RITE AID

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid's same-store sales increased by 1.9% in November, compared with the year-ago period, the company said Thursday.

The country's third-largest retail pharmacy chain said front-end same-store sales decreased by 0.6%, while pharmacy same-store sales increased by 3.1%. Meanwhile, total drug store sales were $2.4 billion, a 1.4% increase over November 2010's $2.37 billion.

NEW YORK — Record-breaking attendance, a high-profile keynote speaker, four engaging panel discussions on some of the hottest issues facing the industry and exclusive consumer videos set the stage for the 13th annual Drug Store News Industry Issues Summit held on Tuesday in New York.

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid is offering two promotional programs to holiday shoppers, the company said Monday.

The first of these is Cyber Week, launched to mark Cyber Monday, an online shopping holiday that is one of the busiest of the year. The chain is offering limited-time deals on items commonly purchased online, such as beauty and personal care items, personalized photo calendars and vitamins, as well as 20% off when customers spend $50 or more. Customers can sign up at RiteAidOnlineStore.com.

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid is pushing Black Friday up by a day.

The retail pharmacy chain said Monday that it would offer deals starting on Thanksgiving Day. Black Friday is the name popularly given to the day after Thanksgiving, when retailers across the country offer deep discounts for the holidays, often prompting shoppers to line up at the store doors early in the morning and rush in once they open.

WASHINGTON — Rite Aid, UnitedHealth Group and the YMCA are partnering to offer community-based programs to combat Type 2 diabetes in the Washington, D.C., area through the Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance, the three companies said.

LOS ANGELES — Ethnic hair care brand Curls has announced that its hair care collection is now available at Walgreens, Rite Aid and Sally’s Beauty.

The Curls line contains all-natural ingredients and is free of sulfates, parabens, minerals or petroleum oils.

The products available include:

DEERFIELD, Ill. — In an 8-K filing earlier this week, Walgreens broke down its Express Scripts business and challenged many assertions that have been made regarding contract negotiations with Express Scripts. The overarching theme of the filing suggested Express Scripts has little to gain without Walgreens within the pharmacy network fold but much to lose.

NEW YORK — CVS/pharmacy. Rite Aid. Walgreens. Sam’s Club. Ahold. H-E-B. The Katz Group. Giant Eagle. Good Neighbor. Health Mart. The list of participating companies in the 13th Annual Drug Store News Group Industry Issues conference — which will be held Tuesday, Nov. 29, here at the highly prestigious New York Athletic Club — reads like a “who’s who” of pharmacy retailing.