Case Study
Whole Foods
Case Study
Introduction Problem Statement Supporting Facts
Whole Foods is an organic grocery chain that was founded in 1980. Since the origination the companies motto has been Whole Foods, Whole People, Whole Planet. This motto encompasses their mission to provide the purest quality of food, employ the best team, and continue to be involved in the communities they are a part of through philanthropic involvement. (Gamble & Thompson, 2010)
Problem Statement
How did Whole Foods purchase of the Wild Oat’s brand negatively impact their company objectives, core values, and profit margin?
Supporting Facts
• 2007- Acquisition of Wild Oat’s; largest competitor
• Store count increased by 109 o Across …show more content…
While the company did manage ot overcome the challenges and losses of the acquisition, they would have been better off for having not made the deal. The case clearly outlines the differences between the Wild Oat’s properties and brand image, and that of Whole Foods. In many cases the store sizes were much different, leaving a lot to be desired in the newly acquired locations. This created a challenge for Whole Foods to offer consistent product choices to their customers- with varying store …show more content…
This merger would put Whole Foods and Wild Oats in a partnership (monetarily backed by Whole Foods, so they would profit most from this). Through this merger Whole Foods would be able to work with their vendors to get larger quantities delivered to more stores at lower prices- but not be forced to assume the $700 million expense of buying out Wild