Whole Foods Market

Situation/Main issue

Whole Foods Market began from humble beginnings and over the last thirty-five plus

years it has grown into a company that serves customers who prefer natural and organic foods.

The company began in September 1980 with only nineteen employees and has grown to four

hundred and thirty-one stores with ninety-one thousand employees (Newsroom). As indicated in

the company’s stock price below, Whole Foods has experienced both growth and decline over

the past five years. It is interesting to see that the company’s stock went from $38.72 (January

2006) to only $4.10 (November 2008). The all-time high of $65.24 was in October 2013 and last

week the stock was begin traded at $28.93 (Whole Foods Market Inc.).

Over the …show more content…
These points will be

analyzed side by side in order to make a recommendation that will help the company move

forward and not backwards.

Factors necessary for developing a strategy for the Whole Foods

The factors that should be taken into consideration while developing a strategy is

arguably the most important process. If inadequate factors are selected to develop a strategy, it

will result in a failed outcome. For Whole Foods, it is crucial for them to define their target

market by identifying the group who purchases organic foods. This group represents the initial

cohort who are the company’s most loyal customers. These customers need to feel important

when visiting the store and the goal is to make sure they have a five-star experience.

Another important factor to consider when developing a strategy is socioeconomic status

of the target market. This is an important consideration because you want to make sure people

who like organic foods are able to purchase these types of foods at a reasonable price. It …show more content…
For the

younger population, communication from the company could be sent directly to their smartphone

while the older generation generally prefers print newsletters and advertisements. The ability to

connect with your current and future customers is critical in today’s ever-changing world. The

company that adapts the quickest and learns insight about their customers will be the winnings in

the race to increase their company’s sales revenue.

Two alternative suggestions for a strategy, pros and cons of each

The two strategic alternative suggestions I have for Whole Foods include:

 Reduce capital expenditures on additional projects as well as analyze profitability of all

stores and their proximity to other stores

 Develop a customer relationship management database that has the ability to track

analytics in order to attract new customers and also retain current customers

With the first alternative suggestion, I believe the largest benefit would be increasing net

income which would help raise the stock price. Once a company reduces it extra overhead costs

(i.e. rent, electricity, wages, and other daily operating costs) it allows the company to use

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