Whole Foods Market Inc. (Nasdaq: WFMI), the world’s largest organic and natural foods chain, opens its first store outside North America tomorrow, June 6. The London store is the first of the hundreds planned in Europe.
At 80,000 square feet, it is the largest supermarket in the UK, and Whole Foods largest to store to date.
By 2010, the company plans to have 300 stores in the U.S., up from 194 today, and envisions eventually having the same number in the UK and Europe.”
Along with its usual gourmet organic offerings, the London Whole Foods has a pub and a DJ on the second of its three floors.
Whole Foods faces more competition in the UK than in the U.S. One analyst said its success in London depends on it becoming a shopping and tourist destination, because residents have plenty of options for purchasing everyday items.
British chains Tesco (TSCO.L), J. Sainsbury Plc (SBRY.L), Wal-Mart Stores’ unit Asda (Nasdaq: WMT) and others carry thousands of organic products at prices often cheaper than at Whole Foods.
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