American giant Whole Foods Market opened its UK flagship superstore on Kensington High Street, London, last week, with bakery a key attraction.
A working bakery and bakery display section are the centrepiece in the entrance area of the store, with point of sale boasting that breads are: "made from scratch in house by our artisan bread bakers".
In total, 35 varieties are offered, baked throughout the day, using unbleached flour.
The bakery range in this area includes teacakes, cookies, muffins, and products sourced from upmarket suppliers including Honeyrose Bakery and Popina. The offer also includes chilled cakes and large ambient ’coffee cakes’, to eat with coffee.
In total, the new Whole Foods Market food store occupies an 80,000sq ft three-storey premises, with an eating area on the top level, takeaway foods on the ground floor and groceries in the basement.
The takeaway area includes hot and cold foods to go. Unlike the company’s stores in the United States, sandwiches are not made to order. A small range of prepared sandwiches and filled croissants are sold from a chiller area at the back, priced from £2.99 for a filled croissant to £4.99 for a large bloomer or baguette sandwich.
The grocery area in the basement has counters including a sweets counter, with select your own chocolates and a ’pies, pastries and quiche’ counter, selling items such as chicken spinach and old spot ham seven-inch pies at £34.99.
Whole Foods plans to open around 40 stores in the UK. It currently operates 189 stores in the United States and Canada, as well as five Fresh & Wild shops in the UK.
No comments yet