Whole Foods CEO John Mackey Stepping Down As Chairman

PHILADELPHIA — The chief executive of organic supermarket chain Whole Foods Market Inc. is giving up his title of chairman, following years of petitioning by an activist shareholder to separate the two roles.

Co-founder and CEO John Mackey is voluntarily giving up his chairmanship, a position he's held since the Austin, Texas, company's inception in 1978, according to a Thursday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Mackey will remain on the board.

Whole Foods said lead director John Elstrott will become chairman. His current position will be discontinued.

At Whole Foods' annual shareholders meeting in March, CtW Investment Group, a shareholder activist group that works with union pension funds, unsuccessfully proposed that the CEO and chairman roles be separated. The grocer said it has been receiving these proposals for three years.

But in August, CtW raised the stakes by calling for the CEO's removal. The activist group said an editorial by Mackey opposing President Obama's health care plan damaged the company's reputation, especially among its left-leaning customers.

The group said Mackey "attempted to capitalize on the brand reputation of Whole Foods to champion his personal political views but has instead deeply offended a key segment of Whole Foods consumer base."

CtW said Mackey has become a "liability" because of his "indiscretion."

The shareholder activist has wanted Mackey to relinquish his chairman title because it believes an independent chairman could improve the company's stock price performance. CtW noted the stock had fallen 30 percent over the past five years ending Sept. 30, 2008 compared with a 14 percent gain in the S&P 500 Index.

Comments

[CabaretArtist]

11:31 AM on 01/06/2010

I stopped shopping WH, period. There's Trader Joe's and many many direct online sources. Who needs an overpriced joint that the CEO admits sells junk.

Shop online or at Trader Joe's and numerous health-oriented local stores.

[ReedYoung]

01:14 PM on 01/05/2010

Mackey has every right to express his personal opinion publicly, of course, but the extremely lax rules of "business ethics" do include the maxim "don't hurt your brand," which Mackey did when he signed his anti-health care editorial in the Wall Street Journal "Whole Foods CEO John Mackey" instead of "private citizen John Mackey" or "Libertarian John Mackey" or anything else that wouldn't have borrowed his prestige as CEO of Whole Foods for a cause that most of its customers oppose. His employers don't have the right to prevent him from writing editorials in his own name, but they do have every right to as much control as they wish to exercise, in how *he* uses *their* brand. They have every right to fire him without any severance, and I for one will never shop at Whole Foods until they do exactly that.

[tengutoo]

05:20 PM on 12/30/2009

I don't personally agree with the man's personal opinions on some topics. But I know many people who work at WFM and most of them are very happy with the benefits and career paths the company provides. As far as being anti union, not all unions are good and the employees at WFM generally have higher starting pay and better benefits than their counterparts at main stream grocery stores..

[JasonTromm]

08:57 AM on 12/30/2009

When Bush was in the Whitehouse, y'all praised dissent as the highest form of patriotism. Now that your guy is trying to run the country you don't want to hear different opinions. I think Mackey's editorial brought in more new customers than it drove away the liberal hippies.
I've talked to several Whole Foods employees and all of them are happy with their health care plan. Those that work more than 30 hours don't pay anything. Part-time workers can buy in.

[notsostimulated]

10:55 AM on 12/29/2009

The circular firing squad strikes again. How very sad.

[Jan Lystad]

01:00 PM on 12/27/2009

John Mackey's article in the WSJ stated what his own employees receive in terms of health care benefits (and they are overwhelmingly happy about it), and he gets slammed for it. What a crazy guy, trying to both make his employees happy and look for inexpensive health care. He must be evil!

As far as shopping at Whole Foods--if their prices get outrageously high, then someone (perhaps you) will enter the market and offer the goods at a lower price, and therefore provide competition. There are no particular barriers to entry to the organic grocery market. So why are you complaining? If you don't like the price, buy it from someone else. That's the beauty of the free market.

[chariotdrvr14]

03:38 PM on 12/28/2009

I'm a former employee... and I was never happy with the healthcare provided. Substandard... actually.

[geoffrobinson]

11:33 AM on 12/27/2009

Yeah, it's just awful that a CEO dared criticize the Dear Leader's plan. He even included thoughtful ideas of his own. How dare he!

I think we should boycott a store which has a leader who thoughtfully disagrees with our Maximum Leader. That will definitely teach the world we definitely are caring people who don't have a fascist impulse to control their lives, let alone their thoughts.

[ricky73]

09:29 AM on 12/27/2009

So much for free thinking and diversity of opinion. Yet another victory for religious intolerance.

[flamflurm]

11:33 AM on 12/27/2009

This was crossing the Chicago goonsquad's line.

[Horus45]

09:09 AM on 12/27/2009

This is proof that Boycotts work.

[ricky73]

12:58 PM on 12/27/2009

Interestingly, I saw him on the new John Stossel program and he said his profits went up after the boycott. Apparently those calling for a boycott mostly weren't customers of his and the boycott coverage game him free advertising. However, the leftist fascists (I know, redundant) were still able to bring down the private citizen as they are being so very successful at doing everywhere else in the country right now.

[Horus45]

11:23 AM on 12/28/2009

Not redundant, that's an Oxymoron.
There is no such thing as a left fascist, fascists are always far right.
The left does not worship corporations like how the right does!

[xtry51]

09:07 AM on 12/27/2009

Funny how I don't here anyone asking for the leadership of GE to step down because they take a particular political stance and use their positions and company money to push an agenda. I guess it's only OK to ask for people who don't support your particular view to step down. What a bunch of hypocrites you all are.

[carljr]

09:14 AM on 12/27/2009

GE obviously needs better shareholders who seek more responsible management. What we've witnessed at Whole Foods is the American way --- democracy if you like, in a public company that is truly a public company.

If GE, or any other shareholders, don't exert their influence they get the management they deserve.

[gage]

10:54 AM on 12/27/2009

GE is totally in the tank for Obama, as are many other big corporations. I can't boycott them all, or there'd be nothing for me to buy.

[liveinhope23]

10:20 AM on 12/27/2009

I'm sorry - isn't this "capitalism" and "the free market" at work? I'd say the hypocrisy is entirely on your side. The market has spoken.
Eat it.

[bokiluis]

08:42 AM on 12/27/2009

Have not been there since the boycott began.........in the beginning I did miss the bakery, but, hardly think about it anymore, and my wasteline looks better because of it.

[PJinIL]

08:08 AM on 12/27/2009

Overpriced and not the best food products around. I quit shopping there after this idiot used the healthcare issue to sell his wares and won't go back. The few unique things that were hard to find elsewhere I just do without unless I am going by another Chicago store that carries them.

I agree he has the right to say anything he wants, but I'll spend my money where I chose.

[CannedHands]

06:05 AM on 12/27/2009

I will never step foot in a WF store again-- let them target TeaBaggers and ditch diggers.

[Acleacius]

04:11 AM on 12/27/2009

Still boycotting.

[uansari1]

06:07 AM on 12/27/2009

Same here... as long as that man is on the payroll, my money goes elsewhere.

[cal5000]

03:49 AM on 12/27/2009

Consumer Power is vastly overrated.

Mackey embarrassed the company, but its doing fine.

If you want to hurt Whole Foods--go to your local grocer and demand they buy food from local growers and expand their organic selection and maybe in a few years something might hurt Whole Foods.

I dont shop there because I prefer my local Farmer's Market, but to each his own.

Stop trying to pretend that Mackey is some evil dude--he's a businessman trying to make money--let it go.

[CannedHands]

08:53 AM on 12/27/2009

ZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzz