Whole Foods Market (Nasdaq: WFM) is testing membership-based "Wellness Clubs" in five US markets – a move that could bring preventive health care into the larger grocery industry.
The test clubs will be located in stores in Dedham, MA., New York City, Chicago, Princeton, N.J., and Oakland, CA.
Members will pay a one-time fee of $199 and monthly dues of $45. In exchange, they can attend classes on nutrition, health and cooking, and receive 10% discounts on 1,000 healthy food items in the store.
If the pilot is successful, Whole Foods says it will expand the program to 10 more markets in 2012 before going nationwide in 2013. The company has 310 stores nationwide.
Whole Foods is the nation’s largest natural foods chain and a leader in the grocery industry, often credited with pushing larger competitors like Wal-Mart and Kroger to carry more organic products.
If the Wellness Clubs are a hit with customers, it could significantly reshape the industry around providing not only food, but also information on how to prepare and eat it in a healthy manner.
Whole Foods founder and co-CEO John Mackey told USA Today it will require bold – and maybe controversial action – to shift the paradigm in the industry and encourage greater health.
"People are woefully ignorant about how to eat healthy," he says. "I almost feel an ethical obligation to help."
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