About this episode

John Mackey shares his journey of building Whole Foods Market and the lessons learned through various crises.

John Mackey built Whole Foods Market from a small natural foods store into a $13.7 billion company acquired by Amazon — but his greatest lessons came from moments of crisis, not victory. From the emotional relief of going public to the life-changing impact of 9/11, the pressure of activist investors, and the cultural battle after the Amazon merger, Mackey reveals what it really takes to build a mission-driven company that lasts. Key Takeaways Boldness creates momentum John Mackey says that w...

People in this episode

Host: Randall Kaplan

Guest: John Mackey

Topics covered

• business growth
• entrepreneurship
• crisis management
• mission-driven companies
• corporate culture

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Whole Foods Market, Amazon

More episodes of In Search Of Excellence

• John Mackey: How Whole Foods Grew From One Store to $22 Billion in Sales | E187 · May 12, 2026 · 57 min

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