Alfalfa’s Readies for Second Colo., Location
Alfalfa’s will debut its second Colorado store in Louisville on June 27. The new store will anchor the newly developed Center Court Village shopping center at South Boulder Road and Centennial, and will reflect the sleek design and high product standards of the original Boulder store.
“The commuter traffic on South Boulder Road, growth in population in Louisville, void in specialty natural and organic retail in the community, and a thriving Main Street attracted us to this location,” said Mark Retzloff, co-founder and chairman of Alfalfa’s. "We received more than 600 'alfalfa seed-filled' letters from Louisville residents asking us to open a store here, and we’ve taken extra care in the store design and layout to bring this community the best in local, natural and organic products retailing.”
In addition to Mark Retzloff, Barney Feinblum, Hugo van Seenus and Jimmy Searcy – Alfalfa’s founders and long-time pioneers in the organic and natural products community – Alfalfa’s has staffed its store with veterans in the local natural foods retailing scene, including long-time natural foods retail operations executive John Varsames, who joined the company last December.
Jason Vincent joined Alfalfa’s in January as store director to help develop and run the new Louisville location. He brings 24 years of experience in the food retail industry – 18 of which were devoted to natural foods retail. A Boulder native, Vincent has served in several operations and merchandising roles throughout his career – both at the corporate and store level – with Wild Oats Markets, Sunflower Markets and Sprouts.
“We are excited to have someone with Jason’s knowledge and experience open and run our new Louisville store,” said Retzloff. “As a Boulder native, he has lived and worked in this community, and will understand the needs of our shoppers. We have a great team assembled and can’t wait to open our doors to the community on June 27th.”
The Louisville Alfalfa's will employ approximately 135 staff, and Vincent has built a team of experienced managers to lead the various departments, including:
- Jeff Cameron and Mary Kloberdanz, assistant store directors
- Cody Riggs, bakery manager
- Amedeo Negrini, produce manager
- Chris Howell, coffee & juice bar manager
- Kaleigh Boesel, wellness manager
- Brian Glasgow, meat & seafood manager
- Quincy Faircloth, front end manager
- Kevin Kidd, executive chef
- Heather Harmon, cheese & specialty manager
- Ruth Meere, marketing coordinator
Founded in Boulder, Colo., in 1983, Alfalfa’s Market grew to be one of the nation’s leading-edge natural products retailers throughout the 1980s and 1990s. With 11 stores and an iconic reputation for being a community gathering place filled with an infectious passion for natural and organic foods, Alfalfa’s Market was acquired by Wild Oats Markets in 1996.
In 2011, Retzloff, Feinblum, van Seenus and Searcy resurrected the Alfalfa’s name with the re-opening of the original Alfalfa’s at Broadway and Arapahoe in Boulder.