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FEBRUARY 6, 2020
WILLISTON’S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1985
Natural Provisions Market to close
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Observer photo by Jason Starr
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A liquidation sale began this week at Natural Provisions on Harvest Lane as the store winds down after 12 years in business.
Staffing challenges, new competition conspire against Harvest Lane market By Jason Starr Observer staff
Customers at Natural Provisions Market probably didn’t know they were talking to a doctor when asking the store’s general manager about the health benefits of the store’s different products and foods. While her degree from UVM Medical School wasn’t something Allison Lafferty would divulge, the education has made her a wise consultant for customers seeking natural and nutritional remedies. Lafferty is now seeking a new use for her degree, as last week she and her husband/co-general manager, Peter, decided to close the store after a 12-year run. The couple broke the news to their roughly 25 full- and part-time employees last week, and on Monday sent customers an email expressing gratitude and disappointment. A liquidation sale begins this week. “It’s a hard time for ourselves and our staff,” Lafferty said Monday. “We just want people to know how appreciative we are that people welcomed us into the community and supported us these last 12 years, and how sad we are to be leaving. Just because it’s the best decision, doesn’t mean it’s not a difficult one.” The Harvest Lane store was a second location for Natural Provisions. The original store opened
in the mid-1990s in St. Johnsbury, Lafferty’s hometown, where it remains open. Lafferty’s parents bought it in 2004. Three years later, they partnered with Lafferty’s uncle to start the Williston store, and recruited the Laffertys to run it. Allison had recently graduated from UVM medical school, and Peter had worked as a social worker for the Howard Center. The Laffertys have infused the store with a family atmosphere. “We think of our staff as family,” Allison said. “We know what’s going on in their lives and all the things they are striving for, so that’s an incredibly sad part about leaving. We also have gotten very connected to many of our customers, so that’s also going to be a great loss for us.” A few factors have conspired in the past year to lead to the decision to close. Perhaps the most problematic has been difficulty staying fully staffed. Short staffing has spread managers thin, Lafferty said, roping them into day-to-day tasks and taking them away from strategizing for the long-term health of the business. There is also the growing asymmetric competition from online retailers that plagues conventional stores in seemingly every retail sector. Then there was the announcement last winter that Healthy Living Market and Café is moving to a
Observer photo by Jason Starr
A sign announces the coming of Healthy Living Market and Cafe to Finney Crossing in Williston, new competition that factored into the decision of Natural Provisions’ owners to close.
new building along Williston Road in the Finney Crossing development, about a mile from Natural Provisions. The building is currently under construction, and Healthy Living is planning for a July opening. The store is one town over from Healthy Living’s flagship location in South Burlington. Healthy Living also has a location in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., and plans to open a Shelburne store. Lafferty said she reached out to Healthy Living’s owners before reaching a final decision to close Natural Provisions in hopes of developing a relationship that could be mutually beneficial. “There was nothing that came from that that allowed us to change see MARKET page 24
Observer photos by Al Frey
About 140 people, including 59 from Williston schools and many members of the CVU girls basketball team, above, participated in the Penguin Plunge on Saturday, jumping into Lake Champlain in Burlington to raise thousands of dollars for Special Olympics Vermont.