The editors atWholeFoodsare putting the finishing touches on our Annual Retailer Survey, which will go out to our independent retailer readers in early August.

This year’s survey will beginwhere last year’s left off.We expect to hear more brilliant solutions to dealing with COVID-19 restrictions, keeping employees safe, customers happy, and operations running smoothly.

We also expect to hear more about how customers obtain products from your store: pick up curbside, receive via an order/delivery app, or UPS and USPS. Will online catalogs and third-party fulfillment be more, or less, popular? Here’s a sampling of what we hope retailers will tell us:

How do customers obtain products from your store? (please select all that apply)
  • Shop in-person, in-store
  • Phone, email, or text orders in
  • Use our website “contact us” area to pre-order products
  • Pick up pre-orders, in-store
  • Pick up pre-orders, curbside
  • Receive via UPS, FedEx, USPS or other common carrier
  • Receive via third-party online order/delivery app
  • Receive via our delivery employees or contractors
  • Receive via our online catalog with e-commerce online payment
  • Receive via online order, third-party warehouse fulfillment
  • Other (please describe) ______________________________
With retailers of every size and product mix participating in the survey, we expect to find out what the most successful stores did, and perhaps more importantly, what was done by stores whose results could have been better.

Participating has its benefits!

To show our appreciation for completing your survey, early next year you’ll receive an advance copy summarizing some of the most important findings, ahead of publication in our March 2022 issue. Getting a jump on this fresh intelligence can put you ahead of the competition, and help ensure a successful year.

44 years and counting

In 1977,WholeFoodsMagazine launched the first natural products industry retail survey. We are pleased and proud to continue to have your trust, and to provide you and your colleagues with the most accurate, in-depth and actionable industry insights.

If you’d like to take advantage of the latest, best, and most relevant intelligence on independent natural products retailing, make sure we have your email address so we can include you in the questionnaire. Contact us here:editor@wfcinc.com. We look forward to hearing from you!WF