The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others.
- Albert Schweitzer
An advisor, mentor, and investor to the next generation of American food companies, former co-CEO of Whole Foods Market Walter Robb has a long and varied entrepreneurial history, ranging from natural food retailer to farmer to consultant. Robb joined Whole Foods Market in 1991 and in 2010 was named co-CEO, at which time he joined the Whole Foods Market Board of Directors.
In 2017, Robb transitioned his leadership focus to mentoring and supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs through the creation of Stonewall Robb Advisors. Robb brings his considerable experience and network into each new project, and organizations of all sizes can benefit from his passionate approach to leadership and purpose driven business. If you are interested in working with Walter, and Stonewall Robb, please contact us.
Organic food, natural food, was the first green industry in the United States, and we’ve kind of forgotten that because we take it for granted now. One reason we take it for granted is because it’s everywhere now. And, it’s everywhere now in no small measure because of Walter Robb.
— Ken Cook, President Environmental Working Group
Our Story
Our name, Stonewall Robb, comes from the name of the beach at our third generation family place on Martha's Vineyard off the coast of Massachusetts, but just as importantly, the nature and form of the wall represents how we see the relationship between man and nature. The wall is a guide to how we can do our work and live our lives, and a touchstone for remembering that always present beneath the pressure and challenge of everyday life, there is the constant presence of the stones that have endured for so many more years and the sound of the waves washing up on the stone wall—shifting and shaping, relentlessly but purposefully—all holding so much meaning, spoken and unspoken, for our family.
“Though they are artifacts, they are not alien, for they come from the land itself, and they accept the indigenous mosses and lichens and other signs of age and weathering. They are products equally of art and nature. They look both human and natural. Because I am convinced that the human economy must at last be founded solidly upon the land and upon a human intelligence dedicated to the land, I love this artistry of the local rocks for its right intentions and its lastingness.”
- Wendell Berry, Stone walls: Personal Boundaries
