When Bartell Drugs, a family-owned independent community pharmacy chain based in Seattle, became the first pharmacy to team up with Amazon Prime, the pharmacy differentiated itself in a big way.
In November of last year, Bartell Drugs partnered with Amazon Prime to launch the delivery service, Prime Now. Prime Now allows Amazon Prime members to shop thousands of products from Bartell Drugs. Customers’ purchases are then delivered to their door—for free—within two hours.
“As a regional retailer, it has helped propel our brand through our core service area to audiences that might be more inclined to shop online than in our physical stores,” said Brent Beebe, senior vice president of merchandising at Bartell Drugs.
With more customers looking for convenient ways to shop, Bartell Drugs knew it needed to break into the online space. Partnering with Amazon Prime to create a delivery service was the perfect opportunity.
“We had not previously been in the online space and knew that it was important to have that presence,” Beebe said. “The partnership with Prime Now allowed us to create that market without the expensive and time-consuming need to develop an entire infrastructure for online sales of our own.”
How it works
Prime Now provides Bartell Drugs customers with a new online shopping experience.
Amazon Prime customers access their accounts through Bartell Drugs’ website or directly through the Prime Now portal. Customers can also use the Prime Now app to easily log in and make purchases.
Once logged in, customers simply browse Bartell Drugs’ assortment of products, select the items they want to purchase and submit the order. Bartell Drugs’ employees then package the products, and an Amazon Prime delivery driver delivers the order to the customer in one or two hours.
The delivery service is available to Prime Now customers seven days a week (from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.) The convenient hours attract customers who don’t have the time or means to make it to the pharmacy on a given day.
Ninety percent of the retail products sold in Bartell Drugs stores are available through Prime Now, including health, beauty, grocery, snacks and local products. Currently, Bartell Drugs’ prescriptions are not available for delivery.
Right now the delivery service is available to customers in select zip codes, but the service is expanding rapidly to reach more customers in the Pacific Northwest. Customers can look up their zip code on Bartell Drugs’ website to see if the delivery service is available in their area.
Serving the community
Prime Now enables Bartell Drugs to better serve its community because it can meet even more customers’ needs. The pharmacy recognizes that some customers find it difficult to visit its brick and mortar stores when the need arises.
“Prime Now presents an unparalleled opportunity for our western Washington customers seeking convenience, a unique product assortment and a high level of service,” Beebe said. “It’s perfect for customers with busy lifestyles, as well as for people with small children or those who might have mobility issues.”
Beebe said some of the most popular items sold through Prime Now include snacks, beverages and over-the-counter (OTC) medicines.
The delivery service launched during cold and flu season, which enabled the pharmacy to better serve customers who needed a more convenient way to find relief for their symptoms.
According to Beebe, sales from cold and flu medications, along with personal care items, have been significant. “Bartell Drugs’ customers are loving the convenience of getting the products they need delivered right to their door with free two-hour delivery,” he said.
Embracing innovation
It’s not always easy to be an innovator. As the first pharmacy to offer a delivery service through Amazon Prime, Bartell Drugs saw both risks and rewards.
But because Bartell Drugs continuously looks for new ways to differentiate its stores from the competition, Prime Now was a welcomed opportunity.
“As the first drugstore to be on Prime Now, it has been an iterative process,” Beebe said. “We continue to refine and curate our catalog of products as we better pinpoint the needs of our online customers.”
Learn more about Prime Now.
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