From Grocery Aisles to Consulting – How Our Family Business Grew Into Helping Others Build Legacy Plans
Discover how the Goodwin family expanded from grocery stores to consulting, helping other family businesses preserve values, plan succession, and build legacies.
Introduction
For over 75 years, our family has been in the grocery business—starting with Goodwin’s & Sons Market and later expanding into Goodwin’s Organics. Our story is one of resilience, community, and a passion for health and family values.
But as our family grew, so did our vision. We realized the lessons we learned through decades of running a family grocery business could help other families preserve their values, create succession plans, and build long-term legacies. That’s how we grew beyond retail into family business consulting.
1. Lessons from the Grocery Aisles
Running a grocery store is fast-paced and competitive. We learned how to:
Balance tradition and innovation (bringing organic products into a conventional setting).
Resolve family conflicts while keeping the business moving forward.
Serve our community first while maintaining profitability.
These same lessons now shape how we help other families navigate their own business journeys.
2. Why We Started Consulting
Many family businesses struggle with:
No written succession plan.
Blurred lines between family and business.
Struggles to modernize without losing identity.
We saw that our successful story could be a blueprint for others. So, we launched consulting services to guide family-owned companies through planning, structure, and legacy-building.
3. Helping Families Build Their Legacy Plans
Through consulting, we focus on:
Succession planning: Who takes over, and how.
Values-driven growth: Holding onto the “why” behind the business.
Legacy protection: Creating trust structures, documenting culture, and preserving history.
Conclusion
Our family journey—from Goodwin’s & Sons Market to Goodwin’s Organics to consulting—has always been about one thing: helping families thrive. By sharing what worked for us, we empower other businesses to do more than survive. We help them build legacies.
