If you were to close your store tomorrow, what would your customers miss most? I ask the question to help you pinpoint what makes your store different from your competitors. While many of the services and products you offer are nice to have, few are critical to your success. You...
As if there weren’t enough competition…Whole Foods Market decides to compete against itself. One cannot say that Austin, TX-based Whole Foods Market isn’t willing to change. In its May 6, 2015, quarterly conference call, discussing the company’s newly revealed plan to open a completely different grocery brand banner, with smaller,...
You spend your days helping others achieve optimal health, but what about your store? As the old adage goes, it is always the cobbler’s children that have no shoes. So, with March in full swing, and your vitamin and supplement sales at their annual peak, now is a good time...
What is the state of the natural products industry in 2015? For a clear picture, let’s look at what the consumer wants, which has been rapidly changing. Healthy Lifestyles Healthy lifestyles are a growing factor in American culture, as a majority of U.S. households now actively aspire to achieve better...
What products should you carry? The answer to this question 20 years ago was fairly simple, since natural products weren’t widely available; you just carried them all. But today, with retail competitors in eight separate distribution channels offering some or all of the same products you carry, the answer becomes...
Please take a careful look at the photo nearby. Notice the not-so-subtle LARGE numbers for the produce this conventional supermarket carries, and the teeny-weenie numbers for its “competitors.” In my consulting work, my company, Retail Insights, helps independent natural products retailers determine the potential of markets in order to find...
A couple of weeks before my mother passed away, and knowing she soon would, I asked for any advice she would give me. I was 31 at the time. After pausing for a moment, Mom answered, “Try to build something.” These four words have stuck with me and over time,...
Here’s How to Increase Your Chances of SuccessEvery business owner does it; thinks about selling from time to time. If you are an independent natural products retail store owner, chances are you’ve owned your store for a decade or more. Could it be time to pass the torch? A Generational...
A Brief History In June of 2002, H.J. Heinz Co. introduced the first organic ketchup by a mainstream, mass market food producer. Up until that time, only then-niche organic brands such as Muir Glen, Walnut Acres and the private label line of supernatural retailer, Austin, TX-based Whole Foods Markets, had...
The natural products industry is a pretty comfortable place to be. I say this as someone who unintentionally swerved into the business 36 years ago when my friends encouraged me to interview for sales manager at a start-up New England natural foods distributor. I wanted to teach classical guitar. Well,...
RSS
