AUSTIN, Texas (June 4, 2015) – Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFM) has been named among America’s most reputable companies in the retail industry, according to a list released today by Reputation Institute. The list of America’s top 50 most reputable retail companies is derived from data collected for the 2015 U.S. RepTrak® 100 study.
“Companies with excellent and strong reputations in the retail industry recognize that their reputations are dependent not only on the products and services they provide,” says Brad Hecht, chief research officer at Reputation Institute (RI). “What drives nearly a third of reputation for retail companies is how the U.S. public perceives a company’s workplace, and whether it is a responsibly run company that is fair and transparent.”
In addition to Whole Foods Market ranking third on the list of top 50 most reputable retailers, Reputation Institute also ranked Whole Foods Market as the third-strongest retail brand in America. Whole Foods Market was recognized for its high quality and animal welfare standards, commitment to sustainability, and GMO labeling transparency.
“Our business is based upon a non-negotiable set of core values designed to engender trust and transparency with all of our key stakeholders,” said A.C. Gallo, president and chief operating officer of Whole Foods Market. “Our quality standards, along with an enduring commitment to transparency and sustainability, have fostered a decades-long relationship of trust with our team members, customers, supplier partners and investors, which has helped our business become the success it is today.”
The 2015 list of America’s 50 most reputable companies in the retail industry is compiled annually by Reputation Institute, the world’s foremost research and advisory firm focused solely on corporate reputations.
The 2015 U.S. RepTrak® 100 examines perceptions of companies by the U.S. general public based on more than 50,000 interviews. Reputation Institute’s RepTrak® model is the gold standard for reputation measurement, providing a one-of-a-kind measurement of how the public views the world’s best-known companies. The RepTrak® database is normative, examining 15 stakeholder groups in more than 25 industries and more than 50 countries for more than 7,000 companies.
“The overall reputation of America’s top retail companies has steadily improved over the last three years, signaling that these companies are being proactive and making a conscious decision to manage their reputations,” says RI’s chief research officer, Brad Hecht.
The full list of America’s top 50 most reputable companies in the retail industry can be found online at www.reputationinstitute.com/US-Retail-RepTrak.
