Latest news with #Bartell
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
More WA Rite Aid and Bartell sites added to chains' store shutdown list
Two more proposed store closure lists have been entered into the court filings of Rite Aid's bankruptcy case, and they include more Pierce County locations. The lists, released June 5 and June 6, included 25 and 207 store locations nationwide, respectively, with a combined 23 sites in Washington. The bulk are Rite Aid drugstores, except for four Bartell Drugs — one of those in Tacoma. The Seattle-based Bartell drugstore chain is a subsidiary of Rite Aid. For Pierce County, the new closure lists include: ▪ Rite Aid at 5700 100th St. SW, Suite 100, Lakewood ▪ Bartell Drugs at 3601 Sixth Ave., Tacoma ▪ Rite Aid at 12811 Meridian St. E., Puyallup ▪ Rite Aid at 21302 State Route 410 E., Bonney Lake In Thurston County, the June 6 list included the Rite Aid at 305 Cooper Point Road NW. Other Washington locations on the new lists include: ▪ Rite Aid, 2131 SW 336th St., Federal Way ▪ Rite Aid, 10407 SE 256th St., Kent ▪ Rite Aid, 3116 NE Sunset Boulevard, Renton ▪ Rite Aid, 17615 140th Ave. SE, Renton ▪ Rite Aid, 7500-A 196th St. SW Lynnwood ▪ Rite Aid, 2860 NW Bucklin Hill Road, Silverdale ▪ Rite Aid, 11700 Muilteo Speedway No. 500, Mukilteo ▪ Bartell Drugs, 2222 32nd Ave. W., Seattle ▪ Rite Aid, 4514 S. Regal St., Spokane ▪ Rite Aid, 19475 7th Ave. NE, Poulsbo ▪ Rite Aid, 1901 N. Steptoe St., Kennewick ▪ Bartell Drugs, 419 NE 71st. St., Seattle ▪ Rite Aid, 1065 NW Gilman Blvd., Issaquah ▪ Bartell Drugs, 11020 19th Ave. SE, Everett ▪ Rite Aid, 364 Triangle Shopping Center, Longview ▪ Rite Aid, 3227 Northwest Ave., Bellingham ▪ Rite Aid, 1329 Lee Blvd., Richland ▪ Rite Aid, 12420 N. Division St., Spokane Rite Aid is closing hundreds of stores nationwide amid its latest bankruptcy. CVS Pharmacy has agreed to acquire the prescription files of 625 Rite Aid pharmacies across 15 states, as well as acquire 64 Rite Aid stores in Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Other stores that remain on Rite Aid's website as open in Pierce County include two stores in Tacoma (1912 N. Pearl St. and 7041 Pacific Ave.) a store in Spanaway and three locations in Puyallup. Bartell is set to have one Pierce County site remaining, in Gig Harbor. With the new filings, the Washington stores slated for closure now total nearly 50. No dates have been announced for when the stores will shutter. Oregon had several additional stores listed for closure, and Idaho had one. See previous coverage for earlier closure lists.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Rite Aid closures adding up. Is your favorite Tacoma-area store on the list?
More Rite Aid/Bartell stores are closing in Washington state as a result of the chain's latest bankruptcy proceedings. A court filing entered May 23 included the following locations in the state among 151 additional stores set to close nationwide: ▪ Auburn: 1509 Auburn Way S. ▪ Maple Valley: 22117 SE 237th St. (Bartell Drugs) ▪ Milton: 900 East Meridian Suite 23 ▪ Port Orchard: 3282 Bethel Road S.E. ▪ University Place: 3840 Bridgeport Way W. Thirteen sites in the state, mostly Rite Aid but a few involving its subsidiary Bartell Drug, have been slated as closing, including previously announced locations in Anacortes, Ephrata, Granite Falls, Kingston, North Bend, Omak, Snoqualmie and Yelm. No specific closure dates were included, and Rite Aid representatives as of Wednesday afternoon had not responded to The News Tribune's request for more information. The Idaho Statesman reported this week that two Idaho stores added to the latest list are slated to close in June, with the retail and pharmacies closing on different dates. A Worker Adjustment and Training Notification filing with the state of Washington on May 7 listed 131 layoffs with Bartell Drug (Rite Aid) Distribution Center in Des Moines starting June 4. Both Bartell and Rite Aid have imposed deadlines for returns and gift card use as of June 5, and Rite Aid Rewards points stopped being issued on May 6. Rite Aid in mid-May announced that it had entered into a series of 'sale agreements and pharmacy services transition agreements' involving more than 1,000 stores. In Washington state, it noted the 'the sale and operation by CVS Pharmacy of many Rite Aid and Bartell Drugs stores located in Washington, Oregon and Idaho.' Amy Thibault is executive director, corporate communications – external Affairs for CVS Health. In an emailed statement, she told The News Tribune earlier this month, 'CVS Pharmacy participated in a bankruptcy court approved bidding process and has agreed to acquire the prescription files of 625 Rite Aid pharmacies across fifteen states in areas that CVS serves and to acquire and operate 64 Rite Aid stores in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.' CVS's bids were approved May 21 by the The U.S. Bankruptcy Court of New Jersey, and a release from CVS stated, 'Additional details will be available closer to the transaction closing dates in the coming weeks.' Sites that remain on Rite Aid's website as open in Pierce County include two stores in Tacoma (1912 N. Pearl St. and 7041 Pacific Ave.) stores in Bonney Lake, Lakewood and Spanaway and four locations in Puyallup. Bartell has three sites remaining in Pierce County (two in Tacoma, one in Gig Harbor). As for the switch, Thibault said CVS was working to ensure a 'seamless' transition for patients and customers with no interruptions of pharmacy care. 'Once the sale is finalized, we look forward to welcoming Rite Aid colleagues who are interested in applying to join the CVS team.'
Axios
15-05-2025
- Business
- Axios
Bartell Drugs: A Seattle legacy fades away
Six Rite Aid and two Bartell Drugs locations in Washington are set to close following a new round of shutdowns approved in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Why it matters: Bartell Drugs isn't just a drugstore chain, it's a Seattle institution. Catch up quick: The family-run business has been a beloved local brand since 1890. It was known for stocking regional treats such as Theo Chocolate and Aplets & Cotlets before Rite Aid bought it in 2020. Since then, Rite Aid has filed twice for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and it's now in the process of selling and closing stores nationwide. The company plans to shut down all Bartell locations in the coming months unless a buyer steps in, KUOW reported last week. Driving the news: Washington is losing Bartell locations in Snoqualmie and North Bend, along with Rite Aid stores in Kingston, Yelm, Anacortes, Granite Falls, Omak and Ephrata, per the Seattle Times.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Rite Aid and Bartell shoppers take note: Use your gift cards before time is up
Amid Rite Aid's bankruptcy news this week, deadlines have emerged for customers dealing with gift cards or returns tied to both the drugstore chain and subsidiary, Bartell Drugs. Collectively, the two drugstore brands have multiple storefronts in Pierce County, three for Bartell and 12 for Rite Aid, according to their websites. Philadelphia-based Rite Aid has more than 1,200 sites across 15 states. The chain acquired Seattle-based Bartell in 2020. As a result of Rite Aid's May 5 Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, both Rite Aid and Bartell now post banners on their websites stating deadlines for using gift cards or points tied to purchases. 'Bartell's will no longer honor Bartell Drugs or Rite Aid gift cards or accept any return or exchanges beginning June 5,' Bartell Drugs states on its website. 'Beginning, May 6, 2025, Rite Aid Rewards points will no longer be issued for qualifying purchases,' Rite Aid states on its website. Additionally, 'Rite Aid will no longer honor Rite Aid gift cards or accept any return or exchanges beginning June 5.' The sites are set to either be sold off or closed, depending on the outcome of asset sales in the case. In a filing with U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey, attorneys for Rite Aid wrote that time was of the essence in gaining maximum value in a sale to another entity. The filing called for an expeditious sale, as prolonged bankruptcy proceedings would see the loss of more employees and customers, and their prescriptions as time wore on and noted Rite Aid fills more than 100 million prescriptions each year. 'Rite Aid's prescriptions are its most valuable asset,' the filing stated, 'Rite Aid must conduct a timely, orderly, court-supervised sale of its assets, including its prescriptions, to ensure an uninterrupted supply of medications to pharmacy-care customers who need them and preserve value for their estates.' Thinly stocked retail shelves already seen at some stores could become even more so in the coming weeks. 'I think what we'll progressively see is the stores will become more and more spartan,' retail analyst Neil Saunders told ABC News. The chain's attorneys wrote that despite emerging from its previous bankruptcy in 2023, 'it continued to experience macroeconomic, financial, and operational challenges that significantly impaired its front-end business relative to its business plan. The filing noted, 'The combined effect of inventory challenges, strained vendor relations, lower consumer spending, diminished foot traffic in stores, a delay in obtaining replacement letter of credit facilities, and competitive pressures has ultimately left the Company with insufficient liquidity to operate its business and service its debt obligations in the ordinary course.' It also noted that potential buyers for the pharmacy chain include 'a combination of national and regional retail pharmacy, grocery store, and general retail companies.' It added that 'all seven parties that submitted indications of interest continue to conduct diligence and remain in discussions with the debtors regarding potential sale transactions.'
Miami Herald
07-05-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Why the new Rite Aid bankruptcy could kill Seattle's Bartell Drugs
Business Why the new Rite Aid bankruptcy could kill Seattle's Bartell Drugs Rite Aid plans to sell off all of its assets, including Seattle staple Bartell Drugs, as it again files for bankruptcy protection. The national drugstore chain emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy last September after cutting its debt and shuttering stores across the country, including every Bartell store in downtown Seattle. Rite Aid also closed the flagship Bartell in Seattle's University Village shopping center earlier this year. As of last year, a little less than 100 Rite Aid stores and about 40 Bartell locations were left standing. They'll all be sold or eventually closed as Rite Aid pursues a sale for 'substantially all of its assets,' Rite Aid said in a statement Monday. The company will keep its stores open and operating throughout the sale process, with $1.94 billion in new financing commitments to support pharmacy services and employee wages. CEO Matt Schroeder said in a statement that potential national and regional buyers have expressed interest in the company and its assets. 'As we move forward, our key priorities are ensuring uninterrupted pharmacy services for our customers and preserving jobs for as many associates as possible,' he said. Rite Aid purchased Bartell in 2020 for $95 million, amid a strained time for the drugstore industry. National chains blamed increased theft, reduced consumer demand and a pandemic for drops in revenue and thinner profit margins. 'We felt that this was the only answer,' George D. Bartell, former chairman of Bartell, told the Times when the company was sold in 2020. 'It was getting more difficult for regional operators to compete in the market.' Bartell faced a tough path after its parent company emerged from bankruptcy last year. The market still wasn't kind to drugstore chains. Rite Aid's plan had bought them some breathing room but didn't inject adequate financing to revive the company, according to Neil Saunders, a managing director at data analysis company GlobalData. 'It didn't eliminate the debt or the cost of running stores,' he said. 'And because they didn't have much cash, their stores were just shelves and it started this cycle where customers didn't want to shop there because the stores were bare.' It's not just Rite Aid feeling the pressure. Pharmacy giants Walgreens and CVS are closing stores to settle their balance sheets. The general direction of drugstore chains is downward, Saunders said, but Rite Aid was the weakest of the three. With fewer than 30 locations remaining, Bartell stores could be sold. But Saunders, a retail industry veteran, expects more closures than sales. The other two big drugstore chains aren't looking to expand their portfolio, and grocery chains that operate pharmacies aren't in the market for stand-alone drugstores. Walgreens and CVS may look over the portfolio and cherry-pick a few locations, but aren't likely to scoop up a bunch of them. 'For Bartell it's a great shame because it's a good local brand,' Saunders said. 'I have no idea on Earth why Rite Aid bought them because it kind of represented the death knell for them.' Rite Aid and Bartell's struggles have created pharmacy deserts in the Seattle area, leading to longer travel and wait times for customers. The closure of a Bartell in the Chinatown International District turned a 5-minute walk to the closest retail pharmacy for residents to a 20-minute walk. If Rite Aid can't sell off its own stores or Bartell locations, it could also add to the glut of retail space in the Seattle area. The company operates about 1.3 million square feet of space in the metro area. So far, the retail market has been able to absorb pharmacy closures without too much trouble. Elliott Krivenko, director of market analytics for Seattle at CoStar, a real estate analytics company, said that segment of retail has been dynamic lately. Even with a wave of closures over the past few years, landlords have been able to fill up the spaces within about 6 to 8 months as companies like H Mart and Barnes & Noble are in expansion mode. Some Bartell locations are still vacant, adding a 30,000-square-foot empty box to the neighborhoods they occupy. But prime locations have already been turned around. Din Tai Fung, a popular Taiwan-based restaurant chain, is moving its University Village digs to the former Bartell store in the shopping complex. The shuttered Bartell at Fifth Avenue and Olive Way will become a deli later this year. However, big box stores like Big Lots, Jo Ann Fabrics and Party City are facing the same struggles as the drugstore industry and are closing stores. Collectively, those companies have vacated about 800,000 square feet of space in the Seattle metro area over the past year. 'If Rite Aid eventually adds another 1.3 million square feet to that, we are starting to really test the market for spaces in the 15,000 to 30,000 square foot range,' Krivenko said. Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers. This story was originally published May 6, 2025 at 6:07 PM.
