Whole Foods to Buy Greenlife Grocery
Updated | 10:50 a.m.
In a deal expected to close in two weeks, Whole Foods Market Inc. will purchase Greenlife Grocery LLC, according to a media release.
Friday morning, the companies announced that they have signed an asset purchase agreement under which Whole Foods Market will assume all assets of the locally owned Greenlife Grocery.The story first broke on the Asheville-based blog, Ashvegas, late Thursday night and was based on an anonymous source who attended a store staff meeting with Chuck Pruett, Greenlife founder and CEO, and three Whole Foods representatives at Greenlife's Asheville, N.C., location.
"As of May 24, we will be owned by Whole Foods," the source writes. "We will remain Greenlife and remain, physically, in our current space indefinitely. As much as the meeting was filled with positive and sort of vague talk ... I think the store's staff left feeling pretty good about the changes that are afoot."
Workers at the Chattanooga store were notified of the buy-out Friday morning.
Greenlife is a popular, locally owned grocery with stores in Chattanooga, Tenn. and Asheville, N.C. The Chattanooga store is located off Manufacturers Road at the Two North Shore commercial complex.
The Chattanooga store sells locally grown produce, meats and other organic products and, since its opening in 1999 on Hixson Pike, has become a leader in the Chattanooga food economy. The Chattanooga store relocated to Two North Shore in 2007.“A deal with Whole Foods Market makes sense for us at this time in our company’s life cycle," Pruett said in the media release. "Over the last 11 years, we have built a solid foundation for natural, organic and locally grown food in Tennessee and North Carolina.
"I sincerely appreciate all the customer support we have enjoyed over the years in Chattanooga and Asheville, and I believe that our customers will continue to get the same great shopping experience after the deal closes. Based on their history and core value of team member happiness and excellence, I believe Whole Foods Market will care for our team members just as much as I have since the first day we opened our doors.”Greenlife's Asheville store opened in 2004.
Whole Foods Market Inc. operates 279 locations in the U.S., Canada and the United Kingdom as of 2009. Stores owned by the Austin, Texas-based company sell natural and organic food products, including many of those offered by Greenlife. “Greenlife is an outstanding grocery retailer and a vibrant and valued part of the communities it serves," said Scott Allshouse, president of Whole Foods Market South Region, in the media release. "We are proud to welcome Greenlife into the Whole Foods Market family," Allshouse said. "The customers and team members who define the Greenlife culture have created a truly special natural, organic and local food community in Chattanooga and Asheville. We believe Whole Foods Market’s presence in the southeast and our culture as a company will be enriched by this deal with Greenlife."Attempts to reach Greenlife Grocery this morning by phone and email were unsuccessful. Check back to chattarati.com for updates throughout the day.
"Whole Foods to Buy Greenlife Grocery" originally appeared on Chattarati.com on May 7, 2010. Unless otherwise noted, this article is ©2010 Chattarati and may not be reused without permission.
