The Whole Story

Outline

The Whole Story (2024) is John Mackey’s account of building Whole Foods Market, from a small natural foods store in Austin, Texas, in 1980 to a national grocery chain later acquired by Amazon. He describes the setbacks, near failures, and leadership lessons of more than four decades in business. The book also explains his belief that companies can serve customers, employees, suppliers, and communities while still earning strong profits.

• Whole Foods began in 1980 as a small natural foods store in Austin, Texas, and grew into a national grocery chain.
• John Mackey describes the setbacks and near failures he faced during more than four decades in business.
• The book draws leadership lessons from running a company through those years, including the difficult stretches.
• Mackey believes a company can serve customers, employees, suppliers, and communities while still earning strong profits.
• The story ends with Whole Foods being acquired by Amazon, after growing from a single local store.

John Mackey is an American entrepreneur who cofounded Whole Foods Market and served as its chief executive for more than four decades. He is a leading advocate of conscious capitalism, the idea that business should create value for all its stakeholders. His other books include Conscious Capitalism, written with Raj Sisodia.