Best employment in my 25 year career in natural foods. - Category Manager Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage Employee Review

Friendly customer base that is rare in retail, and management is understanding of life events

Pay started a little low compared to other grocery stores for management, but has made good strides since covid

Health and wellness ongoing education was a great benefit. The company presents a perception of compassionate leadership. Managers who performed well received discretionary bonuses. This was a job I loved with all my heart and genuinely had to take a very long time to grieve when my time there ended.

Labor allotments stopped making sense once restructured; the load was unfairly balanced between low volume and high volume stores. HR was disorganized and made several errors that cost employees their benefits. The employee relations department of HR frequently changes policies - what one crew member was terminated for a month ago is suddenly allowed going forward. Management has watched a pattern of losing amazing managers who felt forced out by a few toxic crew members who could not handle being held accountable per the ever-changing policies. For every write-up delivered, expect at least 2-3 false allegations or an HR investigation against you, and plan for the massive delay and productivity obstacle it creates because that will also fall on your shoulders.