SALT LAKE CITY -- As the trend toward home health care grows, stores like Health -n- Home, a new category killer supercenter by American Stores here, could play a significant role in the supermarket industry.
At present, only one Health -n- Home supercenter exists. It operates in Glendale, Ariz., which is located just outside Sun City.
American Stores here plans to open at least one more this fall, David Maher, president and chief operating officer, told SN. The retailer has not announced exactly when or where the additional unit(s) will open.
At various industry conferences, Maher has described the 28,000-square-foot store, which caters to the nation's aging baby boomers, as a one-of-a-kind.
"It is, we believe, the country's first category killer home and health superstore," he said in a presentation at Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette's Food Retailing Conference, held in New York. The store, which offers 25,000 stockkeeping units, is designed to cater to the wave of baby boomers are now approaching age 50. By the year 2000, an estimated 76 million Americans will be over 50, accounting for almost 30% of the total population.
Though it mainly targets baby boomers, Health -n- Home also offers products for all demographics. Merchandise includes products like prenatal vitamins and knee braces.
American Stores operates three other freestanding Health -n- Home stores -- though on a much smaller scale -- in Tucson, Bullhead City and Phoenix, Ariz. It also operates three Health -n- Home satellite departments within Osco drug stores in Sun City, Apache Junction and Scottsdale, Ariz.
The supercenter features store-within-store departments that focus on a wide variety of home health care categories: mobility, sports therapy, women's health, wellness, personal care and respiratory medicine. Both a traditional and infusion pharmacy also are available.
"We think it fills an untapped niche for one-stop-shopping, for convenience, selection and service," Maher said at Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette's conference.
Each department is designed to provide state-of-the-art services. In the rehabilitation area, for instance, customers can get information on customized wheelchairs; in sports therapy, prosthetic devices.
A main goal of the supercenter is to offer products covered by health insurance plans. Along with the separate departments, there's also an in-store education center that can accommodate 50 people and features state-of-the-art audio-visual facilities. At the core of the store is the "home" section, which features products customized in a simulated home environment.
