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NEW YORK — Extending the horizons of its innovative 40 Wall St. store, Duane Reade has opened a midtown Manhattan drug store with still more novel food and beauty care offerings.
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The 20,000-square-foot store at 52nd Street and Broadway formerly was a 3,100-square-foot Duane Reade Express outlet. |
New features in the “up market” food-to-go area range from an instant oatmeal machine to a frozen yogurt bar and slushy dispenser. They augment the sushi bar and juice market first seen at 40 Wall St.
The Look Boutique beauty area offers the -417 mud mask from Minus 417 Dead Sea Cosmetics for $92. The product, containing minerals from below sea level, includes a magnet that picks up the mask from the skin. There are also Gosh cosmetics from Denmark (available in the U.S. only at Duane Reade), the Nuxe brand from France and newly repackaged Joey New York skin care items. The European beauty products are intended to appeal to the many tourists who patronize the 52nd Street and Broadway outlet, near Rockefeller Center and Times Square.
“Duane Reade will continue to be at the forefront of drug store innovation throughout the chain’s repositioning efforts where it makes sense,” said Joe Magnacca, president of Duane Reade and president of daily living products and solutions at parent Walgreen Co. “Taking this former 3,100-square-foot Duane Reade Express store, integrating strategic retail and neighborhood-centric niche elements, thereby transforming it into its current 20,000-square-foot total health, beauty and daily living destination clearly indicates what we feel the future of drug stores will be.”
The “Fro-Yo” Bar has eight varieties of frozen yogurt and four twists. The original tart, blueberry tart, strawberry, vanilla, chocolate, mango, coffee and peach flavors contain stevia and are low-fat and sugar-free. Nonfat vanilla and chocolate flavors are available with sugar. Dry toppings include tropical coconut flakes, M&Ms, granola, almond slices, Oreos and Fruity Pebbles. Sauces contain Ghirardelli dark/white chocolate and caramel as well as Reese’s peanut butter. Refrigerated toppings include fresh fruit, candy and cheesecake. The yogurt is made by New York-based Ronnybrook Farms. A self-serve cup for $5.99 lets customers create their own concoctions.
The “Freezee” station has rotating flavors for self-serve ice-cold slushies. Products made fresh daily include new entrees in what is billed as revolutionary packaging to keep freshness.
“We are thrilled to provide this vibrant neighborhood with expanded ‘ultra-fresh’ food solutions for every meal of the day,” said Paul Tiberio, Duane Reade’s senior vice president of merchandising and chief marketing officer. “Furthermore, this comprehensive store expansion has created over 30 jobs, including assistant manager positions, making this particular remodel effort even more worthwhile.”
