01/16/2024

Opportunity Awaits Small, Independent Pharmacies as Chains Close Drugstores

National chains' closures have created pharmacy deserts

Not so long ago, the first question people asked about their local drugstores was whether they were open 24/7. Amid a wave of at least 2,000 nationwide drugstore chain store closures in recent years, many consumers now wonder whether there's a nearby pharmacy that can fill their prescriptions. As the big chains shutter their underperforming outlets, independent pharmacists are ready to fill the resulting medical and business void--if they can overcome the same challenges driving out bigger rivals.

Though many flagging drugstores saw something of a bounce-back during the pandemic thanks to the widespread adoption of anti-COVID-19 measures and broad demand for vaccinations, they're still reckoning with the obstacles that have marked the sector's preceding decade. Challenges include steady declines in the sales of non-prescription items (also called "front-end products"), from candy bars to over-the-counter medications, which were previously lucrative business drivers. The dividend-focused priorities of stores' corporate management, meanwhile, meant that franchises unable to contribute to ever-rising profit demands often saw budgets and staffs cut--or were closed outright.

And those were the relatively easy problems.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Inc.