CONTRIBUTED CONTENT — Dixie Nutrition, a favored local natural foods hotspot for over 50 years, experienced the tragedy of a lifetime last July when the roof of their St. George Boulevard store collapsed. It was devastating to the business and the Gillespie family. The one silver lining was their customers, who have faithfully supported them through this challenging time.
“Our customers have not only followed us to the temporary location, but they have also been patient as we navigate through moving to a new permanent location,” owner Greg Gillespie said.
Dixie Nutrition is a natural foods grocery store that stocks a vast variety of health-focused goods. Customers will find organic and gluten-free food, vitamins, supplements, tinctures, essential oils, herbs and sports nutrition products, to name just a few, along with a friendly and helpful staff.
The business has been family-owned and operated for three generations. Gillespie said that as local owners, they’re involved with the store’s operations on a daily basis. They listen to their customers and are aware of what the community needs.
“If you have a specialty item you can’t find, a question or a complaint, you can talk to us,” he added. “I think people really like that.”
Dixie Nutrition strives to provide healthy, organic and natural products to the people of Southern Utah. Gillespie’s grandparents opened the store in the spring of 1969.
The next two generations of Gillespies grew up working in the store. Gillespie’s parents eventually bought the business, and he took over in 2010. He has since expanded with new locations in Hurricane and Mesquite, Nevada.
Gillespie said his grandparents were well ahead of their time in their consciousness of herbal remedies and health foods and wanting to bring those products to the community. Dixie Nutrition was the first store in St. George to carry organic food decades before terms like “non-GMO” and “free-range” entered the popular lexicon.
“As an independent health foods store, we see the latest and greatest trends before they hit the mass market,” he added. “We’re very dialed in to what’s going on in the marketplace. People are always finding something new here.”
The health and wellness industry has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years, and the business continues to evolve. Dixie Nutrition carries many unique items people can’t find anywhere else in town, including Southern Utah’s largest selection of supplements and bulk herbs and spices.
A staple of downtown St. George, Dixie Nutrition has been helping local families achieve greater wellness for over half a century. They continue to serve customers from a pop-up location in the former Kmart shopping center on Bluff Street, where they’ve been operating since August 2021.
“Our customers are so supportive and so loyal,” Gillespie said. “I feel like that speaks to people appreciating the more one-on-one service level that we offer.”
Gillespie said he’s looking forward to getting settled in a new permanent location, which he expects to happen by the end of the year. An announcement will be made on social media once the details are finalized.
Dixie Nutrition customers have enjoyed the store’s frozen yogurt bar for years, and Gillespie plans to not only bring it back but expand the offerings once they move. The new location will also have smoothies, grab-and-go snacks and more food options. In the meantime, the Bluff Street location continues to serve shoppers both old and new with a smile.
The Gillespie family knows their customers. They know the products their customers need, and they celebrate successes along with them as they find a supplement, vitamin or food that enables them to take the next step forward on their journey to better health.
“We’re so grateful for our customers,” he added. “They’re really what make our business; they’re the best part of it.”
Written by ALEXA MORGAN for St. George News.
• S P O N S O R E D C O N T E N T •
Resources
- Dixie Nutrition | Website.
- Locations:
- St. George: 791 S. Bluff St. | 435-673-3447.
- Hurricane: 57 S. Main St. | 435-635-2113.
- Mesquite, Nevada: 300 N. Sandhill Blvd., Suite F. | 702-346-8633.
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