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As both a proud mom and a body care product developer for the Whole Foods Market brand, I have always taken care to use gentle and effective body care on my 5-year-old daughter. It thrills me to announce that our new, reformulated 365™ Body Care products meet the Whole Foods Market Premium Body Care standard! I’m now able to use excellent quality and budget-priced hair care as well as shower gels and lotions on my very active and dirty little girl.
Recently I spent the week with my family enjoying the crystal blue waters of Lake Tahoe and the fresh forest scents. Our spread-out family makes a yearly trip to the area and it was a good time to try out our new, reformulated 365™ Body Care products. Whole Foods Market launched the new shampoos, conditioners, shower gels and lotions in selected stores throughout the country in July and we hope to have full distribution in all stores by the end of the summer. My family tested them out and loved the new products – and the price – and I know yours will too.
Our Premium Body Care standard is stricter than that of many baby and kid’s lines. It doesn’t allow ingredients such as parabens, synthetic fragrances, polypropylene and polyethylene glycols, sodium lauryl and laureth sulfates. Whole Foods Market experts created the Premium Body Care standard to help our customers easily find safer, more natural body care products.
Our Whole Foods Market team worked for more than a year to reformulate our highly successful 365 Body Care products. It was a challenging proposition: How could we keep the formulas effective and cost-conscious while raising the bar by using only ingredients that meet our strict Premium Body Care standard? Surfactants, the ingredients that make products lather up, are some of the most expensive and difficult ingredients to source at budget formula cost with Premium Body Care standard quality. We succeeded, though, and our new formulas are gentle, effective and affordable for everyone! Working on the team that reformulated these products gives me a new appreciation for the way a group of people on a mission can accomplish great things.
Fresh mint, lavender flowers and zesty citrus scents made from pure essential oils are the reasons I’ve always loved our original 365 Body Care products. We still have these favorites along with a fragrance-free version for those who do not need or want a scented product. We worked hard to make sure we kept the things our customers loved while we made our improvements.
We hope you and your family will like the new products as much as we do. We are very proud of the new formulas and, since we like to have fun while we do our jobs at Whole Foods Market, my Team Leader, Jeremiah McElwee, and I thought we would share some shots of our sudsy kids getting creative with the bubbles from our new products. Now that we’ve made our great body care products even better, we hope you and your family will give them a try and let us know what you think.
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How do you work up a lather with this shampoo? i tried the herbal mint one, i love the scent and how clean it feels after, but no foamy bubbles while washing my hair
Is it because the one i picked up is for Normal/Dry hair?
this is my routine: pour a quarter size of shampoo on my hands, add a little water, work up a lather, shampoo my hair.
is there a better way to do it?
August 20th, 2009 at 9:57 am
I hope that products are develped for various hair types, including African American kids. I have to either go very far, or pay for s&h in order to get quality, natural/organic products for my daughter’s hair.I wish that Whole Foods carried an African American line of cosmetics, and health and beauty aids.
August 20th, 2009 at 10:47 am
I love the 365 brand of body care and often use it on my toddler. But I have found that the formula doesn’t take care of the inevitable soap in eye problem. Is this new formula tear-free?
August 20th, 2009 at 11:21 am
loved the pink grapefruit a coupla years back, but went on to use Kiss My Face (also a good product) but this intriguing new launch has got me wanting to try your products again.
Only thing, is that the lotions used to contain oil from nuts and nut derivative and as someone who is allergic, was disappointed that I could not do the whole suite of products as I love to do.
August 20th, 2009 at 1:35 pm
I will be sure to try these out as I am always looking for safe yet affordable beauty products. I did not use the previous versions of WF’s shampoos and conditioners because they still contained some sulfates. Very glad you all have come out with these reformulations!
LL, It is the carcinogen sodium laurel sulfate that makes shampoos (and most soaps) foam up. You do not want to use shampoos with this in it. I don’t think the lathering ability affects the cleansing ability….anyone have thoughts on this?
August 20th, 2009 at 7:34 pm
I noticed that the older formulation contains wheat ingredients. My son is gluten intolerant, and I have elected not to use the product anymore due to the wheat ingredients. Does the new formulation still contain wheat? I would love to try the new sulfate free version…but I just can’t do it if it contains wheat. Thanks!
August 21st, 2009 at 6:33 pm
@L.L. The surfactants allowed by our Premium Body Care standard are different and milder, so the foam and lather action will be less than that of conventional products. Although these milder surfactants may produce less lather, they clean as effectively as products with bigger bubbles. Basically, lather doesn’t equal cleaner. We added information in the “Directions area” on the bottle letting you know that we suggest you wet your hair thoroughly, apply the shampoo and then re-wet to enhance foaming. Also, depending on the length of your hair, you may need to use more than a quarter-size squirt. Hope this helps!
August 24th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
@Lucy While these products are formulated with some of the most gentle ingredients available, they are not tested to be tear-free. Let us know how they work for you and your toddler.
August 24th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
@Deb The ingredients are free of gluten. Give it a try!
August 24th, 2009 at 1:26 pm
I used to LOVE the old grapefruit formulation. I liked the smell, and the consistency. It left me feeling nice and clean, and had a great after smell. My skin is very sensitive and it never caused me any problems.
I tried the new products. I like the shampoo and conditioner. But the new lotion and particularly the new shower gel smell horrible to me. The grapefruit version, DOES NOT smell grapefruity or even citrusy. Instead it smells like strange chemicals or bitter herbs. It also has a thin consistency. I have to use a lot more of it to get my skin feeling clean. I have oily/combination skin.
I also noticed the addition of lime oil, BURDOCK?, and in one of the products-canola oil. I avoid canola oil, and consider it unfit for cosmetic use. So unfortunately I will not be buying the lotion or gel until you fix your reformulation.
August 25th, 2009 at 1:10 pm
I am a stylist with over 22 years experience in the beauty industry…..I’m interested in your Premium Body Care line of products…please send me the information.
Tricia Rowe
August 26th, 2009 at 7:01 pm
[...] http://blog.wholefoodsmarket.com/2009/08/premium-body-care-at-budget-prices/ [...]
August 31st, 2009 at 2:12 pm
At Whole Foods last night, the staff were stocking the newly formulated shampoos and conditioners. They seemed really encouraged about the new products and wanted to educate me about the difference in ingredients.
I’m interested in the mint shampoo for my seborrheic dermatitis on my scalp and my young daughter’s scalp. I’ve read that peppermint is soothing to the easily irritated and overproductive oily skin that we have.
These reformulated ingredients are now safer for the body.
Are they also safer for the environment after they are rinsed down the drain? I’m a minimalist and want to contribute as little as possible to polluting or harming our water and soil and wildlife. Thanks in advance for your response.
September 1st, 2009 at 8:45 am
I love all your new products…the only improvement I’d like to see is a moisturizing sunscreen added to the lot, a make up line, and a lotion for very, very dry skin. (I’ve been adding a bit of oil to the current lotion, and it works fine, though. I’m thrilled that I can find some reasonably priced products without toxic chemicals in them.
September 3rd, 2009 at 11:07 am
do these products contain any animal-derived ingredients? Also, are they tested on animals at any point in the process (whether individual ingredients or the final product)?
September 3rd, 2009 at 12:18 pm
Hello! I love the packaging of your new shampoo. I love the smells. The shampoo itself is not great. It requires twice as much for the same amount of lather as your previous formula. Is this a done deal? We can’t use this.
Thanks, the Kaplan family, Portland, ME
September 4th, 2009 at 7:42 pm
The scent free shampoo does not lather well as the previous version as noted in other posts. This certainly doesn’t feel as good as the previous versions. Using twice as much shampoo or re-wetting half way though is not a satisfying usage model for the product – I prefer a formulation with more lather.
Also, the logo design could use improvement – There is no color or shape to differentiate between shampoo, conditioner & body wash bottles. It would be nice to be able to differentiate between the products without having to read the label and put my contacts on before I get in the shower.
September 4th, 2009 at 9:01 pm
I had been using the previous formula of the pink grapefruit shampoo and loved it! I hardly had to use any shampoo and it lathered and cleaned my hair fast and smelled wonderful. I am now using the new formula and it is not good at all. Had to use alot more shampoo and it smells like chemicals! I know the new version is supposed to be better for the environment but not if you have to use twice to three times the shampoo and water to get your hair clean. Please bring back the old formulas of these shampoos. Myself and the other customers will thank you!
September 7th, 2009 at 11:40 pm
I love that the new formula for the Lavender Blend shampoo is free of harsh surfactants. It smells great and cleans well; a nice, mild formula for my curly, dry hair. For those who are bothered by the lower foaming action, my advice is that you can use the same amount as before. To get some good, foamy cleansing action: Make sure to scrub your scalp well with the pad of the fingertips (not the fingernails), and rinse clean. If you re-wet, you might rinse too much out on accident. Just start scrubbing!
September 12th, 2009 at 7:43 pm
A tip to those who say the new formula doesn’t lather well: dilute, in water, a little LESS than the amount you used in the previous formula in a small spray bottle that streams (about a 4 ounce bottle). wet your hair and scalp and massage your scalp prior to shampooing. then spray the diluted shampoo solution directly on your scalp (the force from the stream adjustment will make it get through your hair easily, though parting with your fingers will also aid in it reaching your scalp well). there will be enough sudsing to cleanse your scalp and hair from that one dilution, unless you have lots of products to wash out. this tip is actually good for any shampoo, as it’s economical by extending the life of your shampoo, and it won’t overdry your scalp and hair because you are using less product each time. hope this helps.
September 18th, 2009 at 10:55 am
I’m not at all happy with the new Citrus Grapefruit shampoo. The product is inferior to the previous Citrus Grapefruit. When using twice as much shampoo as the previous one, there’s still hardly any lather. The product does not smell like grapefruit like the old one did. And finally, the new product has an ingredients list that’s twice as big as the original. It’s a giant chemical cocktail!
September 19th, 2009 at 6:20 pm
I have used these shampoos, conditioners, and shower gels for years. Although I have purchased several of the new formulations (the Herbal Mint shampoo and conditioners, and the Lavender shower gel), I have only tried the shower gel.
I am not at all pleased. It’s too runny, less sudsy, and has an awful, unusual smell that doesn’t smell at all like lavender. I had hoped that I got a defective bottle, but after reading the other reviews here, it doesn’t appear so. Did your team that reformulated these products actually use them?
September 22nd, 2009 at 10:53 am
Hi,
Thanks to all for your feedback about the new 365 body care products. For those that are not happy with the changes we are sorry that you were disappointed.
To address some of the newer questions:
The products are 100% biodegradeable, and thus easier on the environment. They do not contain any animal derived ingredients and we don’t allow animal testing on any WFM body care products inlcuding our own.
To enchance foaming–we added directions to “re-wet”–adding more water helps give more suds. Even with the more mild suds the cleansing is effective.
We are using the same scents as our previous formulas and some people notice a difference due to the new surfactant base in the shower gels and shampoos. We appreciate your feedback!
September 24th, 2009 at 5:57 pm
I recently bought the new fragrance free shampoo and am very disappointed, it requires you use three times as much shampoo to feel like it worked, and even then, very little suds. It doesn’t seem to clean very well at all. I plan to return the bottles I used and try something else. Please bring back the original formula. What a waste of money.
September 28th, 2009 at 12:12 am
We have tried two bottles of the newly reformulated 365 shampoo and cannot continue. The lack of suds, odd scent and the feeling that we are using more in a vain attempt to get our hair feeling clean is just too frustrating. After using 365 shampoo for YEARS and recommending it to people we are going to have to find something else. It is a very good buy, but that is outweighed by the unpleasant experience and the fact that we seem to need double the amount just get a passable amount of sudsing. I hope you can continue to work on the formulation; until it changes we will be using something else.
October 11th, 2009 at 4:47 pm
My sister-in-law introduced me to your 365 shampoo & conditioners. While I agree with everyone that you have to use a lot of shampoo to get underneath long hair, the product is great otherwise! I’ve been able to stop using all other hair products when styling my hair just by switching to your product. It is amazing! It took a ton of effort and products to get both sides of my hair to flip under how I like it. With just shampooing and conditioning, my hair does it on it’s own. What a miracle product! I love it!
October 11th, 2009 at 8:57 pm
I was disappointed that you’ve completely changed the scent of the so called Citrus grapefruit shower gel. It doesn’t smell anything like the old formula, which is deliciously grapefruity, and the new one doesn’t smell like citrus or grapefruit. What gives?
October 12th, 2009 at 9:01 pm
You can’t make everyone happy all the time. Apparently, people aren’t reading the other posts where you don’t have to use twice as much shampoo to get the same cleaning effect.
I for one LOVE both the lavender shampoo and conditioner. I’ve had problems in the past w/shampoos and/or conditioners leaving a film on my hair and this doesn’t at all. My hair was left clean and smelling great! Please, please, please don’t change it.
Not only is it safe for the environment, but it has all kinds of wonderful natural ingredients, what more could you ask for??? Some people will comlain no matter what you do! Keep up the great work Whole Foods, myself and my family LOVE YOU!
October 13th, 2009 at 7:03 pm
Thanks for the reply. I’ve tried the new grapefruit, and I actually like it just fine. I have naturally curly hair, and am on the Curly Girl routine. The low-sudsing shampoo fits right in with this routine, and leaves my hair clean without stripping it. I’ve also been using the mint conditioner as a leave-in, and my hair is so soft, and my curls look great. I’ll be switching over to the more moisturizing mint shampoo as soon as the grapefruit runs out. I like the reformulation even more than the originals. Thank you!!
October 24th, 2009 at 7:52 pm
I have used the 365 shower gel every day, and the shampoo and conditioner every three or four days for years and have always loved them, However, I am very disappointed in the reformulated shampoo. (I haven’t bought the shower gel yet, still using up the old). I have to use more than twice as much and even then it barely lathers and leaves my hair feeling sort of heavy, tangled and hard to comb. I have to use more conditioner to compensate for the shampoo. If it ain’t broken don’t fix it is a well-known motto that works, so I wonder if you really needed to reformulate your formerly excellent product or whether you were in truth looking for a way to sell twice as much–because users now have to use twice the amount. I see your blurb on this web page is aimed for parents of young children and I’m sure the shampoo works great for baby fine hair, but I have thick, naturally curly hair and even my 17 year old son is complaining about the “new” shampoo. I really don’t want to switch to the over priced brands and I won’t touch regular store or pharmacy shampoos. Just to say I appreciate the attempts to make a cleaner product but I’m disappointed.
November 3rd, 2009 at 1:09 pm
Wow, I’m so surprised that people actually think they can have both the sudsy factor along with the absence of harsh surfactants. This is not possible. It’s like asking that a box of natural mac and cheese taste exactly like Kraft’s, but demanding that the ingredients be 100% natural. Different ingredients will make a different end product.
I’ve used shampoos free of these damaging chemicals for years now and the fact they don’t lather as well as traditional shampoos doesn’t bother me. What I do is wet my hair throughly, then apply a small amount of shampoo to my hair, wash a little bit, especially into the scalp, then rinse. When I apply a second time I don’t have to use a lot at all, as it lathers instantly. No big, crazy suds like chemical shampoos though. But I can live without that!;) I care more about the health of my body than suds…
I’m excited to try this product since the price is so much better than the other sulfate-free shampoos out there (around 7 bucks for a small bottle!). For those who want luxurious lather, I would suggest going to a regular supermarket, I would assume there are shampoos that are part natural if that’s what you want. It’s pretty hard to come across shampoos that contain no laurel sulfate, so you will have a wide range of products to choose from. Actually even most shampoos at my local coop contain that lathering factor, but without some other chemicals that you might want to avoid.
November 17th, 2009 at 3:09 pm
The shampoo DOES lather! It is just not a rich, very tangible lather like with conventional shampoos. When I first used the shampoo I noticed that I couldn’t *feel* a lather, but I looked at my hair and there was definitely a lather in it. It’s there, and it works, even if you aren’t noticing it as much.
Having long, naturally curly and UNRULY hair, I have used expensive defrizzing and smoothing shampoos and conditioners for many years. I recently purchased the 365 unscented shampoo and conditioner, as I have very sensitive skin right now and I’m trying to eliminate as many scented products from my routine as I can.
I really didn’t expect it to work well on my hair, because it doesn’t claim to do anything special for any particular type of hair. So far it is working well. I comb a little of the conditioner through my hair afterwards as a leave in conditioner, just for a little control. My hair is looking and feeling just as nice as it ever has, if not a little softer!
Also – I used to occasionally get pimples on my neck, back and ears, and I was always suspicious that my conditioner was the cause. Since I’ve been using this I haven’t had a single bump, and I don’t go “eeek!” when it runs over my face in the shower because it rinses clean and I know it’s not going to make me break out.
I’m also using the shower gel and body lotion. All great! Thanks for these nice and affordable products!
November 24th, 2009 at 7:46 pm
Hi,
I live in Las Vegas and the closest Whole Foods to my house is 15 miles away and takes me 30 – 45 minutes to get there due to traffic congestion in this city. I love my 365 Shampoo WITH SODIUM LAURYL SULFATE. If the NEW and IMPROVED version does not lather then I will not be traveling 45 minutes to get this shampoo. Its a waste of my time. I buy other products in WF while I am there but nothing that I need to travel 45 minutes to buy. Most of the other stuff I buy I can buy elsewhere. You just lost a valued customer.
November 29th, 2009 at 3:47 am
I’ve been using the Grapefruit shampoo and conditioner for almost 2 years now, and I’m really disappointed with the new version. There’s not a trace of grapefruit scent, and the conditioner did not work at all. After I used the conditioner, I had to look at the label again to make sure I didn’t get the lotion by mistake. I have been recommending the shampoo and conditioner to everyone and thought I had found the best products ever. These new products just don’t work for me, I’m not sure what I’m going to use in the future.
December 6th, 2009 at 3:24 am
Change it BACK PLEASE! I loved this shampoo BEFORE it was reformulated. This new formula leaves my hair greasy. It is terrible. My daughter tried it also and she could not do anything with her hair because it was so terribly greasy. Yes, I chose the correct type, but there is no selection on the conditioner. It is mainly the conditioner that is BAD now. I just returned the unused portion to the store last week. I will not be buying anymore unless it goes back to the way it was before. I would have paid more for the old formula….
December 28th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
Please bring back the old formula unscented shampoo for normal to oily hair. It was a great product at a great price. The new version is terrible: it smells horrible when applied, it doesn’t lather, and it feels like we can’t work it through our hair. The old version was fantastic and I recommended it to everyone.
My teenage sons, who tried out the new version of the shampoo, told me to never buy it again. I agree with them.
December 30th, 2009 at 9:00 pm
Does anyone know of anything similar to the old formula normal to oily UNSCENTED shampoo?
January 5th, 2010 at 8:45 am
When I returned mine, I tried the Jason shampoo and conditioner. That conditioner is nearly just as bad and the shampoo is terrible. I just exchanged the Jason yesterday for the Earth Science shampoo and conditioner, but I have not tried it yet. I tried the Magic botanicals oil free conditioner and it is nearly exactly the same as the 365, not good.
The Paul Mitchell Tea Tree shampoo and conditioner works perfectly. It does not have an added fragrance on the ingredients list but it does have a strong mint smell and it does leave a funky smell in your hair all day. My wife is sensitive to fragrances and she doesn’t like the smell much but it doesn’t seem to hurt her. If the earth science doesn’t work out I may stick to the Tea Tree.
I am going to call around to some of the shampoo manufacturers and see how much I would have to buy to get them to make a special “fragrance free” batch of regular shampoo and conditioner… You don’t get what you don’t ask for anyway… Good luck.
January 6th, 2010 at 10:46 am
Tried the Earth Science fragrance free shampoo and conditioner last night. It is pretty good. I am going to stick with it for a while.
January 7th, 2010 at 7:57 am
Rickey, great thanks a ton. I’ll try out the Earth Science unscented stuff.
January 13th, 2010 at 8:11 am
I spent years searching for the just the right shampoo and conditioner. I finally bought the 365 brand Lavender. Loved, loved, loved it — until you changed the formula. To me it no longer smells at all like lavender, but more like ashes. Very disappointed in the formula change.
Ufortunately I will have to start my search again.
January 15th, 2010 at 2:54 pm
I found another fragrance free shampoo and conditioner at the Sally beauty supply in Richardson. The brand name is Naturelle, I believe. The Naturelle shampoo is even better than the earth science, but, I think the earth science conditioner is better. They both are alot better than the new reformulated 365 though. Safe Choice also apparently reformulated their shampoo back in June of 2009. If there’s anything to compare the new 365 to, its the “New Coke” disaster of 1985. I will be very surprised if sales do not steadily decline…
January 18th, 2010 at 3:38 pm
The new version of the Citrus Grapefruit is hateful. It has a terrible, chemical odor, having lost all the delicious fruitiness of the former version, and weighs down my hair. I totally support the move to a less toxic, more environmentally friendly formula, but you failed to preserve what worked. The old formulation worked perfectly and smelled good, and both of those traits are gone. I won’t buy 365 personal care products ever again.
January 19th, 2010 at 2:20 am
I agree with the previous posters. For a while I wondered if I got a “Bad Batch” before seeing this blog. I have oily hair and this just does not seem to get my hair clean. I am now looking for other alternatives.
February 5th, 2010 at 5:20 am
I decided to try the fragrance-free whole foods shampoo since it is more affordable than the Alba shampoo I have been using. For being “fragrance-free” it smelled awful, much like chemicals. I compared the ingredient list to the list on my Alba bottle, and the whole foods brand had a lot more unrecognizable ingredients. Although it’s going to cost me quite a bit more, I’ll be sticking with my Alba shampoo. It doesn’t contain parabens or sodium laurel sulfates, is 100% vegetarian ingredients and not tested on animals, leaves my hair feeling light and has a pleasant smell.
February 7th, 2010 at 3:17 pm
I just ran out of my bottle of “old” lavender shampoo and ended up buying a bottle of Trader Joe’s new formula, which is also free of SLS, parabens, etc. This lathered up great, but left my hair feeling greasy and heavy. So I went to WF and grabbed a bottle of the reformulated lavender shampoo, excited to see it was now made without SLS. Boy was I disappointed! This also leaves my hair feeling greasy and heavy and not clean. At least TJ’s version had foaming action. I know you don’t need suds to clean, but this doesn’t lather at all and I feel like I can’t spread the shampoo around my whole head. If there is no sudsing, and you can’t spread the shampoo around, how can you get the whole head clean? It feels like I clean only the part of my hair where I immediately put my hands after applying. I’ll try the re-wetting suggestion, but I may be switching back to Trader Joe’s. I hate having to feel the greasiness and heaviness of my hair throughout the day!
February 12th, 2010 at 6:01 am
Loved the old formula, hate the new. Aside from all of the problems listed in other comments, the dark purple ink on the lavender bottles runs and has stained my white shelf. What is the point of a shampoo that doesn’t clean and smells bad. or a conditioner that leaves hair in worse shape and smells bad? Sorry, WF–you got this one wrong.
February 19th, 2010 at 3:26 pm
Thank you sooooo much for removing the sulfates from the 365 shampoo! My health is more important than lather.
And thank you for providing unscented options.
My only complaint is the 365 body washes. I tried both unscented and the grapefruit scent and thought both had an awful chemical smell. So I now use the Everyday Shea unscented body wash. Please take a look at the Everyday Shea ingredients. It would be great to see the same “all natural” ingredients in the 365 line.
Cheers!
February 26th, 2010 at 7:48 am
My experience with the old lavender-scented shampoo was excellent. My wife picked up a bottle of the new citrus version and we compared both side-by-side. First thing to notice was a definite change in consistency. At first I thought someone had added water to the citrus one, because it was pretty thin. After reading comments here, I suppose that’s the way it’s supposed to be. Same lack o’lather as others have reported. When I was a child back in the 70s my mother always bought big bottles of house-brand shampoo from Woodward’s, a now-defunct department store. It was also thinnish and did not lather much. She was savvy and told us about the lathering chemicals other brands used. My preference would be for a concentrated version – less weight to ship around the country. I can add my own water.
February 27th, 2010 at 4:36 pm
I tried WF’s old shampoo formula a while back and I’m sad to say I hated it. It made my fine hair limp and dull. Anyway, recently my scalp has been itchy and flaky and a friend told me to try an SLS-free shampoo. I headed to Whole Foods where I planned on buying Kiss My Face Big Body as I had seen it had received good reviews but… at $7 for such a small bottle? While the big bottles of 365 shampoo were only $5? I debated for a bit, but just a little since, yes, I’m very cheap. I figured if the shampoo sucked I could use it to clean my paint brushes. It so doesn’t suck. It leaves my hair soft, shiny, and light, but not at all frizzy (I’m using Citrus Grapefruit). I just hope my scalp clears up, because I love this shampoo so far. Thanks for the new formula WF!
March 3rd, 2010 at 8:29 pm
I’m sorry, but I don’t agree with Leigh at all. I bought the big $5 bottle of citrus grapefruit and another $5 bottle of the conditioner b/c I trust the Whole Foods brand.
The shampoo and conditioner dried out my hair, no matter how little or how much I used, and I ended up having to use the shampoo as liquid soap just so I didn’t waste it. My hair literally crunched when I touched it. There were two months where I experimented on putting in a quarter-sized amount to a palm-sized amount, and the outcome was always crunchy, dry, brittle hair that looked dull and frizzy. Not to mention that a day later my hair would become greasy.
The conditioner felt like water and I had to use two palm-sized squeezes just to get it to slide through. My hair has fallen out A LOT since using this product. The only plus about this shampoo is that it comes in such a large bottle which means that I’ve basically had consistent bad hair days since November.
I have normal-to-oily straight, shoulder length hair and will not be using this product again. Once I switched over to a friend recommended shampoo, my hair felt silky and looked shiny again.
March 12th, 2010 at 1:46 pm
I would have to agree with some of the other comments that are being made in regards to the shampoo. I had purchased both the new and old formula,and there is definately a difference in regards to the lathering quality of the new formula. I have longer hair, and I need that certain “something” to make the shampoo distribute itself throughout my hair; otherwise I will have to use a large handful of it every washing. The new formula needs improved lathering substance. I still love the conditioner, even though I need alot of that to distribute in my hair, as well.
March 14th, 2010 at 8:36 am
Because of chemical sensitivities, I have been using Whole Foods’ 365 brand Fragrance Free shampoo and conditioner for a couple of years and absolutely loved the OLD formula. It was a real lifesaver. It hardly smelled like anything and lathered and rinsed out great. Unfortunately, I just used the new reformulated version today and wow, what a disappointment. The smell is awful. I can still smell it on myself hours later. And it took extra effort to get it rinsed from my thick shouldar-length hair. Very gummy-feeling. I will be returning both the shampoo and conditioner to the store.
March 22nd, 2010 at 10:02 am
I thought I was imagining things. Whew. We do a big stocking up at Whole Foods once a year because we live so far from it. I have been using the 365 brand herbal mint shampoo for a few years – it is my favorite shampoo. We had just ran out when we went to Whole Foods and stocked up one month ago. I thought it was my imagination or maybe my hair changed or something. My hair is oily and my scalp itches from the same shampoo I was using before. Or so I thought. I had no idea there was a formula change before or I would not have bought so much. Now I am stuck with all of this shampoo that I can not afford to throw out. Frustrating.
April 2nd, 2010 at 2:42 pm
I agree with the comments that the new formulas are not as good as the old ones. I use the unscented shampoo. It doesn’t lather as well and, strangely enough, it smells like wood smoke to me (might be my strange sense of smell!). My hair doesn’t feel clean after I rinse even after following the directions. I note Lecia’s comment above that: “Surfactants, the ingredients that make products lather up, are some of the most expensive and difficult ingredients to source at budget formula cost with Premium Body Care standard quality”. I would happily pay a dollar or two more to add better eco-friendly surfactants (if they exist) to the new formula. Kudos to Whole Foods for developing these products and providing an opportunity for customer comment.
April 27th, 2010 at 12:06 pm
Oh my God. I am glad to see that I am not alone in sensing the smoky aroma of the unscented shower gel. I assume this is from the process of creating lye: pouring water through ash. I smell like barbecue sauce after every shower, but I don’t throw anything away, so I’m living with it until the next purchase of the mint scented version.
April 30th, 2010 at 10:03 am
Hi -I used to use the old grapefruit version and it was fantastic – the best shampoo I have ever found. I’m really unhappy with the new version – it makes my hair dry and lifeless. Is there any chance of reintroducing the old product alongside these new ones?
May 20th, 2010 at 11:26 am
I am sad to say that I do not like the new formulations for 365 shampoo & conditioner. I used to use the Grapefruit scent and loved them. The new formulation smell is so unappealing to me that I can no longer use them. I wish you would go back to the old forumulation.
August 20th, 2010 at 10:37 am
I LOVE the re-formulated shampoo and conditioner (herbal mint) It is the BEST I have EVER used (I was previously using Aveda). It controls my frizz and makes my hair nice and soft and is way less expensive and I actually like it better. (love the unscented body lotion too!)
August 24th, 2010 at 11:31 am
I love your products ~ the shampoos, conditioners, shower gels and body lotions. What a great price! I have a website called “thebeautybargainhunter.com” and I’ve featured your products on it. Please take a look. I review drugstore and mass-market beauty products (bargain beauty products) and compare them to their pricier prestige counterparts.
Thank you for the time and effort you put in to developing the new formulas. I think I can speak for all Whole Foods customers when I say, we love getting a bargain at Whole Foods!
March 21st, 2011 at 7:50 pm
Just wanted to say Thank You for the new formula. I have very sensitive skin and I used the citrus formula and the minty formula. Let me just say I am SO happy that it doesn’t make me break out all over. My last shampoo changed all of its ingredients and made it less natural and added sulfates. Using that for one day caused bumps all over my forehead, cheeks and back. Your formula doesn’t leave buildup and I like what is used for the ingredients! For those who complain about the lack of sudsing…the sudsing doesn’t get your hair clean! Its just a chemical reaction causing that effect. BTW if you wet your hair and then apply the product and then just wet it a tiny bit. You will get what your looking for “that soapy feel that makes you think its cleaning better” I will also say it didn’t burn my eyes when I accidentally got it in there. Thanks for a great product and at such a GREAT price! I have long and very very thick hair and really it doesn’t require any more product than any of the other shampoos I’ve tried.
March 23rd, 2011 at 4:41 pm
I’m yet another person giving thumbs down to the new citrus grapefruit shampoo formula. I’m just discovering what other people have known for awhile because I stocked up on the old and just recently ran out. I have long hair and the new formula doesn’t rinse all the way out. I tried the “rewetting” technique; doesn’t help. Very disappointed. Any chance at all of getting the old formula back? I definitely will not be buying this product again.
April 7th, 2011 at 2:30 am
@Diane: Thank you for the feedback. I’ve shared your comments with our private label team.
April 7th, 2011 at 11:31 am
I purchased your 365 shampoo & grapefruit conditioner because their sulfate free. I live in the harsh desert and because I am sensitive I require gentle products, however I was very disappointed with both products because they serve no purpose whatsoever, and why for God’s sake do they have alcohol in them? Alcohol dries up the body and it can only dry the hair. And why does this product claim to help all all types, an advertising fraudulent statement! The result is; no body, no shine, no tangle free, it’s claims are a total misnomer. When I tried to return them after two uses I was given the third degree by the nasty old sales associate Arlene at the LV store on Lake Mead in Natural Living. I spoke to the mgr, and she supported her no return statement. Having been a Whole Foods, originally Wild Oats shopper for 15 yrs. w/o a history of returns, I was surprised at the lack of flexibility. Therefore I haven’t stepped back in your store since then. You ought to know the value of this product- it is absolutely worthless.
September 9th, 2011 at 2:54 pm
@Linda I’m so sorry to hear about your bad experience. Thank you for giving us a chance to make it right. We’ve asked someone from your store to reach out to you directly. This individual will be in touch to discuss your product return and the product dissatisfaction you’ve experienced. Again, thanks for reaching out.
September 14th, 2011 at 1:09 pm