AUSTIN, Texas (Oct. 10, 2013) – The World Retail Congress named Whole Foods Market its Retailer of the Year this week in Paris.

Now in their seventh year, the World Retail Awards are designed to recognize global excellence across key areas of retail, including advertising, corporate responsibility, leadership and innovation, with the top award being the Retailer of the Year. The winners are selected by a Grand Jury made up of leading retail CEOs from around the world.

“We are honored to be recognized among so many leading global retailers,” said John Mackey and Walter Robb, co-CEOs of Whole Foods Market. “This is completely unexpected. We’re so proud of our team members and the success we’ve had. That success comes from making sure all our stakeholders – team members, customers, suppliers, shareholders, our communities and the environment – are part of our vision.”

The World Retail Congress, part of i2i Events Group portfolio, was launched in 2007 to be a platform for senior retail executives to meet and discuss the most important topics affecting retailers across the world. The program was developed in conjunction with the Congress Advisory Board, representing retailers such as Gap, Kingfisher, Macys, Reliance Lifestyle, Myer, Alshaya, Netto, Inditex and Tesco.