Despite merger, focus stays at home
Walgreens forever changed its corporate trajectory with the execution of its “step 2” merger and acquisition of Boots Alliance, creating a truly international retail pharmacy operator with the restructured and rebranded Walgreens Boots Alliance.
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But here in the United States, Walgreens’ core go-to-market strategies remain the same. Walgreens still excels at a healthcare offering, which not only enables its pharmacists to practice at the top of the their license, but also positions Walgreens as an optimal partner to health systems interested in improving the health outcomes of their patients; Walgreens is still a master at pushing the envelope of what the average consumer thinks they can find at their typical drug store with both a eye-catching prestige and masstige beauty offering and a focus on both fresh foods and products unique to the local markets; and Walgreens still helps pave the way toward a comprehensive omnichannel offering that delivers more experiences to consumers when, where and how they want.
As an example of how Walgreens is helping to improve health outcomes metrics, Walgreens WellTransitions program has successfully reduced hospital readmission by some 47% in more than a dozen communities nationwide, said Richard Ashworth, Walgreens president pharmacy and retail operations. “[The program] is designed to help patients as they’re transitioning from the hospital out into the community that ensures that they get their medication before they leave the hospital, so [it’s] really focused on that primary nonadherence gap,” he said. “We’re also focused on special conditions, or rare diseases and conditions, [with] specialty pharmacies [across] the country — somewhere near 1,000 in total that have extra training and extra capabilities in terms of taking care of these defined populations.”
But it’s that patient experience across the backbench that continues to distinguish Walgreens as a premier pharmacy offering. “We’ve got a designated strategy and approach to free up pharmacists to spend more time with patients, [and] we’ve got technological capabilities that centralize some of the tasks that occur within pharmacies,” Ashworth told Drug Store News. The end result is a pharmacy operation primed to position a pharmacist in front of the drug store counter.
As outlined in Drug Store News’ special March 9 report “Walgreens goes BIG in Beauty” that showcases Walgreens’ unique beauty position, Walgreens has become a “loved” destination center for men and women aspiring to live happier lives. Walgreens is fusing the best in prestige beauty brand offerings with the flavor of its U.K. Boots beauty business and the exclusive, iconic No7 beauty brand. And Walgreens’ more than 26,000 Beauty Advisors help solidify that in-store beauty experience with a personal, educated touch.
“We’re also focused a lot on technology,” Ashworth noted. “We’ve got the Walgreens app, so we have refill by scan, we have our immunization record that you can pull up on your phone, you can also chat from the phone as well,” he said. “We’ve also got some new partnerships that we announced on that front ... like MDLive, WebMD and our Balance Rewards for Healthy Choices, which is a digital platform to connect people’s daily behaviors and actions to be healthier.” Walgreens partnership with MDLive brings to Walgreens’ patients a telehealth offering launched in December that will give Walgreens app users 24/7 access to U.S. board-certified doctors. And with WebMD, the companies are working together to provide WebMD’s virtual wellness-coaching programs directly to Walgreens customers. Walgreens also has incorporated WebMD content on a variety of health topics, co-branded by WebMD and Walgreens, into its digital experience and stores.