A Retail Facelift

Duane Reade is virtually indistinguishable from it competitors, Rite Aide, Walgreens and CVS. Product, and the overall visual elements, color palette (red, white and a little bit of blue), are so similar that they’re sort of the Huey, Dewey and Louis of the pharmacy set.

In New York City, due to favorable (albeit unfair to other businesses) tax advantages and abatements, pharmacies and banks appear on every other corner in our city. In my neighborhood, within a three-block range, there are three Duane Reades, two Rite Aides, and two CVS stores--don’t get me started on banks.

It was with great surprise that I saw that Duane Reade is giving itself a totally glam-over facelift, not seen since Joan Rivers or Jocelyn Wildenstein last went under the knife. The facelift caught me off guard. Duane Reade was so overbuilt that they’re closing stores. Like most facelifts, you get what you pay for, and Duane Reade seems to be pouring a lot of dollars into this one. Still, I’m happy to see some progressive visual changes.

Gone is the old medicinal and patriotic color palette, which has been traded in for fashionable and chic black, with a rich lavender and bright apple green. It’s so sophisticated that it looks like it was borrowed from the Jason Wu runway show. The black is an interesting choice--it reads as grounded, smart and serious. I like the new color combo. It’s distinctive and adventurous.

Almost gone is the classic interlocking DR and lower-case myriad Duane Reade font in place of a bolder DR that looks more like the font on a prescription pad, and reinforces the association that the store has more to do with doctors than discount Q-Tips, Gold Bond Anti-Itch Cream and snack aisles. It’s an attempt to update its font, but for me, it just doesn’t quite make it. I’m not crazy about the different fonts, or its alignment within the bulleted circle. It just looks clunky. I know that with the aging of America, that pharmaceuticals have become big business. So to further reinforce the new concept, the pharmacy has been moved to the front of the store, which for me lacks privacy. I don’t want my neighbors to see me picking up my scripts.

On a more positive note, it’s interesting that the retailer, in an attempt to bring its message to the street and communicate directly with its customers, is now asking simple perfunctory questions like “Do I have everything I need?” and “How do I look?” and even “How do I feel?“ (Answers: yes, fabulous and I‘ve been better! Thank for asking.) Anyway, I do think the questions are well chosen, and do get passers by to engage with the store. Big thumbs up!

Gone from the old template are slat walled drop-in windows full of boxes of Tide, Cheerios and Wella-Balsam. Now we can see directly into the refurbished interiors, which look good. It truth, it’s better lit and better signed, but as Gertrude Stein would say, a gondola is a gondola is a gondola. Inside fabric banners running vertically are a refreshing change from the old-fashioned horizontal signage with the snap-in lettering, letting you know you were in the eye care/cold & flu/laxative section. Now it’s simplified, “Beauty” or “Pharmacy.” Yes, the check-out counter still has candy, gum and People Magazine heavily merchandised, but there isn’t the load of cheap crap filling up the counter we are accustomed to. The cash wraps are a soft weathered pine in a cool blue gray reminiscent of Cape Cod or Martha’s Vineyard. I’m not certain if it was Duane Reade’s intention, but the overall image borrows heavily from Sephora and Ulta, with a touch of Target.

One thing for certain--given the choice to shop in Duane Reade or one of its competitors, I have to admit Duane Reade wins hands down.

--Ron Knoth, Guest Blogger

Comments

[Ron Knoth]

Dear Ted,

Indeed, DR (Duane Reade) like many retailers have been mired in litigation and investigatory probes. Retail, just like real people, can easily alter their outside appearance, but unless the underlying issues are resolved, you still have the same issues.

Ron Knoth

[Ted Hurlbut]

A facelift, while welcome, can't address all of the other issues that have plagued DR for so long. There's still much to do.