Health-conscious Bowling Green residents will soon have another option for buying their meal replacement shakes, weight-loss products and other healthful foods and supplements.

Top of the Hill Nutrition, less than two years after opening its location at 900 Fairview Ave., is expanding to a second location in northern Warren County.

“For me, this move is about brand recognition and expanding our mission of making the world a healthier, happier place,” said Austin Sutcliffe, the 24-year-old entrepreneur who launched Top of the Hill in March 2017. “Bowling Green is so big you can only reach so many people from one store.”

Sutcliffe has already reached plenty of people, many of whom were attracted initially by the novelty of making a meal of a flavored protein shake and have stayed with Sutcliffe and his staff of three.

Sharon Mathis, who lives about a mile from Top of the Hill, was sipping on a banana pudding-and-coconut shake Friday afternoon, something that has become a routine since she decided to stop at the new business shortly after it opened.

“I like the product,” Mathis said. “I started out looking for something that would help me lose a little bit of weight. Now I get one meal each day from here, Monday through Friday. I’ve lost about 30 pounds.”

That’s possible, Sutcliffe explained, because his shakes – even the turtle cheesecake and the peanut butter pie that are among dozens of flavor options – are all under 250 calories.

He has tapped into a growing health consciousness that fits his background as a competitive soccer player.

A Frankfort native who studied broadcast journalism at Western Kentucky University, Sutcliffe said he caught on to the concept of a health-themed store when he took a part-time job in his hometown.

“There’s a store like this in Frankfort called HealthEase Nutrition,” he said. “I started working there. I caught on to the business model pretty quickly.”

He brought that model to the 1,600-square-foot store on Fairview, which quickly became a magnet for residents looking for healthy eating options.

“That first summer, it got to the point that we didn’t stop,” Sutcliffe recalled. “We were making shakes all day.”

Sutcliffe said Top of the Hill will sell 150 shakes on a good summer day but may slack off to 80 or so in the winter.

By tapping into the trend toward healthy eating and through promotions and customer service, Sutcliffe has grown the business to the point that expansion was the natural next step.

“Health and fitness are big business,” he said. “Everybody wants to look and feel good, and that’s what we offer. I never really dreamed I would be an entrepreneur, but when you find something you’re passionate about, you can do it.”

Not that Sutcliffe gets carried away by his passion for fitness. His decision to expand into a 1,200-square-foot location next to Puerto Vallarta restaurant on River Place Avenue off Louisville Road was calculated.

“What I like about that place is it’s near the Corvette plant, the Transpark and Warren East High School,” he said. “People can stop in on their way to work or come at lunchtime. I’m the only healthy option out there.”