How long have you owned your business?

What best describes your store(s)? Are retailers re-embracing the term ‘Health Store’?

How many shop units do you own? 2017 average – 1.39 stores. Up from 1.27 in 2016.

How many staff do you employ? Average Health Store 2015 2016 2017 Full Time – per retailer 2.13 1.72 3.97 Part Time – per retailer 4.05 4.09 Full Time – per store 1.55 Part Time – per store 1.61 No Full Time Staff 34% 46% 13% No Part Time Staff 12% 23% 18%

What was your revenue for 2016? Year Average store revenue 2013 £390,962 2014 £429,605 2015 £413,095 2016 £491,928 Average store revenue has increased by 19%

Approximately, what % is this up or down on last year? 2014 2015 2016 Retailers up average 12% 9% Retailers down average -7% -9% Overall 6.50% 6.29% 7.54%

Has footfall increased or decreased in the past 12 months? 54% of retailers say that footfall has increased in the past 12 months

Has average consumer spend increased or decreased in the past 12 months? 61% of retailers say that average consumer spend has increased in the past 12 months

Over the past 10 years, has the average age of your customer base become: 70% of retailers say the age of their average customer is becoming younger.

What would you estimate the average age of your customers? The average health store shopper is 46 years old.

Sleep, stress and energy Which health issues/ lifestyle factors are the biggest driver of sales in your store? 2015 2016 2017 1 Digestive Health 2 Sleep Sleep, stress and energy 3 Stress & Anxiety Bone & Joint Health 4 Women’s Health 5 Healthy Living 6 Allergy 7 Women's Health Cold & Flu 8 9 Preventative Care Heart Health & Blood Pressure 10 Diet & Weight Loss 11

Approximately, what % of your store is given to: Free From saw a big increase in 2016 – but some of this shelf space has seemingly given way to food and supplements.

Which product category do you think offers the strongest growth potential (for your store) in the next 12 months? 2014 2015 2016 2017 1 Supplements / remedies Vegan / Vegetarian 2 Special Diet / Free From 3 Beauty / Bodycare Vegan / Veg Organic 4 Bodycare & Beauty 5 Raw Food 6 Green Lifestyle / Eco Fairtrade / ethical 7 Sports Nutrition 8 Fairtrade / Ethical 9 Raw Foods / Superfoods Vegetarian & Vegan is seen as the category which offers the strongest growth potential.

What is your biggest motivation to stock a product in your store? Motivation in 2014 Motivation in 2015 Motivation in 2016 Motivation in 2017 1 Quality of Product 2 Customer request Exclusive to independents 3 4 Support from Supplier New Product Support from supplier 5 Margin / Price deal 6 Supplier Deal Supplier deal 7 Margin / Price Deal 8 Account Terms 47% of retailers state 'Quality of Product' as the main motivation for stocking a product. However ‘exclusivity’ is becoming increasingly important with 21% citing this as their motivation to stock a product.

Which wholesalers do you use? CLF and The Health Store are currently the most popular wholesalers.

What do you currently see as the biggest threat to independent natural products retailing? Retailers are seemingly less concerned by supermarkets and online retailers - whilst BREXIT and ‘rent and rates’ are the fastest growing concerns.

What do you currently see as the biggest opportunity for independent natural products retailers? Changing shopping habits is seen as the biggest opportunity for independent retailers.

Do you have an e-commerce site? Less retailers are selling via their websites (dropping from 41% in 2014). However this does not mean retailers are not embracing technology – many are using it to help drive customers to their stores.

If yes, what % of total sales do your online sales represent? On average online sales represent 9% of total revenue for retailers with an e-commerce element to their website.

What marketing activities do you currently use? Retailers are embracing technology to promote their stores - at the same time as engaging with their customers through local and instore events.

Which social media platforms do you currently use to promote your business? 2016 2017 Facebook 78% 90% Twitter 42% 50% Instagram 26% 31% None 14% 10% Pinterest 11% 6% LinkedIn 8% 0% Google Plus 3% Facebook is the independent’s most popular form of social media for promoting their business.

Do you offer additional services? ‘Other’ services included veggie café, nutrition seminars, events, yoga/pilates studio and a nutrition consultancy.

In the near future, do you plan to: 2017 NO 1-2 years 2-3 years 3-5 years 5+ years Expand / refurbish your current premises? 39% 41% 14% 4% 2% Take on additional premises? 65% 21% 7% 5% Sell your business? 71% 9% 2016 42% 11% 3% 27% 0% 68% 8% Time for a re-fit? 59% of retailers are looking to expand / refurbish their current premises in the next 5 years. In 2014, 81% of retailers had no plans to take on additional sites. Now over a third of retailers are looking to go multiple within 5 years.

Where do you currently get most of your information (industry and business)? Trade press and is still the most important source of information. Social media and trade shows are increasing in importance.

If you belong to a trade association, please let us know which one(s): Those who answered ‘no’ questioned the value of joining a trade association.

Are you more, or less optimistic about business than 12 months ago? 41% of retailers are more optimistic about business than 12 months ago. However retailers are less confident overall than this time last year.

What is the independent natural health store's single biggest Unique Selling Point? Invest in your staff! Staff product knowledge and overall customer care are the successful health store’s biggest USPs.

“Social media isn’t something we’re comfortable with “Social media isn’t something we’re comfortable with. We focus on our loyalty scheme. It’s paper based and very popular – we have 2,800 members” “We don’t do online sales. It’s a lot of work for a few jars of coconut oil sold” “We are being killed by the people buying on Amazon” “This store is an alternative health service and local GPs refer patients to us” “We had a Facebook campaign recently and the last two months have been bigger than Christmas” “We recently outsourced our Twitter and Facebook feeds” “Younger shoppers used to be the icing on the cake. Now they are the cake” “On the whole suppliers are good. There’s always room for improvement. But they’d probably say that about me!” “We’ve been here for 40 years – a good old-fashioned wholefood shop. We were the weird ones who started it. Now everyone’s into it!” “We offer a discount to South Yorkshire Police – which brings in good custom” “Stick to the independents please; you’ll see better results over the long term, rather than chasing the perceived megabucks of the supermarkets”

Thank you