One of the largest pharmacy chains in the US CVS is planning to close its 900 drugstores. They have decided to close those shops over the next three years and wanted to focus on health services.
CVS stores are selling a wide range of consumer goods and snack foods for years. During this coronavirus pandemic time, consumers are more interested to get more access to testing and vaccinations at their local drugstore. Many pharmacy chains including CVS are playing a leading role in rolling out Covid-19 vaccines in the US. Now CVS had been planning to expand the health care services. It has already acquired health insurer Aetna in 2018.
That’s why the retailer would start closing stores in the spring of 2022. The company’s chief executive Karen Lynch said, “Our retail stores are fundamental to our strategy and who we are as a company,” Karen Lynch also said, “We remain focused on the competitive advantage provided by our presence in thousands of communities across the country, which complements our rapidly expanding digital presence.”
CVS is considered the largest pharmacy chain in the USA. Walgreens that is the main rival of CVS in this industry is also recently shifted its focus on health service. They have invested a huge amount of money in their health care providers. Analyst Neil Saunders explained this initiative in this way, “CVS has neglected stores for far too long and has pushed some of them into the downward spiral of irrelevance”.