Projects: Whole Foods Turns On Tech In New Atlanta-Area Flagship

October 28, 2014 by Dave Haynes

Whole Foods opened a new flagship store a couple of weeks ago in Alpharetta, Georgia (suburban Atlanta) that includes a couple of interactive digital elements new to the grocer, developed by Portland’s Second Story agency.

One is what looks to be a simply presented but clever Instagram wall showing images based on images from local growers and on hash tags for the store, presumably curated by the store’s social media manager. And they do have one (see video below).

The selfie generation can’t apparently bend its head around holding a phone camera in landscape mode.

The other is a gesture-driven piece that I’m going to trust is better than the Stupid People Tricks stuff I’ve seen tried – and generally not worked – in other public places. When Second Story’s Matt Arnold was fielding questions at DSrupted last month I asked him about gesture, and he agreed that was something that didn’t tend to work and they avoided. These are very smart people so I’ll assume there’s something more here.

Whole Foods has not done a lot with digital, though they did a few years ago have a third-party network in its Toronto stores and at a Chicago flagship.

Adweek reports:

A digital screen on a wall runs an Instagram feed showing produce still growing in the fields of six local farms that supply the store. Elsewhere in the store, a digital mirror encourages shoppers to strike three different poses, which trigger images of recommended health products like vitamins and protein shakes.

First one good, second one – not convinced that will go far. You’ll get kids goofing around, but not a lot of the people in there filling their carts with artisanal cheeses and fair trade this and thats.