According to the New York Times, Austin-based Whole Foods is embarking on a mission to change a fundemental consumer perception—that the store is exceedingly expensive.
For the next 10 weeks, Whole Foods is running print advertisements in New York City emphasizing “value” and “deals” — two words not generally associated with the chain that inspired the quip “Whole Foods, Whole Paycheck.”
Portraying itself as inexpensive, however, could prove tricky for Whole Foods. After all, the chain’s perceived elitism — encouraged by the company or not — has earned it a cultlike following among well-heeled, health-obsessed professionals, who consider it a badge of honor to buy their fair-trade organic coffee, cage-free eggs and hydrogenated-oil-free cookies there.
The ads “are inconsistent with what the brand stands for,” said Allen Adamson, managing director of the New York office of Landor Associates, a corporate identity consultant that is part of the WPP Group. “The reality is that they have a premium-looking store positioned as an all natural place to shop. Both of those signal ‘expensive.’ “
