In this Issue

CINCINNATI — The launch of Procter and Gamble’s ZzzQuil helped to lift sales in the sleep category — both in terms of dollar sales and physical placement. Before ZzzQuil, sleep was typically merchandised near the floor adjacent to internal analgesics. But with ZzzQuil, the entire category was lifted to top-shelf billing. ZzzQuil liquid was up 961.5% to $75 million and ZzzQuil tablets were up 722.1% to $52 million.

Such iconic pain relief brands as McNeil Consumer’s Tylenol and Motrin, and Novartis’ Excedrin, have made their way back to the shelf this fall following a recall-driven hiatus. And the sales have already started to accumulate.

(For the full category review, including sales data, click here.)

“The best of a chain combined with the best of an independent pharmacy.”

That’s how Health Mart president Steve Courtman describes Health Mart’s “unique value proposition in the marketplace.” That value, he added, is defined every day in thousands of communities across the United States by the pharmacy owner-operators who serve as the most accessible and most-utilized patient care providers in their local healthcare networks.

Sales of Hyland’s oral analgesic products are up 23.5% to $15.4 million for the 52 weeks ended Aug. 11 across U.S. multi-outlets, according to IRI. Overall sales trends across the category are down by 1.7%, which suggests that what Hyland’s is doing is right — its products are safe, they work and they aren’t formulated with benzocaine.

Quantity and quality: Those are the two metrics by which any pharmacy operation is measured — quantity of prescriptions dispensed and quality of services provided. Quantity keeps you in business; quality keeps your patients coming back.

It’s a constant challenge for a small operator to score high on both metrics, but that’s exactly what McKesson’s 2013 Pharmacy of the Year Award recipient Parkland Health Mart Pharmacy, of Desloge, Mo., has done.

Category saturation and competition from private label may be inhibiting sales growth within the sun care segment, but infusing additional skin care benefits, like antioxidants, and targeting such demographic groups as men and multicultural consumers could help brighten sales.

(For the full category review, including sales data, click here.)

One of Health Mart’s newest owners is Yang Xiong, who opened Minneapolis’ Northside Community Health Mart Pharmacy in July. A 2011 graduate of the College of Pharmacy at the University of Minnesota, Xiong spent his first years working for two national chains. That experience led him to want to operate his own pharmacy and have a more direct impact on his patients.

NEW YORK — Among the new entrants to the growing facial oil segment is L’Oréal Paris’ Age Perfect Glow Renewal Facial Oil, which hit shelves in July. Described as the first concentrated facial oil to any mass market, the oil is designed to boost skin’s natural radiance and provide all-day hydration. It contains a blend of eight essential oils, which have been selected based on their lightweight, fast-absorbing properties.