Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage

In 1955, long before health food was mainstream, Margaret and Philip Isely established Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage with $200 they borrowed from Margaret’s mother.

They started by going door-to-door in Golden, Colorado, selling whole-grain bread and lending nutrition education books to the people they met. Pioneers in the health food industry, the Iselys knew that after reading the books, those same people would be open to ordering vitamins and bulk foods. So a week later they would return to take additional orders for those items, which they sold on consignment from a local health food distributor.

Over the years, Natural Grocers has grown from a literal “mom and pop” business to a successful and respected health food grocer with locations in Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Utah and Wyoming, with more than 1,100 employees. Today, the business is run by Margaret and Philip’s children and grandchildren, and it continues the original mission of offering the highest quality supplements, body care and grocery items with outstanding customer service.

When you walk into a Natural Grocers store, you’ll first notice the comfortable, quiet and quaint surroundings. You can count on a greeting and a smile … and if you’re a “regular,” you’ll most likely be greeted by name.

The stores provide extensive nutrition education classes and lectures along with personal nutritional health coaching sessions – all of this at no cost to the customer. Education and Customer Service are truly at the heart of the way they do business.

Just as important as its epic customer service, Natural Grocers focuses on providing customers with safe, top-quality food and supplements. Every product goes through a strict review process to ensure it meets their quality standards before it can be sold through the stores. Their customers enjoy knowing that they don’t have to read the labels because Natural Grocers has done it for them. The Natural Grocers criteria list of “What We Won’t Sell and Why” can be found on their website at www.NaturalGrocers.com.

Shopping is easy at Natural Grocers stores because customers know that they are only buying tested products, naturally raised, hormone-free meat and 100-percent USDA organic produce from stores that are USDA organic certified. Customers can also count on finding products from local companies in each of the communities that Natural Grocers does business, reducing their overall carbon footprint.

Natural Grocers is also taking healthy steps in each of its communities by providing donations to local food banks, humanitarian outreach programs and fundraising efforts for those less fortunate and needing a hand up to regain their place in society.

The Natural Grocers family has long been a leader in the community for environmental efforts. They became “green” before “green” was popular. Not only do they recycle all packing, shipping and office supplies whenever possible, they were one of the first grocery retailers in the country to remove all plastic and paper shopping bags from their stores, saving 1.3 million pounds of waste from our landfills each year.

The green building efforts of Natural Grocers reflect their continuing commitment to lessen environmental impact through their use of eco-friendly construction methods and energy-saving heating, cooling and lighting. Their current new store construction includes a breakthrough method of heating the building and the water by recapturing heat that is typically given off from a cooler as it works to create the cool air. They’ve also eliminated costs and created energy efficiencies by using ductless in-ceiling fans, geothermal heating and cooling efforts, long-lasting flooring and LED bulbs, natural lighting, and occupancy sensors that regulate air quality and maintain lighting levels.
Following Margaret’s lead, the company continues to promote the health of their customers, the planet, and the communities surrounding each store. Shop with Natural Grocers and be a part of making your community healthier.

To find the nearest store, go to www.NaturalGrocers.com.

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