The Vitamin Shoppe Unveils New Protein Pantry Category In-Stores And Online

NORTH BERGEN, N.J., Oct. 13, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The Vitamin Shoppe today announced the launch of an exciting, new product category – Protein Pantry. Over the past few months, the Vitamin Shoppe has introduced new, protein-packed foods such as pancake mixes, nut butters and spreads, powdered peanut butter and more. The Vitamin Shoppe now boasts a unique, specially curated assortment of protein-infused foods. The new Protein Pantry assortment is now available at approximately 700 Vitamin Shoppe locations across the country and online at VitaminShoppe.com.

Doug Jones, Senior Vice President of Merchandising for the Vitamin Shoppe shared, "We are seeing a clear trend in our target customers looking for broader solutions to bring more protein into their diet in ways beyond bars and powders. Protein is no longer a focus for just performance athletes, our core Vitamin Shoppe customer is deeply focused on nutritional fortification to help achieve their goals of living a healthy, active lifestyle."

According to the 2015 edition of Nutrition Business Journal (NBJ), in 2014, within the U.S. Nutrition Industry, the Functional Foods category grew 7.8% and the Natural & Organic Foods category grew an even faster 12.7%, demonstrating demand and growth for new products in these categories. The NBJ is projecting similar growth trends for the next five years.

Brian Tanzer, MS, CNS, Nutritionist for the Vitamin Shoppe, explains that, "Ensuring adequate protein intake can be one important step in building a well-rounded fitness routine. If looking to increase lean muscle mass, protein plays a vital role in the growth and repair of lean muscle tissue when combined with resistance training. In addition to common food sources, supplementing protein intake with on-the-go foods can be a convenient way to meet daily nutrition needs and achieve wellness goals."

The Vitamin Shoppe's Protein Pantry offers an assortment of tasty foods from some new vendor partners, including Buff Bake, D's Naturals, Mancakes, P28 Foods and more. The complete assortment features approximately 40 products.

About the Vitamin Shoppe (NYSE: VSI)

The Vitamin Shoppe is a multi-channel specialty retailer and contract manufacturer of nutritional products based in North Bergen, New Jersey.  In its stores and on its website, the company carries one of the most comprehensive retail assortments in the industry, including vitamins, minerals, specialty supplements, herbs, sports nutrition, homeopathic remedies, green living products, and beauty aids.  In addition to offering 900 national brand products, the Vitamin Shoppe also exclusively carries products under The Vitamin Shoppe^®, BodyTech^®, True Athlete^®, MyTrition^®, plnt™, ProBioCare™ and Next Step™ brands.  Other proprietary brands include Betancourt and Nutri-Force Sports^®.  The Vitamin Shoppe conducts business through more than 700 company-operated retail stores under The Vitamin Shoppe, Super Supplements and Vitapath retail banners, and primarily through its website, www.VitaminShoppe.com and www.supersup.com. Follow The Vitamin Shoppe on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/THEVITAMINSHOPPE and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/VitaminShoppe.

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SOURCE The Vitamin Shoppe