Whole Foods has made available an interesting presentation from its annual meeting of shareholders. The presentation reviews the core values of the chain and provides some great photos, including the first Whole Foods in Austin, Texas, back in 1980 and the latest iterations of in-store restaurants, fantastic wine displays and customer communication devices.
There also is a portrayal of the new Whole Foods Guarantee, which tries to bring British-style environmental and labor certifications to the U.S. as well as all the financial information and a review of the proposed merger with Wild Oats.
The presentation plucks out the volume of “locally grown” produce Whole Foods sold in 2006 — $163 million. Although no definition is given of what qualifies as local. Still this is an advance move against the “movement” advocates who attack Whole Foods as part of “big organic” looking to work with big vendors.
And there’s a picture of the new London store set to open in June. A test of whether the Whole Foods concept will play outside of North America.
You can see the presentation right here.
