THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, November 15, 1995 TAG: 9511150200
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM SHEAN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 54 lines
As part of an aggressive expansion program, drug retailer Rite Aid Corp. is building two stores in Newport News that will offer a broader mix of merchandise and services.
The new stores - one on Warwick Boulevard at Denbigh Boulevard and another on Warwick Boulevard across from Warwick Village shopping center - will replace existing Rite Aid stores nearby.
Rite Aid, the nation's largest chain of drug stores, will install counters for packaging, shipping and facsimile services and one-hour photo-finishing service at the stores, said Craig Muckle, a spokesman for the Camp Hill, Pa.-based retailer.
The new store at Warwick and Denbigh boulevards will be a freestanding facility with a drive-up window for pharmacy orders.
Rite Aid, with 32 stores in Hampton Roads, also is looking at other locations in the region for new or expanded facilities, Muckle said. However, the company is not prepared to describe those plans, he said.
Rite Aid, which operates 2,720 stores in 21 states east of the Mississippi River, said earlier this year that it will build or relocate 1,000 stores with the new format within three years.
Along with drive-up windows, one-hour photo development, and shipping and packing services, the new stores will stock convenience foods and a broader selection of cosmetics, Muckle said.
``By having the additional conveniences, we will be able to help customers save time,'' he said.
``One area that we're trying to emphasize in our new stores is cosmetics and fragrances in particular,'' he added.
To accommodate the larger inventory and additional services, Rite Aid is building stores with about 10,000 square feet of space and expanding some existing stores to that size. Rite Aid's typical store has about 7,000 square feet of space.
To date, the company has built or converted slightly more than 100 stores to the new format.
Rite Aid's expansion strategy reflects the evolution of drugstores, said Michael L. Mead, an analyst with the securities firm Legg Mason Wood Walker in Baltimore.
``The lines distinguishing retailers from one another are increasingly blurred,'' Mead said. ``No longer does someone go to a 7-Eleven just for a quick snack and to a Rite Aid just for a prescription.''
By adding convenience foods, shipping and photo-development services, Rite Aid expects to generate additional customer visits to its stores, he said. by CNB