The “Barron round table” panelists discuss the calls for a break for CVS, which aroused a strategic examination.
CVS Pharmacy widens its imprint. But a major emphasis is on smaller store formats exclusively offering pharmacy services.
The transition to small formats stores comes as the industry works with rights and to reduce costs in response to continuous challenges, including intense competition and a change in consumer preferences.
CVS confirmed to Fox Business that it would open at least a dozen smaller format sites in certain communities across the country in the next year.
New pharmacies, which on average less than 5,000 square feet, will include a full -free service pharmacy with on -the -counter limited products available for purchase and will be designed to meet the specific pharmacy needs of the community.
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“By adopting a personalized approach to our imprint which focuses on the specific needs of the communities we serve, we continue to strategically realign our pharmacy footprint to better support the patient and ensure the right geographic coverage,” a spokesperson for the CVS in Fox Business.
An overview of the interior of a CVS store in smaller format. (CVS)
However, the company said that it still opens the traditional locations of the CVS pharmacy, which contain a complete front store and a pharmacy. In addition to new small pharmacies, the company plans to open nearly 30 CVS pharmacy locations, including those inside Target stores this year.
The main analyst of Emarketer, Rajiv Leventhal, told Fox Business that the more pharmacy retail commercial sales model had been difficult for companies like CVS and Walgreens to operate successfully as people are increasingly turning to online channels for household items.
The growing number of closures at CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens In recent years, underlines how the industry has been trying to dimension on the right after having quickly widened its imprint. CVS A closed hundreds of stores And dismissed the staff in order to redefine their investments and join the changing customer needs. Between 2022 and 2024, he closed 900 stores and opened 100 new locations. It plans to close an additional 270 in 2025.
Why neighborhood pharmacies close
A panel marks the location of a new CVS pharmacy on May 5, 2004 in Chicago, Illinois. (Scott Olson / Getty Images / Getty Images)
In 2023 Rite Aid filed a record and launched a store optimization plan, closing 154 locations. Then, in 2024, Walgreens announced its intention to close at least 1,200 stores over the next three years to reduce costs and transform its operations. Walgreens did not comment if this calendar will now change that the company becomes private. Last week, Walgreens, formerly a 100 billion dollars company, agreed to sell to the Sycamore Partners in an agreement in an agreement worth 10% of this, around 10 billion dollars.
Leventhal expects this decision to accelerate and potentially increase the number of store closures. He predicts that large companies like Walgreens and CVS will continue to close many of their stores while focusing more on pharmacy services in the places they keep open.
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“Consumers favor the price, speed and convenience especially. Pharmacies locking items to prevent theft from frustrating buyers more and make many abandonment in store purchases,” said Leventhal. However, he stressed that the recent difficulties of the retail pharmacy of CVS and Walgreens are much more on the front of the store than behind the pharmacy counter.
“Patients will always need their drugs, and CVS and Walgreens rank first and second in the size of the American pharmacy, measured by total prescription income,” added Leventhal.
| Teleprinter | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVS | CVS Health Corp. | 65.23 | -1.10 | -1.66% |
Leventhal believes that new CVS store formats could help the company become less dependent on customer traffic in front of the store. He also suggests that this model could allow pharmacists to play a more important role in patient health decisions.
“Lining on more stable activities – Presidency and over -the -counter medications – is a wise game,” he said.
