all of the nine principles of composition of a mission statement. According to Whole Foods Market ®, their customers (their target market) (Onken, 2004) are the “most important stakeholder in our business. Therefore, we go to extraordinary lengths to satisfy and delight our customers. Customers are the lifeblood of our business and we are interdependent on each other” (WFM, 2004). Whole Foods Market ® understands that they have to have their customers business on a reaccuring basis; therefore, they have programs in place that instill loyality to their business. The bottom line for any company is profit and they get their profit from their customers. Whole Foods Market ® provides goods to their customers for a profit (Onken, 2004). Their products are natural food and they focus on quality. “Our product quality goals focus on ingredients, freshness, taste, nutritive value, safety and/or appearance” (WFM, 2004). This statement shows to their customers that they provide goods of food and they are different because they state

These core values are helping them to define and shape their vision and culture of the organization. These core values are a critical component to the development of their organization because they provide guidance, not only to their Team Members, but to other companies and potential customers. For the most part, I think Whole Foods core values are real. Every organization wants to set an example of who they are to help differentiate them for their competitors. So, I did some research and read some reviews from present and past employees on Indeed.

5. Based on the financial statement data in case Exhibit 1, how would you assess the company’s financial performance since 2009? Based on Exhibit 1, Whole Foods portrays an upward trend in revenue generation, profit levels, capital accumulation as well as earnings per share since 2009.Therefore, it would be right to state that the company’s financial performance experiences positive growth during this period. For instance, the gross revenue in 2009 was $ 2754 million and grew to $ 3136 million in 2010. By 2013, the gross profit had risen to $ 4629 million.

The business level strategy that Whole Foods Market utilizes is differentiation strategy. Whole Foods is focused on selling natural and organic foods. The intention is that customers will value the high quality of the organic food and eventually pay a high price. Also, WFM nurtures customer loyalty by providing unique products. For example, Whole Foods features “foods that are free of artificial preservatives, colors, flavors, sweeteners, and hydrogenated fats.” (7) Also, Whole Foods has implemented animal welfare standards. The animals are not treated with antibiotics when preventing diseases and infections or when developing their growth. Additionally, to demonstrated customers that they care for the farm animals they developed a 5 Step Animal

Whole Foods is a company that has the philosophy that takes the social and human capital to build themselves into a successful business. They take care of their employees and keep them engaged to keep them happy, which in return they produce higher quality work. If they are keeping customers satisfied, then it keeps investors happy because business will succeed which will create higher returns on their investments. A large study done on hotel employees in Turkey showed that there was a strong correlation between organizational trust and job satisfaction (GÜÇER & DEMIRDAG, 2017). This idea is very relevant and studies can be done in almost every occupation and should yield similar results.

Whole Foods Market began in 1970 as a local supermarket. Over the past 31 years, Whole Foods Market has grown from a single store in Austin, Texas, to becoming one of the worldwide leaders in providing consumers with natural and organic foods. They have grown to over 300 stores in both North America and the United Kingdom. (Whole Foods Market, Inc., 2011) This report examines the chief elements of the strategy that Whole Foods Market has put into place. Also, it uses past financial data to provide an assessment of the condition of the company going forward. Those assessments include recommendations of future actions, along with concerns I have about the way the company is currently operating and some difficulties that may be on the way.