Whole Foods Market is planning to shutter its only two stores outside of London, just months after it was acquired by Amazon.
The upmarket grocer is proposing to close its shops in Giffnock, Scotland and Cheltenham, in Gloucestershire.
Whole Foods’ store in Cheltenham’s Gallagher Retail Park was the retailer’s first outside the capital when it opened five years ago.
The business said it was consulting shop staff before making a final decision on the future of the stores.
It is thought the two locations employ around 150 workers between them.
The move comes less than three months after online goliath Amazon acquired Whole Foods in a $13.7bn deal.
Amazon has invested heavily in price across the grocer’s estate, slashing the price of popular items such as Whole Trade bananas, organic avocados, organic large brown eggs and animal-welfare-rated lean ground beef.
A Whole Foods spokesman said: “A decision on the future of the stores will be made after the company has consulted with team members to discuss the proposal.
“In the event that the decision is taken to close the stores, we will work with team members to explore alternative employment opportunities.
“We remain committed to the UK market and will continue to look for ways to offer high-quality natural and organics to our customers.”
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