Maintaining the highest standards in retailing for 38 years makes this family-owned business a shining star in Vermont and upstate New York.
In 1986, with no knowledge of business, Katy Lesser started a tiny market in South Burlington, VT. The store went from Lesser and one other person on staff to currently more than 300 staff members, and from 1,200 square feet to 35,000 square feet. “I went from putting away an entire order myself to having a team of grocery folks helping en masse, and from basically knowing zero about business to being pretty darn good at it!” Lesser said. The second store opened in Saratoga Springs, NY and the newest store is in Williston, VT.
Now, Lesser’s son, Eli Lesser-Goldsmith, CEO, runs the show, along with his sister Nina Lesser-Goldsmith, COO, and continues the family legacy. “We are a true, authentic natural foods store. We started in the 80s and have never wavered on our product standards or values,” he said. “We still have the highest product standards of any grocery store in Vermont or upstate New York.”
Eli Lesser-Goldsmith said the store leaders have always pushed the limits of progression. “We continue to evolve and change and grow every year. We are never stagnant, always growing and learning.”
And health is the driving force. “We’re on a mission to fuel a passion for great food, health, and well-being and be the place where people gather to shop, eat and work. And yes, we work hard toward that goal each day,” Lesser-Goldsmith said.
Healthy Living Market is a full-service natural food supermarket with all departments and categories. As for competition, Lesser-Goldsmith said, “We like to say that everyone is our competitor, and no one is our competitor because of how we stand out from the rest. We are different because of our guest experience. You will have a different shopping experience in our stores than you have in other stores. It all starts with our staff and our amazing hospitality. Then our products, our vibe, the music, the smells and more. It’s different.”
As all businesses see challenges, Lesser-Goldsmith noted the common issues natural product retailers collectively face. “We operate in an incredibly competitive industry and environment. And yes, we thrive because guests love what we have to offer, and the experience they get.”
Local Farming Support
Healthy Living Market is a leader in the support of local farming. According to its website, “Vendors are like extended family to us; with our strong, deep, local farm and producer partnerships. We care about sustaining agriculture, keeping land open and providing our guests with fresh, flavorful and local food.”
“We have been buying from local farmers and producers for close to 40 years,” Lesser-Goldsmith added.
The retailer supports farmers in several ways:
• Being the leading buyers and resellers of locally produced produce, goods and products in the communities it serves.
• Sending its staff to the farms to learn and work.
• Inviting farmers into the store to connect with the guests.
• Contracting with farmers to co-brand their products.
• Giving countless loans and other creative financing efforts like The Bread and Butter Farm project that involved a loan from Healthy Living Market to the farm for a new hoop house. The retailer is making this loan available to other farms.
As for the surrounding community, Lesser-Goldsmith noted, “We have a very educated, very demanding group of guests. They expect amazing service and amazing products at every step. And we deliver.”
His mother added, “We are rooting for people, for communities, because we know that the good work we do, and the way we treat each other, makes all the difference. Great companies help make great communities,” said Lesser. Over the years, the retailer has donated to thousands of groups, organizations, non-profits, events and more, “It’s a core value of who we are and what we do.”
The store said it is deeply committed to fighting food insecurity in its communities. It has a year-round donation bin located at the exit in each store to collect donations for our local food shelves. The retailer also offers multiple benefits to its staff that encourage them to get involved in supporting community giving. Healthy Living Market will match its staff’s charitable contributions to 501c3 organizations, and it compensates them for volunteer hours given to charities of their choice.
According to the store’s website, “We love when guests round up, and since the pandemic we are 100 percent focused on helping solve food insecurity in the communities we serve. All round-up proceeds go to local food shelves to directly help as many locals as possible. Healthy Living has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to local food shelves, and we’re just getting started.”
Selling Supplements
Amanda Bradley, wellness category manager in Healthy Living Market’s Saratoga Springs, NY location and oversees the wellness department in all locations, has been with the company since 2013. She noted that there are many health issues that bring customers to the store. “Our guests are facing a myriad of things—increased stress and mental fog, digestive upset, decreased metabolism, fatigue, imbalanced immune systems … Luckily, we have a little something for everyone.”
First and foremost, the customers are seeking protein supplements. “We’ve seen a major increase in this category over the last 12 months. People are on the go now more than ever and are looking for a quick and healthy way to supplement their nutritional intake. Following this, we are seeing the largest increases in digestive and brain health, minerals, multivitamins, fish oils and mushrooms,” she said.
The store has implemented a program for regular shoppers. “We have a really amazing Core Shopper Loyalty Program that came to be after years and years of development,” Bradley said. “We were looking for a more meaningful way to reward our loyal guests that return to us day after day, because who would we be without them? From this Core Shopper Rewards was born.”
Core Shopper Rewards go out monthly to all Core Shopper’s via email—they advertise deeper discounts on the guest’s favorite products in specific departments, like Wellness, that will automatically be taken off at the point of purchase. “It makes it really easy for them to save with us, and we love that!” Bradley noted.
Healthy Living Market has a strong presence on social media platforms, but the loyalty program is a very valuable draw for its customers, according to Lesser-Goldsmith. “We run standard marketing programs via social, but what we most focused on is our loyalty program, Core Shopper. Our guests love it!”
The retailer’s top supplement brands include its own Healthy Living Brand, Nordic Naturals, Host Defense, Upstate Elevator Supply Co. (local legend!), Truvani, Jarrow and Natural Factors.
“These brands remain true to their mission, are conscious of sourcing and the quality of their ingredients,” Bradley said. “They have their hand in every step of the process to ensure they only delivery top quality supplements that work. Not only do they create superior products—but they also take care of their retailers. Making sure we have meaningful discounts to pass along to our guests, taking the time for staff education and trips to see their facilities, and always innovating!”
The private label brand, one of the store’s top lines, received a lovely label facelift this past year, according to Bradley “Some of the benefits include a great price point, top quality ingredients, and in their GMP (good manufacturing practice) certified facilities, they control every step of the product process to ensure only the best lands on our shelves. The suppliers use wholefood and organic ingredients whenever possible and make up most of my own supplement regimen! We are ever expanding private label, in both wellness and throughout our entire store. It’s been one of my favorite things to develop over my time here. I love when guests love our Healthy Living products just as much as we do.”
For the future, the retailer is growing and has plans for two more stores in the next couple years, according to Lesser-Goldsmith. “Our brand is highly sought after in the Northeast. The sky is the limit.”VR
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Successful Leadership
It can be stated that Eli Lesser-Goldsmith knows his business. He’s been working at Healthy Living since his founded it in 1986. “I’ve worked every job, and now I’m the CEO,” he said.
In that position, his business style is to lead by example, he said. “We subscribe to ‘servant leadership’, meaning we serve our staff. We work for them.”
The store’s most important strength? “Our amazing staff,” he said.
As the leader of a premier natural grocer, he offered advice for other retailers in the industry: “There are no shortcuts. Success is a series of trial and error, with tons of failure along the way.”
