Whole Foods Market scouting for space in Detroit's Midtown district

[Bozita]

Source: Detroit Free Press

Whole Foods Market scouting for space in Detroit's Midtown district
3:03 PM, Apr. 4, 2011
JOHN GALLAGHER
Detroit Free Press Business Writer


The Whole Foods Market chain won’t talk about it, but the upscale grocery has been shopping for a possible store location in Detroit’s Midtown district and holding preliminary meetings to line up potential local suppliers.

Kate Klotz, a Midwest regional spokeswoman for Whole Foods, declined to comment today, citing the company’s policy of never discussing possible new stores until a lease is signed.

But Dan Carmody, president of Eastern Market Corp., said he and Whole Foods representatives have held preliminary meetings in Detroit to explore lining up local growers and other potential producers to supply food products to a store in Detroit.

“They seem to be genuine about it,” Carmody said.

Read more: http://www.freep.com/article/20110404/NEWS01/110404040/Whole-Foods-Market-scouting-space-Detroit-s-Midtown-district?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

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This is really big news for Detroit. Here's hoping it happens!

[Ian David]

1. Fuck Whole Foods.

Unions Join Whole Foods Boycott Fray
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4034265

Customers call for Whole Foods boycott
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4028342

[Hannah Bell]

2. surprise. toldja so.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

3. I wish them every success

Detroit can certainly use some clean, honest, fairly-priced grocery stores. I'm not quite sure where Midtown is, but when I lived near Wayne State, I had to drive a long way to get decent groceries. You know, lettuce that's green, meat that's not green, stuff like that.

[HERVEPA]

4. Fairly priced???

[PassingFair]

10. In the 80's I remember not being able to buy a pair of sheets. Anywhere..

Eventually found some, in the basement of McCrory's,
which had once been the Kresge's on Woodward downtown.

I didn't have time to go out the the suburbs.

[Hestia]

5. Just wait until they see their grocery bills and non-union? The glamour will wear off very quickly.

[damntexdem]

6. If it can't find a big-enough space, will it open a Half Foods Market?

;-)

[stockholmer]

7. a large, democratically run, socially responsible food co-op w/ local products would be much better

[RantinRavin]

9. but do you know of any

that want to move into the area ?

[stockholmer]

12. people there w/small ones(along w/ home growers)need 2 unite& form 1,democracy isnt spectator sport

[truthisfreedom]

8. They might enjoy a Trader Joe's a bit more.

I'm just sayin'. I'm not too keen on Whole Foods.

[JI7]

11. why can't both open up ? while i probaby wouldn't shop at whole foods

considering the problems in Detroit i think this is more good than bad.

whole foods does get a lot of locals to supply their business and it would help those small businesses.

[Starry Messenger]

13. Very anti-union and the prices are out of reach for all but the affluent.

It's kind of a strange choice for the city, since they have been claiming they are trying to shrink everyone towards the central parts of the city.

[Hannah Bell]

15. I wonder how the plan for the urban plantation is coming.

"lining up local growers and other potential producers to supply food products"

[Sabriel]

14. In this case, will it be called "More-than-Whole Paycheck"?

It seems like a sick joke, to put in a very expensive store in a city suffering from high poverty rates.

Maybe Michael Moore can get them to carry organic rabbit!

[queenjane]

16. I know it's sexy to bash Whole Foods

but it's like every other store: you check prices and shop selectively. As a vegan, I eat a lot of tofu. Whole Foods' 365 Brand is the cheapest I've found, and very good. They have their own brands of many products, they have weekly sales, their website has coupons, and they stock locally grown fruits & vegetables. I've never found bread anywhere, including homemade (which I rarely do for time constraints), that's as good as their whole grain breads. No, I don't do all my shopping there; in fact, I buy groceries/pet supplies, et al, at as many as 6 different stores. But it does offer items no one else carries and deals can be found there.