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Julie Shaffley and her late husband, Curt Shaffley, took a leap of faith in 1990 when they assumed ownership of Good Health Nutrition Center in Centralia.
Shaffley had been in the health food industry for five years prior to the purchase of the company, but her experience in business was limited. After all, the company had been operated by its previous owner for 14 years prior to the Shaffleys’ purchase, so they were tasked with building trust with the clientele while attracting new customers.
Now, 35 years later, Shaffley has helped establish Good Health Nutrition Center as one of the most recognizable businesses in the heart of Centralia’s Harrison Avenue thanks to its large selection of vitamins, minerals, supplements, and organic groceries.
“It has gone by in the blink of an eye. I’m very honored and very humbled that the community has supported us for 35 years,” Shaffley said. “I love my job. I absolutely love what I do. I love the science of the health food industry, but it’s helping people and how gratifying it is to help and be a part of their lives.”
Good Health Nutrition Center, established in 1976 and located at 503 Harrison Ave., was owned by a friend of the Shaffleys before the ownership change. Julie took the responsibility of working with customers on creating a healthy lifestyle seriously.
“I take the trust that the community and my customers have given me very seriously. People ask about the supplements that I have on the shelf, and I never bring anything in that I wouldn’t take or that I wouldn’t give to my family,” she said. “I do what’s best for people’s health. That means I want science-based products, safe products, and clean products. I’m the gatekeeper of what people put in their body. I’m not selling T-shirts that they wear a couple of times. They’re putting things in their body to help them, and that’s a big responsibility.”
In 2025, Shaffley said the top categories that customers come into Good Health looking for are pain or arthritis, stress, sleep and weight loss, adding that brain health is becoming an increasing priority.
She said through the age of the internet and misinformation, she and her staff take on the responsibility of educating customers on what’s best for them.
While Shaffley and her staff have had that task since the early 1990s, the science has changed dramatically. She said reasons for recommending supplements and vitamins were much more generic and anecdotal versus a more in-depth, research-based approach today.
“You have to be very careful to filter out what is a marketing tool and what is truth, and that’s where I feel that our staff comes in,” Shaffley said. “We have no problem saying, ‘No, that’s not going to work that way.’ My philosophy is that I am here for the customer, and I will do what is best for my customer. In turn, that will be what’s best for my business.”
Over the next 35 years, Shaffley hopes that Good Health Nutrition Center continues to provide the best products possible and educate customers through science and research.
“I want, I hope, I dream that the next 35 years will see the continuation of this, and I can’t say it’s going to be with me,” Shaffley laughed. “I want to see the continued support from the community, the continued trust and for us to keep that trust with the community. I want to see the advancement of the knowledge and the research that makes these products readily available for the consumer so that people can take control of their health, the health of their family and have it be truthful and something that really does work.”
To learn more about Good Health Nutrition Center, visit https://www.goodhealthnutrition.net/.
