Kroger buys part of Shopko pharmacy business; local stores impacted

Kroger has purchased a portion of Shopko's pharmacy business, according to a spokesperson for Kroger-owned Roundy's stores.

The transaction impacts 42 Shopko pharmacy locations. Twenty-five of those Shopko pharmacies are located in Wisconsin.

"I think it's not all that surprising that Shopko is looking to change their business model," said John Maier, Marketing Instructor at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College. "It's really not surprising that Kroger would like to get a piece of that action in terms of people coming into their store."

Impacted Shopko pharmacy customers will have their files transferred to Kroger-owned stores.

In the Fox Valley, the pharmacy files will be transferred to Kroger-owned Pick 'n Save locations.

Roundy's spokesperson James Hyland says Pick 'n Save pharmacies will be able to start filling prescriptions for Shopko customers immediately.

The official file transfer will happen the week of Jan. 6.

"On Shopko's end, that's going to mean some pretty big changes. They're going to lose a lot of traffic, and my guess is they have a plan," said Maier. "If they want to stay in business, they're probably going to look to redefine Shopko as we know it."

Terms of the transaction are not being released.

"Pharmacy is a very important part of our business and our growth and we look forward to welcoming Shopko pharmacy customers into Kroger banners and provide them with a highly-relevant customer experience both in-store and digital," Hyland says.

Shopko

that it would be closing 39 of its stores after a liquidation sale.

"Shopko is part of Green Bay, and I don't think they're going to go away," said Maier. "I think they're going to change their business model, and the areas that are working--I think they are going to go with that."