Who We Are

Imagine a tiny natural grocery store in a small seaside tourist town in regional Queensland getting its start in life just before the boom of social media; before a time when everyone kept their lives on a small device they can hold in the hands; when kale and kombucha were still “underground”. This is the world Mark Armstrong and his partner Emily brought Go Natural Foods into being.

In the early 2000’s, Mark had become involved in setting up an organic food start up located in Hervey Bay, his first exposure to the exciting world of organics. It was also the time he met his partner Emily, a lover of great vegetarian food, an advocate for the environment and an example of how both are important to living a healthy life.

The more Mark learnt about food choices and how this impacted on his personal health and lifestyle; the more he understood how our food choices directly impact the health of our environment; the more he came in contact with others who were also making changes to better their way of eating and living. However, to make these positive changes in a real sense required accessibility to organic ingredients and natural products that were not readily available in Hervey Bay at time.

So, when life starts sending you consistent messages, you had better start listening and Mark certainly did. The idea of Go Natural Foods was born!

In 2005, the tiny store, located right across from the beach in Torquay, Hervey Bay, opened its doors and was ready to cater to a small Queensland town starving for organic and natural food and products.

It was a tiny store with big ambitions. Ambitions to offer a unique variety of organic and natural foods that taste fantastic, complemented by a range of natural and sustainable home & beauty products, sourced primarily from local and domestic producers. Ambitions to create a hub for customers where their lifestyles choices for themselves and their families are respected and catered for. Ambitions to build an environment where shopping for groceries can actually be an enjoyable experience!!

Ask a Go Natural Foods customer today what they think of the store and you will frequently hear adjectives like warm, welcoming, appealing, comfortable, diverse, unique, relaxed, quality, happy, informed. From the day the doors opened Mark has been committed to his customers, both old and new; committed to providing a service that offers carefully sourced, great tasting quality food; committed to curating a range of products that reflects the individual choices of his customers.

And so, as our customers have grown and evolved on their own wellness path, so has Go Natural Foods and its team grown and evolved alongside them, always striving to fulfil the big ambitions of a tiny store. So much so, that eight years later, Go Natural Foods moved to a much larger location just up the road.

Still across from the beach, of course!