Natural Grocers Plans First Wisconsin Store as Sales Edge Up

Natural Grocers plans to open its first store in Wisconsin, the grocer announced in February. The new location will be in Lake Geneva off North Edwards Boulevard is set to open this spring. A significant milestone for the expanding retailer, Lake Geneva is known for its year-round activities and tourism, and its welcoming atmosphere, making a fitting home for a Natural Grocers store that’s committed to quality, community and local engagement. A meet-and-greet event was held at the Geneva Inn February 17^th, followed by a two-day hiring event February 18^th to 19^th for attendees to learn about employment opportunities and the company’s founding principles and history.

The company expects to open six to eight new stores this year, with most launches slated for the second half. The health-focused retailer employs more than 4,000 workers across 168 stores in 21 states. In the first quarter, net sales increased 1.6% year over year to $335.6 million, while comparable sales rose 1.7%. On a two-year basis, comparable sales were up 10.6%. Unit sales also increased.

The retailer leaned on loyal shoppers as it continued to face pressure from cautious consumer spending linked to ongoing inflation. During the quarter, its {N}Power rewards program saw net sales penetration rise two percentage points to 83%, driven by strong membership growth and higher traffic.

“The sales comp primarily reflected trends with customers who do not participate in our rewards program,” Kemper Isely, Co-president of Natural Grocers, said during the earnings call Thursday, according to transcripts provided by financial services site AlphaSense. “We believe those trends reflected cautious consumer spending behaviors observed broadly across the grocery retail sector.”

Daily average comparable transaction size increased 0.7%, including annualized product inflation of about 2% to 2.5%. Items per basket declined by less than half an item year over year. Natural Grocers reported its strongest sales growth in meat, dairy and produce. The retailer also posted a modest decline in transactions using SNAP EBT in the first quarter, which accounted for roughly 2% of net sales.