Whole Foods Market In Bangkok

[ricklev]

This shop in the Bangkok Mediplex is nothing but a minimart with a few healthyish products also available at Tops that stole the Whole Foods Market name and logo.

From BK Magazine:

Health-conscious diners, listen up. Thanks to the arrival of Texas-based Whole Foods Market (G/F, Bangkok Mediplex, Sukhumvti Soi 42, 02-713-6040/-2. Open daily 9am-9pm. BTS Ekamai), your hunt for organic produce just got a whole lot easier. Despite its relatively small size, the supermarket packs a impressive medley of all things green and organic in its aisles, from cereal and spaghetti to veggies and soy milk.

[mauiguy90]

There is a health food store on Sukhumvit 39 called the Lemon Farm, located behind 7-11 close to the stoplight about the middle of the soi. Think the website is by the same name www.lemonfarm.com . Its not a large store but the prices are reasonable and they sell a good variety of products including sushi. At least some of the workers speak English. They have several other outlets, however, they are located outside of central Bangkok(although one to open in the Silom area soon.) Oddly, it is located on the backside of a gasoline station.

Edited November 21, 2009 by mauiguy90

[Ulysses G.]

Most of the "health food stores" in Chiang Mai are filled with items loaded with white sugar, meat and white flour. They don't seem to get the concept.

Edited November 21, 2009 by Ulysses G.

[Gippy]

There is a Lemon Farm organic shop in the Avenue complex on Chaengwattana road, next to the Villa Supermarket.

[bonobo]

I like the food at the real Whole FOods Market, but the nickname "Whole Paycheck" is apropos.

[asanee]

What would one even expect from that mag-only aimed at ultra-hip the latest trendy office girls worried about getting ouan to fast. They had an isssue on eating more vegs a few weeks ago -and were not able to list ONE SINGLE Thai veg-only the carrot tomato etc.-as we all know very tipical Thai fare.

There is supposed to be a kind of fresh-farmers market aimed at biologic/green produce, somewhere pretty far horth of centretown-somewhere just off the old road toward Don Muang-north of the PTT building-north of Bang Sue/Kasert Uni.

[allane]

There is supposed to be a kind of fresh-farmers market aimed at biologic/green produce, somewhere pretty far horth of centretown-somewhere just off the old road toward Don Muang-north of the PTT building-north of Bang Sue/Kasert Uni.

I think that you are referring to the Bon Marche (market) on Prachaniwet 1 Road ?

[jfchandler]

Well well... I hadn't found this thread, until I was planning to write one of the same subject...

I was touring the Ekamai Mediplex complex the other day for the first time, and purposely wandered into the basement supermarket there and was amazed and intrigued to see a familiar sign outside the entrance saying "Whole Foods Market", in exactly the same logo style as the quality grocery chain from the U.S. that is familiar to many...

Store sign from the Ekamai Mediplex

Logo from Whole Foods Markets in USA

Unfortunately, as is often the case here, the advertising and logo appears to be a fake and/or fraud. As mentioned by another poster above, the quantity of products offered inside was not much more than the quantity of a 7/11 store. And the selection was just a portion of the same exact products you'd find at a Villa Market. Indeed, while much of the store's stock is annoyingly placed on shelves with no price stickers, the price stickers that are on the shelf look similar to me to those used at Villa....

Also strangely, the only place I found the "Whole Foods Market" logo used was on the sign at the entrance to the market, whereas posters elsewhere in the Mediplex complex don't use that name, but instead refer to the market as "Healthy Market" and no mention or logo resemblance to the "Whole Foods Market" imagery.

The use of the exact Whole Foods Market signage could just be a blatant ripoff... But the general circumstance makes me think there might have been something going on behind the scene that maybe didn't pan out. In checking the Whole Foods Market website in the USA, they have locations throughout the USA, some in Canada and a few in London. But none existing or in development in other countries, according to their web site.

Also, as a Whole Foods Market shopper back when I stay in the USA, they have a range of their own store brand products. Needless to say, there was no sign of any of those in the Mediplex market. For things like fruit and vegetables, shoppers would find far more and better selection at any regular Villa or Tops Market, compared to the Mediplex one. I could find absolutely nothing distinctive or unique in the relatively few products they had on offer.

And, in looking at some of their canned store stock, which had signs of rust on the bottom edges of cans, it appears their stock had come from somewhere else where it had been sitting for some time prior to arriving at the Mediplex location and its sparsely filled shelves....

Edited October 12, 2010 by jfchandler

[chantaal]

I didn't know there was a Whole Foods here!!!

This is good information.

But from what I have read on this thread, it seems that they would not have the Whole Foods brand vitamins. I have been having them sent from the USA.

Maybe I will check the place out when I get low on vitamins.

[jfchandler]

Chantaal, you clearly didn't read my post above....

The store at the Ekamai Mediplex basement clearly IS NOT a Whole Foods Market, despite the presence of one store sign that incomprehensibly represents it is.

Speaking as someone who has regularly shopped at Whole Foods stores in the U.S., there is absolutely nothing inside this Bangkok store to even remotely suggest any real affiliation or connection with the real Whole Foods organization.

[Danger]

They recently changed most of their signs from Whole Foods Market to Healthy Market.....

[Vertigotogo]

There are two Lemon Farm organic shops in my area. One has just opened in 'Paradise' (what used to be Seri centre next to Secon Square) and another close to Carrefour and Makro, on the Srinakarin road near Sukhumvit Soi 105 (Lassane).

It's a brilliant shop with lots of fresh, tasty food and some wicked dairy products, even goats milk! (sounds like I have shares in them but I don't.

Edited October 12, 2010 by mikearmstrong

[Danger]

There is a Lemon Farm scheduled ot open in a new complex next to Starbuck's on Lang Suan close to Chitlom BTS. I like their macrobiotic veggie plate that is genuinely Kushi macrobiotic.

[jfchandler]

As I noted in my post, the main permanent sign on the wall of the store at the entry door still says "Whole Foods". I was there on Monday.... That was the only "sign" I saw, except for various freestanding cloth-type poster signs located inside the mall complex....which used the term "Healthy Market."

Considering the real Whole Foods Market company has no locations either existing or under development outside of the U.S., Canada and England, I'm really wondering how the BKK location came to have any kind of "Whole Foods" identification in the first place....

But frankly, regardless of the name they used, the place isn't much of a "Whole Foods" or "Healthy Market" at all.

They recently changed most of their signs from Whole Foods Market to Healthy Market.....

[jfchandler]

Danger, thanks for the info on that... I'll be sure to check it out when it opens, and it's nice having a convenient location with easy access from BTS....

Lemon Farm, though obviously much smaller in individual store size and range of stock, is much closer to the idea of a real Whole Foods Market type operation than the place at Ekamai Mediplex, which doesn't even deserve the name/concept.

Sometime back, I went and checked out the Lemon Farm location at Suk Soi 39, which is quite a long way up the soi from the main Suk Road. They did indeed have a real presence of healthy, organic and natural products there, but the store itself was quite small and stock selection fairly limited. At that time, the staff told me it wasn't one of their bigger stores, and the locations at Srinakarin and Chaeng Wattana supposedly had better selections... Unfortunately, neither of those are particularly convenient for me....

There is a Lemon Farm scheduled ot open in a new complex next to Starbuck's on Lang Suan close to Chitlom BTS. I like their macrobiotic veggie plate that is genuinely Kushi macrobiotic.

[RaoulDuke]

If you want to shop at Whole Foods, move to LA. Seriously, the most important thing with the ever diminishing food supply in this planet is that food is sustainable and local. So unless Whole Foods starts building a large chain of stores in Asia, along with a large chain of suppliers here, they would have to ship from overseas, which would not only cost a fortune (that store is wretchedly overpriced as it is), but more importantly, it would create an absurd level of pollution. I do live in LA, and I cannot understand Whole Foods at all. If you want organic produce, go to the many farmers markets. That store is just a scam aimed at 'health-conscious' people with more money than sense. The supermarkets in the basements of department stores in many cities in Europe all put Whole Foods to shame, and the ones in Tokyo are absolutely amazing, makes Whole Foods look more like Food 4 Less. If you want to eat healthy food, eat like people in Asia used to eat, before they were invaded by McDonalds and Pizza Hut. Just look at how healthy the Japanese are, the country is looking at a financial meltdown due to all the people living well into their 80's/90's and beyond, draining the pensions/social services fund.

[jfchandler]

If you want to and do live in L.A., then blatantly false and misleading advertising by a store in Bangkok should be none of your concern. So butt out!

I can shop at Whole Foods in L.A. whenever I choose. That's not the issue. The issue is a store in Bangkok ripping off the identity of a U.S. company, clearly without permission or legal rights.

PS - No one really cares whether you like Whole Foods or not...

If you want to shop at Whole Foods, move to LA. Seriously, the most important thing with the ever diminishing food supply in this planet is that food is sustainable and local. So unless Whole Foods starts building a large chain of stores in Asia, along with a large chain of suppliers here, they would have to ship from overseas, which would not only cost a fortune (that store is wretchedly overpriced as it is), but more importantly, it would create an absurd level of pollution. I do live in LA, and I cannot understand Whole Foods at all. If you want organic produce, go to the many farmers markets. That store is just a scam aimed at 'health-conscious' people with more money than sense. The supermarkets in the basements of department stores in many cities in Europe all put Whole Foods to shame, and the ones in Tokyo are absolutely amazing, makes Whole Foods look more like Food 4 Less. If you want to eat healthy food, eat like people in Asia used to eat, before they were invaded by McDonalds and Pizza Hut. Just look at how healthy the Japanese are, the country is looking at a financial meltdown due to all the people living well into their 80's/90's and beyond, draining the pensions/social services fund.