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Whole Foods is notorious for being a little pricey, but with good reason. Organic, fresh produce is their forte. But now the grocery chain is targeting a younger generation with brand spankin’ new stores for Millennials on a budget, USA Today reports.
Walter Robb, co-CEO of Whole Foods, announced on Wednesday that the new stores will be less expensive and feature innovative technology for Millennial shoppers. “…By creating a second growth vehicle for our company, we can broaden the accessibility to fresh healthy foods,” Robb said.
Whole Foods, or “Whole Paycheck” as it’s comically called for its costliness, has not been doing so hot in recent years. According to Eater, Whole Foods saw its stock plummet 35 percent last year.
The chain grocer was the worst performing company of the S&P 500 in 2014. Whole Paycheck — er, I mean Whole Foods — was facing a lot of competition from Trader Joe’s, Costco, Walmart, and Kroger, which offer affordable organic foods.
“[Whole Foods] still has a problem on price,” said Neil Saunders, CEO of retail consultancy Conlumino. “[Millennials] just don’t have the disposable income to make that their destination of choice for grocery shopping.”
But Robb says these new stores will appeal “to anyone looking for high-quality fresh food at great prices.”
This new concept follows in the footsteps of Target and Walmart; the two retail giants have been opening smaller convenience stores that are focused on selling fresh food and snacks in urban markets.
Of course, social media always has its commentators:
@hadleypdxdc @WholeFoods @USATODAY Will it become unhip when Boomers realize they like the lower prices, too?
— Kate Stalter (@KateStalter) May 7, 2015
The newly-formatted stores are set to open next year. More information about where and how many will be released on Labor Day.
