Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
Home Town Drugs will close its doors for the last time at the end of the day on Tuesday, June 12.
After that, Dave Redden and his entire crew will go to work at the Safeway pharmacy.
“Home Town-Economy Drugs has served the community of Sweet Home for over 60 years,” Redden, the store’s owner, said in a letter to his customers, addressing them as friends. “I have had the opportunity of being the Home Town pharmacist for almost half of that time. Our staff has worked here for an average of over 15 years, with Lauradell (Johnson) leading the way with 30 years of service.
“We have appreciated your support and friendship and regret that we find it necessary to close our doors for reasons beyond our control.”
Safeway purchased the pharmacy business and hired the entire Home Town pharmacy team, including Redden, Johnson, Jennifer Wolfe, Bev Gaskey, Kelly Hess and Danielle Rice.
“We all look forward to bringing you our same level of friendly service at the Sweet Home Safeway Pharmacy,” Redden said. All pharmacy records, including refills, will be available at Safeway starting on June 13.
A number of factors went into his decision to sell the pharmacy, Redden said.
Medicare Part D rules were among them, and insurance companies price 95 percent of the pharmacy’s prescriptions, he said.
A recent study showed that overhead to fill a prescription is $14 to $17, Redden said, but insurance companies only pay $5 to $6 per prescription for overhead.
On a $300 prescription, the pharmacy may make maybe $20, and it’ll take 30 to 60 days to get the $300, he said. That affects cash flow, a necessity to any business.
There is only so much business to go around, he said. “Everyone that opens up takes a piece of that pie.”
The pharmacy itself stayed pretty strong, Redden said, but a combination of factors slowed down the front gift shop portion of the store.
Redden wanted to stress the positive side of things, though, he said. “We really appreciate all the support we’ve had over the years, and one of the most important things to me about Safeway buying it was they offered everybody a job.”
The move will double the volume at Safeway, he said, and the two staffs will combine there.
One customer told him that she started shopping there in 1948, he said, and the store is now serving its fourth generation of customers.
The pharmacy was located in what is now Periwinkle Provisions, Redden said. He bought the store 26 years ago before moving to its current location.
“It’s been a great business,” he said, and adding the drive-through window for prescription pickup really added to the pharmacy’s service level.
“I have mixed emotions,” said Redden, who is three to four years from retirement. “I’m sad to see the store close, but I’m looking forward to working only four days a week instead of six.”
For the employees, the new jobs should be “a positive thing,” he said. They didn’t have benefits at Home Town, but at Safeway, they will have full benefits.
“I have a lot of sadness about the store closing because we lose our individuality a little bit,” Johnson said. “But I’m excited to be going to Safeway. The number-one thing is to take care of the customers.”
She is a little nostalgic, she said, “but we’re taking a lot of our customers with us.
“That was awesome that he (Dave) negotiated all of us jobs.”
“It’s not a perfect scenario, but at least we’re all going together,” Redden grinned. “If not, I’d have to work too hard.”