Listed below are some interesting monthly historical numbers from April, 1978. Some of the store sizes included large back rooms or basements. STORE Berwyn Downers Grove Elmhurst Lombard Skokie NOW Foods RENT $1,600 $550 $700 $300 $400 $1,800 SALES $55,000 $27,000 $25,000 $14,000 $16,000 $55,000 SQ. FT. COST/SQ. FT. 6,200 1,800 2,400 1,000 1,430 7,000 $3.10 $3.66 $3.50 $3.60 $3.40 $3.50 BACK TO NOW By 1980, NOW’s “Full Line” wholesale catalog had grown to include over 800 different sizes of natural food products. Unique niche products filled the catalog: Peanut flour, Carob Wheat Germ, Guar Beans, Carob Pod Pieces, Rosemary Leaves, Kleenraw Sugar, Uncoffee, Nucleic Acid Powder, Copper Powder, Molasses Powder and Black Currant Powder. Because NOW used such cheap (and ugly) black-and-white labels, it was very inexpensive and convenient to package many different sizes for the same product. Here’s a sampling of what was offered by NOW in 1980: • 41 different sizes of vitamin E products • 28 different sizes of vitamin A & D products • 28 different sizes of natural sweeteners • 87 powdered vitamins, minerals and amino acids • 57 different sizes of herbal teas, mostly cut and sifted • 100 beans, grains, rice and meals - packaged and bulk • 52 specialty flours • Plus a lot of odds and ends that other distributors didn’t handle Elwood clearly loved to supply unusual products that mainstream distributors passed over due to low sales. His game plan was as strong as ever: Focus on providing quality products at the lowest prices and offer unique products that could only be found at NOW. Though this strategy did not produce handsome financial results for many years, the plan was in place and ready for the right circumstances. Elwood had done an excellent job of coming up with a business plan that made sense and put years of effort into making the dream a reality. With an improved label and better packaging to come, NOW was positioned to make a big move and solidify its place as a true friend to natural food enthusiasts all over the world. Elwood embodied the proverb in the good book which says, “The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance.” (Proverbs 21:5) 46 BEATING THE ODDS
