Supervalu tests pharmacies at front of store

MINNEAPOLIS Supervalu is testing a new store format that places pharmacies near the front entrance rather than at the back of the store.

“We want pharmacies to be right up front,” said Supervalu Retail Midwest president Kevin Tripp at an investor’s conference with analysts. “We want them to be a billboard that tells people we’re in the business.”

Tripp said the new format is now in place at several Jewel-Osco stores in the Chicago area, as well as a handful of Cub Foods and Albertson’s Sav-On stores. He said that pharmacy is considered a key element of the chain’s new Premium Fresh & Healthy format.

He added that pharmacy “drives trips to stores” and that customers who use the pharmacy at Supervalu stores visit more than twice as often as other customers and spend more per trip.