Former Drugstores, Big Box Buildings and Even a Theater: How Adaptive Reuse Supports Store Growth And Sustainability For Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage
The Colorado-based grocer has added stores via the repurpose of existing buildings -- a strategy that both upgrades its real estate and aligns with its focus on sustainability
Seeking a new user to backfill a former drugstore or Big Box space?
Colorado-based Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage would like to take a look.
Many of the grocery chain’s 169 stores have been developed via the adaptive reuse of existing buildings or by taking “2nd generation” space vacated by other retailers.
And Natural Grocers has recently repurposed multiple properties once occupied by drugstore chains like CVS, Walgreens and Rite Aid as well as Big Box suites formerly home to TJ Maxx, Joann Fabrics and Bed Bath & Beyond.
Better yet, the Company’s adaptive reuse strategy fits both with Natural Grocers’ plans to upgrade its real estate and improve its efforts at sustainability.
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage is not a high flying unit grower.
The specialty grocer — which primarily sells organic food and produce, vitamins and dietary supplements — was founded by Margaret and Philip Isely in 1955 and had just 11 stores when the Iselys' children acquired it in the late 1990s.
And even though Natural Grocers has added ~160 stores over the past 25 years, the Company — which is still managed by members of the Isely Family — tends to open new units at a measured pace.
In fact Natural Grocers added a total of just 7 net new stores over the past 5 years.
However, during that same time period the Company has also relocated many of its existing stores into better real estate.
In the past three years alone Natural Grocers relocated 10 stores.
Going forward the Company plans to open between 6 and 8 stores a year, roughly 1/2 of which are expected to be relocations.
And one of the most common building types for both new and relocated Natural Grocers stores?
Former drugstores.
Like this adaptive reuse of a former Walgreens building in Corpus Christi, Texas.
In fact Natural Grocers’ lone new store opening during the second quarter of 2024 was a relocation of its existing Oklahoma City store to a better location:
A former CVS drugstore.
In addition to former drugstore real estate, Natural Grocers has also opportunistically backfilled spaces vacated by Big Box retailers.
In 2023 Natural Grocers relocated its Beaverton, Oregon store into a former TJ Maxx suite located in a high traffic shopping center.
And in October 2023 Natural Grocers opened its 5th store in the state of Washington.
It was a backfill of a former Joann Fabrics store in Kennewick, Washington.
Recent bankruptcies of Big Box retailers have also created real estate opportunities for Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage.
The Company is opening a relocated store in Reno, Nevada later this Fall — in a portion of a former Bed Bath and Beyond suite.
Natural Grocers has even pursued adaptive reuse in smaller towns where former drugstores and Big Box buildings are not widely available.
For instance, Natural Grocers opened a new store earlier this year in the town of Gunnison, Colorado (population ~6,800).
It was a repurpose of locally owned Darnell True Value Hardware, a 16,000 square foot hardware store that had recently closed after ~30 years of operation.
Sometimes Natural Grocers pursues even more creative adaptive reuse projects.
Like its repurpose of The Casa Linda Theater in Dallas, Texas.
The Casa Linda Theater opened as a single screen theater in 1945.
A second screen was added in the early 1970s and a few years later the Casa Linda expanded to four screens in a little over 12,000 square feet.
It operated until 1999.
While a few chains considered taking over the classic theater to continue operating it as a cinema, the space sat vacant for about a decade.
Until Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage completed an adaptive reuse of the former theater into a grocery store.
Quite a bit of work was necessary to convert the space — including a roof replacement, leveling of the floor and removal of load-bearing walls.
Inside the classic theater-turned-grocery store looks like a typical Natural Grocers site.
But Natural Grocers preserved the exterior and facade of the building — and put its own twist on the original art-deco marquee.
Adaptive reuse of existing commercial real estate will likely remain a key strategy for Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage as it grows.
After all the repurpose and reuse of vacant buildings not only offers Natural Grocers an attractive opportunity to upgrade its real estate, but it also resonates with the Company’s foundational support for practices that promote sustainability.
Natural Grocers has historically prioritized offering products produced via regenerative and sustainable agricultural practices.
The Company has also touted its work to reduce its environmental impact by preventing food waste and restricting the single-use plastic bags.
Perhaps Natural Grocers will even begin measure the (lack of) impact from its adaptive re-use projects and building conversions — like U-Haul which has incorporated its sustainability focus into its real estate development and site selection.
In any event, expect to Natural Grocers to double down on adaptive reuse as a means to both upgrade its real estate and enhance its efforts sustainability.