Mackey’s latest hoof-in-mouth incident came just weeks ago, when he penned an op-ed piece for the Wall Street Journal blasting the health care reforms proposed by President Obama. After customers nationwide responded by picketing Whole Foods stores, the company issued a press release distancing themselves from their CEO’s viewpoints. Their statement, as quoted in a Natural Foods Merchandiser article about the debacle:
“Our CEO submitted an opinion piece last week with the intention of expressing his own viewpoints and providing constructive ideas to support reform, as President Obama invited America to do. We have heard from individuals who both agree and disagree with John’s ideas as there are many opinions and emotions surrounding the ongoing health-care reform issue, including lots of differing views here inside of Whole Foods Market. We appreciate those diverse perspectives.”
Whole Foods was probably blindsided by Mackey’s WSJ piece, which was obviously written with no regard for its impact on the company. The press release distancing the CEO’s thoughts from the company’s ideals was a good start on crisis management, but it is going to take some more serious work from Whole Foods and Mackey to get out of this mess.
JB
Jonathan Bernstein
https://www.bernsteincrisismanagement.com/