Macro Wholefoods, Concord

Edit 11/12/07: Macro Wholefoods at Concord has now closed.


Plain packaged Macro organic honeys

"To the lay person, this is a clean food place."

I'm at the media launch of the latest Macro Wholefoods store, this one in the cosy wholesome village of Concord.

Executive Chairman Pierce Cody is giving us a guided tour of the store. Wooden slats feature heavily in the fruit and vegetable section, shiny perspex cannisters hold the bulk nuts and dry goods, the pristine grocery aisles are filled with organic and fair trade products.


Green and Blacks Organic chocolate

This elegant shopping experience aims to appeal to the new customers investigating organics, not the converted, Cody explains. He shows us the brochure stands located throughout the store. These are provided to help educate consumers, as organic lifestyle choices begin to enter mainstream Australia for the first time.


Pureharvest Nature's Soy milk

Organics is a huge growth industry. "The retail organics industry is currently valued at $400 million pa and is set to grow over 30% over the next twelve months," says Cody. In addition to the Concord store, Macro Wholefoods has NSW stores in Bondi Junction, Crows Nest and Hornsby. A stand-alone Macro Cafe is set to open on King Street in Newtown.


NaturGreen Soja soy milk

Within Macro Wholefoods retail lines, particular growth has been noticed in
* skincare, beauty and cosmetics (particularly non-petroleum products)
* baby products (babyfoods, nappies and lotions)
* detergents (phosphate-free so grey water doesn't kill gardens)
* organic petfoods
* gluten-free and coeliac alternatives.


Dagoba organic chocolate

There are plenty of gourmet goodies to keep one occupied too. Using our complimentary shopping vouchers for the evening, my basket was soon filled with an organic whole chicken, an organic lamb leg, Pastabilities rocket and pesto sauce, Murray River pink sea salt flakes, a Tahitian vanilla bean, a sachet of ground sumac from Herbie's Spices, and a block of the irresistibly gorgeous French and creamy Lescure butter.


Lescure butter $6.95


French La Roche blue cheese $13.75


Danish Girgar butter $3.25


Italian buffalo mozzarella $8.95


Kabuli chickpeas, French green lentils and adzuki beans


Merlot, pinot noir and shiraz chocolate


Creme fraiche


French camembert $9.50


Biodynamic milk


Kipfler potatoes


Herbie's spices

And my lasting impression of the entire shopping experience--apart from the joyous divinity of sampling the French triple cream Brillat-Savarin, oozing its way into my heart in-spite of because of its fat content of 75%?

The complete lack of junkfood and gaudy advertising. No never-ending aisle of carbonated soft drinks, no salty crisps, no cartoon-endorsed snackfoods, nothing insidiously packaged to make you buy!buy!buy!

It was a shopping trip without guilty pointless impulses.

Deliciously refreshing.



Edit 17/12/07: Macro Wholefoods at Concord has now closed.
Macro Wholefoods Market – Concord (CLOSED)
43 Majors Bay Road, Concord Sydney
Tel: +61 (02) 9021 8511

Store trading hours
Monday - Saturday 8am-7pm
Sunday 8am-6pm

Cafe open 7 days 8am-5pm