Whole Foods As Inexpensive Grocer

[Chris Amirault]

In an interesting story in today's NY Times, In Lean Times, Whole Foods Tries for a Fresh Image, Andrew Martin details the store's attempt to remake its image for a tight economy:

Now, in a sign of the times, the company is offering deeper discounts, adding lower-priced store brands and emphasizing value in its advertising. It is even inviting customers to show up for budget-focused store tours like those led by Mr. Hebb, a Whole Foods employee.

But the budget claims are no easy sell at a store that long ago earned the nickname Whole Paycheck. Told of the company’s budget pitch by a reporter, some Whole Foods customers said they had not noticed cheaper prices; a few laughed.

Walter Robb, the company’s co-president, acknowledged that Whole Foods was fighting strong consumer perceptions about the chain’s prices, and he added that some of that was deserved. But he said the company had made a strong effort to challenge its competitors on price.

“I’m getting a little tired of that tag around our neck,” he said, referring to the nickname. “We are a lot more competitive than people give us credit for. We challenge anyone on like items.”

I'll take that challenge. I regularly shop for produce, meat, and fish at one of three Whole Foods here in RI, but I do my basic shopping at one of the large supermarket chains (usually Shaw's, though sometimes Stop n Shop). I'd love to save the time, gas, and hassle, so if Robb is right, I'd rather switch than fight. Wouldn't you?

So here's what I'm going to do. I'll track like items at both area Whole Foods and supermarkets and report back here. Since I'm certain that some items are unavailable at Whole Foods (Kleenex, Clorox, and other things that end with "-x"), I'll stick to food only. And no equivalents allowed: as my father will tell you, tofu is not pork.

We got some interesting discussion over in the shopping cart topic, and I hope we can do that here as well. Anyone else game for this project?

[paulraphael]

For a long time they've been the cheapest place in town for certain kinds of things. Organic milk (not too surprisingly), but also regular butter. I think it's like $3.70 a pound. Everywhere else in the city butter is $4.50 to $5.00. And for my most guilty of culinary and outdoor pleasures: Cliff Bars. 99 cents. Less than the discount drug chains. Worth a special trip.

[tsquare]

I would love to - but since they haven't deemed my neighborhood worthy, it is too far across town to make sense.

Will you compare against standard grocery stores only, or does Trader Joe's get a chance? They have fewer options, but I know they beat that butter price!

Interestingly, our local coop has an unfortunate (and sometimes appropriate) reputation for higher prices. Since it has been my most convenient store for 16 years (as in walkable) I have been pretty faithful. When I try to shop at a big name place for the same items, the prices are almost always higher. If I changed to more middle of the road stuff (most not available at the coop) the bill would drop.

So, WF isn't subscribing to the luxury brand version of marketing - the class that is recession proof? Good for them. And for consumers.

[alanamoana]

actually, where i live right now, the whole foods butter is the same or cheaper than the tj butter.

and right now, the whole pineapple at wf is $2.99 while at safeway, it is $3.99 ($2.99 at costco and costco's are bigger).

Edited August 2, 2008 by alanamoana (log)

[RobertCollins]

I use WF for a few things exclusively, although I have backups. They have the best greens I've found in Seattle, all winter long. I buy some of their 365 brand items for basic staples. EV olive oil for instance. They actually have some nice "real" Basalmics cheaper than most others.

But that said, they bought their own fish wholesaler and since I'm in Seattle, I can usually buy fresher at other places. The price will be mostly the same. Meat is good quality and the price I think competitive.

Back to produce, I think that they tend to run higher than other places with what I think are the same items.

I can't buy pancetta there and have been told by 20 something clerks that I should be happy they have the good American pancetta rather than that foreign stuff. Oh yeah, once I had to have some for a recipe that I was serving and didn't have time to go where I knew to get the real deal, I was told that the Deli section would not cut any for me as they didn't want to have to clean their slicer after cutting dirty raw food.

I think I'll use them but I can't imagine them lowering prices on the things I buy there. I would love it if they would have well trained people to sell me the high quality things I want with out the burden of their fundimintalist approach to eating.

[Chris Amirault]

From yesterday's trip to the University Heights store in Providence. I wrote down things that I might reasonably buy at Shaw's on a given trip. All produce is conventional.

NJ peaches & nectarines: $2.49/lb

limes: 3/$0.99

lemons: $0.89 each

CA broccoli: $1.99

Haas avocado: $1.99 each

celery: $2.49 each

red bell peppers: $3.99/lb

cucumbers: $0.99 each

eggplant: $1.99/lb

loose yellow onions: $0.99/lb (also 2 lb bags $0.99)

Barilla pasta: $1.79/lb box

DeCecco pasta: $1.99-2.49/lb box

Coleman's mustard powder: 3.99 for 2 oz box

Old Bay seasoning $3.99 6 oz box

Kokuho Rose rice $16.99 for 10 lb bag

King Arthur AP flour $4.99 5 lb bag

Rumford baking pwdr $2.49 can

"Sugar in the Raw" turbinado: $4.99 for 2 lbs

Ghiradelli chocolate bar: $2.49 4 oz bar

Tazo tea $3.99

Tom's toothpaste $4.49 for 5.5 oz

Reynolds wax paper $1.99 75 sq feet

Rhody Fresh milk $2.79 1/2 gallon

[tsquare]

Trader Joe's (Seattle) looking at comparison items:

King Arthur Flour: $3.99 for 5 lbs.

Tom's toothpaste: $3.99 for 6 oz.

Limes: $1.29 for 1 lb (6 in the bag)

Egg pappardelle pasta by TJ: $1.99 for 8 oz.

and just for fun:

Volpi proscuitto: $3.49 for 3 oz. (domenstic, not bad)

Peanut Butter: $2.99 for 16 oz. organic

Pecan halves: $5.99 for 16 oz.

Cannellini beans, canned: .89 for 15 oz. (I know, dried are a better deal)

They also don't have a store serving my neighborhood, but I am in their area far more often than Whole Foods.

[kiliki]

I regularly shop for produce, meat, and fish at one of three Whole Foods here in RI, but I do my basic shopping at one of the large supermarket chains

Funny, I do my "basic" shopping--canned beans, canned tomatoes, cooking oils, any pantry staple actually, plus cheese/dairy--at Whole Foods (produce comes from the farmer's market, fish from the fish market). Their prices on their house brand stuff are WAY cheaper than my local natural food co-op or my neighborhood grocery and as cheap at TJs, and their cheese prices are better than most other places I go (yes TJ's cheese is cheaper but I don't like the quality/selection). So WF doesn't actually have to convince me that they can be an economical choice--I already think they are. I'm happy to post my receipt next time I go.

[MomOfLittleFoodies]

I generally go to Whole Foods when I need dairy free yogurt and ice cream for my daughter, or nut free cereal bars for my oldest son, or something specific that I can't find at Safeway or Luckys. It's not a place where I do my day to day grocery shopping. Even though their milk prices are about the same as Safeway, the prices on pretty much everything else is higher than the grocery stores or Trader Joes.