If you haven’t already, watch the Whole Foods Value Tour video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQw7rXDWe68

My Whole Foods Market? Riverside Drive, Sherman Oaks, CA

I’m saying that there are ways to get beyond even abject poverty and still eat right, and well. I’ve been there, I’ve had to choose between health costs and good food. Without health insurance and really high medical bills, for a few years it was, should I be healthier in the first place by eating right or should I keep treating my symptoms with medication – each time I chose meds only it was a disaster.

So I understand the plight of someone who just can’t afford it. But Whole Foods doesn’t control the cost of shopping organically. If I were on the marketing board there, I’d keep the brand consistent and do a harder push to the population that can afford it, and do more with the manufacturers to get their coupons available to more people, faster. Then you’re helping people save money but not losing your brand identity.

Another way I try to prevent waste (and keep grocery costs low) is to plan my meals for every week. When I sit down and cross off meals when I know I will be eating lunch with a co-worker, or dinner for a friend’s birthday, then take inventory of food I already have and can use in meals, it makes my grocery list much shorter and all of the food gets used.

Aside from portion sizes, WFM is always clean and, more importantly, staffed with employees who seem genuinely happy to be there. I attribute excellent customer service to companies who work hard to meet their employees’ needs and who know how to interview and hire well.

What a great communication!!! Someone at WFM really jumped into the customer perspective and has hit the mark on so many levels. Cooking for one, two or 20 — that’s how many of your customers cook! Recipes with cost calculated — so useful; and it helps us understand how to compare WFM pricing with other options, including restaurants. Restaurant quality prepared food to go — it hasn’t quite caught on yet here in Tucson, so there’s a real need for education on how to buy and how to use these foods. By the way, the writing is so in touch with the questions in the heads of the customers’ inquiring minds. To me, one of the most important messages is coming through — reliability of the product.

Another critical message is the simple definition of natural foods — “we feature foods that are free from artificial preservatives, colors, flavors, sweeteners and hydrogenated fats.” That’s at least 20 or 30 chemical names I don’t have to look for on the labels when I shop at WFM! And so many people think they have only two choices — conventional or organic; understanding “natural” allows the shopper to compromise just as thoughtfully as I might when I choose how to spend my “organic dollars”.

By the way, thanks for the coupons, too. Perfect. So keep it coming. I’m looking forward to more of the same. Thank you.

Judith in Tucson

It’s kind of like a Mazlow’s Hierarchy of Food. People will be concerned with making sure that they have food first before they worry about what is in the food. It’s sad, but until our country decides to shift it’s priorities and assure that ALL people have safe and nutritious food to eat, it’s always going to be this way, even when the economy gets better.

I shop at Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s because I know that the food is always high quality. But I have a car to drive to both stores, two incomes in my household, and no kids. I have a choice. Many people do not.

I would LOVE to shop at Whole Foods, but the only reason I don’t right now is because I am still waiting for your stores to open. Based on my West Coast experiences I know it will be well worth the wait. I love that you take a lot of the headache out of shopping, use local produce as much as possible and have an incredible deli! It’s all about the shopping experience.

Waiting patiently…

Aloha,

Kelly Mitchell
Hawaii Real Estate Guru