Case: Whole Foods has decided on the locations of the first five 365 stores. These are Silver Lake, Los Angeles, CA; Houston Heights, Houston, TX; Portland, OR; Bellevue, WA; Austin, TX. Each of the new 365 stores is opening in an existing market for the company. There are currently five Whole Foods Market stores in the Seattle area, and four stores in Portland. Ore. In Portland, two stores stand within 1.5 miles of each other. Wholefoods management has stated “To best leverage our existing team member base and infrastructure, we expect most of our first 365 by Whole Foods Market stores will be in existing markets, complementing our Whole Foods Market stores, the streamlined store concept and efficient shopping experience will allow us to grow in both urban and suburban markets.”
Question: 1. The base case and the locations selected for the first four stores, suggest some of the operational factors that WF took into account in deciding on the locations of the new 365 stores.
a) Describe each of these factors in more detail (about 4-5 sentences each). Where/how would you get data for these factors (websites, databases, government sources, etc.)?
b) What factors related to financing, marketing and management should WF take into account in selecting locations for the 365 stores and why? Clearly describe each of these in 4-5 sentences.
Question 2. How does the hipster customer segment that WF is targeting for its 365 stores influence the decisions that WF has to make regarding: a) the layout of the new stores and b) the quality processes of the new stores?
Question 3. How is this segment’s influence different from that of the customers for the regular WF stores?