All Rite Aid stores completely vanish from birthplace as last location in the state closes down

THE last Rite Aid store in the pharmacy chain’s birthplace has been shut down, with the retailer’s presence in the state now seemingly obsolete.

A list on the company’s website slated the shutdown for late last month, with the closure part of a nationwide restructuring process amid bankruptcy.

Getty

Getty

Rite Aid Corporation is an American drugstore chain with roots reaching back to 1962, when it was founded in Scranton, Pennsylvania, by Alex Grass under the name Thrif D Discount Center.

Despite its longstanding history in the state, the company has apparently shuttered all of its stores in Pennsylvania.

The Rite Aid store in Grindstone – roughly 65 miles from Pittsburgh – in Fayette County was the last Pennsylvania location listed for closure, set to shut down on August 22, per a list on the company’s website.

The spot was Rite Aid’s last pharmacy in the state, with all of the company’s pharmacies in the Philadelphia region closing by early August, per the Philadelphia Inquirer.

The retail sections of a number of stores in the area were expected to remain open for a few days afterward, store employees told the outlet.

Four Pennsylvania Rite Aid stores were still listed on the company’s website as of Friday, September 5, including Belle Vernon, Berwick, Coudersport, and Pittsburgh, according to a local outlet.

Operating hours for the Belle Vernon and Berwick locations were on the site, while the Coudersport and Pittsburgh stores were listed as being “closed all week.”

However, none of the four spots appeared to actually be open, per the outlet.

The Berwick Rite Aid’s phone number was answered by an automated system for a close by CVS Pharmacy, while a phone call to the Coudersport store was transferred to a Weis Pharmacy in Wellsboro.

Meanwhile, the number for the Belle Vernon store was continuously busy and the Pittsburgh number for a Rite Aid in the Pittsburgh International Airport did not pick up the phone.

The U.S. Sun reached out to Rite Aid for comment on the pharmacy chain’s remaining stores in Pennsylvania but did not hear back immediately.

PHARMA PROBLEMS

Rite Aid filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection back in May, marking the chain’s second bankruptcy filing in under two years.

The company had struggling financially for many years amid a tough retail landscape, especially for pharmacies.

Pharmacies are being hit with shrinking profit margins from decreased reimbursement rates for prescription drugs as well as a drop in retail sales due to inflation and increased competition from online retailers and grocery store pharmacies.

Additionally, Rite Aid has felt the pressure from high debt from past acquisitions and legal liabilities from its role in the opioid crisis, with allegations that the company knowingly filled hundreds of thousands of unlawful prescriptions for controlled substances.

Rite Aid’s Chapter 11 filing this spring was followed by a rapid store shutdown process.

At the time of the second filing, the pharmacy giant operated just over 1,200 stores across 15 states.

Rite Aid now has less than 100 stores left, with its final two planned closures set to take place in Washington and Oregon on September 29.

Although the future of Rite Aid remains uncertain, all signs point toward the company winding down its retail pharmacy business.

The pharmacy’s move to sell its assets and close the majority of its stores make its long-term survival highly uncertain, with a complete exit from the retail pharmacy business being likely.

A broader look into the retail industry similarly shows challenges, with traditional retailers also struggling with inflation, shifting consumer preferences, and heightened competition.

These troubles have pushed mass closures, with 15,000 stores expected to shutter this year, as well as a number of bankruptcy filings.

For example, a beloved big box retailer has set out to close 29 stores after its bankruptcy filing.

Meanwhile, JCPenney boasted a sale of 70% off for its latest store closure after shutting down eight locations this year.