Iowa’s West Coast Initiative Feature

BUSINESS OWNER:  Jordan and Vianna Hobbs
BUSINESS NAME:  Red Valley Natural Foods Co.
MAIN PRODUCTS/SERVICES:  Organic and specialty diet grocery store
LOCATION:  600 Water Street, Sioux City, IA 51103
WEBSITE:  www.redvalleynaturalfoods.com

Short description of your business: 

We are a natural and organic grocery store located in Sioux City, IA. We specialize in organic, natural products and specialty diets. We carry everything from locally raised grass fed beef, whole grains, fluoride-free toothpaste, and everything in between. Our purpose is to provide our customers with wholesome clean foods, free of antibiotics, pesticides, and other poisons. 

What motivated you to start your business? What drives you each day? 

We saw the need for a larger selection of organic and clean daily eating options in the Siouxland Area.  We enjoy spreading healthy eating habits and improving our customers’ lives by providing these options.

What’s unique about your business?

You may find an organic section in any typical grocery store, but there is no one that showcases local producers and Midwest families in these products.

We also carry a large variety of many different specialty diet-based foods. Our employees  are knowledgeable in these specialty diets and are eager to help you find solutions to daily diet needs. We also have an in-house chef that prepares fresh, healthy, ready-to-eat options.

What’s the biggest challenge you’ve had to overcome as you’ve grown your business? 

The biggest challenge when starting and growing any business is finding the appropriate capital. 

What has been your greatest reward? 

Throughout the journey of starting up an organic and natural food grocery store, the greatest reward we have seen is the change in our customers’ lives on their journey to healthier, holistic living and eating. The positive response from our customers is something we never could have guessed would happen, and effects our lives in such a positive way as well.

How have you benefited from the startup community in Sioux City and the region? What resources did you use?

The community resource that helped give us the courage to start our business was visiting with the regional director of America’s SBDC, located in Western Iowa Tech Community College. He was able to give us good insight into researching the business market and presenting our plan to potential capital investors. 

Why is it important for the community to support startups and small businesses? What more can be done to help them?

When you support a small business, you are directly impacting a local family’s life, not some CEO that you’ll never know or meet. You can watch the local business and family grow and improve over time from the support you give them and know that the money you spend is going towards making your community a better place. 

What is one thing you know now that you wish you knew when starting your business?

You should talk to people in a similar line of business to get an insider’s look at everything that is involved in starting your own business and being self-employed.

What advice would you give to someone looking to start a business?

Seek wisdom from fellow business owners and be ready and willing to give everything you’ve got to push your business into succeeding. 

How can the community continue to help your business?

It isn’t about supporting our business specifically, it’s about supporting as many small local businesses as possible, because that is how you help build a better community.

What are some future goals for your company?

We are hoping to continue to grow in the future creating a more positive impact on our community’s health. We are  excited to continue to support more local businesses, producers, farmers, and families through our store outlet, and in doing so, create a more positive impact on our community’s health.