Smart consumers tapping drug stores for their diabetes testing kit needs

Drug Store News, Feb 20, 1989

Smart consumers tapping drug stores for their diabetes testing kit needs

NEW YORK - Self monitoring of blood glucose is the latest technological advance in diabetes test kits sold in drug stores, and according to drug retailers, millions of Americans purchase them each year despite their higher-than-average price tag.

An estimated 11 million Americans have the disease, according to the American Diabetes Association. With self-tests, diabetics can obtain their blood sugar levels many times a day, if necessary, and fine tune adjustments in their insulin and food intake.

More good news for drug stores is that with baby boomers having a high level of education, sophisticated diabetic consumers are mong the most willing and able to buy these units and keep a watchful eye on their metabolism.

In a recent Drug Store News survey 45 percent of retailers polled saw diagnostic test kits as one of the hottest merchandising categories in 1989, with a 20.8-percent increase in sales.

Sales of blood glucose testing kits reached $114 million in 1988, according to Pipeline Research, which tracks monthly drug warehouse withdrawal data. Blood glucose meters tallied over $29 million in sales during the 12 months ending December 1988.

Most retailers told Inside Pharmacy that they've seen an increase in glucose test kit sales. "The trend in moving from urine testing to blood glucose testing has contributed to a growth in the field," said Cary Levy, pharmacy supervisor for Concord Wrigley Drugs, an 11-store chain based in Pontiac, Mich.

Retailers also said manufacturer's rebates are winning consumers over. Allen C. Purdy, H&BA buyer at Taylor Drugs with operates 56 stores in the Louisville, Ky. area, said sales for kits at the chain increased 50 percent.

"Generous rebate offers from manufacturers, coupled with attractive sale prices at retail, have made these units affordable to most consumers," he said.

Levy at Concord Wrigley agreed. "With manufacturer rebates, consumers can now buy some glucometers for under $100; a couple of year ago they couldn't be bought for less than $200," he said.

Concord Wrigley merchandises 16 feet of diabetic products. The mix includes alcohol swabs, glucose testing kits and products offered by Accu-Chek and Ames.

"We're moving the department out from behind the pharmacy counter in most of our stores," Levy said.

At the St. Louis-based Medicine Shopped, Tim Bayer, director its 3- to 4- food linear section of diabetic products is kept behind the pharmacy counter. This way the pharmacist can monitor what is being sold and be available for consultation.

Medicine Shoppe promotes the section by doing in-store screenings and working with area health care professionals. "With the screenings, we try to create awareness for consumers, to say it's important for them to test on a regular basis," Bayer said.

Taylor's diabetic section averages 3 feet, and includes reagent strips, reagent tablets, lancet refills and alcohol swabs and related accessories by Ames and products for use with the Accu-chek monitor.

Purdy said the kits and syringes (which do not require a prescription in the chain's trading areas of Kentucky and Indiana) are kept behind the pharmacy counter for security reasons, but they are highly visible to consumers because of eye-level shelving. "We also display rebate offers at checkout to enhance sales," he said.

One hot product at Taylor is the Ames Glucometer II with memory. Purdy attributes its popularity to the unit's accuracy, price, rebate offers, doctor's endorsements, and pharmacist's suggestive selling. The same is true of Glucostix reagent strips.

Blood glucose meters are a large portion of today's testing kit sales in drug stores. The diabetes category at Concord Wrigley is "pretty competitive," said Levy, even though insulin and needles are sold close to cost. Concord Wrigley's margins are around 15 percent. [Tabular Data Omitted]