NEW YORK — Walgreen Co. opened a new flagship Duane Reade drug store here last week with an extensive fresh-food offering dubbed “Up Market” and a virtual assistant who's a hologram.
The 22,000-square-foot store at 40 Wall Street includes a fresh sushi station; The Juice Market, offering fresh-made specialty themed smoothies; a Starbucks coffee and fresh bakery counter; a Coca-Cola “Freestyle” machine dispensing 130 varieties of Coca Cola fountain drinks; and an expanded natural and organic section containing fresh fruits, vegetables, wraps, sandwiches and salads.
“The fresh and healthy food offerings will be un-paralleled within the drug store industry,” said Paul Tiberio, senior vice president of merchandising and chief marketing officer for Duane Reade. “We have positioned 40 Wall Street to best service the ‘need-it-now’ trips of the area's growing residential and professional populations.”
The virtual assistant — a holographic imaging and audio-visual technology that creates the illusion of a real person — greets shoppers as they enter the store and provides instructions for seeing the “Doctor on Premise” or getting a virtual makeover, and makes suggestions and recommendations on foods, drinks, cosmetics, hair and pharmaceutical choices. Walgreen acquired Duane Reade last year.
