While Walgreens prepare for the new owner, CVS Health proves smaller pharmacies

CVS Health is distributing new and smaller pharmacy formats among hundreds of pharmacy closure throughout the industry and investor pressure to increase profits.

This year’s CV will participate in the “smallest forms” sites in at least a dozen locations, reported the Wall Street Journal over the weekend. This comes while the main rival of CVS Walgreens Boots Alliance works in a financial turn, closes hundreds of stores and prepares for private ownership after Walgreens announced a $ 10 billion sale for Sycamore Partners last week.

“We plan to open a dozen or more CVS pharmacy locations in selected communities nationwide next year,” CVS confirmed on Sunday in a statement. “New pharmacies will be presented in selected neighborhoods to help in the bridges of the gaps in care and make it easier for patients to use medicines, immunizations and other health care services provided by pharmacists.”
The new and smaller forms are not new for CVS or Walgreens, which was opening “Small Store” in 2019.

But the push for new sizes and formats has received more urgency because both companies have large amounts of debt and face escalation pressure from flat sales or downward goods in the front of their stores.

In the meantime, both companies own or rent real estate and do not need as much space in their stores as many Americans buy online and traditional pharmacies such as CVS, Rite AID and Walgreens face more pressure from Amazon likes, as well as technology developments and recipes to be given to patients.

CVS has already been reshaping the shops they have closed to include a traditional pharmacy, as well as an old center that includes medical care providers, social workers and community activities operated by OAK Street Health, which CVS paid $ 10 billion for two years ago.

CVS says the smallest format of pharmacies is in accordance with a “personalized access” to its trail that is focused on the specific needs of the communities we serve “and to” better support the patient and ensure proper geographical coverage “.

CVS closed 900 stores between 2022 and 2024 and plans to close 270 others this year. Meanwhile, Walgreens is in the process of closing 1,200 of its 8,500 stores in the US for three years. And only last year, Rite AID came out of the federal bankruptcy defense as a more regional chain of pharmacies operating in 16 countries after pouring more than 500 shops during bankruptcy procedures.

However, the CVS said the closing of stores does not mean exiting markets and 85% Americans still live within 10 miles from its retail pharmacies. The company has also opened pharmacy including 100 stores between 2022 and 2024 and “plans to open nearly 30 CVS pharmacy sites, including those within target stores, in 2025, in addition to new small -format pharmacies,” the company said.

“We plan to open a dozen or more CVS pharmacy locations in selected communities nationwide next year,” CVS said in its statement. “New pharmacies will be presented in selected neighborhoods to help in the bridges of gaps in care and make it easier for patients to use medicines, immunizations and other health care services provided by pharmacists. designed to meet the specific needs of the community pharmacy. “