Albertsons is an innovative star
Albertsons Companies is being recognized for bringing its pharmacy goals to the next level.
The company has been named as Drug Store News’ 2018 Pharmacy Innovator of the Year. Drug Store News is Store Brands’ sister publication at EnsembleIQ.
Not satisfied at having been the first national chain to roll out pharmacist-administered immunizations and have the first pharmacist prescribe birth control to a patient in Oregon, in 2017 Albertsons became the first national chain with pharmacy technicians immunizing patients in Idaho under state law. Collaboration with state boards of pharmacy has kept it on the forefront of pharmacist prescribing capabilities in such states as Washington, California, Colorado, Oregon and Idaho; and a combination of combining pharmacists’ clinical skills with infrastructure from the Safeway merger and its recent MedCart acquisition has led Albertsons to make strides in its specialty pharmacy approach.
Though the Boise, Idaho-based company — which operates in 35 states across 21 banners — has made its name as a powerhouse in the grocery industry through its acquisition of Safeway, its ownership of meal kit maker Plated and its portfolio of multiple $1 billion private brand lines, the work done by its roughly 1,800 community pharmacies is cementing its place in the lives of its patients and setting it apart as a pharmacy operator.
“In many of our markets, we trade in, we have No. 1 or No. 2 market share — we’re very entrenched in our communities,” said Nasri Massaad, vice president of Albertsons’ West region. “The high-level strategy is the same across all our pharmacies — to run strong patient-centric pharmacies, where our pharmacy teams provide personalized wellness experiences to every patient with every interaction, drive more customers to the pharmacy and the store, and convert our grocery shopper into a pharmacy shopper — all making them customers for life.”
Integral to this strategy has been leadership that recognizes the value of a pharmacy patient — whether it is a new one or a converted shopper.
“It starts with our CEO Bob Miller, and now following him Jim Donald,” said Tom Rousonelos, Albertsons vice president of pharmacy operations. “Bob’s philosophy has been that the pharmacy patient is the most important customer to us for a myriad of reasons — they’re the most loyal, they’re the stickiest and, quite frankly, they spend the most.”
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