Natural Grocers 4.59

60 Years of Empowering Health.

It was 1955. Margaret and Philip Isely – poor, idealistic, young parents – started Natural Grocers with $200 and a dream – a dream that everyone should be able to afford a healthy and active lifestyle.

The inspiration for this dream came from their life experiences. Shortly after the birth of their second child, Margaret became chronically ill. When conventional medicine was unable to help her, she turned to the health mavericks of that time: Adelle Davis and Roger J. Williams. She used the principles in Adelle Davis’ book, Let’s Get Well, to heal her body with nutrition, which included eating nutrient dense, natural foods and taking dietary supplements.

It was a call to action. After the remarkable improvement in Margaret’s health brought on by following this simple nutrition regimen, our parents became health crusaders. Borrowing $200 to help feed the family and put gas in the car, they went door-to-door in Golden, Colorado lending out books on nutrition and giving out samples of whole grain bread. They would return a week or two later, discuss nutrition, and take orders for supplements, the bread and other natural, nourishing whole foods. Our parents taught us that nutrition education is the foundation for building health and being in control of your life and that healthy living should be affordable.

60 years and more than 90 stores later, we are still making that dream of offering nutrition education and affordable health a reality. We continue to empower healthy living in the communities we serve with everyday affordable pricing on the highest quality natural and organic products, supporting our communities through nutrition education and environmental stewardship, and providing our employees with great jobs that pay well.