Dive Brief:
- Albertsons acquired MedCart Specialty Pharmacy in an effort to strengthen and extend its pharmacy specialty services, the company said in a statement. The grocery giant did not disclose how much it paid for the company.
- MedCart Specialty Pharmacy is an URAC-accredited pharmaceutical and healthcare provider of customized specialty care services and medication management for patients and physicians addressing complex diseases.
- MedCart Specialty Pharmacy will operate as a new business unit under the Albertsons pharmacy division.
Dive Insight:
Considering that a recent study from TABS Analytics revealed grocery retailers account for just 16.6% of the personal care market, well behind Wal-Mart, with 19.9% of sales, it makes sense to try and improve the sector. Albertsons, which also owns Safeway, Jewel-Osco and Tom Thumb, is smart to strengthen the pharmacy specialty services it offers to close this gap and make its stores even more relevant.
By providing specialty prescription services and medications, Albertsons is offering its customers another reason to shop at its stores, making things more convenient for them. The more amenities a store has the more likely it is that people will come. With many retailers struggling to compete with each other, as well as online stores, giving the public more choices beyond just food is vital to drawing customers and making them spend.
Albertsons push into healthcare is nothing new in the grocery business. Publix announced in March stores in four Florida counties are partnering with BayCare Health System to provide shoppers with in-store screening stations and telehealth sites — allowing patients to check their blood pressure and perform other screenings at these kiosks, and then send the results directly to their BayCare physician at no extra cost.
Other grocery stores also have partnered with healthcare insurance companies to encourage them to purchase better foods when they go shopping. As these recent deals have shown, health is an important area of growth for supermarkets, and further expansion into the space through acquisitions is all but certain.