Whole Foods philosophy tested by 'tough times'

The CEO of Whole Foods says that despite the company's recent bad publicity and sales growth struggles, the retailer plans to stay the course of "conscious capitalism."

In a probing interview with Fortune, John Mackey says of the accusations in June that its stores overcharged customers in New York City:“This stuff goes viral because people are eager to believe bad things about Whole Foods so it doesn’t disrupt their mental model” of business as selfish and greedy. They want to catch me on stuff.They want to prove I’m a hypocrite. I think that’s true for Whole Foods as a whole.”

Mackey also discussed the company's business model and its plans to expand with new, lower-priced "365" stores.

Read more of the interview by clicking here.