In this issue - Spring 2024

Reasons to be cheerful?

It's a volatile world and trading is tricky to say the least. What can retailers do to improve their prospects?

Is it really that bad in today's retail environment? With two social enterprise store chains – HISBE in Brighton and Worthing and Locavore in Scotland – closing for want of funding and The Body Shop calling in administrators, you'd be forgiven for having a head-in-hands sense of desperation.

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Irish health sector puts its best foot forward

The Irish love a get-together, the more so if it's health stores and their suppliers. Health Stores Ireland's chummy weekend in Shannon, County Clare, has now become an annual fixture.

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Ladies first!

The best of Ireland's health food retailers celebrate in the 2024 Awards

Winners in the New Natural Business/Health Stores Ireland Retailer Awards – L-R Deirdre Murphy, Horans Healthstores; Dorothy Browne, Nice & Natural; Sally Smith, Open Sesame; Shirley Sheil, Healthy Vision; Tessa Badenhurst, The Aloe Tree; Hannah Dare, Organico; Jill Bell, Well & Good; Lorin Taylor, Licorice Healthstore; Linda Barry, Nature's Hand; Olivia Cahalane, The Health Connection.

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Kids, culture and local champions

The Aloe Tree in Ennistymon, County Clare, is rocking to the music of health and wholesomeness

Celebrating ten years of dynamic community retailing this year, The Aloe Tree in Ennistymon, Co Clare's historic market town, recently welcomed its newest staffer – aged just eight.

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How, where and why consumers buy online

The UK generation game on social media as reported by more than 2,000 consumers

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Secret Shopper Reports

Our secret shoppers are on a regular online shopping-spree to find the best – or even the not-so-great – stores offering product sales and support via a website and social media.

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Viewpoint: Why we need a radical organic rethink

Soil Association Certification's 25th Organic Market Report, released in February, reveals that the organic food and drink market has delivered its 12th year of positive growth despite global economic turmoil and the cost-of-living crisis.

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Health Food Institute: How can we stop people eating themselves to depression and death?

From what I can gather about ultra-processed foods it appears the more of them one consumes the quicker one leaves this planet.

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Health Stores UK: Indies lead the charge

It was good to see that organic sales returned to growth in 2023, as revealed in the latest Soil Association Organic Market Report. But it was especially pleasing to see independents delivering the standout performance, where organic food, beauty and wellbeing sales were up 10% on 2022 figures (compared to 2.7% growth by the supermarkets).

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Health Stores Ireland: Sunny side up

The days when we face hill climbs with the wind in our faces and weight on our backs are the days we need some light shone on our paths.

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Health Food Manufacturers' Association: Together we are louder

It can seem an impossible task to keep up-to-date and receive accurate and reliable information. At the Health Food Manufacturers' Association we aim to keep the industry both updated and informed while also encouraging dialogue and discussion amongst members, stakeholders and the authorities.

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Read articles from the Winter 2023 issue here.