Nonfoods Talk: Examining A Pet Pharmacy

Selling pet medications has the potential to provide increased sales at very favorable margins. My dog had diabetes. Do you know where I purchased his insulin? The answer is the pharmacy at my local ShopRite. Virtually every month for three years, I put down between $90 and $110 to make sure that Cooper, who passed away in May, had his medicine so he could live as much a normal life as possible. It actually became part of my regular shopping regimen: Milk, eggs and bread for the kids and me, and insulin for the dog. Apparently, I am not the only one that did this, and it seems that more and more consumers are looking to the grocery store as a place to purchase medicines for their pets. The main reason appears to be the desire to pick up as many things as possible in as little time as possible. According to Brakke Consulting, an animal health industry consulting and research firm, and Trone Brand Energy, a pet category advertising and marketing insights company, supermarkets could be on the verge of gaining an important new revenue source from offering prescription pet products at their pharmacy counter. “Changes to the pet pharmaceutical marketplace are going to present opportunities and challenges unlike any the industry has seen,” says Ron Brakke, president of Brakke Consulting, in a press release that really got me thinking about how this is going to play out. “We partnered with Trone Brand Energy to help broaden the scope of the insights we gather.” The release says that while only about one quarter of pharmacists indicated they currently stock pet prescription medication, 64% of the remaining pharmacists stated they believe their pharmacy should stock these medications. This means a strong majority of all pharmacists are likely to stock pet prescription products as distribution models evolve, representing a tremendous increase in the availability of pet medications at retail pharmacies. Doug Barton, president of Trone Brand Energy, adds in the release: “We have identified the pet owners who are early adopters of the new pharmaceutical distribution models as well as the factors that will have an impact on their usage of the new purchase channels. These changes will likely create significant disruption in the industry and these insights can help retail pharmacies, manufacturers and veterinarians navigate the changing landscape.” Makes sense to me. Now what do retailers need to do to make this happen? The first thing, of course, is stock the necessary items at the pharmacy. While many pets normally take the same insulin as humans, that is not the case with all medications. Retailers need to learn what pet-focused prescription products need to be included in their mix to satisfy the needs of most pet owners. Their pharmacists also must become well versed with pet medications, too. Then, just as importantly, they need to make their shoppers aware of this service. You know how that works: a combination of in-store signage and traditional advertising should create enough buzz to get the ball rolling. Word-of-mouth support from satisfied shoppers will put you over the top. The bottom line is that there is no excuse for retail pharmacies not to get involved in offering prescriptions for pets. Not only will it add more sales and profits (read: great margins) to a store’s financial ledger, it will help the grocery store become a more established location for all pet needs. Ideally, consumers will flock to your store for all of their pet needs. That is a good thing.