Whole Foods 2011 Annual Report Download - page 6

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letter to stakeholders
Our pleasurable store experience, outstanding customer service, high quality standards and differentiated
product mix have been the primary drivers of our growth and success. We are committed to maintaining our
unique positioning in these areas and now have the benefit of our more visible value efforts to gain additional
customers. We also are in the early innings of becoming a more efficient retailer and have a lot of opportunities
ahead of us to drive higher levels of operating performance and returns on invested capital over time.
We consider 1,000 stores to be a reasonable indication of our market opportunity in the U.S. People are
increasingly embracing healthier lifestyles to improve the quality of their lives and minimize their healthcare
costs. As America’s Healthiest Grocery Store, we are uniquely positioned to benefit from this major demographic
evolution. We are not yet saturated in any major metro area, and our flexibility on new store size has opened
up additional market opportunities. In addition, through acquisitions and our own store development, we
have learned that select secondary markets are ready and waiting for Whole Foods Market to come to town.
Looking beyond the U.S., we have seven stores in operation and three in development in Canada where we
believe sales can surpass $1 billion over the next decade. We recently opened our first store in Scotland and
have five stores in development averaging 21,000 square feet in size scheduled to open in the U.K. over the
next two years. The performance of these new stores will give us a much better understanding of our long-
term potential in the U.K. market and expansion opportunities in other international markets as well.
We are more passionate than ever about our future and the positive impact we can make in the world by
helping the natural and organic foods industry grow and suc ceed, educating our customers about healthier
lifestyles, and offering a different kind of business model where profits and integrity positively impact all of
our stakeholders. We firmly believe the best is yet to come for Whole Foods Market and look forward to
working together to see our collective vision realized.
With deep appreciation to all of our stakeholders,
John Mackey Walter Robb
Co-Founder & Co-CEO Co-CEO