Reply #247: I'm not boycotting just because of Mackey's opinion...

[BREMPRO]

Many reasons:

He has a right to his opinion and I support his right to express them in any forum he chooses. He mentioned Whole foods many times in the article and it's clear as the chairman of the board, co-founder, and CEO he runs the show. He's is totally out of tune with his customers values and sense of community. His libertarian views in general are an offense to his majority liberal customer base, including myself.

The company has made a practice of swallowing up small independent stores and chains and created regional monopolies. Their corporate model is much like Walmart but with high prices-not good for communities or small businesses. Here in Portland ME, they bought and closed a small independent health food store and bought and closed a popular Wild Oats store in a hostile merger. It was discovered during the acquisition that Mackey had been posting on financial web sites under pseudonyms positive comments about his company and negative ones about Wild Oats. He did this to presumably to lower the stock price of Wild Oats, a highly unethical business practice. He even posted that he like the CEO's (his own)haircut " i think he looks cute"

He also sued another GREAT health food chain "New Seasons" for their financial records during the merger with wild oats claiming he needed them to prove he wasn't creating a monopoly. Right, just more info to help their predatory and anti-competitive practices.

He's anti-union and has resisted all attempts of his employees to unionize. I used to shop at Bread and Circus in Cambridge and the employees seemed happier and more "organic". The feeling in WFM is corporate and not so friendly.

His health care plan, the one he is proposing for the country is a high deductible plan with HSA's which are great for the corporation (saves them money and lowers risk)and the insurance business (increases profits), but not for workers. It discourages preventative care among other problems. It's the same one republicans like McCain were pushing on us during the campaign. His health plan works for WFM bottom line because his employees are generally, young, healthy, and have a high turnover- therefore no long term costs.

I will not shop there again, and plan to shop at farmers markets and travel a bit for a small local independent health food store. All are less expensive and support local business and communities.

When WFM reforms their ways and Mackey steps down, i may consider returning, not until then.