Summer is a time of contradictions—it’s a busy time, but not in the same way as the rest of the year. Students are on break, people take vacations, the days are longer and everyone appreciates the outdoors a bit more—especially if they’ve had a harsh winter.

But for health food store retailers, summer can feel incredibly slow. After all, most people are outdoors and feel good, so ironically, the desire to go to their favorite health food store isn’t as strong as it is when the cold wind is blowing, school has started, and the flu season is in high gear.

So what do you do? Well, if you’ve already focused on making your store a destination, many of those same strategies will work—you just need to “season” them properly. Here are few ideas that have yielded excellent results in my own experience, and I think you’ll find they can fire up customer traffic even when the weather is perfect.

1.Hold events often: I think the first rule of keeping your business vibrant in the summertime is to continually keep events foremost in your store calendar and promote them relentlessly on your store’s website, Instagram feed, Facebook page and local paper. Social media and your own website are easy options for event promos. Making up some posters or flyers and getting them out on local bulletin boards, at other local businesses or kiosks are excellent ways of elevating your store’s profile, too.

2. Keep your store and your expert staff vibrant with visible signage: This seems fairly obvious, but I think it bears repeating. Keeping signage for your store and the products you carry visible and vibrant is as important in the summer as it is any time of year. Adding to that idea, continuing to keep your store clean, well-stocked and well-staffed with friendly, informed employees is a must for success. It can be a challenge, because everyone wants to take some time off to appreciate the season, but it is also crucial to have familiar faces to greet your customers for the sake of continuity and professionalism.

3. Consider a cookout: Hosting an occasional cookout or picnic featuring local foods and maybe even a local chef can appeal to a great cross-section of regular customers, and potentially draw in new ones, as long as you promote it well. If you have a café attached to your store, feature some of your own wonderful culinary specialties for summer. If you’ve partnered with local farmers, you can grill out some great samples to showcase their selection—and —and help out some other wonderful businesses in your community at the same time.

4. Host a farmers market: This dovetails perfectly with emphasizing healthy, delicious food. Some of the same vendors who sell at a special event like a picnic or cookout may want to become regulars if you host a farmers market regularly on a designated evening or Saturday morning.

5. Present live music or book readings from favorite health or local authors: Having a local and fun atmosphere at your store also makes it a destination. At one of my own stores, we’ve had great success with hosting local musicians who regularly perform at our farmers market. It’s a nice way of generating new and returning customers, creates more connections in your community, and gives just one more reason for people to linger.

6. Appreciate our furry friends: Hosting a pet health day is a great way to emphasize the range of products in your store and the expertise you have with supplements, food and other supplies for your customers’ animal companions. Partnering with a local veterinarian for a presentation and discussion of natural pet health, or working with a local humane society for an adoption drive are certain to generate interest and store traffic as well.

7. Promote a relaxed vibe with patio tables, iced coffee and smoothies: Set out your sidewalk café, if you have the space (and city ordinances permitting, of course.) If you can offer something healthy and refreshing to drink and a place to enjoy it, your customers will know that there’s a place for them to linger a bit longer. You may have moms shopping while dads and kids have a bit of patio time. And that’s great. You want to be a family-friendly destination, and one thing that I’ve noticed is that people draw in more people. Having customers outside, visible, and having a good time is a great way to generate more interest in new shoppers, too.

8. Tailor your promos to relate to the season: This is probably something you’re already doing, but going into spring, it’s a great idea to really zero in on seasonal products. You and the experts on your staff can put together some endcaps or window displays that feature your best items for allergies for the high pollen counts ahead, pain relief for sudden boost in yard work, and digestive supplements to counter family reunion and baseball game cuisine. Consider some products grouped together for specials, too. Make up a “summer camping survival kit” with a hand-picked selection already bundled up and ready to go for your customers—the best supplements, topical creams and other items that make up a “must have” set for staying pain free during outdoor explorations, or recovering from mosquitoes or minor injuries from a Little League game.

These are just a few ideas that can help make a magical time of year into a profitable and fun one as well. You may want to just start with a couple and see how it goes. If some work, keep going.

If some don’t, feel free to drop the events. After all, staying flexible is a primary way to stay vital as a business. And no matter which of these tips you try, have a wonderful and prosperous summer season! VR

A highly regarded leader in the natural products industry, Terry Lemerond is founder and president of EuroPharma, Inc. He also founded Enzymatic Therapy, Inc. and PhytoPharmica, Inc. and is currently co-owner of the Terry Naturally Health Food Store in Green Bay, WI, which recently won its sixth consecutive consumer choice award as “Best of the Bay.” With more than 40 years in the natural products industry, Lemerond has researched and developed more than 400 nutritional and botanical formulations that continue to be top-selling products in the market. Lemerond shares his wealth of experience and knowledge in health and nutrition through his educational programs, including the Terry Talks Nutrition website, newsletters, podcasts, webinars and personal speaking engagements. He is the author of two books: Seven Keys to Vibrant Health and the recently updated Seven Keys to Unlimited Personal Achievement.