Brooks Pharmacy
Encyclopedia
Brooks Pharmacy was a chain of more than 330 pharmacies located throughout New England
and New York
and has been a well-recognized name in the New England pharmacy industry for several decades. The corporate headquarters were located in Warwick, Rhode Island
. Brooks was acquired by Rite Aid
on June 4, 2007, and the Brooks trade name, long associated with New England drug retailing, is being retired.
During its heyday in the late 1990s/early 2000s, Brooks was one of the premier regional drug chains in the United States, and was the second largest drug chain in New England
, maintaining an especially strong presence in the states of Vermont
, New Hampshire
, and Rhode Island
. In 2002, Brooks was recipient of the 2002 Rex Awards Regional Chain of the Year .
However, Brooks faced many difficulties between 2004 and 2006, as its parent company struggled unsuccessfully to integrate 1,500 Eckerd stores acquired from J.C. Penney
with the existing Brooks network, resulting in a steady loss of market share and lagging same-store sales as CVS
and Walgreens
continued to expand and solidify their store base in the New England region. In 2007, Brooks Pharmacy officially announced that the pharmacy chain will be sold to Rite-Aid Pharmacy.
based Adams Drug Company
, a family owned operation which was founded in 1932 by the Salmanson Family. Adams, at one point, acquired several stores under the Brooks Drug banner in Vermont and New York, and also operated stores under several other different trade names throughout the Northeast.
In 1984, Pantry Pride
, a defunct Florida-based supermarket chain acquired the Adams Drug Company, which had then consisted of about 400 stores throughout the Northeast. The following year, all of Pantry Pride's assets including Adams, were acquired by corporate raider Ronald Perelman's Revlon subsidiary. Shortly after the Perelman acquisition, in 1986, all Adams stores were converted over to the Brooks trade name. For a period of time, ownership of Brooks was continually transferred between different Perelman-owned subsidiaries, including California-based Compact Video.
-based Hook-SupeRx
drug chain in 1988. Under the reign of Hook-SupeRx, Brooks assumed a new management team with Gayl W. Doster as COO, William Welsh in charge of operations, and David Morocco in charge of purchasing. Doster, Welsh, and Morocco attempted to modernize the store base and turn around what was once a struggling chain. Under Hook-SupeRx, in 1991, Brooks developed the innovative RxWatch computerized prescription service , and in 1993, Brooks began an aggressive attempt to expand into the New York City suburbs in the lower Hudson Valley
and southwestern Connecticut
acquired Brooks as part of its larger purchase of the Hook-SupeRx chain. At the time, the Brooks store base stretched from Maine
to Maryland
, and Revco had no interest in operating the Brooks outlets in New England, as they considered them outside of their core market. As a result, that same year, Revco sold all of the New England Brooks stores to the Canadian-based Jean Coutu Group
, which had already been operating stores in Rhode Island
and Massachusetts
under the Maxi Drug and Douglas Drug trade names.
The Brooks stores retained by Revco outside of New England later assumed the Revco banner, while subsequently, Jean Coutu rebranded its Maxi and Douglas stores as Brooks. However, some former Maxi stores were placed under the combined Brooks-Maxi banner.
-based City Drug chain, greatly increasing its market share in the State of Vermont
, and re-entering the State of New York for the first time since the 1994 Revco acquisition. Later, in 2001, Brooks purchased all of the New England Osco Drug
stores from Albertson's. Shortly after the Osco acquisition, President Michel Coutu made a commitment to significantly increase the size of the chain by the year 2004. This expansion was accomplished in August 2004 with the acquisition of apprx. 1,539 Eckerd Pharmacies as well as Eckerd's headquarters in Florida
.
During the late 1990s and early 2000s, Brooks Pharmacy was also seen as an innovator, being one of the first American chains to bring European derma care skin centers and consultation centers into its stores.
. Between 2005 and 2006, Coutu ran into many difficulties integrating the Brooks and Eckerd chains together, and as a result, Coutu's Brooks and Eckerd outlets experienced a significant decline in market share.
would be buying the Eckerd Pharmacy and Brooks Pharmacy chains from the Quebec
-based Jean Coutu Group
for US$3.4 billion. The acquisition
included 1,854 stores, six distribution center
s, and made Rite Aid the largest drugstore chain on the East Coast
. The transaction was officially completed in June 2008. All Brooks and Eckerd locations were either rebranded
as Rite Aid
(in some locations with a Rite Aid
within a mile of the old store, usually another pharmacy company, such as CVS/pharmacy or Walgreens
buys that location), sold to comply with FTC
antitrust
regulations, or were closed.
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
and New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and has been a well-recognized name in the New England pharmacy industry for several decades. The corporate headquarters were located in Warwick, Rhode Island
Warwick, Rhode Island
Warwick is a city in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. It is the second largest city in the state, with a population of 82,672 at the 2010 census. Its mayor has been Scott Avedisian since 2000...
. Brooks was acquired by Rite Aid
Rite Aid
Rite Aid is a drugstore chain in the United States and a Fortune 500 company headquartered in East Pennsboro Township, Pennsylvania, near Camp Hill. Rite Aid is the largest drugstore chain on the East Coast and the third largest drugstore chain in the U.S....
on June 4, 2007, and the Brooks trade name, long associated with New England drug retailing, is being retired.
During its heyday in the late 1990s/early 2000s, Brooks was one of the premier regional drug chains in the United States, and was the second largest drug chain in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
, maintaining an especially strong presence in the states of Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
, New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, and Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
. In 2002, Brooks was recipient of the 2002 Rex Awards Regional Chain of the Year .
However, Brooks faced many difficulties between 2004 and 2006, as its parent company struggled unsuccessfully to integrate 1,500 Eckerd stores acquired from J.C. Penney
J.C. Penney
J. C. Penney Company, Inc. is a chain of American mid-range department stores based in Plano, Texas, a suburb north of Dallas. The company operates 1,107 department stores in all 50 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. JCPenney also operates catalog sales merchant offices nationwide in many...
with the existing Brooks network, resulting in a steady loss of market share and lagging same-store sales as CVS
CVS Corporation
CVS Pharmacy, or simply CVS, is the second largest pharmacy chain in the United States , with over 7,000 stores in 41 states and Puerto Rico...
and Walgreens
Walgreens
Walgreen Co. , doing business as Walgreens , is the largest drugstore chain in the United States of America. As of August 31st, the company operates 8,210 locations across all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1901, and has since expanded...
continued to expand and solidify their store base in the New England region. In 2007, Brooks Pharmacy officially announced that the pharmacy chain will be sold to Rite-Aid Pharmacy.
Beginnings
Many trace Brooks Pharmacy's roots back to the defunct Pawtucket, Rhode IslandPawtucket, Rhode Island
Pawtucket is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 71,148 at the 2010 census. It is the fourth largest city in the state.-History:...
based Adams Drug Company
Adams Drug Company
Adams Drug Company - Founded in the 1930s by Leonard Salmanson.With his father Barnett Salmanson and brothers Samuel, Donald and Charles, Leonard I...
, a family owned operation which was founded in 1932 by the Salmanson Family. Adams, at one point, acquired several stores under the Brooks Drug banner in Vermont and New York, and also operated stores under several other different trade names throughout the Northeast.
In 1984, Pantry Pride
Pantry Pride
Food Fair, also known by its successor name Pantry Pride, was a large supermarket chain in the United States. It was founded by Samuel N. Friedland, who opened the first store in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in the late 1920s. As of 1957, Food Fair had 275 stores, and at its peak, the chain had more...
, a defunct Florida-based supermarket chain acquired the Adams Drug Company, which had then consisted of about 400 stores throughout the Northeast. The following year, all of Pantry Pride's assets including Adams, were acquired by corporate raider Ronald Perelman's Revlon subsidiary. Shortly after the Perelman acquisition, in 1986, all Adams stores were converted over to the Brooks trade name. For a period of time, ownership of Brooks was continually transferred between different Perelman-owned subsidiaries, including California-based Compact Video.
Acquisition by Hook-SupeRx
Perelman, however, quickly resold Brooks to the now defunct Indianapolis, IndianaIndianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
-based Hook-SupeRx
Hook's Drug Stores
Hook's Drug Stores was an Indianapolis, Indiana-based drug store chain which was founded in 1900 by John A. Hook. The chain flourished throughout central Indiana for most of the 20th-century before being acquired by Revco which was in turn acquired by CVS. Many former Hook's locations are now CVS...
drug chain in 1988. Under the reign of Hook-SupeRx, Brooks assumed a new management team with Gayl W. Doster as COO, William Welsh in charge of operations, and David Morocco in charge of purchasing. Doster, Welsh, and Morocco attempted to modernize the store base and turn around what was once a struggling chain. Under Hook-SupeRx, in 1991, Brooks developed the innovative RxWatch computerized prescription service , and in 1993, Brooks began an aggressive attempt to expand into the New York City suburbs in the lower Hudson Valley
Hudson Valley
The Hudson Valley comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in New York State, United States, from northern Westchester County northward to the cities of Albany and Troy.-History:...
and southwestern Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
Acquisitions by Revco and Jean Coutu
In 1994, RevcoRevco
Revco Discount Drug Stores , once based in Twinsburg, Ohio, was a major drug store chain operating through the Ohio Valley, the Mid-Atlantic states, and the Southeastern United States. The chain's stock was traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker RXR...
acquired Brooks as part of its larger purchase of the Hook-SupeRx chain. At the time, the Brooks store base stretched from Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
to Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, and Revco had no interest in operating the Brooks outlets in New England, as they considered them outside of their core market. As a result, that same year, Revco sold all of the New England Brooks stores to the Canadian-based Jean Coutu Group
Jean Coutu Group
The Jean Coutu Group Inc. is a Canadian drugstore chain headquartered in Longueuil, Quebec. It has more than 360 franchised locations in New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec under the PJC Jean Coutu, PJC Clinique and PJC Santé Beauté banners...
, which had already been operating stores in Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
and Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
under the Maxi Drug and Douglas Drug trade names.
The Brooks stores retained by Revco outside of New England later assumed the Revco banner, while subsequently, Jean Coutu rebranded its Maxi and Douglas stores as Brooks. However, some former Maxi stores were placed under the combined Brooks-Maxi banner.
Growth, Expansion, and Innovation under Coutu
Under the management of Jean Coutu Brooks was successful for several years, growing and acquiring smaller chains and pieces of larger chains throughout the New England region. In 1995, Brooks acquired Rite Aid's entire Massachusetts and Rhode Island store network, and in exchange Brooks sold its entire store base in Maine to Rite Aid, and exited the state. (Ironically, many Brooks stores in Massachusetts and Rhode Island would soon return to their original banner). In 1999, Brooks acquired the Burlington, VermontBurlington, Vermont
Burlington is the largest city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the shire town of Chittenden County. Burlington lies south of the U.S.-Canadian border and some south of Montreal....
-based City Drug chain, greatly increasing its market share in the State of Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
, and re-entering the State of New York for the first time since the 1994 Revco acquisition. Later, in 2001, Brooks purchased all of the New England Osco Drug
Osco Drug
Osco Drug is a chain of pharmacy stores which today operate as in-store pharmacies under SuperValu Pharmacies. Osco Pharmacy is found in Jewel-Osco, Albertsons, Shaw's and Star Market, while Sav-on Pharmacy is found in Acme and Albertsons. Since 2006, Osco is a wholly owned subsidiary of...
stores from Albertson's. Shortly after the Osco acquisition, President Michel Coutu made a commitment to significantly increase the size of the chain by the year 2004. This expansion was accomplished in August 2004 with the acquisition of apprx. 1,539 Eckerd Pharmacies as well as Eckerd's headquarters in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
.
During the late 1990s and early 2000s, Brooks Pharmacy was also seen as an innovator, being one of the first American chains to bring European derma care skin centers and consultation centers into its stores.
Merge with Eckerd
By 2005, Coutu had merged the operations of the Brooks and Eckerd chains together at Brooks headquarters in Warwick, Rhode Island, shuttering the former Eckerd headquarters in Largo, FloridaLargo, Florida
Largo is the third largest city in Pinellas County, Florida, USA and is part of the Tampa Bay Area. Centrally located, it is the crossroads of the county. As of the 2000 census, the City had a total population of 69,371. As of 2004, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau was...
. Between 2005 and 2006, Coutu ran into many difficulties integrating the Brooks and Eckerd chains together, and as a result, Coutu's Brooks and Eckerd outlets experienced a significant decline in market share.
Acquisition by Rite Aid
On August 23, 2006, the Wall Street Journal announced that Rite AidRite Aid
Rite Aid is a drugstore chain in the United States and a Fortune 500 company headquartered in East Pennsboro Township, Pennsylvania, near Camp Hill. Rite Aid is the largest drugstore chain on the East Coast and the third largest drugstore chain in the U.S....
would be buying the Eckerd Pharmacy and Brooks Pharmacy chains from the Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
-based Jean Coutu Group
Jean Coutu Group
The Jean Coutu Group Inc. is a Canadian drugstore chain headquartered in Longueuil, Quebec. It has more than 360 franchised locations in New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec under the PJC Jean Coutu, PJC Clinique and PJC Santé Beauté banners...
for US$3.4 billion. The acquisition
Mergers and acquisitions
Mergers and acquisitions refers to the aspect of corporate strategy, corporate finance and management dealing with the buying, selling, dividing and combining of different companies and similar entities that can help an enterprise grow rapidly in its sector or location of origin, or a new field or...
included 1,854 stores, six distribution center
Distribution center
A distribution center for a set of products is a warehouse or other specialized building, often with refrigeration or air conditioning, which is stocked with products to be redistributed to retailers, to wholesalers, or directly to consumers. A distribution center is a principal part, the order...
s, and made Rite Aid the largest drugstore chain on the East Coast
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...
. The transaction was officially completed in June 2008. All Brooks and Eckerd locations were either rebranded
Rebranding
Rebranding is the creation of a new name, term, symbol, design, or a combination of them for an established brand with the intention of developing a differentiated position in the mind of stakeholders and competitors....
as Rite Aid
Rite Aid
Rite Aid is a drugstore chain in the United States and a Fortune 500 company headquartered in East Pennsboro Township, Pennsylvania, near Camp Hill. Rite Aid is the largest drugstore chain on the East Coast and the third largest drugstore chain in the U.S....
(in some locations with a Rite Aid
Rite Aid
Rite Aid is a drugstore chain in the United States and a Fortune 500 company headquartered in East Pennsboro Township, Pennsylvania, near Camp Hill. Rite Aid is the largest drugstore chain on the East Coast and the third largest drugstore chain in the U.S....
within a mile of the old store, usually another pharmacy company, such as CVS/pharmacy or Walgreens
Walgreens
Walgreen Co. , doing business as Walgreens , is the largest drugstore chain in the United States of America. As of August 31st, the company operates 8,210 locations across all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1901, and has since expanded...
buys that location), sold to comply with FTC
Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1914 by the Federal Trade Commission Act...
antitrust
Competition law
Competition law, known in the United States as antitrust law, is law that promotes or maintains market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies....
regulations, or were closed.