cvs treats urban areas unfairly?

some of cure cvs's claims are:
CVS Operates Fewer Stores in Communities of Color

Nationally, CVS’s store location choices have the effect of “redlining” communities of color and areas with sizable Latino populations in terms of store location. For example, aggregating data from all U.S. zip codes, CVS operates thirty-seven percent more stores per person in majority white areas than in other communities nationwide. The gap is even larger when comparisons are made between the “whitest” and the least “white” communities. Communities where more than 90 percent of the residents are people of color have just over half as many CVS stores per person as communities where the population is more than 90 percent white.

CVS’s store location decisions not only have a racially discriminatory impact but also disproportionately affect lower-income communities. Aggregating data from all U.S. zip codes, CVS operates 19 percent more stores per person in the wealthiest communities (where the median household income exceeds $80,000) than in the least affluent (where the median household income is less than $40,000).

Across several metropolitan areas, CVS has demonstrated a pattern of closing stores in the least affluent areas and in communities of color only to open in more in well-to-do or whiter areas, already saturated with pharmacy options.

CVS Limits Condom Access for Some

Another CVS practice that disproportionally affects communities of color is the chain’s lockup of condoms. Condoms are one of the best defenses against unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV/AIDS, but CVS makes it difficult for people of color to obtain them. At hundreds of stores across the country in areas where people of color predominate, CVS displays condoms in locked cabinets that require customers to summon CVS staff to unlock them and then monitors customers while making their selections. CVS is less likely to lock up condoms in areas with fewer residents of color, and the chain’s two main competitors do not lock up condoms.CVS Focuses Anti-Theft Measures on Communities of Color

Two years ago, CVS angered African American shoppers when television stations in two markets reported that the chain was placing security tags on hair care products for African Americans but not on similar products for white people.

Unsanitary CVS Stores in Communities of Color

Another public health concern for CVS shoppers is the discriminatory effect of the company’s uneven compliance with local health codes. In three different markets, CVS stores in more affluent areas and white areas have been less likely to violate state and local food safety regulations than CVS stores in lower income areas and areas where people of color are a majority. That is the finding of an analysis of recent years’ food safety inspection reports for CVS stores in the City of Philadelphia, Greater Detroit, and the counties comprising New York City, Long Island and the Hudson Valley.

Cure CVS is an initiative by Change to Win and partner organizations to reform the drugstore industry, starting with CVS. Cure CVS aims to ensure that CVS provides equal access across all communities and income levels to its stores and services, offers fair and accurate prices, provides quality products and services, protects customers’ privacy and puts quality pharmacy care first.

more info:
curecvsnow.org

CVS accused of poor service in minority communities [Detroit News, 12/4/08]

CVS treats Detroit customers unfairly, study finds [Detroit Free Press, 12/4/080]

CVS is bad prescription for minority neighborhoods, group charges [New York Daily News, 12/3/08]

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cvs cash register upgrade

a few people have been reporting that cvs cashiers now have a new feature on their registers... they can print ECB's on command. for example, if you were due ecb's but due to some glitch they did not print, and the cashier/manager agrees that you should have received them, there is now a way that they can force the register to print them.

the rumor is that this feature will also be utilized with rainchecks. so if you have a raincheck for a free after ecb item, instead of the item being rung up for $0, it will now be rung up at the sale/regular price. this is good because you can use your coupons and ecb's to pay (whereas you couldn't use coupons on the item when it was rung up as $0.) and receive your ecb back just as you would have during the promotion.

i don't know if this is available at all stores yet - and even if it is, it will probably be a little while before all the employees are aware of it and learn how to use it. but it sounds much nicer than going home without your ecb's and calling customer service!

thank you cvs! ♥

update: here is some more information left in the comments of this site...

I work at cvs and can tell you that our ability to issue ecb's at the register is due to be complete in ALL areas by the end of november. In most cases it does not require a mgr approval. We DO however need to have a 4 to 8 digit code that will now be under the item as of the 11/23 ad. This feature is for any glitches and for rainchecks. One great thing everyone will be happy to know is that the ecb that prints is supposed to round up (example- ecb due is for $1.79, the ecb that will actually print will be for $2.00) Its better in some cases to be issued a raincheck!!! The cashiers now have under the MISC tab a button that says ISSUE EXTRA BUCKS. Its pretty self explanatory as long as they have that code, so make sure it is written on any rainchecks to make things easier for you, and them.
Anonymous

I am a mgr at cvs and can tell you that our ability to issue ecb at the reg is correct. We do require a code that as of 11-23 is listed in the ads. The cashiers can do it without mgr authorization. It is for rainchecks w/ecb and glitches that do occur. The rollout for this program is due to be completed in all areas by the end of november.
Anonymous

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Beauty 360 launched

so it looks like beauty 360 stores will have a separate rewards program, called "beautiful you" rewards. this article mentions that you can use your quarterly ecb at beauty 360 stores, but i don't think my $.50 ecb for quarterly spending will go very far. does this mean you cannot use ecb other than your quarterly rewards at beauty 360? its not very clear.

from the press release:

CVS/pharmacy Launches Beauty 360

Company pilots prestige beauty model with signature services offered at luxury shopping destination adjacent to convenient CVS/pharmacy locations

...The inaugural Beauty 360 location opens today at 1350 Connecticut Avenue NW (Dupont Circle) in Washington, D.C. The next Beauty 360 location will open in early December at 25272 Marguerite Parkway in Mission Viejo, CA. Both locations will be adjacent to CVS/pharmacy stores and can be accessed via a breezeway as well as a separate store front entrance. More locations are being explored across the country for 2009 in markets where beauty performs exceedingly well.

...The portfolio of brands launching in the first two Beauty 360 locations
include:

Dr. Brandt Skincare
Clean
P&G fragrance
Laura Geller
Coty Fragrance
Sampar
Paula Dorf
Elizabeth Arden Fragrance
Stendhal
Freeze 24.7
It Cosmetics
StriVectin
Borba
Juicy Couture Fragrance
Supersmile
ModelCo
Japonesque
Talika
Canyon Ranch
Lavera
Zirh
Fusion Beauty
Me Bath
Pop Beauty
Blinc
Tini Beauty
Ahava
Bloom
Mineral Essence
Clarins Fragrance
Payot
Caron Paris
Perlier

...Beauty 360 is designed to allow for maximum interaction with product and expert staff. "Innovation Stations" throughout the space highlight product technology while "Play Stations" allow for extensive product testing. Beauty Consultants are dedicated to helping customers find the right products to suit their needs and treating them to an array of signature services.

...Beauty 360 customers will also reap the benefits of the CVS/pharmacy ExtraCare program, the largest retail loyalty program in the world, with more than 50 million cardholders. ExtraCare members earn 2% back on all purchases in the form of "Extra Bucks," which can be used at either CVS/pharmacy or Beauty 360. Additionally, Beauty 360 customers will earn "Beautiful You" rewards which can be redeemed for free signature services at Beauty 360 locations. Customers can also take advantage of the 'Best of Beauty, Guaranteed,' which offers 100% money back on all returns, ensuring a risk-free shopping experience.

see previous post: cvs to open adjoining "beauty 360" boutiques

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its official: cvs takes over longs

CVS Caremark Successfully Completes Tender Offer for Longs Shares
Expects to Effect Merger on October 30, 2008
marketwatch.com
Last update: 8:30 a.m. EDT Oct. 29, 2008

WOONSOCKET, R.I., Oct 29, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- CVS Caremark Corporation announced that it successfully completed the subsequent offering period of its tender offer for all of the outstanding common stock of Longs Drug Stores Corporation. The subsequent offering period for the tender offer expired at 6:00 p.m., New York City time, on Tuesday, October 28, 2008. A total of approximately 28,317,338 shares of Longs were tendered in the initial and subsequent offering periods of the offer, representing approximately 78.07% of the outstanding shares. All tendered shares have been accepted for payment by CVS Caremark.

CVS Caremark expects to effect, without a vote or meeting of Longs' stockholders, a short-form merger on or about October 30, 2008 to complete the Longs acquisition. Following the merger, Longs will be an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of CVS Caremark. In the merger, each of the remaining outstanding shares (other than any shares owned by CVS Caremark or its subsidiaries) will be converted into the right to receive the same $71.50 in cash per share, without interest, that was paid in the tender offer. Following the merger, Longs' common stock will cease to be traded on the New York Stock Exchange.

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walgreens withdraws bid for longs, cvs free to expand empire

Walgreen Waves Bye To Longs
Ruthie Ackerman, 10.08.08, 8:35 PM ET
forbes.com

Shareholders unhappy with Longs Drug Stores' agreement to be bought by CVS Caremark saw their hopes for a better price fade Wednesday night after Walgreen abandoned its competing bid for the pharmacy chain.

After the closing bell, Walgreen (nyse: WAG - news - people ) announced it had withdrawn its $75 per share cash proposal to acquire California-based Longs Drug Stores (nyse: LDG - news - people ).

Walgreen shares rose 1.3%, or 35 cents, to $26.49 in after-hours trading, as investors rejoiced that they wouldn’t be dragged into a prolonged battle with Longs. Longs shares, on the other hand, dropped 3.5%, or $2.47, to $69.21. In the last month, CVS shares have tumbled 20.4% and Walgreen shares plummeted 27.3%.

Last month, Longs said it was turning down Walgreen's offer in favor of a lower-priced deal with rival drugstore chain CVS Caremark (nyse: CVS - news - people ) that is more certain to be finalized and wouldn’t pose anti-trust risk. (See “ Drugstore War.”) Walgreen had offered Longs $75 per share, or about $2.8 billion, well above an already accepted bid of $71.50 per share from CVS Caremark, worth about $2.7 billion. Longs agreed to the deal with CVS in August. CVS reaffirmed its offer on Sunday and extended the deadline to Oct. 15.

Walgreen Chief Executive Jeffrey A. Rein said in a letter to Longs that given the significant turmoil in the U.S. economy over the last few weeks, it doesn’t make sense to continue a prolonged battle for the company.

“While we believe we made a compelling proposal for Longs, we do not believe it would be in the best interests of Walgreens shareholders, customers or employees to allow this situation to remain unresolved for an extended period of time,” he said.

Rein said that Walgreen’s strong balance sheet and cash flow will allow it to focus on maximizing shareholder value.

Last month, Pershing Square Capital Management, one of the largest shareholders in Longs, made it clear that it opposed the deal with CVS and identified four other potential buyers for the drug store chain. Pershing, which is headed by William Ackman, owns about 3 million shares in Longs, or 9.2%, and has previously said that CVS' bid didn't adequately value Longs' real estate holdings.

Two other major shareholders, Advisory Research and CtW Investment Group, have also publicly questioned the CVS deal.

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$50 "lash amplification" product coming to cvs

RapidLash Expanding to CVS

With the demand for eyelash enhancers cresting, RapidLash is riding the wave into the mass market.

At $49.95, the 3-ml. product is about $100 less than many of its counterparts in the professional sector, where the lash-growth category originated. The cheaper price and the promise of efficacy comparable with or better than the more expensive products has appealed to mass retailers and drugstores as well as doctors’ offices and spas, according to Robert Trow, co-owner of RapidLash marketer Rocasuba, which is based in Mashpee, Mass.

...RapidLash contains three polypeptide variants to protect against hair breakage and support stronger, more voluminous lashes and brows. Vitamins, extracts and moisturizing agents such as panthenol, allantoin, pumpkin seed extract, licorice extract and hydrolyzed glycosaminoglycans are said to help hydrate lashes and brows, and provide strength, shine, durability and elasticity. The product, which resembles a clear serum, has no prescription drug ingredients and is designed to be applied to the base and lid of the eye and/or the brow line once daily before bedtime.

“There is tremendous interest by the public in [lash] products,” said Trow, “but they were cautious for two reasons: The first is the price, which was prohibitive to the average person, and the second was the publicity around the use of the products with the FDA’s seizure of Jan Marini’s product.” Referring to RapidLash, he continued: “Now, with the price one-third of Jan Marini’s and all ingredients deemed safe by regulatory bodies in the United States and the European Union, everyone is clamoring for the product.”

read the full article on wwd.com

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Walgreens makes offer for Longs Drug Stores

Walgreen, hoping to undo CVS deal, makes rival offer to buy Longs Drug Stores for $2.8 billion

NEW YORK (AP) -- Walgreen Co. made an offer late Friday to buy Longs Drug Stores Corp. for $2.8 billion, hoping to unseat a rival offer from CVS Caremark Corp. that Longs had already accepted.

Deerfield, Ill.-based Walgreen said it would pay $75 a share in cash to buy Walnut Creek, Calif.-based Longs, besting CVS's price of $71.50 per share, also in cash, which was equivalent to about $2.7 billion. Either deal would also include the assumption of about $200 million in debt.

Longs shares rose 4 percent to $74.50 in after-hours trading.

...Longs has face dissent from some shareholders over the value of the CVS deal.

Earlier Friday, one of the largest shareholders in Longs said it opposed the deal with CVS and had identified four other potential buyers for the drug store chain.

Pershing Square Capital Management, which owns about 3 million shares -- a 9.2 percent stake -- of Longs, has previously said that CVS's bid didn't adequately value Longs' real estate holdings.

Two other major shareholders, Advisory Research and CtW Investment Group, have also publicly questioned the CVS deal.

Speaking in a television interview Friday before the Walgreen announcement, CVS Chief Executive Tom Ryan said the company does not intend to raise its bid.

"We think we are paying a full and fair price," he said. "We're not moving. We're done."

read full article on yahoo! finance

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cvs to open adjoining "beauty 360" boutiques

The first of these concept stores will be opening at year's end in a "major East Coast city" (Baltimore?), followed by a West Coast incarnation weeks later. A hundred more Beauty 360s are set to open throughout 2009.

via blackbook

Cosmetics and skin-care shoppers may soon see a new boutique, Beauty 360, selling 32 brand-name product lines previously found in department stores.

The surprise? The Beauty 360 concept is the brainchild of CVS Pharmacy.

The Beauty 360 shops will be located next to certain CVS drugstores with high-sales cosmetics and beauty departments, said Cheryl Mahoney, vice president for beauty care for Woonsocket, R.I.-based CVS. The Beauty 360 shop will have two entrances into the adjoining CVS store.

The boutiques, which will debut on the East and West coasts but which are expected to expand nationwide, are an outgrowth of CVS' exclusive products such as Cristophe's hair styling, Lumene skin care and Physicians Formula spa-like treatments. The boutiques are 3,000 square feet, about the size of a Sephora store, and are set off with large glass entrances, white-tiled floors and a wall of hand-cut glass tile.

"Our customers are looking for the kinds of beauty items that department stores sell, but in more convenient locations," Mahoney said.

If the test stores do well, the Beauty 360 shops could expand in size, she said.

The Beauty 360 shops are expected to compete against beauty care stores such as Sephora, Ulta, the Body Shop and Bath & Body Works, as well as rival drugstore chain Walgreen Co. and department stores such as Macy's.

CVS expanded its Chicago presence two years ago when it acquired 60 stand-alone Osco drugstores and started building new stores in growing neighborhoods.

Deerfield-based Walgreen, whose spokesman had no comment on Beauty 360, has started staffing some of its cosmetics counters with assistants and upping its exclusive beauty products, including one of its most successful called "Yes to Carrots."

Meanwhile, Walgreen, the nation's second-largest beauty retailer, behind Wal-Mart, is pursuing its own new territory in the cosmetics aisle. The largest U.S. drugstore chain replaced seasonal skin-care displays at 1,000 of its stores last year with seven European beauty brands.

The higher-end cosmetic lines include Art Deco, Institut Arnaud Paris, Skincode Switzerland and La Fleur Organic.

Mitch Corwin, a Morningstar analyst, said drugstores reap healthy profits by selling beauty products. And beauty companies no longer see mass-market retailers as beneath them.

"Mass merchant retailers such as Walgreen and CVS are trying to position themselves into more of the health and beauty and wellness areas, and feeling better about yourself," Corwin said. "It makes sense as the baby boomers age and look for solutions to help them feel young and energetic."

via chicago sun times

yes yes, but will there be ecb deals?

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cvs is going to hawaii

CVS Caremark Corporation to Acquire Longs Drug Stores Corporation

WOONSOCKET, R.I. & WALNUT CREEK, Calif., Aug 12, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- CVS Caremark Corporation (NYSE: CVS) and Longs Drug Stores Corporation (NYSE: LDG) today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which CVS Caremark will acquire Longs for $71.50 per share in cash for a total purchase price of $2.9 billion including the assumption of net debt. Through this acquisition, CVS Caremark will acquire Longs' 521 retail drugstores in California, Hawaii, Nevada and Arizona as well as its Rx America subsidiary, which offers prescription benefits management ("PBM") services to over 8 million members and prescription drug plan benefits to approximately 450,000 Medicare beneficiaries.

The addition of Longs' valuable store locations in Central and Northern California, Hawaii, and Nevada will provide CVS Caremark with substantial market positions in these highly attractive, fast growing markets. Further, the acquisition complements CVS Caremark's substantial presence in Southern California and provides a foundation for significant future growth throughout the nation's largest state. The transaction also offers CVS Caremark immediate market leadership in the highly attractive Hawaiian market, where it currently does not have a presence, as well as high-quality locations in Nevada and Arizona.

complete press release

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cvs.com has been re-designed

this new design seems much more user friendly than the old version

once you are signed in you can click the "current coupons" tab on your account and view your current ecbs. i noticed this intriguing text:

"Please note: Some ExtraCare rewards are redeemable in-store only. Coupons that are clickable can be printed and redeemed at any CVS/pharmacy store. For rewards that are redeemable online, click on the coupon to activate, and then apply it to your order by clicking on the Use Coupons/ExtraCare Rewards button in your Shopping cart."

none of mine are printable or available to be used online. back in the day, you could print ecb's. looks like they may be going back to that, at least with the quarterly spending rewards.

"derekhatesyou" on slickdeals says he worked on this release of the site...

"When the site goes live on Saturday, we will be able to use only Quarterly ECB. This will probably change as there are an unlimited coupon entry spots. You can simply click on add another coupon.

Also, during the checkout process the site will list all available coupons for you to use on the order. Unfortunately, I wont know until the site goes live what will show up there. For me it was a bunch of random coupons. Like $10 off of $60 and $4 off of CVS brand nuts.

Please note, with the launch of the new site, to access your ExtraCare account you will have to register with CVS.com. Registration is free of course, you just need a valid email address. Your email address will be your username. So only one account per email address.

Also, I seen a few posts on the boards pertaining to the $4 off of $20 for updating. We recently made revisions to the program used for ExtraCare. As far as I have seen and tested, you will no longer be able to repeatedly update your email address for another coupon."

as far as using ecb's online... i doubt i would ever do this (unless they had some kind of crazy online-only sale) #1 i want to use my man. coupons, #2 i don't want to pay shipping, and #3 i want to buy items to earn ecb's.

i wonder if they might start making cvs coupons available to print from the site. i've said before that if they want to limit coupon usage why not have users log-in to their account, and be able to print only the coupons available to that extracare account, with the # of prints limited the same way other online coupons are limited to 2 prints...

as derekhatesyou said, there is no offer for a $4 off $20 update coupon, but those who have just registered a new card are receiving $4 off $20's in their email.

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CVS/pharmacy Shoppers Received More Than $1.5 Billion in ExtraCare Rewards Over the Past Year

press release:

Nation's largest retail rewards program reveals which U.S. cities save the most dollars by cashing in 'Extra Bucks'

WOONSOCKET, R.I., July 16 /PRNewswire/ -- CVS/pharmacy, America's largest retail pharmacy with 6,300 convenient locations nationwide, today announced that its ExtraCare cardholders received a combined total of more than $1.5 billion in money-saving offers and rewards last year simply by using their ExtraCare card each time they shopped at a CVS/pharmacy location or online at CVS.com. As consumers seek effortless ways to cut costs on everyday needs, a group of "Super Savings" cities have proven that millions of dollars can be saved when shoppers take advantage of the unique benefits provided by ExtraCare.

The following cities represent communities where shoppers saved the highest amount of money through CVS/pharmacy's ExtraCare program during the last six months of 2007:

-- Boston, MA -- shoppers saved nearly $3.4 million in ExtraCare savings and rewards

-- Los Angeles, CA -- shoppers saved more than $2.7 million in ExtraCare savings and rewards

-- Detroit, MI -- shoppers saved approximately $2.5 million in ExtraCare savings and rewards

-- Washington, DC -- shoppers saved more than $2.3 million in ExtraCare savings and rewards

-- Philadelphia, PA -- shoppers saved just over $2 million in ExtraCare savings and rewards

cvs caremark press release

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cvs says they're listening to us...

The company said 50 million customers have signed up for ExtraCare and that it has made changes to its ExtraCare program based on feedback from bloggers. One such change was making more clear in store circulars the particulars of each deal.It has also curbed abuse that has risen from the electronic manipulation of coupons and stores that allowed "Superstacking," a way of using multiple cash-off coupons (say, using a coupon for $3 off a $15 purchase in addition to a coupon for $4 off a $20 purchase on the same order).

John Barron, director of relationship management at CVS, said the company works with "coupon experts" — shorthand for bloggers who are the most savvy about CVS policies and discounts — to educate shoppers about its program.

"While we do not monitor all shopping blogs and consumer forums, we do try to stay abreast of what customers are sharing through these outlets and make every effort to incorporate their feedback into our ExtraCare program," he said.

from statesman.com

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