Company Profile
Walgreens
Company Overview
Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) is the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2010 sales of $67.4 billion. The company operates over 8,000 locations in 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Walgreens provides the most convenient access to consumer goods and services and cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services in America through its retail drugstores, Walgreens Health Services division and Walgreens Health and Wellness division. Walgreens Health Services assists pharmacy patients and prescription drug and medical plans through Walgreens Health Initiatives Inc. (a pharmacy benefit manager), Walgreens Mail Service Inc., Walgreens Home Care Inc., Walgreens Specialty Pharmacy LLC and SeniorMed LLC (a pharmacy provider to long-term care facilities). Walgreens Health and Wellness division includes Take Care Health Systems, the largest and most comprehensive manager of worksite health and wellness centers and in-store convenient care clinics, with more than 700 locations throughout the country.
This is the company's 36th consecutive year of record sales and 35th consecutive year of raising its dividend. Walgreens was named Fortune Magazine's Most Admired Companies in America for the 17th consecutive year.
Specialties
Well at Walgreens – Healthy, Happy, Creating Value Together!
Company History
1901
Charles R. Walgreen Sr. purchased the Chicago drugstore where he had worked as a pharmacist — and that started the Walgreen chain. His energy and enthusiasm soon led to new ideas and ambitious expansion. For example, he manufactured his own line of drug products to ensure high quality and low prices.
1909
The second Walgreen store opened.
1916
Nine stores incorporated as Walgreen Co.
1922
Walgreens invented the malted milkshake. Customers stood three and four deep around the soda fountain to buy the "double-rich chocolate malted milk."
1926
The 100th store opened in Chicago.
1927
Walgreen Co. stock went public.
1933
Walgreens helped celebrate Chicago's World Fair. The company opened four stores on the Century of Progress fairgrounds. These stores experimented with advanced fixture design, new lighting techniques and colors — ideas that helped modernize drugstore layout and design.
1939
Charles Walgreen Sr. died and Charles Walgreen Jr. became the company's president.
1943
The company opened a nonprofit 6,000-foot drugstore in the Pentagon. All the profits from the store went to the Pentagon Post Restaurant Council, which supervised food service in the complex. The store operated into the 1980s.
1946
Walgreens acquired its first foreign property when the company bought the Mexican retailer Sanborn's. In 1984, the company sold Sanborn's.
1950
Walgreens began to build self-service instead of clerk service stores in the Midwest. By 1953, Walgreens was the largest self-service retailer in the country.
1960
Walgreens entered the Puerto Rico market.
Walgreens filled its 100 millionth prescription, far more than any drug chain at that time.
1968
Walgreens became the first major drug chain to put its prescriptions into child-resistant containers, long before it was required by law.
1969
Charles Walgreen III became the company's president.
1975
Walgreens reached $1 billion in sales.
1981
The first Intercom computers were installed in five Walgreen pharmacies in Des Moines, Iowa. This was the initial step toward making Walgreens the first drugstore chain to connect all its pharmacy departments via satellite.
1982
Next-day photofinishing became available chainwide.
1984
Walgreens opened its 1,000th store, at 1200 N. Dearborn in Chicago.
1991
In November, the chain completed installation of point-of-sale scanning to speed checkouts.
1992
Walgreens opened its first drugstore with a drive-thru pharmacy.
1994
The 2,000th store opened in Cleveland.
1997
Intercom Plus, Walgreens advanced computer system, completed rollout to all stores. Intercom Plus speeds the prescription-filling process, permits better patient counseling and is the leading pharmacy system in the industry.
1999
Walgreens.com, a comprehensive online pharmacy, was launched offering customers a convenient and secure way to take care of many pharmaceutical and healthcare needs online. In addition, the site provides Mayo Clinic Health Information, a trusted source in health and wellness information.
Charles Walgreen III retired. L. Daniel Jorndt is named chairman.
2000
Walgreens reached the 3,000-store mark when its location at Halsted and Monroe in Chicago opened.
2001
Walgreens celebrated its centennial in June and rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
2002
Walgreens became the first drugstore chain to offer prescription labels in multiple languages chainwide. Today, labels can be printed in one of 14 languages — Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, Vietnamese and English.
2003
Walgreens reached the 4,000-store mark when its location at Coldwater Canyon Avenue and Magnolia Boulevard in Van Nuys, Calif., opened in March. L. Daniel Jorndt retired and David Bernauer was named chairman.
2005
Walgreens opened its 5,000th store in Richmond, Va., in October.
2006
In July, president Jeffrey A. Rein was named CEO while former CEO and chairman David W. Bernauer continued as chairman. Also in July, Walgreens acquired Happy Harry’s drugstore chain, adding 76 stores, primarily in Delaware. In the fall, Walgreens began offering in-store health clinics, called Health Corner Clinics, with nurse practitioners treating walk-in patients for common ailments. During 2006, clinics opened in St. Louis, Kansas City, Chicago and Atlanta."
2007
Walgreens acquired Take Care Health Systems and with the acquisition, it expects to have more than 400 clinics by the end of 2008. Also in 2007, chairman David W. Bernauer retired and Jeffrey A. Rein became chairman and CEO. Gregory D. Wasson was named president and COO. In the summer of 2007, Walgreens acquired Option Care, a network of more than 100 pharmacies (including more than 60 company-owned) in 34 states, providing a full spectrum of specialty pharmacy and home infusion services. In the fall of 2007, Walgreens opened its first store in Hawaii in Honolulu and celebrated the opening of its 6,000th store in New Orleans.
Notable Products / Brands
Walgreens, Nice!, W,
Notable Accomplishments / Recognition
DiversityBusiness.com Top 50 Organizations for Multicultural Business Opportunities (published January 16, 2012)
Walgreens ranked 38th overall among the top 50 corporate and organizational buyers of diversity products and services throughout the U.S., according to the more than one million diversity business owners participating in the survey.
Fortune magazine World's Most Admired Companies (published March 4, 2011)
Walgreens ranked No. 4 among food and drugstores and has been listed for the past 18 consecutive years.
Fortune magazine 500 Largest U.S.-Based Companies (published May 5, 2011)
Walgreens ranked 32nd overall in revenue, 3rd among food and drugstores.
Fortune magazine Global 500 Largest Companies (published July 25, 2011)
Walgreens ranked 104th overall in revenue.
Forbes Global 2000 (published May 10, 2010)
Walgreens ranked 163th on this list of the 2000 largest public companies worldwide.
Fast Company magazine "Fast 50" issue (published March 2010)
Walgreens ranked as the 6th most innovative health care company for leadership in health care services like its national network of Take Care Clinics and its burgeoning efforts in health and wellness services and chronic care management.
Diversity/Careers magazine (published June/July 2010)
Walgreens was again named a Best Diversity Company in the publication's Reader's Choice survey.
CAREERS & the disABLED magazine Top 50 Employers (published Winter 2010/2011)
Walgreens ranked 12th in the readers survey of employers they believe provide the most positive working environment for people with disabilities.
Moody's
Walgreens current rating is A2.
Standard and Poor's
Walgreens current rating is A.