I used to go to the Wild Oats on South Beach (Miami). I loved it, although honestly it seemed very similar to Whole Foods. I guess part of it for me is the name, which can project "cool and unique" or "blah and generic." "Wild Oats" and "Bread & Circus" and "Fresh Fields" just have a whole lot more character than "Whole Foods," which seems like calling a supermarket "Supermarket."

(But here in DC, I must admit I'm in Whole Foods all the time. I just wish it were still Fresh Fields or Bread & Circus.)

Bread & Circus is a really good name, reminds me of the Bread & Puppet theatre in Vermont and being in Boston.

The Wild Oats stores here (called Sun Harvest) are sort of a hybrid - organic grocery/staples, mostly conventional produce. Their sale prices on non-organic produce are very good. I'm going to miss them, when they go WF!

Bread & Circus IS Whole Foods. They bought it many years ago (at least 15 years) and diluted the higher B&C quality standards. Specifically WF wanted them to sell Ben & Jerry's icecream and so made them stock products with refined sugar.

Oh wow, I sometimes shop at the Whole Foods in West Vancouver at Park Royal when I visit the big city. Interesting gobble up.. hope it only gets better!

I am so lucky living in the Portland, OR area. We have Whole Foods, Wild Oats and New Seasons all within a 5 mile radius. If you know some of the local lore and legend, you will understand that alot of people in the Pacific Northwest ain't shedding too many tears over the sale of Wild Oats. They are outrageously expensive, for one thing. I had to laugh when they moved out of their Boones Ferry address and forbid any other grocery stores from leasing their old vacated space which still stands vacated four years later. When Whole Foods came to the neighborhood, it would have seemed logical for them to go in that old space, but they instead decided to open right across the street from Wild Oats' new location. If they didn't buy them, they would have certainly put that one location out of business eventually.

Hey, when is AT coming out here????

I live in Austin, home of Whole Foods. I can remember when it was also a "crunchy granola" small store. I've had issues with WF for quite some time and I don't usually shop there - we have options in Austin - most significantly the fabulous Central Market which is a part of a Texas supermarket chain HEB. HEB is owned by Texas baptists and they make no apologies for their corporate standing. WF on the other hand, likes to tout their um, wholesomeness - care for the planet, people etc. Which really is a load of crap.

They've never paid their employees all that well and they can certainly afford to now. The recent comments of the head honcho about gobbling up Wild Oats because they just can't compete sounds a LOT like Wal-Mart to me.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all about people making a decent living for doing the right thing - just don't try to pretend a purity of motives that really doesn't exist.

And their new store in Central Austin??? If you want to shop for a lot of overpriced gourmet pre-made grab and go food, its great. Grocery shopping there is a howling nightmare.

I'll stick to Central Market - they have as many (if not more) organic choices and are easy to get into and out of and this particular pagan doesn't have any quarrel with their corporate philosophy - at least they're honest.

oops! sorry for double posting

As an ex-WF employee, currently working for another food market, I kind of miss WFs. No, they didn't pay well, but the benefits do add up. You put in your time, and you get free health insurance (big discounts until then), cheap vision and dental plans. THere are a lot of rules, but being a big corporation, at least they play by the rules too. Small companies might pay a little better wage-wise, but the benefits rarely match up and the rules get bent way too easily.

Anyways, for years, I always thought WF's owned Wild Oats. I coulda sworn someone told me that, even though they were obviously in competition in some towns.. I love both in Ft. Collins CO. In NYC, WF's is good for some things, but definitely a different beast than the rest of the stores in the US. I too am curious to see what happens with WO, but honestly am very excited for the new WF stores coming to NY/Brooklyn.

One of their "core values" is to create wealth for the company and their employees. They don't pretend to be a hippie company.. they are a corporation. But people vote with their dollar, and somehow WF's has taken over. As long as they aren't lying to us about what we're buying, I'm cool with it. They have the potential to teach all Americans about what they're eating and how to eat better, and that's OK by me.

I don't shop at Whole Foods often - there's a closer, locally own organic food store that I like much better called Jimbo's (I live in San Diego). I've never actually been to a Wild Oats either, so I can't say anything about that one. I'm not too fond of Whole Foods - the atmosphere feels too "big"... I can't describe it another way... Maybe I'm just more into local stores than a big corporation.

Funny...but Whole Foods DID start out as a "hippy" co-op. Back in the day, I shopped the original Austin location where you could practically hear the granola crunch underfoot. Then they added a larger, more traditional store across town....and the rest is history.
It has gotten way far away from their roots. I'm not at all sure I love what they have become. Sort of like a Bloomingdales of food.

sort of off topic, but how do you all feel about Trader Joes? I generally try to stick to all natural/organics, so I love that they provide that at a decent price, no middlemen. I personally feel that their quality on some products are a little weak, especially the frozen/prepared stuff, but for staples and snacks, it's a god send! I bounce between TJ's, WFs and Fairway market (best bulk section in the city!).

I personally LOVE TJ's - their prices can't be beat. Some of their produce is questionable in packaging and etc, but for staples, they are awesome. My boyfriend was whining today because we bought another brand of creamy organic tomato soup and it tastes NOTHING like TJ's brand, which is so yummy! I only wish it was as close as some other health food stores we have.

I must admit I am a Boulder native and a long time shopper at Wild Oats/Alfalfas. And yet, I LOVE Whole Foods. Everytime I shop there, despite the crowded aisles and the long lines, I feed my eyes, my nose and my belly. I was vehmently against the arrival of WH about a decade ago and I also shop at Vitamin Cottage -- another local natural foods store. WF and VC both stand by their values (they don't sell foods with MSG, nitrates or GMOs -- like our local Wild Oats) and respect their employees, whereas I have never met a genuinely happy Wild Oats employee...maybe it is that I only meet ex-employees...who are usually working at VC or WF. I for one am excited to see the changes, although I do wonder what will happen to our many local Wild Oats locations.