Company: NGVC
Filing Date: 2025-12-11
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001437749-25-037556
Chunk: 802

Company: Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-12-11
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1
Chunk 802
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 72% of our vacant department manager positions.

We believe that setting Crew members up for success begins with a strong foundation. Our accelerated store manager training program provides high-potential store department managers with management training, including leadership skills and financial aspects of management, equipping participants for potential management roles within the Company upon completion. We provide all new store managers and assistant store managers with four weeks of in-person operational and managerial training. We also conduct over 20 hours of virtual and in-person training on an annual basis for our store Crew members covering a wide array of topics, including company culture and values, store operations, nutrition education, safety and compliance.

Wellness and Benefits. Our Crew members are eligible for health, long-term disability, vision and dental insurance coverage, as well as Company paid short-term disability and life insurance benefits, after they meet eligibility requirements. We also provide our Crew members with access to clinical counseling resources through our employee assistance program. Additionally, our Crew members are offered a 401(k) retirement savings plan with discretionary contribution matching opportunities. We believe we pay above average retail wages. In addition, all Crew members receive in store discounts and earn an additional $1.00 per hour worked, including overtime and paid time off (some exclusions apply), in “Vitamin Bucks,” which can be used to purchase products in our stores. It is important to us that our Crew members live a healthy, balanced lifestyle, and we believe that the discounts we offer our Crew members and the Vitamin Bucks benefit provide an additional resource for our Crew members to purchase natural and organic products. We provide our Crew members with monthly free nutrition education trainings and other opportunities to earn rewards by learning about nutrition. Every Crew member also receives one day of additional pay on their birthday to express the Company’s appreciation for their service. In 2021, the Company established The Natural Grocers Heroes in Aprons Fund, a non-profit organization that provides short-term financial assistance to qualifying Crew members or their immediate family members who have experienced unanticipated hardships. We believe these and other factors have a positive impact on retention rates and encourage our Crew members to appreciate our culture, which helps them better promote our brand.

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Our Customers

The growth in the natural and organic grocery and dietary supplement industries and growing consumer interest in health and nutrition have led to an increase in our core customer base. We believe the demands for affordable, nutritious food and dietary supplements are shared attributes of our core customers, regardless of their socio-economic status. Additionally, we believe our core customers prefer