Thread regarding Whole Foods Market Inc. layoffs

It's interesting that nobody is talking about self service compared to customer service, one WFM in Nor Cal has Bakery, Bread and Pizza all self service, it's kinda hard to offer good customer service when the company/leadership doesn't want to offer any customer service at all.

Lol, creating an atmosphere in the store? GTFOH with that , this is a business and watching someone get paid $20+ to draw chalk or laminate signs that a 6 year old could at 450 stores had to go. Many other jobs are next but I agree with the OP that had no value to a customer. And your special feeling about it is laughable

To everyone talking smack on the whole "wine buyer's face on a sign" thing, it's never been as much about selling individual products through this stuff as it's been about creating an atmosphere in the store. Walking into a whole foods 2-10+ years ago when that stuff was fully underway did feel different and special and certainly helped give the store a higher end feel and memorable atmosphere.

I'm not arguing against the cuts, and I'm genuinely surprised it took this long, but don't talk down on the job those TMs did all that time.

We definitely need more RVP's and EC's to tell us we can do more with less at the store level. Beyond the product and quality standards what differentiated WFM the most was the customer service. Kind of hard to take care of customers when you don't have team members to actually tend to them. My prepared foods teams at my stores look awful compared to 15 years ago when I started. I guess I can only expect so much when my TL is also my line cook and order writer.

Let's be clear we're talking about chalk art...this is not a magically differentiator. Pricing accuracy for a customer is a way more impactful win the Steve the wine buyer's face on a bottle. Bottom line is that work can be simplified and have no real impact to customers. Act like it was some magic differentiator and sales driver all you want but that's the inane thinking that drove us into the ground. Business is changing our customers are changing, our competitors we're changing, we weren't. We're trying to catch up after being long over due to modernize. Yes consolidation will happen as we eliminate redundant work.

I agree that you will not buy wine based on the label. You will buy wine based on what it is, where you found it and how much it is. The fact is that no one can talk to you if you have a question about what it is, where it is or how much it is. We have no service, so a label helps. Now that we have no labels and no service you have to rely on the tag if it is right. Since we have order writers and no buyers anymore you have to hope someone decided that you needed more than a holding power of 1. The problem is once you make us like everyone else you can expect the same level of service you get at the gas station. none. Folks came to Whole Foods because we were not like everyone else. It is too bad that our leadership could not stay a course of innovation and were blinded by power and money.

The original post was on the money, this is not about another restructure it is about global leadership and it's absolute failure to lead this company. Bringing in the new board has not helped, they have further diluted our strength and continue to place us in the gladiator pit.

All the signs and stuff look nice but it’s allot of money being spent every year. WF is just finally giving up the illusion of being different then other stores. No more candy coating things it’s a bussiness it’s about making money not taking care of your employees.

Yeah cuz people really choose to buy a wine cuz you magically drew the wine buyers face on a board with chalk. 0.01% of people buy an item because of the chalk art associated with it. The 0.01 is the chalk artist himself. $20+ an hour to print and laminate a sale sign 450 times across the country? 6 year olds can print and laminate

Yes we will all print the same thing dictated by one central protocol so our customers will be better served. What a crock. Global and regional have no clue what our customer wants or we wouldn't be in the mess we are in. Amazon wants it done their way, no one cares about sustainability, loyalty or human interaction. Art is all about what we are eliminating. Whole Foods is a shell of what it once was.

The printer replaced chalk artists. Welcome to the 21st century.

Sure, let’s have 4 chalk artist’s instead of an RVP. Your on that good stuff. Lmao

Agreed! Don't know what it is about Whole Foods that turns decent people into sociopaths once they get into leadership, but the best thing amazon could do would be to clean house of nearly everyone.

Totally agree. Not much more to add.

They are the idiots that ruined Whole Foods. Not the Team member trying to implement their sh-- programs