We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Anna & Adam Heinauer . We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Anna & Adam below.

Alright, Anna & Adam thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?

In 2020, we were living in Denver and working remote corporate jobs in the health care industry. With an interest in food and wellbeing, we began scheming on small business ideas in an effort to find passion in our careers and to feel connected to our community. Our goal was to establish a business that aligned with our interests and supported the health and wellbeing of those around us. We were also looking to move to a small mountain town and were fortunate enough to be serendipitously connected with the Lettucehead Food Company, a local health food store that had been in the Buena Vista community for years and was looking to be passed on to new ownership. We made the leap and went all in, quickly moving to Buena Vista and leaving the corporate world.

Buying an existing business allowed us to jump right in to make it our own. Our approach has been small, thoughtful adjustments to our product selection and the aesthetics of the store, specifically expanding our local vendor partnerships. Two years later, and we have no regrets. While owning and operating a small business is all consuming, and there are times we miss our PTO and benefits, it’s so incredibly rewarding to be a part of the our small community. We are doing what we love – talking food all day. We strive to make a healthy lifestyle accessible to all. We focus on Colorado grown food to provide locally sourced, quality products that lift up our community. Our son just turned a year old, and the best part is having him grow up in the store, munching on Brussels sprouts and giving out smiles.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

We own and operate The Lettucehead Food Company, a small grocery store in Buena Vista focusing on organic produce, healthy groceries, and health and wellness. After years of working in health care consulting, we found that our passion was on the preventative side of health – and more specifically, food! We believe that whole foods nourish and heal. We carry groceries that encourage whole food lifestyles, as well as support dietary restrictions. We source meat locally and ethically, driving down to the San Luis Valley for 100% grassfed, regenerative beef from Blue Range Ranch and for eggs from an Amish family farm. We continually expand our local vendor partnerships to bring in more local produce and products, benefiting both our customers and our community. We are a small but mighty store, packed to the brim to ensure we are your one-stop shop. We have those hard-to-find ingredients, as well as your pantry staples. The products we carry are intended to support a healthy, sustainable lifestyle – from our clean hygiene, beauty and cleaning products to our homeopathic remedies and vitamins and minerals. We also understand that health is expensive. We have an incredibly expansive bulk section full of whole grains, legumes, herbs, superfoods, and botanicals. that make trying different foods accessible and affordable. We deeply discount our not-so-great-looking vegetables and fruit, curating $1.00 bags of imperfect produce. During the recent egg shortage, we did not raise our egg prices and folks were welcome to stockpile as many as they wanted.

While we are extremely proud of the Lettucehead, we’re always looking to improve our selection and our customer experience. We continually strive to know more and do better for the community and visitors of Buena Vista.

We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.

We met in the halls of our corporate office in Washington D.C. and fell fast for each other, tying the knot a few years later. When we decided to buy a business as a husband and wife duo, we came in with eyes wide open. Both of our parents owned small businesses together and we grew up with the dynamics of entrepreneurship and raising a family. While there’s always challenges, we are a strong team, and both are passionate about what we do at the Lettucehead.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

The Lettucehead Food Company has been in the Buena Vista community for decades, which allowed an incredible foundation for us to work from. As owners, we want to be as involved as possible in the operations of the store – from new product ordering, to displays, to produce maintenance. Our presence is absolutely felt by our customers. We know their names, their dietary restrictions, their favorite products. We have fully embraced being a local family business and our customers have the small, friendly neighborhood store feel when they walk in the door.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.thelettucehead.com
• Instagram: @thelettuceheadfoodcompany

Image Credits
Madelyn Chance, Anna Heinauer