At Christmas, I went with my boyfriend to “meet the parents” and as we were driving along the highway he pointed to his hometown’s Whole Foods Market and said, jokingly, “There’s Whole Foods, I bet you’d love to go there since you get to see it every day!” He was trying to be funny, but I confessed that I actually love to visit our stores in other towns because each and every one I’ve visited is different. With the varied selection of prepared foods, regional specialties in our grocery departments and locally grown produce, each of our stores truly caters to the local flavor of the community.

But the community feeling is not limited to the products we sell. I hear from customers every day about how our Team Members make them feel like part of the family. One customer I spoke with was so used to the Team Members in her store knowing her personally, she was heartbroken that one of our Team Members didn’t know her name! She explained that the store was her spiritual family. While sweetly off-kilter, that call reminded me that our stores truly do make an impact in people’s lives.

For example, after Thanksgiving I heard from Kelly, a customer in Massachusetts. Kelly’s brother-in-law was in the hospital with terminal cancer and Kelly wanted to do something nice for her sister and brother-in-law since this was likely to be the last Thanksgiving meal they would share together. Kelly did not place her order before the deadline, but she explained the situation and the team in her local store fulfilled her late order. They even went the extra mile to roast and add extra turkey wings — her brother-in-law’s favorite. Her voice quavered as she told me how much she wanted to make this Thanksgiving special for her sister and brother-in-law and how she was so appreciative that our Team Members helped make that possible.

Stories like Kelly’s are not unique. We also heard from a customer here in Austin named Jim who was delighted and surprised when he ordered Thanksgiving dinner from our Austin store for himself and his wife. His wife was recovering from surgery on Thanksgiving Day, and our store’s Team Members offered to deliver the meal to them at the hospital. He said the delivery offer was an unexpected and appreciated personal touch.

We even had some customers who love Whole Foods Market so much they included our Better Bags in their wedding décor! Many months ago I took a call from a customer in Philadelphia who was desperately searching for our limited edition Sheryl Crow bags because her son and future daughter-in-law wanted to use them as centerpieces in their green wedding. These bags were no longer available in our stores, but, luckily, I was able to track down a small stash of them in our global office. I was delighted a few weeks ago when she emailed me photos of the centerpieces. They are lovely and it’s so cool to see how the talented work of our Team Members, who helped with the design concept for the bags, inspired floral arrangements for a wedding.

We have wonderful Team Members who go out of their way to satisfy and delight our shoppers every day and the stories our customers share with us are truly a reminder that whether you work here or shop here, we are all part of one big happy family. Do you have a great story to share with us? If so, please tell us in the comments section. We’d love to hear it!

On Thursday, December 22^nd at 6pm CST our weekly twitter chat will be all about holiday indulgence — whatever it means to you. Join us to dish about:

• Decadent holiday dessert recipes
• De-stressing from the busy year
• Practicing new and old traditions
• Taking time for yourself
• The benefits of holiday music, movies and more

Just pop onto Twitter.com and search for the hashtag #WFMdish to see what we’re dishing about. Need a refresher on how this works? Check out our #WFMdish FAQs for details on how to get set up on Twitter and start dishing with the us. We’ll have new topics every week so there’ll always be something interesting to discuss with us and other “Dish” participants.

If there’s something you want to make sure we discuss on this week’s Dish, leave a comment below. We may not be able to get to all the topics suggested but we’ll sure try our best!

So, the new chat topic is “Looking Back and Moving Forward.” Join us this Thursday, December 29^th at 6pm CST to dish about:

• What went right in 2011
• Successful resolutions
• Resolutions you will try again and what help you need to succeed this year
• Starting the new year with a great attitude
• Setting yourself up for success

Just pop onto Twitter.com and search for the hashtag #WFMdish to see what we’re dishing about. Need a refresher on how this works? Check out our #WFMdish FAQs for details on how to get set up on Twitter and start dishing. We’ll have new topics every week so there’ll always be something interesting to discuss with us and other “Dish” participants.

If there’s something you want to make sure we discuss on this week’s Dish, leave a comment below. We may not be able to get to all the topics suggested but we’ll sure try our best!

The “Dish” twitter chat happens every Thursday at 6PM CST. Just pop onto Twitter.com and search for the hashtag #WFMdish to see what we’re dishing about. We’ll have new topics every week so there’ll always be something interesting to discuss with us and other “Dish” participants.

Never participated in a twitter chat before? Here’s how it works: we jump-start the conversation with a few questions and then chat participants share their own thoughts, tips and info on the chosen topic. You don’t have to have a Twitter account to read the conversation, but if you want to add your thoughts, you can sign up for Twitter and use the hashtag #WFMdish to “dish” along with us. Interested? Get more details on how to get started with Twitter and participate in a chat in our WFMdish FAQs.

Mark your calendar because our next #WFMdish is Thursday, December 15, at 6PM CST. We’ll be dishing about “Cooking for the Holidays.” That’s a big topic and one that’s top of mind for lots of folks right now. We plan to cover:

• Tried and true holiday recipes
• Preparing the right amount of food for your party
• Accommodating guests with food allergies
• Special cooking tools to make life easier

We hope you’ll join us on Thursday to share your thoughts, questions and ideas. That’s what these chats are all about: friends getting together and sharing with each other.

If there’s something you want to make sure we discuss on this week’s “Dish”, leave a comment below. We may not be able to get to all the topics suggested but we’ll sure try our best!

Looking for a perfect little something for the office crew, a gift that gives back or a stocking stuffer your loved ones can use all year long? We have just the thing to rescue you from your holiday woes — a L.I.F.E. Jacket. This reusable canvas coffee sleeve is handmade by women in Kenya to help them earn a living and — for the first time ever — send their special needs children to school.

With a fresh design and a great cause, this java jacket plays many roles. It keeps your drinks piping hot and protects your hands while keeping wasteful cardboard sleeves out of the landfill and helping to change a mother and child’s world — and all before breakfast! L.I.F.E. stands for Livelihood, Invest, Future, Empower, and that’s just what the products are helping poor mothers provide and do for their families. Want to learn more about these women, this program and the L.I.F.E. Jacket? Take a look at this video:

Even better — the L.I.F.E Jacket is just 99¢ when you buy an Allegro beverage from one of our coffee bars nationwide. And the best part is that 100% of the proceeds go directly back to Comfort the Children International, the nonprofit behind this amazing program, to help Kenyans change their own lives.

Pair this mocha mitt with a bag of Allegro Coffee’s Celebration Cafè 2011 Vintage Roast or a Whole Foods Market gift card and you have a complete gift for your favorite javaholic.

Here are even more reasons to love the L.I.F.E. Jacket:

• It’s hand washable, so there’s no need to worry about spills or drips.
• The neutral color makes it easy to customize – make it your own with colorful doodles and designs or help out your barista by labeling it with your drink of choice. If you want to keep your options open, you can even use a washable marker so you can wash it off and start over with a clean slate.
• It doubles as a can koozie.

While you’re at the coffee bar, you might want to pick up a few extras, because once you try this jacket out on your own brew, you won’t want to give it away. And at such a low price that supports a great cause, you can afford to treat yourself too.

What’s your favorite gift that gives back?

Photos courtesy of Chelseadee.com.

Q: “I want to work for Whole Foods, how do I apply?”

A: We accept applications for individual stores, regional offices and global support via our Careers page. You can search through each state and even look for a specific location. The application process can take between 30-45 minutes so it’s a good idea to create a login and password so you can fill out the application at your own pace. Check out the Careers page for helpful links regarding benefits, hiring processes and why people work here. Various stores accept paper applications but check with your local store beforehand. If you want to follow up on an application, make sure to contact the specific location where you applied; we empower our locations to hire for their needs instead of having a centralized hiring process.

Q: “Who do I tell if my town is perfect for a store location?”

A: We are growing fast and it would be great to hear about a town that we haven’t considered for a new store. Take a look at our stores in development to see if we have a store headed to your area.  If not, you can go to our customer service page and select “store location request” in the topic menu. If you have a suggestion for an available building, check out our real estate page for guidelines and a master broker list.

Q: “My son just left for college and I want to make sure he’s eating right, do you have any tips?”

A: We have so many great options, where do I begin! A fantastic opportunity to make sure that your son is eating healthy, preservative-free food away from home is to buy him a Whole Foods Market gift card. (Of course, he needs to have one of our stores in his college town. Check our store list if you aren’t sure.) We make it easy so you can manage a gift card online with an auto-reload option. You can set up a personalized schedule for the reload to be applied to the gift card or automatically recharge the card when it reaches a minimum balance to make sure he always has a way to shop!

These are just a few of the questions I’ve collected from the past week. I’ll be coming back with more answers to common questions in future posts. If you have any specific questions I would love to help find you an answer. Keep in mind that since we are a decentralized company, it’s always the best practice to check with your local store about their specific policies and procedures. But if it’s something I can help with, leave a comment below with your question or heck, give me a call at the global office. Stay tuned for more questions (and answers) next time — I’m betting we’ll all learn something new along the way!

 Have you ever felt as if you wanted to “do something,” but didn’t know where to start? Project Green Challenge is that chance, your entry point into action and sustainability. Our upcoming 30-day eco lifestyle challenge is mobilizing high school and college students nationwide through fun, simple and high impact daily steps. We challenge you to complete themed actions each day in October. Can you do it? Can you take your life from conventional to conscious?

I am proud to say that Project Green Challenge (PGC) is an initiative of youth, by youth, for youth! Our team of more than fifteen interns, staff, partners and a number of newly-appointed PGC campus reps has spent the last four months working tirelessly to develop the program structure, corporate and non-profit partnerships, and our multimedia platform. We have spoken with hundreds of high schools, colleges and universities about grounding this initiative, incorporating the Challenge into campus culture, extracurriculars, even curriculum.

Involve your campus – because this is a nationwide competition for schools too. Win an on-campus Sustainability 101 event, eco resource fair, organic lunch for leadership council, ice cream party, green cleaning supplies, and consultation with Teens Turning Green to set your school on a greener path. This is the beginning of a dynamic, collective, student-led movement to shift the paradigm!

We are using social and traditional media, a robust digital platform, and strong on-campus presence to bring the Challenge to you, into the hands of our generation. As a twenty-year-old, I fully understand the need for relevant themes and straight-forward actions to ensure the Challenge is accessible to young people and has maximum impact. Here’s a short video we created that you can post and share with your friends:

Bottom line: I want to empower YOU. I want to inform and inspire, showing my peers that small changes in our daily actions really can have a positive effect on our health and the environment.

Sign up to take the 30-day eco lifestyle Challenge and we will deliver the daily challenges directly to your inbox, complete with resources, tips, a glossary, experts, videos and more. When it is this simple and high impact, there’s no excuse for you not to join the movement to change the world – and spread the word far and wide!

Delve deeper, become more engaged, complete the green, greener and greenest levels of daily challenges, share your experiences with our audience – and you might just earn yourself a spot in the Challenge Finals! Ten finalists will be flown to San Francisco for an educational and inspiring two-day eco summit, which we have titled Green University.

You could win some really phenomenal prizes too! A $5000 college scholarship, $1000 gift card for Whole Foods Market, weekend trip for two to southern California, bicycle courtesy of Natracare, full eco dorm or room makeover, year’s supply of Nature’s Path breakfast and snack foods, organic and ethical clothing, natural body products, and much more.

We aim to raise awareness about conscious living, informed consumption, and the collective impact of individual actions, as well as empower students with actionable steps for their own lives. Help us get the word out! If we all take the Challenge and commit to being the change we wish to see in the world, then yes, we can build a powerful, diverse and far-reaching movement that inspires this generation to lead the transition from conventional to conscious and sustain our world. Sign up for Project Green Challenge today!

Plus, you’ll get a $10 bonus on your auto-load gift card when you purchase it using your American Express card and sign up for the $100 auto-schedule. On top of that, with every third auto-reload you’ll get an additional $5 added to the gift card. Check it out:

Who in your life could use an auto reload gift card?

So, with all the online chatter about what you can get for $20 at Whole Foods Market (yes, we laughed at the jokes too), we decided to put it to the test. We sent real live team members from our headquarter offices to our store with $20 bucks to spend. Armed with The Whole Deal value guide, our online coupons, and a sharp eye for specials and our 365 Everyday Value® lines, these team members wowed us with their creativity and general awesome ability to shop.

I bet these whet your appetite as well as your desire to find your own great deals!

Elizabeth shopped for a “Taste of Thailand” meal for $19.13:

• Annie Chun’s Brown Rice Pad Thai Noodles, 8oz. box
• 365 Everyday Value® Organic Peanuts, Roasted & Salted, 12 oz. bag
• 365 Everyday Value® Organic Tofu, Extra Firm, 14 oz. package
• 365 Everyday Value® Organic Coconut Milk, 13.5 oz. can
• Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste, 4 oz. jar
• Fresh organic cilantro, 1 bunch
• 1 organic Italian eggplant
• 1 lime
• 2 serrano peppers
• 1 white onion

Vadan shopped for his pregnant wife’s smoothie ingredients and cravings for $19.45:  

• Organic Yobaby Blueberry Yogurt, 4-4oz containers
• 1 bunch organic kale
• 6-oz package of blueberries
• 2 organic carrots
• 3 EARTH University bananas (Whole Trade™)
• 2 red lunchbox apples
• 365 Everyday Value® Large Olives, 6-oz can
• 365 Everyday Value® Organic Baby Dill Pickles, 16-oz jar
• Nature’s Path Organic Flax Plus Frozen Waffles, 1 box
• Blue Diamond Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Breeze, half gallon

Natanya put together fixings for a spicy tailgate party for $20.50:

• Frontier Blue Corn Chips, 10-oz bag
• 365 Everyday Value® Salsa, Tequila Lime, 16-oz jar
• 8-count buttermilk slider buns
• 1 head organic green leaf lettuce
• 1 medium red onion
• 4 small locally grown tomatoes
• 1.5 oz goat cheese
• ½ lb lean ground pork
• ½ lb pork chorizo

Michael shopped to make his veggie tacos with homemade salsa and guacamole dip for $19.40:

• 2 portobello mushrooms
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 1 organic zucchini
• 1 organic yellow onion
• 1 poblano pepper
• 2 jalapeno peppers
• 1 organic hass avocado
• 1 head of garlic
• 2 limes
• 1 bunch of fresh organic cilantro
• 365 Everyday Value® Whole Peeled Tomatoes, 28-oz can
• 365 Everyday Value ® Organic Flour Tortillas, 6-count
• Organic Oikos Plain Nonfat Greek Yogurt, 5.3 oz

Kate grabbed natural and organic lunch box and snack favorites for her son for $20.20:

• 1 bag of organic red seedless grapes
• 1 bag of cut & peeled ready-to eat organic carrots
• 3 lunchbox apples
• 1 bunch of EARTH University Whole Trade™ bananas
• 1 bulk container of organic honey roasted peanut butter
• 1  jar of 365 Everyday Value® Raspberry Fruit Spread
• 1 loaf of fresh-baked sandwich bread
• 1 box of six organic Clif Kid Z Bars
• 1 package of six Organic Valley Colby Jack Cheese Stringles
• ½ lb organic Thompson seedless raisins

Rebecca bought all these “runner’s remedy” items for $20.25:

• 1 4-pack of Organic Valley Organic Chocolate Milk
• 2 8-oz bottles of Zico Coconut Water
• 1 2.75g pack of Tasty Orange fruit snacks, sport
• 4 Cliff Builder bars
• 2 1.3-oz Honey Stinger honey packs
• 1 2.1-oz Think Thin bar

We’ve got lots of ideas! We put together $20 bags for healthy snacking, Saturday cleaning, pantry stocking, ultimate breakfast, grilling, wine tasting night, Italian dinner, movie night, and tons more.

Let us know if you want to see some of the other shopping bags we put together for $20 bucks. What would you put in your bag?

Eat it!

Make sure you look for the local vendors we feature in our Northern California stores like Liba Falafel, El Porteno Empanadas, and Scream Sorbet. It’s a great way to meet your favorite chefs face to face and tell them how much you love their food.

We’ll have a special area where you can put your feet up and relax with some tasty treats from our own Taco Truck featuring Creminelli Meat Whip, Grilled Figs with Goat Cheese, Hodo Soy Kung Pao Yuba Salad and Jalapeno Battered Fork in the Road Corn Dog Bites.

You can take a bit of Eat Real home with you, too! The Craft Marketplace will have handmade honeys, jams, pickles, and other deliciousness for sale. There’ll be a complimentary bag check, so you can buy your treats, go enjoy the fest, and then pick up your goods before heading home.

Drink it!

The Beer Shed will have an amazing selection of local small-batch brews. For you wine-aficionados, we’ve got a whole Wine Barn full of velvety reds, crisp whites, and tangy roses from the East Bay Vintner’s Association. All Bev Shacks offer refreshing non-alcoholic beverages like Iced Tea and Lemonade. Additionally, we’ll have local kombucha from Lev’s Original and natural sodas from Taylor’s.

Make it!

Eating is only half the fun! Get hands-on in a DIY food workshop or show off your goods in a food craft contest, or learn the basics of backyard farming. Learn how to brew the perfect cup of coffee with Blue Bottle Coffee, make kraut with Happy Girl Kitchen Co., stretch mozzarella with Belfiore Cheese Company and brew mighty mushroom tea with Lev’s Original Kombucha.

Grow it!

Ever wonder how to milk your own goat? Or grow a vegetable patch that actually produces enough for winter preserves? Then mosey on over to the Eat Real Corral and get acquainted with backyard farmers and farm animals. They’re ready, willing, and able to answer all your questions, from honeybee dos-and-don’ts to getting the best backyard eggs. Or you can say hi to Lucy and Ethel, the miniature goats from Itty Bitty Farm in the City.

See it!

If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to make your kitchen more self-sufficient, then Eat Real’s got you covered. A crack line-up of master food crafters will present demos on everything from making bacon to coffee roasting.

Cheer on the next generation of culinary celebrities at the Sprouts Kids Cook Off. Two teams of kids race to beat the clock and each other to cook a dish that uses a secret featured ingredient. The winning team of mini top chefs will get a prize!

Watch three competing teams of butchers break down steer hindquarters and wild boars right before your eyes at the Flying Knives Steer & Wild Boar Butchery Contests.  Emceed by Anya Fernald, they’ll have 45 minutes to make their high quality cuts – from primal to retail. Judges will be looking for accuracy, quality of trimmings, technique, and teamwork.

This is really just a small taste of all that’s happening. Make sure you hit up http://eatrealfest.com/ before you come so you can fill your belly with all of your favorites! We can’t wait to see you there.