Photo: RetailWire
Whole Foods Market 365 — its parent company’s answer to Trader Joe’s — hasn’t gotten a ton of press lately, but plans are in place for the organic grocer to continue rolling out more of its new concept stores.
The smaller store format, which focuses on Whole Foods’ private label and markets itself as more price competitive than, say, its parent company’s full-line locations, opened in Brooklyn, NY, this week. The new space is the chain’s first on the East Coast — seventh overall — with 16 others planned around the country, according to the 365 site.
The Brooklyn store is located next to an Apple store and represents the second generation of the concept. Jeff Turnas, who leads the 365 business, told Bloomberg that the company is happy with the store layout and is focusing more on nailing product selection in each location. Among the changes made has been the addition of more bakery items and a butcher in each store. Operating costs may be slightly higher as a result of the changes, but the returns based on increased service levels have warranted the investment.
While Whole Foods has chosen standalone locations for its 365 stores, speculation remains that the concept may move inside some Kohl’s locations as the relationship between that chain and Amazon.com deepens. Amazon opened 10 shops of its own products inside Kohl’s in Chicago and Los Angeles in time for Christmas. Eighty-two Kohl’s stores in the same markets also began a test accepting product returns for Amazon.
Last month, Kevin Mansell, CEO of Kohl’s, said the department store retailer is looking for partners from the convenience and grocery channels to fill open space in about 300 stores it has “right-sized” over the past several years. In addition to lease payments for the space, Kohl’s believes its business will benefit from the traffic that comes with having a grocery store inside the available locations.
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The Brooklyn store is located next to an Apple store and represents the second generation of the concept. Jeff Turnas, who leads the 365 business, told Bloomberg that the company is happy with the store layout and is focusing more on nailing product selection in each location. Among the changes made has been the addition of more bakery items and a butcher in each store. Operating costs may be slightly higher as a result of the changes, but the returns based on increased service levels have warranted the investment.
While Whole Foods has chosen standalone locations for its 365 stores, speculation remains that the concept may move inside some Kohl’s locations as the relationship between that chain and Amazon.com deepens. Amazon opened 10 shops of its own products inside Kohl’s in Chicago and Los Angeles in time for Christmas. Eighty-two Kohl’s stores in the same markets also began a test accepting product returns for Amazon.
Last month, Kevin Mansell, CEO of Kohl’s, said the department store retailer is looking for partners from the convenience and grocery channels to fill open space in about 300 stores it has “right-sized” over the past several years. In addition to lease payments for the space, Kohl’s believes its business will benefit from the traffic that comes with having a grocery store inside the available locations.
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- Stores – Whole Foods Market 365
- Whole Foods’ 365 Offshoot Moving Ahead Under Amazon Ownership – Bloomberg
- NYC’s First Whole Foods 365 Opening: Long Lines, Cheap Avocados, and a Whole Lotta Cowbells – Grub Street
- With stores going dark, Whole Foods looks to fill retail's gaps – CNBC
- Kohl’s to share space with grocery store partner(s) – RetailWire