Wakefern closing 62 ShopRite pharmacies in 5 states

Wakefern is the latest retailer to downsize its pharmacy footprint.

The Keasby, N.J.-based company will be shuttering 62 ShopRite pharmacies in several states and selling the files to nearby CVS Pharmacy locations, a company spokesperson confirmed to Drug Store News.

The story was first broken by the Philadelphia Inquirer, and an NJ.com report noted that roughly 23 pharmacies in New Jersey are among those pharmacies that will close, though a full list was not immediately available. Pharmacies will be closing in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, and Delaware.

The spokesperson noted that the majority of the company's pharmacies — 147 — will continue to operate. 

“All customer prescription files at closing store pharmacies will automatically and securely transfer to a nearby CVS pharmacy, and we are notifying impacted customers,” the spokesperson said. “The pharmacy industry is highly competitive and we were unable to sustain sufficient sales despite our marketing efforts, which led to the difficult decision to close these store pharmacies.”

Company officials did not say how many employees work in the pharmacies or how many customers would be shifted to CVS Pharmacy. A CVS Pharmacy spokesperson told NJ.com that the transfers are expect to be carried out throughout the first quarter of this year, with pharmacists and pharmacy technicians able to be considered for employment at local CVS locations. 

Wakefern's spokesperson noted that the move would not impact plans to provide COVID-19 vaccines. ShopRite earlier this month announced plans to distribute the sought-after shot to eligible recipients at 39 of its grocery stores with pharmacies in New Jersey. To date, the spokesperson said, Wakefern has provided 30,000 COVID-19 vaccines.