Is your pharmacy a destination for first aid accessories?

Drugstores dominate the market, but recent numbers show this grip is loosening as both mass and food outlets gain ground.

Strategies

You can stop this erosion by focusing on the home health-care trend and making your first aid section a destination department for your customers. Analysts at NONSTOP Solutions-Hamacher Division suggest three ways to achieve this goal.

First, stock a larger assortment of first aid products than your local competition; then advertise that you do so. Take advantage of the category’s busiest selling seasons, spring and summer, by advertising specials and regular promotions during these warm months. Summer inventory levels should rise to keep pace with the increase in sales, and you may have to borrow some extra shelf space from an adjacent department to accommodate the expanded stock. If you plan on trimming your department in the fall and winter, remember: A destination department must maintain a high rate of in-stock items all year long. Customers will leave your store empty-handed if the sought-after items aren’t on your shelves.

Second, aggressively price popular items, including private-label products. They capture nearly 21% of first aid sales, second only to Johnson & Johnson’s 47% share. Private-label accessories substantially boost the drugstore’s profitability with margins of 39%-53%. Such profits more than make up for the loss produced by aggressively pricing certain branded items.

Third, closely watch market trends. An influx of new products over the past year has featured medical advancements. Carry many of these new products, especially adhesive bandages, to take advantage of manufacturers’ advertising and promotional dollars. New items succeed best in the adhesive bandages subcategory, which produces about 50% of accessories’ sales.

Adhesive bandages

Two revolutionary products may change wound management: Band-Aid Brand Advanced Healing Strip and Curad’s Hydro Heal. Both rely on recent medical findings that report that leaving a wound uncovered slows the healing process. Band-Aid uses a hospital-tested hydrocolloid technology that promotes fast, natural healing. Designed to stay in place for several days without changing, these bandages adhere even when they’re wet.

Children love adhesive bandages, and they use almost two-thirds of those sold. All three major brands, Johnson & Johnson, 3M, and Curad, offer decorative and licensed character bandages. While new designs keep the subcategory fresh, many lack staying power. Styles in this subcategory change rapidly so monitor new releases and replace slow sellers with new items.

Hamacher planograms merchandise licensed character and decorative bandages together, forming a distinct segment within adhesive bandages. We recommend including 12-17 SKUs in a large department.

Keeping your customers

Customers return to places that have offered them great customer service. And patients clearly prefer buying first aid products in drugstores. Capitalize on this preference by making your first aid department the best in your community. Let people know about your selection and service. Then watch your destination department increase traffic and sales.

FIRST AID BANDAGES SUMMARY

Large Dept.

24 linear feet

Number of SKUs

Estimated Sales per Year

Estimated Inventory Retail

FIRST AID BANDAGES NEW ITEMS

FIRST AID BANDAGES: NEVER-OUT LIST

Use this Never Out list to monitor your in-stock condition. The items listed account for more than 50% of the dollar sales in the first aid bandages department. An out-of-stock on any of these items represents a significant loss of sales.

____ Band-Aid Adhesive Pad 10 Large

____ Band-Aid Butterfly 12 Medium

____ Band-Aid Clear 8 Travel

____ Band-Aid Clear 30 1 Size

____ Band-Aid Flex 20 Knee/Finger

____ Band-Aid Flex 30 1 Size

____ Band-Aid Flex 30 Assorted

____ Band-Aid Pooh 30 Assorted

____ Band-Aid Sheer 10 XL

____ Band-Aid Sheer 40 1 Size

____ Band-Aid Sheer 40 Assorted

Sandra Levy. Is your pharmacy a destination for first aid accessories?.

Drug Topics

2001;6.