Shoppers pushes forward despite stiff competition

Drug Store News, Oct 20, 1997 by Tina Kyriakos

TORONTO -- Shoppers Drug Mart Ltd., Canada's top ranking drug store operation with 811 stores and sales of $4 billion last year, was named International Chain of the Year.

The recognition follows on the heels of some major moves by the 36-year-old chain in 1996 and 1997 to retain its coveted reputation with consumers as "Canada's Drug Store" and to keep it at the forefront of Canada's highly competitive drug store industry.

"Today, we have to work harder than ever to achieve the same results we did in the past," said David Bloom, president and chief executive officer of Shoppers Drug Mart, in describing how some new operational efficiencies, acquisitions and winning promotions pushed the chain forward despite the challenges posed by mass merchandisers and food stores who continue to target pharmacy operations under their expansion policies.

Shoppers' success against this backdrop, suggested Bloom, rests with the 34,000 employees in the Shoppers Drug Mart/Pharmaprix network who embraced the new initiatives introduced over the past year. "The award is a strong reflection of the commitment, dedication and loyalty of our people to strengthen the organization through their receptivity to change," said Bloom.

One of the biggest adjustments for the chain in 1997 was to absorb the 135-store Big V operation, acquired under a $234-million takeover deal in '96. By January, all stores were flying under the Shoppers banner, but the conversion process of these stores to the Shoppers format is expected to continue through '97. For the chain that already posts about 350 million customer transactions and holds the distinction of having the most retail outlets nationally, the Big V acquisition was considered a major coup.

Another major accomplishment was the final phasing in by mid-1997 of Shoppers highly-touted Vision '97, a massive three-year restructuring program targeted at centralizing distribution and purchasing through three new state-of-the-art regional warehouses.

Over the past year, Shoppers continued to promote and expand its highly acclaimed Health Watch program. What started as a way to promote counseling services under the Health Watch Reminder program has virtually exploded during the past year and a half to become one of the hardest-hitting campaigns making its way to consumers.

"Health Watch has become the marquis for health care in Canada," said Bloom, adding that in the mind of the consumer, it's "synonymous with optimum health care."

Bloom also credits Health Watch with raising awareness of the professional role of all pharmacists in Canada. "The program has been very motivational for pharmacists in that it's ratcheted up the profession in the eye of the consumer," said Bloom. "Health Watch is a unique positioning for our company in that it speaks of value added and not price."

In listing other reasons for its success over the past year, Bloom pointed, too, to cosmetics, which represent the second fastest-growing category for Shoppers. Boosting the success of these departments, said Bloom, is the company's commitment to a full-service environment that includes 2,500 part-time and full-time cosmeticians on staff. And, the quality of the Life and Rialto corporate brands also kept Shoppers steps ahead other retailers.