Boy are we going to miss CVS – Company shutting down 900 stores

Things are gonna look a little different in the pharmacy landscape in New Jersey over the next few years. Rhode Island-based CVS has indicated that they would close 900 stores over the next three years. The company does not say which stores they will close, but a recent check of CVS‘s store locator indicates there are 354 CVS locations in New Jersey, so it would be hard to believe that some of those would not be targeted.

The company blames shopping habits, population shifts and changing healthcare needs, according to an article on patch.com. CVS has become, obviously, much more than just a place to get your prescriptions refilled. The last decade or so has made the local pharmacy—whichever you go to—almost a supercenter where you can get everything from socks and underwear to groceries to books and toys.

There are certain things I buy at CVS now that I previously would have only purchased in a supermarket. I have become dependent on it as have so many other New Jersey residents. It’s practically a daily stop for a lot of us. And as much as the company probably won’t admit it, online buying has surely put a dent in its revenue.

The company did say, however, that the first closings would begin this upcoming spring. And it’s probably no coincidence that this announcement was made not long after Amazon announced that they would be getting into the prescription business. Of course, there will be plenty of services out there to fill the growing inventory of commercial real estate in New Jersey and in this country. I mean gasoline, dry cleaners, laundromats, hair salons, healthcare facilities and the like. But will there come a time in the not-so-distant future where there are no brick and mortar retail stores at all?

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Judi Franco. Any opinions expressed are Judi Franco’s own.