Rite Aid closing at least 63 stores

[BillyGr]

DDM is really the big dog in NE Ohio--such an interesting concept of a relatively old-fashioned West Coast model drug store (big SKU count, includes delicatessen and heavy convenience food) owned and run by a RPh. Together with Marc's (Drug Emporium with pretty heavy food emphasis) it makes for an unusual pair of competitors.

Maybe something about that area, as the supermarkets in that area are also mostly smaller localized chains (save Giant Eagle which is a bit larger and covers more areas), while other better-known chains that were once in the area have left over time.

[BillyGr]

Via The Oregonian/OregonLive.com

The company’s only store in Hermiston, located at 835 South Highway 395, will close on Jan. 16, and patient records will be transferred to the Rite Aid in Pendleton at 1900 S.W. Court Place, which is 30 miles away.

Hermiston is larger than Pendleton and I almost can't believe that patients records can be transferred that far.

Since you said that, I am assuming there are other options closer?

While unusual, being where I am here in NY, I can think of places where there simply might not BE other options closer by (such as many smaller towns in the Adirondacks).

In such a case, they would obviously have to send the information somewhere - even if (let's say) there was another store of another brand only 25 miles away, would the extra 5 miles make much of a difference vs. keeping the files in the company?

[SamSpade]

Since you said that, I am assuming there are other options closer?

Safeway is almost across the street.
Walmart is a bit north in town.
There's a local pharmacy in-between.

Based on what some here have said (I know nothing about pharmacy reimbursements), Hermiston has one large employer (Lamb Weston Foods) and probably several customers on Medicare or O.H.P. backed drug plans.

[ClownLoach]

Additionally there is speculation on Reddit that the lone remaining Temecula location(a customer world-era build on the same stretch of CA-79 as the maligned Winchester location)is itself on borrowed time just months after the Vail ranch Payless closed in the pre-bankruptcy prelude.

Haven't seen any signs of this. It's a decent store, but it's next to what I have mentioned elsewhere as the worst run Sprouts in the chain. It is in a surprisingly busy center. But the fact it's a very good center means the landlord might have successfully shopped it to CVS. There is a CVS next to a 99 cents only that occupies part of a closed Ralphs a couple of blocks south that has surprisingly badly designed parking (might be what doomed Ralphs) and I don't think it has a drive thru. CVS has done minimal remodeling besides the white wall "decor" and never even remodeled out the 2nd entrance but just keeps it locked with paper signs; most CVS at least walled over or blacked out the windows. If I was CVS I would have called to see if I could take over that superior Rite Aid location.

If that is closing then I don't see how the other Winchester store will remain either and with Menifee closed they might as well be leaving the Temecula valley entirely then and giving the double digit population growth to CVS and Walgreens. Wildomar looked decently stocked recently despite being a odd, isolated and slow corner. Personally I don't know how that Wildomar store survives.

I understood the CA-79 closure next to Stater Bros because it's really a very competitive strip in South Temecula and the center had been revitalized... It had major vacancies for years and I suspect they were getting rent credits for absent anchor spots. When the anchor spot was filled with Burlington and Five Below odds are their rent was raised to its full amount (or rent credits were canceled) and that made the store unprofitable. I have seen leases where the absence of a required anchor can reduce rent by as much as 90%. Stater Bros had really neglected their store next door as well, although it had their full decor it had received no updates from the 1995 Albertsons layout and had its own boarded up pharmacy inside. Now that the center is fully occupied Stater is doing a massive remodel, interior and exterior on the level they did a year ago in Oceanside. Everything in the store is changing, including completely rebuilt and moved bakery, deli, etc. plus they removed the dead pharmacy and moved the liquor dept. there.

[norcalriteaidclerk]

Additionally there is speculation on Reddit that the lone remaining Temecula location(a customer world-era build on the same stretch of CA-79 as the maligned Winchester location)is itself on borrowed time just months after the Vail ranch Payless closed in the pre-bankruptcy prelude.

Haven't seen any signs of this. It's a decent store, but it's next to what I have mentioned elsewhere as the worst run Sprouts in the chain. It is in a surprisingly busy center. But the fact it's a very good center means the landlord might have successfully shopped it to CVS. There is a CVS next to a 99 cents only that occupies part of a closed Ralphs a couple of blocks south that has surprisingly badly designed parking (might be what doomed Ralphs) and I don't think it has a drive thru. CVS has done minimal remodeling besides the white wall "decor" and never even remodeled out the 2nd entrance but just keeps it locked with paper signs; most CVS at least walled over or blacked out the windows. If I was CVS I would have called to see if I could take over that superior Rite Aid location.

If that is closing then I don't see how the other Winchester store will remain either and with Menifee closed they might as well be leaving the Temecula valley entirely then and giving the double digit population growth to CVS and Walgreens. Wildomar looked decently stocked recently despite being a odd, isolated and slow corner. Personally I don't know how that Wildomar store survives.

I understood the CA-79 closure next to Stater Bros because it's really a very competitive strip in South Temecula and the center had been revitalized... It had major vacancies for years and I suspect they were getting rent credits for absent anchor spots. When the anchor spot was filled with Burlington and Five Below odds are their rent was raised to its full amount (or rent credits were canceled) and that made the store unprofitable. I have seen leases where the absence of a required anchor can reduce rent by as much as 90%. Stater Bros had really neglected their store next door as well, although it had their full decor it had received no updates from the 1995 Albertsons layout and had its own boarded up pharmacy inside. Now that the center is fully occupied Stater is doing a massive remodel, interior and exterior on the level they did a year ago in Oceanside. Everything in the store is changing, including completely rebuilt and moved bakery, deli, etc. plus they removed the dead pharmacy and moved the liquor dept. there.

The rumor was triggered by a now deleted comment in this Reddit thread(announcing the latest mini-waves of closures)presumably due to a notice of an all-staff meeting given to employee posting on this sub(in fact this subreddit is frequented primarily by employees).I've disputed it myself considering the closure of the Vail ranch Payless Drug just a few months ago during the pre-bankruptcy buildup.

https://www.reddit.com/r/RiteAid/s/5xVoZeNHko

I myself tend to scrutinize leaks of closures not yet on the docket though some do get picked up by credible sources(i.e.,the potential west Livermore closure).I must note that Menifee has two locations remaining one being an original build wellness store.That wildomar location(customer world-era build)is in a center with a Baron's Marketplace(one of their more remote locations as most are in greater San Diego).

[storewanderer]

Someone posted a recent video of the Temecula Store that was the subject of the Reddit post which I also saw.

The video on Google Maps posted 5 days ago shows a store that has somewhat a lack of inventory, endcaps with barely anything on them, and other signs consistent with the many Rite Aid units I've watched in the weeks leading up to closure announcements in the past 3 months. However I do see Valentine's Merchandise which the stores currently closing did not receive.

[ClownLoach]

Additionally there is speculation on Reddit that the lone remaining Temecula location(a customer world-era build on the same stretch of CA-79 as the maligned Winchester location)is itself on borrowed time just months after the Vail ranch Payless closed in the pre-bankruptcy prelude.

Haven't seen any signs of this. It's a decent store, but it's next to what I have mentioned elsewhere as the worst run Sprouts in the chain. It is in a surprisingly busy center. But the fact it's a very good center means the landlord might have successfully shopped it to CVS. There is a CVS next to a 99 cents only that occupies part of a closed Ralphs a couple of blocks south that has surprisingly badly designed parking (might be what doomed Ralphs) and I don't think it has a drive thru. CVS has done minimal remodeling besides the white wall "decor" and never even remodeled out the 2nd entrance but just keeps it locked with paper signs; most CVS at least walled over or blacked out the windows. If I was CVS I would have called to see if I could take over that superior Rite Aid location.

If that is closing then I don't see how the other Winchester store will remain either and with Menifee closed they might as well be leaving the Temecula valley entirely then and giving the double digit population growth to CVS and Walgreens. Wildomar looked decently stocked recently despite being a odd, isolated and slow corner. Personally I don't know how that Wildomar store survives.

I understood the CA-79 closure next to Stater Bros because it's really a very competitive strip in South Temecula and the center had been revitalized... It had major vacancies for years and I suspect they were getting rent credits for absent anchor spots. When the anchor spot was filled with Burlington and Five Below odds are their rent was raised to its full amount (or rent credits were canceled) and that made the store unprofitable. I have seen leases where the absence of a required anchor can reduce rent by as much as 90%. Stater Bros had really neglected their store next door as well, although it had their full decor it had received no updates from the 1995 Albertsons layout and had its own boarded up pharmacy inside. Now that the center is fully occupied Stater is doing a massive remodel, interior and exterior on the level they did a year ago in Oceanside. Everything in the store is changing, including completely rebuilt and moved bakery, deli, etc. plus they removed the dead pharmacy and moved the liquor dept. there.

The rumor was triggered by a now deleted comment in this Reddit thread(announcing the latest mini-waves of closures)presumably due to a notice of an all-staff meeting given to employee posting on this sub(in fact this subreddit is frequented primarily by employees).I've disputed it myself considering the closure of the Vail ranch Payless Drug just a few months ago during the pre-bankruptcy buildup.

https://www.reddit.com/r/RiteAid/s/5xVoZeNHko

I myself tend to scrutinize leaks of closures not yet on the docket though some do get picked up by credible sources(i.e.,the potential west Livermore closure).I must note that Menifee has two locations remaining one being an original build wellness store.That wildomar location(customer world-era build)is in a center with a Baron's Marketplace(one of their more remote locations as most are in greater San Diego).

I thought they had exited Menifee based in previous comments.

The Wildomar location is not in the same center as Barons. It looks that way on a map, but it's under a 50+ foot sheer cliff off the end of the busier Barons center. It is hard to get in and out of. You cannot access the Rite Aid from the Barons center unless you drove off the cliff. About half the Barons chain is in Temecula valley, with Wildomar, Murrieta, Temecula and Menifee locations. Only 4 in San Diego, plus one in the more remote eastern town of Alpine.

I popped my head into that Temecula location about three weeks ago and although I thought it was sloppy it was not terribly empty. So if videos now are showing a lack of inventory that is not a good thing as it may not have been replenished since which could be a possible sign of closure. Again if I was the landlord I would definitely try to shop it around and see if CVS would move over from their lesser quality location in the problematic parking center across from Winco. The building from the outside looks identical to a Walgreens even a window above the entrance for a glassed in sign, but I don't believe it ever was one.

[storewanderer]

From what I can tell the Temecula Store was built as a Rite Aid in 2007.

The inside is definitely finished/completed as a Rite Aid. But it could well be a Walgreens shell. It sure looks like one. The configuration of the loading dock is Rite Aid configuration though. The real thing that differs here from a typical Rite Aid is there is a pretty good covered walkway surrounding the entry in front of multiple parking lots. That has always been a "thing" with newer Rite Aid Stores- they don't have much of a walkway in front of the parking lot. Walgreens often does.

Looking more closely at the Temecula Store expanding on that covered walkway/door area if you look at it and look at the building supports you see there are the two angled supports in front of the doors, then 5 more supports on each side of the building. Pulling up the Walgreens at 2299 Oddie in Sparks which opened in 2009 you will notice the exact same construction of the support beams of 5 on one side, 2 angled by door, and 5 more on the other side. The window configuration is different. I am suspecting this store went to Rite Aid mid construction.

[storewanderer]

Made it out to Susanville despite some terrible roads in Reno and continuing onto the highways maintained by the State of Nevada, two jurisdictions where they don't seem to bother to plow or de ice roads for some reason this year. At least we don't get what we don't pay for I guess. Roads were great once hitting over the CA state line even though those roads hardly have any traffic they at least got the ice off.

The Walgreens in Susanville which had ZERO other customers the 20 minutes I was inside in the middle of the day (everything else in Susanville was busy at that time) seems to be getting neatened up and has a hiring sign on the door for pharmacy manager, staff pharmacist, team members, management, and some other position. I assume this joke of a store is getting the Rite Aid files; it has been on the verge of closing for years but thanks to Rite Aid's poor decisions now they are just handing Walgreens the business. They still have more than a full aisle of Christmas left at 80-90% off, just nobody shops in this place. Ton of markdown wine, excellent prices, $10 stuff marked down to $3 etc. I hope Safeway opens a pharmacy in Susanville.

The Rite Aid closes a week from Monday and it is really too bad Rite Aid decided to run things into the ground here. Both the store (closing sale, so expected) and pharmacy were quite busy. Pharmacy had two pharmacists on duty and a couple other employees back there and steadily a line of 2-3 customers back there. The other weird thing was they had a bunch of unpackged freight back at the back corner of the store including some Valentine's and various displays for temporary items, in addition to various regular merchandise, all with shipment labels dated 1/1, so they got a larger 1/1 than they had gotten in a while (right after I was last there) yet still got announced closing a week later. The South Lake Tahoe pack up items they received, they just opened up the plastic totes and put 75% off signs on those items, so people were digging through etc. I hope this is the last Rite Aid closing sale that is close enough for me to attend. I don't want to see further closure activity involving Quincy, Auburn, Grass Valley, Placerville, or Alturas.

[ClownLoach]

From what I can tell the Temecula Store was built as a Rite Aid in 2007.

The inside is definitely finished/completed as a Rite Aid. But it could well be a Walgreens shell. It sure looks like one. The configuration of the loading dock is Rite Aid configuration though. The real thing that differs here from a typical Rite Aid is there is a pretty good covered walkway surrounding the entry in front of multiple parking lots. That has always been a "thing" with newer Rite Aid Stores- they don't have much of a walkway in front of the parking lot. Walgreens often does.

Looking more closely at the Temecula Store expanding on that covered walkway/door area if you look at it and look at the building supports you see there are the two angled supports in front of the doors, then 5 more supports on each side of the building. Pulling up the Walgreens at 2299 Oddie in Sparks which opened in 2009 you will notice the exact same construction of the support beams of 5 on one side, 2 angled by door, and 5 more on the other side. The window configuration is different. I am suspecting this store went to Rite Aid mid construction.

Good eye for detail there. It doesn't look exactly like a Walgreens, but there is definitely a resemblance so I think the hypothesis of a canceled Walgreens that Rite Aid grabbed makes sense. Probably easier to submit change orders for different logistics setup versus start planning from scratch especially since there were major building code changes that occurred in 2006; if they already had a fully approved building design then they likely could have slipped through on an older approval. Windows were probably chosen to match the design of the rest of the center. 2007-ish I think is when Walgreens drastically slowed down SoCal construction; I can't remember the last time I saw a new build for them.