With restaurants, grocery stores and other retailers scrambling to adapt their businesses during the COVID-19 outbreak, natural product retailers in the U.S. are also adjusting practices to meet the needs of their communities.

World of Nutrition (WON) in Nampa, ID said it is remaining open during the pandemic, and is considering special hours for senior citizens. The front door, registers, counters and credit card machines are being wiped down every hour, and it still has stock of everything except dried elderberries. Kris Wear, WON’s owner, is committed to remaining open, saying that “we will remain open to make sure people get their remedies ... they will have to drag me out in handcuffs to keep me from helping people!”

At Debra’s Natural Gourmet in Concord, MA, the store is staying open for business and is offering staff members two weeks paid health leave to be taken as needed; anyone who doesn't take it, the retailer will give cash. Staff in high-risk categories are being encouraged to think about staying home. Debra’s added that if it is able to get home delivery up and running, it should be able to afford to extend leave further on a case-by-case basis. College students, who are home now, are picking up extra hours at the store. To deter hoarding, the retailer is instituting a more stringent return policy.

Country Life Natural Food Store and Vegan/Vegetarian Restaurant in Columbus, GA, said the store will be open beyond regular hours. Large bottles of hand sanitizers are available for customers to use while they shop, but the retailer is out of hand sanitizer, elderberry products, zinc, N-acetyl cysteine and oil of oregano for purchase. It is unable to offer delivery due to limited staff, but Country Life is shipping to customers throughout the country.

Bonanza in Billings, MT has not yet offered special hours for seniors, but the store is offering mail orders or allowing customers to pick up in store. The retailer said it is having a difficult time getting new shipments of aloe vera gel, and immune system products, such as echinacea goldenseal.

Elk Grove Vitamins (Elk Grove, CA) and Cameron Park Vitamins (Cameron Park, CA) retailer Dianna Singh said she has experienced her share of chaos as a result of the pandemic.

“These past weeks have been very trying to say the least,” Singh said. “As an owner of two stores, it has been quite the juggle. First and foremost, safety is priority. The safety of our customers, and just as important, are our employees ... if at any point in time that they didn't feel comfortable working, it’s OK!

"We start each day and end each day with wiping down everything: countertops, keypads, registers, phones and doors, inside and out. We use Lysol wipes and spray as recommended. However, we do this all day. We also spray the pens used by customers. We have gloves for our employees to use as well. We also have all the supplements available to take on a daily basis for all our employees.  We also supply food—they never eat out, everything is there. For now, our store has not changed hours or days open. What we felt might be of help was to offer a ‘drive up’ service. Customers call for products and pay over the phone, we will walk out and hand their products without them having to leave their vehicle. It's actually been working well.

“Keeping products in stock has been the real issue,” she added. “Vitamin C, elderberry and zinc are the top three that the media has portrayed to be effective. Sovereign Silver and vitamin D are right behind. We ran out of them all! They are trickling in while I'm having to order more frequently. I've recently heard some products will be out of stock until August."

NPA Contacts State Governors
In response to the coronavirus crisis, the Natural Products Association (NPA) on March 18 asked governors of all 50 U.S. states to deem health food stores selling nutritional supplements “essential businesses” and to allow small businesses to request for Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance. Health food stores, NPA stated, offer a wide range of essential products, including, water, electrolytes, nutritional supplements, healthy food options, and other health-related products, such as hand sanitizer. NPA’s letter can be viewed here.

“Many of the men and women who make up the natural products industry are the neighborhood small businesses that are vital to all local economies,” said Daniel Fabricant, PhD, president and CEO of the NPA. “Natural products retailers are essential to the health of local economies and millions of Americans across the country. It is critical for these small businesses to stay open and receive the assistance necessary to make it through this public health crisis."

Mass Market Retail
As for mass-market retailer reactions to the coronavirus,  Amazon announced that it would hire an additional 100,000 U.S. delivery and warehouse workers, as well as raise their pay by $2/hour until the end of April.

Whole Foods Market, whose parent company is Amazon, also enacted the same raise and is inviting customers who are 60 and older to begin shopping an hour earlier before the store opens to the general public. Whole Foods will also close up to two hours earlier to allow for employees to restock shelves, sanitize and perform any other necessary prep for the next day.

Other retailers making similar moves include: Stop & Shop—customers 60 and older can shop for 6-7:30 a.m.; Walmart—customers 60 and older can enter stores an hour early on Tuesdays from March 24-April 28; and Albertsons—Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7-9 a.m. is reserved for “at-risk shoppers” such as seniors, pregnant women or those with compromised immune systems who have been advised to avoid leaving home as much as possible.