The Vitamin Shoppe's New Retail Concept Elevates 'Hometown' Brands
Specialty retailer The Vitamin Shoppe has introduced a unique store concept in select markets to strengthen its brand partnerships and physical shopping experience.
About the Initiative
The new "Hometown Stores" concept pairs an existing local Vitamin Shoppe store with a top sports nutrition brand partner headquartered in the same metro area, creating an immersive retail space tailored to brand enthusiasts and local wellness communities, according to a media release.
Each Hometown Store features an enlarged, custom-branded space where partner brands can showcase expanded product ranges, exclusive merchandise, marketing activations and events, and social content opportunities.
Brand Partners
The Vitamin Shoppe, which is a subsidiary of Franchise Group, Inc., has teamed up with select brands for this initiative, including Bucked Up, EHPlabs, Gorilla Mind, Raw Nutrition and RYSE Supplements, with more set to come.
Notably, the EHPlabs locations are uniquely dubbed "Community Hubs" since the brand is headquartered in Australia and has selected two U.S. stores with "exceptionally passionate fan bases," per the release.
To date, The Vitamin Shoppe's Hometown Stores and Community Hubs include the following locations and brand partners:
- Gorilla Mind: 101 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles.
- EHPlabs: 137 E. State Route 4, Paramus, New Jersey.
- EHPlabs: 7009 Highway 6 North, Houston.
- Bucked Up: 10515 S. State St., Sandy, Utah.
- RYSE: 2995 Preston Road, Frisco, Texas.
- Raw Nutrition: 1756 SW St. Lucie West Blvd., Port St. Lucie, Florida (opening in April 2025).
"Partnering with The Vitamin Shoppe to open our Bucked Up Hometown Store in Sandy, Utah, was a natural fit — giving us a space where the community can fully experience our brand," Ryan Gardner, CEO of Bucked Up, said in the release. "This location showcases our full product lineup, exclusive drops and immersive in-store activations, giving customers an all-access pass to the Bucked Up lifestyle. The response has been incredible, and we're excited to continue pushing the boundaries of innovation with The Vitamin Shoppe."
The Upgraded In-Store Experience
Each Hometown Store or Community Hub dedicates 200 square feet or more of retail space for each partner brand. The spaces feature large-scale signage, enhanced fixtures and displays, and custom refrigerators stocked with the brand's energy drinks, protein shakes and hydration beverages.
Brands merchandise expanded product assortments and exclusive merch, including apparel and accessories that are unavailable elsewhere at retail, in select locations.
In addition to a retail destination, The Vitamin Shoppe said these stores can also serve as "centers of community engagement and content creation," where brands create compelling social media moments and customer activations.
For instance, Bucked Up took things a step further when its executive team landed a helicopter at their Sandy, Utah, location for a launch video posted across its social media channels.
Similarly, EHPlabs drew attention to its Community Hub debut in Houston, by luring in more than 400 consumers for a special event in February. The event featured a run club, live workouts and fitness contests, influencer meet-and-greets and giveaways from a mini-shop within a mobile shipping container.
"The EHPlabs community understands and values our true commitment and partnership to The Vitamin Shoppe, and it has become the go-to destination for EHPlabs exclusives and first-to-market product launches," Izhar Basha, CEO of EHPlabs, added. "Our vision is to bring the EHPlabs brand to life within these stores, execute new product development and cool exclusives, and be able to engage with our community at a deeper level by creating a feedback loop for experimental flavors and products."
What's Next?
The Vitamin Shoppe plans to expand its Hometown Stores footprint in 2025, bringing additional "top-tier" partner brands into the program and generating "continued innovation and excitement" in stores and in its local communities across the U.S., per the release.
