The downtown Deerfield Walgreens is unlike any of the company’s more than 9,000 other stores.
Located less than two miles from the corporate headquarters on Wilmot Road, the store was renovated last summer into a pilot concept of the future focusing on health-related services and products.
The pharmacy has five windows — separated by privacy barriers — for people to pick up their prescription medicines. There is an express line. Before arriving at the pharmacy, customers pass a complete optometrist shop, a full-service medical lab and an audiologist.
“We want to be known for health and wellness,” said Jason Donica, regional vice president for the Chicago area’s pharmacy and retail operations. The concept is still in the pilot stage and he said there’s no set timetable for a national roll-out.
The express line at the pharmacy caught the attention of Deerfield resident Carla Visoky.
“They have more people helping you there,” Visoky said. “The express line is really helpful.”
Brad Weiss, store manager, said the added windows and barriers are designed to give as much customer confidentiality as possible.
“We want to make it comfortable for people who need more sensitivity,” Weiss said. “We don’t want them to be overwhelmed.”
After ordering a prescription, Donica said a customer can pay online, get a QR code on a phone, go to the express line and get the medicine quickly after scanning the QR code.
Onrie Kompan, of Northbrook, made his first visit to the store March 12 and he found it decidedly different. The journey started on the phone. He was looking for Miracle Socks.
“I was calling all over and no one could help me,” Kompan said. “When I called here, a very nice lady found the socks and had them waiting in a bag when I arrived. She really went out of her way to help me out.”
Such service is part of a push, said Donica, to greet everyone upon entering and to accompany them to the area in the store which has what they need.
“We want our employees focusing on the customer, not the product,” he said.
Several local residents, including Gena Andreasen, of Deerfield, who described themselves as frequent shoppers, said they’ve noticed a change in customer service.
“You’re greeted at the door, they ask you what you want and take you where it is,” Andreasen said.
Cathy Joseph, of Northbrook, who visited March 12, said, “There are more people to help you.”
Some of the new features, such as the optometry shop, are operated by Walgreens directly. Others, like the medical laboratory, are partnerships. It is operated by LabCorp.
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“They can do any kind of blood draw a doctor orders or a blood screening for employment,” Donica said. “It’s a lot more convenient here than a lot of (lab) locations.”
Near the front of the store is an expanded beauty section with what Donica describes as high-end cosmetics and beauty aids. There is also a consultant to help customers find the right item. Working with the company’s health care staff, the beauty personnel can do more.
“We can offer advice to cancer patients going through hair loss,” Donica said. “We can suggest things which will help an eyebrow (hair loss) or restore skin color. It’s something we can do to help someone going through cancer. We want to help them feel better.”
In most Walgreens stores, the beauty section runs the length of a wall from the front to back of the building. In Deerfield, it is centralized in the front. Donica said the food and beverage items are located toward the back. Pain relief medicine is near the front.
Another partnership visible to customers is with FedEx, allowing customers to leave or retrieve packages during the 24 hours a day the store is open, Donica said it facilitates next-day delivery of legally-eligible prescriptions.
Steve Sadin is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.