Libby Cook, founder of Sunflower Farmers Market, had been involved in the natural and organic food business for 25 years. She was President and CEO from 2002-2005. In 2006 Mike Gilliland became CEO. He, along with Cook co-founded Wild Oats Markets and together grew the company from a single store in Boulder, Colorado to a billion-dollar publicly traded enterprise with 115 stores throughout the US and Canada. In 2002, Cook founded Sunflower Farmers Market, which operates natural foods supermarkets throughout the southwestern United States; she served as the company's Chief Executive Officer. until 2006. In 2007, KMCP Advisors invested $30 million in Convertible Preferred Stock. The Company used the proceeds to fund the opening of new stores. The managers of KMCP Advisors, Timothy Kelleher and Douglas Meltzer, are also the founders of , a private equity firm focused on growth equity based in San Diego, CA. In February 2011, Gilliland resigned after being arrested on felony charges; Chris Sherrell, Sunflower's president at the time, was subsequently named acting CEO. He was appointed permanent CEO three months later. Under the leadership of Sherrel and KMCP Advisors, the Company continued to flourish.
Merger
In March 2012, Sunflower Farmers Market merged with Sprouts Farmers Market. Tim Kelleher of KMCP Advisors continued his Board role in Sprouts.
Products
Sunflower Farmers Market aims to develop the value segment of the natural and organic foods retailing industry. Sunflower's motto is "Serious Food…Silly Prices." Sunflower offers produce, meat, fish, bulk foods and coffee, deli foods, natural bath and body care items, vitamins and supplements and, in some locations, beer and wine. Sunflower Farmers Market endeavors to keep prices low by keeping their overhead low, foregoing certain light fixtures and high rents. Sunflower also buys big, purchasing almost everything by the pallet or truckload, and sourcing directly, and paying vendors quickly. They don't charge vendors "slotting allowances" or shelf-space fees, and they negotiate on prices.
Green Initiatives
As Sunflower grows, they continue to develop new stores with eco-friendly initiatives in mind, conserving building materials and using techniques that have a friendly impact on the planet.
Some Sunflower stores offer reserved parking spaces for alternative fuel vehicles, bathrooms equipped with waterless urinals, wind power, refurbished fixtures and a lighting program which is programmed to turn itself down as natural light flows through skylights.
Sunflower offers over 275 foods in bulk, reducing the amount of plastic packaging used.
Sunflower encourages the use of re-usable grocery bags in place of paper or plastic bags.
Sunflower offers a 10 cent discount for every paper, plastic, or cloth bag a customer brings in to bag groceries.
Every Sunflower store collects and recycles plastic grocery bags.
