Rite Aid to close Irwin store in February
Rite Aid will close its pharmacy and store on Main Street in Irwin early next month, a decision made after an evaluation of its business, the Camp Hill-based pharmacy chain said.
Rite Aid’s last day of normal operations in Irwin is expected to be Feb. 4, at which time the store will close a few days before reopening for liquidation of its inventory, said Peter Strella, a Rite Aid spokesman. The store has eight employees who will be affected by the closing, Strella said.
“The reason for closing this store is strictly a business decision, one that we never like to make or want to make, but one that we felt was important in supporting our overall business,” Strella said.
Customers’ prescription files are being transferred to Rite Aid pharmacy locations in North Huntingdon at 10 Clay Pike and 8775 Norwin Ave. Customers will receive a letter informing them that they may fill their prescriptions at these locations or any other Rite Aid pharmacy, Strella said.
Retail pharmacy rival Walgreens purchased about 1,900 Rite Aid stores in 2018, but the Irwin store was not included in the sale, Strella said.
Walgreens, the nation’s largest pharmacy chain store, had intended to close about 600 of the Rite Aid stores it purchased in the deal, primarily those within a mile or so of a Walgreens outlet.
Rite Aid’s proposed deal to merge with Albertson’s Co. Inc. of Idaho, one of the nation’s largest food and drug chains, fell apart in August.
Joe Napsha is a Tribune-Review
staff writer. You can contact
Joe at 724-836-5252 or jnapsha@tribweb.com.
Joe Napsha is a TribLive reporter covering Irwin, North Huntingdon and the Norwin School District. He also writes about business issues. He grew up on Neville Island and has worked at the Trib since the early 1980s. He can be reached at jnapsha@triblive.com.
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