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America is facing a drugstore graveyard
Last week, Walgreens announced it would shutter 1,200 stores over the next three years, the latest casualty of a nationwide “retail apocalypse.” A perfect storm of external factors — like the rise of e-commerce and the convoluted way Americans pay for healthcare — helped usher in the corner drugstore’s demise. It’s turning the country into a shopping wasteland.
WALGREEN’S DOWNFALL
Along with closing unprofitable stores, the pharmacy chain is also dialing back investments in its primary care clinics — VillageMD — as part of its plan to cut costs.
A ‘RETAIL APOCALYPSE’
As more and more pharmacies close their doors, Americans ultimately have fewer places to shop in person. One of the reasons for the decline of pharmacies, in fact, is how badly they've handled the retail end of their operations.
A RISE IN THEFT
Whether you believe retail theft is as big a problem as some executives say it is, a lot of items are now locked away, which eats into sales and leads customers to shop elsewhere.
