Content about Retailers' cooperatives

As part of its Executive Retailer Viewpoint series, DSN sat down with Mike Cantrell, president at Good Neighbor Pharmacies, at DSN's Industry Issues Summit to discuss technology and the evolution of pharmacy care.

VALLEY FORGE, Pa. — AmerisourceBergen's base of 3,452 independently owned Good Neighbor Pharmacies will be another benefactor out of the wholesaler's blockbuster agreement with Walgreens and Alliance Boots, AmerisourceBergen CEO, president, director and chairman Steven Collis told analysts during a conference call Thursday.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Spartan Stores, a regional grocery distributor and retailer, has entered into a distribution agreement with Chief Super Market under which Spartan Stores will be its primary wholesale grocery supplier.

Chief operates 12 stores in Northwest and West Central Ohio under the Chief and Rays banners. Spartan Stores stated that it will assume distribution to all of Chief’s banners for grocery, dairy, frozen, bakery and other products in March.

ALBANY, N.Y. — Grocery chain ShopRite is opening a ShopRite-branded gas station/convenience store in Albany, N.Y., in September, according to published reports.

The station currently is a Mobil and is located near a ShopRite grocery store on the same block that opened in April, and marks ShopRite’s second branded gas station, according to reports. The first station is located in Middletown, N.Y. The new 16-pump station will offer discounts to holders of the grocer’s Price Plus Club card.

KEASBEY, N.J. — Grocery chain ShopRite is offering free prenatal vitamins to further help shoppers live healthier lives and prepare for a healthy baby.

ShopRite customers can receive a free 30-day supply of Prenatal Plus or Prenatal Plus FE vitamins with a valid prescription. ShopRite also offers free 30-day supplies of select generic diabetes drugs and free 14-day supplies of select generic antibiotics. Other generic prescriptions start as low as $3.99 for a 30-day supply.

There are no membership fees or insurance required to benefit from these savings.

LEESBURG, Va. — RxAlly has expanded its national network to include nine independent pharmacy organizations and 10 regional chains.

RxAlly, which launched a little less than three months ago, has grown its membership by more than 2,000 pharmacies totaling over 22,000.

SKOKIE, Ill. — Associated Food Stores and McLane Global have joined Topco, the company announced Friday.

Associated Food Stores will participate in Topco’s pharmacy program, which now has 23 committed members representing more than $3.2 billion in sales volume. Meanwhile, McLane Global will take part in Topco’s frozen, dairy/bakery, HBC/GM and not-for-resale programs.

With these additions, Topco's membership now includes 53 retail, wholesale and foodservice companies.

SCOTTSBORO, Ala. — American Associated Pharmacies announced that it has partnered with RxAlly, an alliance that includes more than 20,000 pharmacies nationwide that seeks to improve health and reduce costs for pharmacy patients.

"We are actively investing our time, resources and talents in the development of RxAlly," AAP CEO Jon Copeland said. "This is a collaborative effort to better serve our members’ patients and improve the delivery of health care, the likes of which the United States has not seen to date."

TORONTO — In an effort to strengthen its focus on its corporate-owned Rexall and Rexall/Pharma Plus store network, Katz Group Canada has signed a definitive agreement to sell its banner pharmacy business, Drug Trading, and its franchise pharmacy business, Medicine Shoppe Canada, to McKesson for about CAD $920 million in cash.

The transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of Canadian regulatory clearances, is expected to close in the first half of 2012.

SKOKIE, Ill. — Topco, a member-owned cooperative serving the food industry, recently kicked off an initiative substituting its TopCare-branded over-the-counter medicines for the equivalent prescription pharmaceutical, where appropriate, in an effort to save patient dollars and promote the TopCare brand.

LAS VEGAS — Good Neighbor Pharmacy last week recognized five Good Neighbor Pharmacy operators at the National Healthcare Conference and Exposition.

Liss Pharmacy in Newark, N.J., was named the 2011 Good Neighbor Pharmacy “Pharmacy of the Year” for its commitment to the Newark community. Led by owner Matthew Parisi, the pharmacy has created programs in conjunction with both the city of Newark and the Heinz Family Philanthropies to provide pharmaceutical services and generic medications at a reasonable cost, for example.