Improving the shopper experience
Weis Markets earlier this year named longtime pharmacy veteran Rick Bhandari — who has helped manage pharmacy for Bi-Lo Holdings, CVS Health and Rite Aid over the course of his career — as director pharmacy operations. He’s assuming the day-to-day responsibilities for a burgeoning pharmacy business — Weis’ comparable pharmacy sales increased 8.5% in 2014 compared with 2013, according to Weis’ 2014 annual report, and this is following a year in which same-store pharmacy sales were down 2.2%.
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A lot of that can be attributed to more patients filling prescriptions, the company said. In addition to picking up more patients across its pharmacy operations, Weis has successfully implemented in-store pet medication, emphasized a continued focus on immunization and implemented a successful medication synchronization program to help drive the back-bench business. “Also contributing to the increase are some of the company’s stores having expanded pharmacy hours,” the company stated in its 10-K.
The grocer is looking to build on its 2014 success with a continued focus on value and customer experience. “Over the past year, we steadily invested in our pricing programs and successfully executed our strategy, which has produced consistent sales increases in key center store and fresh departments,” said Jonathan Weis, Weis Markets’ president and CEO, regarding the company’s year-end results. “We also improved our in-store customer experience and increased our customer service focus. As a result of our investments and customer service programs, we are well-positioned to build on our success in 2015.”
As one example of their drive to improve the shopper experience, Weis launched an online shopping service with in-store pickup through 20 locations earlier this year. “Weis Online Shopping works particularly well for customers who don’t have the time or ability to shop, including double-income households, families with small children and customers with mobility issues,” said Kurt Schertle, Weis Markets’ COO.