NEW YORK -- Rite Aid and its senior management were the big winners at Drug Store News' Retail Excellence Awards ceremony, taking home four awards, including large chain of the year. Approximately 400 retailer and supplier executives attended the event held alongside the Hudson River at the Chelsea Piers on Oct. 15 in Manhattan.
Thirty-eight Retail Excellence Awards were given out to the industry's most committed retail and pharmacy leaders and to the standout product introductions in personal and beauty care, OTC, consumables and general merchandise categories.
On the retail side, Rite Aid executives took home a number of top honors. Jim Mastrian, senior executive vice president of marketing and logistics, won marketer of the year; Mark Panzer, senior executive vice president of store operations, won operations executive of the year; and Mary Sammons, president and chief executive officer, accepted the large drug chain of the year award on behalf of the chain. Bob Miller, Rite Aid's chairman, was named REX chain executive of the year. In his acceptance speech, Miller gave credit to the commitment and integrity of Rite Aid's associates and senior management. In September, Miller received Rite Aid's President's Award---given to the employee who best exemplifies the chain's core values. Miller assumed control of the chain three years ago and is credited with turning the chain around.
* Eckerd won the REX Excellence in Patient Care Award for being a true health care partner with its customers. The chain was cited for a number of initiatives including its specialty care pharmacy services, PatientCARE network and Project Impact, a program that is sponsored by the American Pharmacists Association and manages patients with chronic conditions to improve compliance.
* Costco, best known to bargain hunters for selling everything from laundry detergent to engagement rings, garnered the REX Customer Satisfaction Award. The chain now has 290 stores with pharmacies, many of which are equipped with private consultation rooms. Costco's pharmacy sales reached $1.4 billion in 2002.
* New York favorite Duane Reade took home the regional drug chain of the year award. Despite a tough local economy the chain forged ahead with several initiatives including central fill, pharmacy kiosks that extend pharmacy hours and a successful private label launch called apt. 5.
* REX Hall of Honor winners were, on the supplier side, Bill Parsons of American Greetings and, on the retailer side, Ron Hofmeister, who recently retired from Medicine Shoppe.
Parsons spent 28 years with American Greetings working his way up to vice president of sales for the drug channel. Parson's success was credited to his ability to forge strong relationships with retailers and suppliers.
Hofmeister began his career at Medicine Shoppe international 30 years ago and was instrumental at keeping the chain at the forefront of pharmacy care initiatives including disease-state management programs and health screenings. His leadership at Medicine Shoppe fostered a unique entrepreneurial spirit which paved the way to sales of over $2 billion in 2002.
The REX special section that follows offers complete coverage of all the winners, both retailers and suppliers. Drug Store News donates a portion of the event's proceeds to the Multiple Sclerosis Society.
CHAIN EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR
Bob Miller of Rite Aid (second from right) accepts the award from Jay Forbes of Drug Store News, Fuji Photo Film USA's Bob Cartwright and Drug Store News' John Kenlon.
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REGIONAL CHAIN OF THE YEAR
Duane Reade's Tony Cuti (center) accepts the award from Drug Store News' Rob Eder and Advo's Terry Goins.
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MARKETER OF THE YEAR
Rite Aid's Jim Mastrian (center) accepts the award from Coca-Cola's Mike Cinque and Drug Store News" John Kenlon.
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LARGE CHAIN OF THE YEAR
Rite Aid's Mary Sammons (center) accepts the award from Drug Store News' John Kenlon and David Hayes of Dr Pepper/Seven Up.
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OPERATIONS EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR
Rite Aid's Mark Panzer (center) accepts the award from Drug Store News' Rob Eder and Alpharma's Robert Sanzen.
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PHARMACY EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR
Diebold's Jack Finefrock presents the award to Frank Segrave of Wal-Mart.
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SUPERMARKET COMBO OF THE YEAR
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Roxanne Orsak of 11-E-B Foods/Drugs accepts the award from Drug Store News' Bernadette Casey.
WHOLESALER OF THE YEAR
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William Sirico of URL/Mutual Pharmaceutical presents the award to McKesson's John Figueroa.
SUPPLIER HALL OF HONORS
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Drug Store News' Jay Forbes presents the award to Bill Parsons of American Greetings.
TECHNOLOGY EXECUTIVE
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Karl Taylor of CVS accepts the award from Drug Store News' Tony Lisanti.
RETAILER HALL OF HONORS
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Jay Forbes of Drug Store News presents the award to Ron Hofmeister of Medicine Shoppe International.
3M MERCHANDISING INNOVATION AWARD
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Craig Fuller of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores presents the award to CVS' Karl Taylor.
FROM THE HEART AWARD
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Jack Kramer of CVS (center) accepts the award from Drug Store News' Rob Eder and Garry Briddon of Eastman Kodak.
EXCELLENCE IN PATIENT CARE
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Eckerd's Robert Versharen (center) accepts the award from Jack Fish of GlaxoSmithKline and Drug Store News" John Kenlon.
BRANDED RX VENDOR-IN-PARTNERSHIP
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Lou Dallago of Pfizer U.S. Pharmaceuticals accepts the award from Wal-Mart's Frank Segrave.
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AWARD
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Craig Norman (center) of Costco accepts the award from GlaxoSmithKline's Jack Fish and Drug Store News" John Kenlon.
GENERIC RX VENDOR-IN-PARTNERSHIP
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John Sedor of Geneva Pharmaceuticals accepts the award from Frank Segrave of Wal-Mart.
RX TECHNOLOGY VENDOR-IN-PARTNERSHIP
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Wal-Mart's Frank Segrave presents the award to John Wilson of Innovation Associates.
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HAIR CARE MARKET MAKER
Roxanne Orsak of H-E-B Foods/Drugs presents the award for Couleur Experte to Ken Montgomery of L'Oreal Paris.
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ETHNIC HAIR CARE MARKET MAKER
Roxanne Orsak of H-E-B Foods/Drugs presents the award for Pantene Pro-V Relaxed & Natural to Barb Hartman of Procter and Gamble. (See page 62 for other awards Hartman accepted for P&G.)
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NAIL CARE MARKET MAKER
Roxanne Orsak of H-E-B Foods/Drugs presents the award for Sally Hansen Nail Prisms to Bill McMenemy of Del Laboratories.
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COSMETICS/LIP MARKET MAKER
H-E-B Foods/Drugs' Roxanne Orsak presents the award for Wet Shine Diamonds to John Nosek of Maybelline/Garnier.
COSMETICS/FACE MARKET MAKER
H-E-B Foods/Drugs' Roxanne Orsak presents the award for Sally Hansen Fast and Flawless Airbrush Makeup to Harvey Alstodt of Del Laboratories.
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PERSONAL CARE/GROOMING MARKET MAKER
H-E-B Foods/Drugs' Roxanne Orsak presents the award for Schick Intuition to Rick Kelly of Schick Wilkinson-Sword.
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ORAL CARE MARKET MAKER
H-E-B Foods/Drugs' Roxanne Orsak presents the award for Simply White to Colgate-Palmolive's Norm Loringer.
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DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS MARKET MAKER
Jim Mastrian of Rite Aid presents the award for Osteo Bi-Flex Triple Strength to Barry Drucker of Nature's Bounty.
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SMOKING CESSATION MARKET MAKER
Jim Mastrian of Rite Aid presents the award for Commit Lozenge to Greg Bradley of GlaxoSmithKline.
COUGH/COLD/ALLERGY/SINUS MARKET MAKER
Rite Aid's Jim Mastrian presents the award for Claritin to T.J. Higgins of Schering-Plough Healthcare Products.
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DIET/WEIGHT LOSS MARKET MAKER
Rite Aid's Jim Mastrian presents the award for Carbolite Bars to Roeland Polet of Carbolite Foods.
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FIRST AID MARKET MAKER
Rite Aid's Jim Mastrian presents the award for Band-Aid Advanced Healing to Sharon Holubek of Johnson & Johnson.
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DIAGNOSTICS PRODUCT MARKET MAKER
Jim Mastrian of Rite Aid presents the award for OneTouch UltraSmart to Susan Benton of LifeScan.
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PHOTO/ELECTRONICS MARKET MAKER
Duane Reade's Tim LaBeau presents the award for Kodak Plus Digital One-Time Use Camera to Garry Briddon of Eastman Kodak.
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BEVERAGES MARKET MAKER
Duane Reade's Tim LaBeau presents the award for Vanilla Coke to Mike Cinque of Coca-Cola.
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PAIN RELIEF PRODUCT MARKET MAKER
Rite Aid's Jim Mastrian presents the award for Tylenol 8 Hour to Gary Benedict of McNeil.
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SNACKS MARKET MAKER
Tim LaBeau of Duane Reade presents the award for Kellogg's Cereal & Milk Bars to Derrick Spalt of Kellogg's.
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CANDY MARKET MAKER
Tim LaBeau of Duane Reade presents the award for Hershey's Sugar Free to Tom Cumpson of Hershey Foods.
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REX 2003 Silver Circle Award Winners
Personal & Beauty Care
Hair Care
Garnier Fructis, Maybelline/Garnier
Skin/Face
Nivea Q10 Plus, Beiersdorf
Cosmetics/Lip
Moisturious, Revlon
Cosmetics/Face
EverFresh, Maybelline/Garnier
Cosmetics/Eye
Almay Bright Eyes, Revlon
Nail Care
Wet Shine Diamonds, Maybelline/Garnier
Personal Care/Grooming
Axe, Unilever Home & Personal Care USA
Oral Care
Crest Night Effects, Procter & Gamble Co.
Ethnic
Revlon Realistic
Relaxers, Colomer USA
OTC
Cough/Cold/Allergy/Sinus
Hall's Fruit Breezers, Adams/Cadbury
Dietary Supplements
One-A-Day
Men's Health, Bayer Corp.
Diet/Weight Loss
Hydroxycut, MuscleTech Research and Development
Smoking Cessation
Nicotrol 16-Hour
Step-down Patch, Pfizer Consumer
Healthcare
First Aid
Wartner, LDS Consumer Products
Diagnostics
Accu-Chek Advantage, Roche Diagnostics
General Merchandise
Toys
Bratz Funk 'N' Glow
Collection, MGA Entertainment
Photo/Electronics
Fujifilm DVD-R, Fuji Photo Film USA
Sundries/As Seen On TV
Spa Therapy Kit, HoMedics
Consumables
Snacks
Milk 'n Cereal Bars, General Mills
Beverages
Dr Pepper Red Fusion
Dr Pepper/Seven Up
Candy
Popables, Masterfoods USA
Procter & Gamble's
Barb Hartman also
accepted the Skin/Face
Market Maker award
for Olay Regenerist and
the Cosmetics/Eye
Market Maker award
for Max Factor
Lashfinity.
COPYRIGHT 2003 Reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. Further reproduction or distribution is prohibited without permission.
COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group
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