WALGREENS

Having a baby changes everything — including shopping behavior, according to new insights from pregnancy and parenting resource BabyCenter, a Johnson & Johnson company. The company’s “2017 Skincare and Bathtime Study,” shared exclusively with Drug Store News, points to lasting changes that new parents undergo in terms of what they look for from their personal care products once they have children, as well as the top factors influencing their buying decisions.

Adult bath products offering a Zen-like experience are bubbling to the surface in mass stores and helping to perk up sales, along with Epsom salt soaks. Consumers are favoring products with a purpose over simply fragrant bath additives. That explains the 26% climb in volume of Dr. Teal’s, which offers a Pure Epsom Salt Soak, along with body wash and foaming bath. It is the No.1 selling SKU in the bath category.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens Boots Alliance Thursday morning announced a new Rite Aid deal, effectively scuttling its proposal to acquire the Camp Hill, Pa.-based chain and surrendering the $325 million termination fee with respect to the old merger agreement. The divestiture agreement with Fred's Pharmacy is terminated.

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid on Thursday reported revenues of $7.8 billion, a decrease of 4.9%. Net loss totaled $75.3 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, and adjusted net loss was $52.4 million, or $0.05 per diluted share.

The industry awoke Thursday morning to arguably the biggest story of the year — the news that Walgreens and Rite Aid had agreed to scrap their original merger agreement one more time, this time in favor of a much smaller, seemingly more manageable deal to purchase 2,186 Rite Aid stores for $5.18 billion in cash.

In the first several hours following the announcement of the deal, DSN identified five important takeaways from the blockbuster agreement.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens Boots Alliance on Thursday generated fiscal 2017 third quarter net earnings of $1.2 billion, up 5.3%, for the period ended May 31. Sales in the third quarter were $30.1 billion, an increase of 2.1% from the year-ago quarter, and an increase of 5% on a constant currency basis.

The news that Walgreens is to scrap its $9.4 billion merger with Rite Aid is unsurprising. The glacial pace of the Federal Trade Commission investigation and increasing signals that the federal government would disallow the merger have forced a rethink.

In some ways, the process so far has been a colossal waste of resources and effort. Walgreens has to pay out a $325 million termination fee to Rite Aid, and all parties — including Fred's, which was due to acquire some Rite Aid stores — have invested time and money with very little to show for it.