London Drugs Celebrates Its 76th Store in Canada

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire -08/31/12)- This morning at 9 am, London Drugs will celebrate two important milestones, opening its 76th store in Canada and a particularly special address - 1622 Salt Street, Vancouver's Olympic Village.

"Today is the day we open a new London Drugs store in one of the most beautiful city spaces in the world," said Wynne Powell, London Drugs president and CEO. "Our 76th store is unique in a variety of ways, particularly its boutique feel and new store concept, customized specifically for the Olympic Village community. We thank the residents here for being patient and for collaborating in the success of our new store in this vibrant Vancouver neighbourhood."

During the past year London Drugs staff began canvasing the Olympic Village, looking at the residential suites and learning about what products and services would best serve the burgeoning seaside community.

"We met with residents and we learned about what kind of appliance selections made sense; we became acutely aware of the variety of foods and household storage requirements, smart technological solutions and the community's broad health and wellness needs," said Powell.

"Today London Drugs opens its doors to become part of the increasingly vibrant community at The Village," said Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson. "The new store complements the existing retail mix, adds more convenience for local residents and improves walkability in this unique neighbourhood."

The Olympic Village London Drugs is smaller in size than a typical London Drugs at 17,200 sq.ft., still containing the majority of departments of a standard London Drugs location. The main entrance into the cosmetics department is entirely new for a London Drugs store, followed by an open and integrated technological and electronics area. There is a full-service photolab, a pharmacy with a private consultation room and all of the high-quality household and food items customers expect to find at London Drugs.

"As a Vancouverite, seeing the growth of London Drugs from the corner of Granville and Georgia, where my mom would buy her hairspray, to its growth and opening today at the Village, it's somehow very right that London Drugs should be that last missing link to the Village community," said Bob Rennie, Principal, Rennie Marketing Systems.

BC-based and family owned and operated, London Drugs' first store opened in Vancouver on Main Street in 1945. Since then, the company has enjoyed steady expansion with stores reaching as far east as Winnipeg.

At today's opening day celebration, London Drugs COO Clint Mahlman announced that the Olympic Village store would achieve 95% waste diversion from landfills - three years ahead of a 2015 target.

London Drugs is a pioneer in waste diversion. The company has recycled more than 147,000 pounds of Styrofoam since 2007; the only retailer in Canada with a company-wide Styrofoam recycling program. Additional statistics include more than 99,000 pounds of plastic recycled each year, 9.9 million pounds of cardboard recycled and the list goes on.

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London Drugs Celebrates Its 76th Store in Canada