Nielsen | A Social Media

Nielsen | A Social Media "How To" for Retailers

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What are today's teenagers going to tell us about social media in the next 5-10 years? They appear to be more mobile, preferring text messaging (overshelmingly) to Twitter but still spend a lot of time in front of the TV.

Is the Whole Foods Model Dead?

A business associate in the green industry recently suggested to me that the Whole Foods model may be dead or on life support due to market forces in the industry related to the economy. It has been reported that the recent economic conditions have created a generation of frugal consumers who have learned to find the best value for their dollar. Value is a relative term and one that has a point of diminishing returns based on price. Has the price/value hit that point for Whole Foods? Have consumers become so frugal that they now avoid high end retailers like Whole Foods and choose to avoid the extra trip and get their green products at a conventional supermarket where they continue to shop anyway?

Sales performance at Whole Foods has consistently under-performed from year ago throughout 2009 which would indicate that some assumptions may be true. With green products available almost anywhere today, the choices for consumers are better and the competition for Whole Foods greater. Whole Foods had a solid lock on the natural business for many years. The John Mackey vision was ballyhooed throughout the grocery industry and countless retailers tried to replicate the “experience”, most could not. Now the bloom may be off the rose for Whole Foods.

With more green products being owned by major manufacturers like Kellogg’s, General Mills, Coca-Cola and Clorox has the industry been greenwashed into just another category? Kashi, a natural brand pioneer is now in every cereal set across the U.S. due to Kellogg’s clout and Clorox has become a mainstream natural cleaning brand with Greenworks much the same way. Has the Whole Foods model dying because it is being replaced?

Whether you call if green, natural or organic, the movement is here to stay and from what I know about the consumers who drive this industry, they will find a way to keep the products they desire accessible. What I see as the driving force for natural and organic products is the health and wellness attributes that they provide the consumer who is seeking to better their life. Whole Foods has long considered the consumer who has experienced a “life changing event” (Illness, birth of a child, etc.) as the future consumer base of the retailer.

The answers to these questions will be wide and varied and I welcome your thoughts on the subject.