In this Issue

  • Sam’s opens its ‘Portfolio’ to a health-and-wellness focus

    BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Sam’s Club promises to be an even more formidable competitor in the health-and-wellness space in the years ahead, judging from the strategic priorities now in place as part of a broad-based strategy known as Project Portfolio.


  • Q&A: Synergetic strategy
 — Scott Verner, Nipro Diagnostics

    Drug Store News recently sat down with Scott Verner, president of Nipro Diagnostics, to discuss some of the synergies created by the acquisition of Home Diagnostics by Japan’s Nipro in March. 


    Drug Store News: How is the new company better positioned in the U.S. market? What are the synergies?


  • Front-end focus: OTC gets in on the ‘Action’

    
The phrase coined by Sam Walton — “Stack ’em high and let ’em fly!” — is reverberating throughout Walmart again.


    The retailer’s back-to-basics strategy is good news for OTC suppliers, because going back to basics at Walmart also means going back to a broader product selection. Between the resumption of Action Alley and a recommitment to assortment, Walmart already has grown its carrying inventory by 4%, and the company plans to grow its inventory at a rate of half the 
expected sales lift.


  • Adults want control of their private health data

    AUSTIN, Texas — An overwhelming majority of respondents to a recent poll want to choose which companies and government agencies can view and use their health information.


  • WAG test drives electric fill-ups

    
HOUSTON — Walgreens will receive a jolt to its brand image in February as the chain begins playing host to NRG’s eVgo electric vehicle charging stations across 18 locations in the Hous­ton market. The eye-catching stations will help position Walgreens, and such other participating retailers as H-E-B and Best Buy, as cutting-edge companies with an eye to the future — and as responsible neighbors intent to make good on the promise of sustainability.


  • Medco launches educational online tool to improve medication nonadherence

    New York — Given the high costs of medication nonadherence to the healthcare system and its responsibility for numerous hospitalizations every year, a number of companies have devised means to combat the problem. One pharmacy benefit manager is doing it online.


  • Pharmaca tweaks branding, plans expansion spurt

    MENLO PARK, Calif. — Earlier this month, Pharmaca Integrative Pharmacy unveiled its latest store design here, marking the company’s 23rd location and heralding more new-store growth to come. Pharmaca is targeting three new store openings in 2011, Mark Panzer, Pharmaca president and CEO, told Drug Store News.

  • Mintel: Hispanic women want beauty manufacturers to cater to them

    CHICAGO Many Hispanic women feel underrepresented in the beauty and personal care aisle and would like to see more products -- especially hair care products -- designed just for them, suggested recent research by Mintel.

    "It can be a very daunting task for companies to hone in on the specific needs of their Hispanic customers," stated Leylha Ahuile, senior multicultural analyst at Mintel. "Latinas come in a variety of shades, so a wide range of products must be developed to cater to every pigment and hair type."

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