Filed under: Consumer experience, Competitive strategy, Whole Foods Market (WFMI)

If this move turns out to be the beginning of a trend, it could be trouble for Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ: WFMI). Publix, the largest and fastest-growing employee-owned supermarket chain in the United States with 911 locations in the south, is opening its first GreenWise store devoted exclusively to selling organic and health foods. Publix began selling health foods under its GreenWise brand.

The idea is that, by offering a wide array of private-label products, Publix will be able to compete with Whole Foods on price, which I would argue is where Whole Foods is most vulnerable.

The idea for GreenWise sounds a lot like my favorite grocery store, the privately-owned Trader Joe’s chain. If Publix can come close to creating the Trader Joe’s atmosphere, Whole Foods better look out.

If Publix has success, chains like Safeway, Kroger, and Albertson’s could follow suit. But in the business of organic foods, ambiance is key and Publix will have to create an atmosphere very different from that of its conventional stores.

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