It took a while longer than expected, but London Drugs finally opened its 76th outlet Friday, at Vancouver?s Olympic Village.
The venerable family-owned pharmacy and consumer goods retailer, which first set roots in the city 110 years ago, had an eager landlord. But it chose to bide its time while the Village filled up with potential customers, London Drugs president and CEO Wynne Powell said in an interview following the 17,000-square-foot store?s grand opening, which was attended by Deputy Mayor George Affleck and developer/marketer Bob Rennie.
Powell noted there was a further delay of a few months as the company worked through design plans for a makeover of its primary 34,000-square-foot stores ? and adapted those designs for the Olympic Village site.
?There weren?t any logistical obstacles,? Powell said. ?We?ve been looking to go into that location since 2006. So as Bob Rennie said, he was very anxious to have London Drugs there, with Urban Fare, as the anchor tenants to really solidify it as a village there.
?That Olympic moment was a great a moment in the city of Vancouver, and Canada?s history, so we felt we wanted to be part of it.
But ... that store, we knew, would be quite a significant loss if we opened it way too early.?
The larger stores contain about 100,000 different items ? too many for a store half that size ? so the company consulted with the community about what it most wanted to see on the shelves.
?One of our executive committee members got invited into the various homes down there, and we basically said if this London Drugs is going to be your store, what type of products would you like to be sure that we have?
?They were enchanting [and] helpful.?
The company used the occasion to announce a new recycling initiative ? collection bins will be installed at all stores enabling customers to return used cosmetics packaging and chocolate wrappers.
The store is also pledging to donate two cents for each returned package.
?Any dollars that we can put into cancer care is going to be a major help to everyone,? said Powell, who serves as chair of the BC Cancer Agency.
ssimpson@vancouversun.com
Twitter.com/ScottSimpsun
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