What makes an independent pharmacy attractive to the customer? In addition to providing stellar customer service, the independent pharmacist can provide services that retail pharmacies just can't, like personalized attention, prescription filling right on site, home delivery of prescriptions, the ability to offer customer discounts, and the establishment of clinical pharmacies on-site so that customers can get non-urgent healthcare conveniently and affordably. Once you've done those things, though, you can set yourself apart from your competitors with clean, attractively organized location, something you can do easily with the help of pharmacy fixtures.
Pharmacy fixtures can help you organize your whole store, but one particularly valuable purpose they serve is that, they can allow you to create point-of-purchase merchandise displays near the checkout lanes. Point of purchase merchandise displays allow you to conveniently position small "impulse" items that customers can buy as add-ons, as they're about to check out and at the last minute.
Some examples of "impulse" items found in a point of purchase merchandise display include:
Candy and snacks
Placing candy and snacks strategically near the checkout make them an easy item for customers to add at the last minute. You can place these in small containers right at the checkout on the counter, and/or provide shelving within the checkout lane so that customers can browse as they wait to be checked out.
Over-the-counter medications
Most people don't specifically go shopping for over-the-counter medications, but find them a good purchase when they're about to check out. Placing them near the checkout (as well as within their designated department) gives customers more opportunities to find and thus buy them.
In addition to holding full-sized bottles of over-the-counter medications, the checkout locations can contain pharmacy fixtures that hold travel sized, single-dose, etc., sizes of the over-the-counter medications for convenient access – and better sales for you.
Small medical items
Diabetes testing strips, hearing aid replacement batteries and other sizes of batteries for various medical devices, cotton swabs and adhesive bandages are just some examples of small items that can be placed on pharmacy fixtures to create a point of purchase merchandise display near the checkout.
Small personal items
Other examples include toothbrushes, small travel sized bottles of items used for hygiene, like soap, shampoo, deodorant and toothpaste, and small bottles of hand sanitizer.
Other uses for pharmacy fixtures throughout your store:
Organization and attractive presentation of products for sale
As an independent pharmacist, you can set yourself above your competitors by having a clean, well-organized store that allows customers to find what they need, easily. Customizable pharmacy fixtures will allow you to create customizable layouts and structures to make the most efficient use of your space. Pharmacy fixtures like retail store display wall shelving, gondola shelving, under-the-counter storage, four-way display units, and gondola checkout shelves (especially important for those last-minute purchases) let you strategically placed products throughout your store to encourage customers to buy.
Quick setup of sale or clearance item displays
Pharmacy fixtures also allow you to quickly set up and break down specialized clearance or sales displays on the spot. Strategically place displays throughout the store so that they are clearly visible to customers.
Protecting inventory from damage or theft
It's no secret that thefts of prescription drugs like OxyContin are on the rise; you will need to be able to not only store inventory so that it's easy to find, but you will need to protect it from theft in some cases. The shelving system you choose for controlled medications and other substances like OxyContin and some antihistamines should allow you to lock it up and keep it secure.
