By David Pinto
With the impending departure of Steve Anderson, the longtime (20 years) president of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, now would seem like the appropriate time to contemplate the adjustments that have become essential to the long-term relevance of any industry organization whose mission is to support and incentivize its membership.
As background, perhaps we can review the changes that have come to chain drug retailing since Anderson assumed his current position, acknowledging that his tenure has coincided with a period of growth, innovation and success for chain drug retailing, as it has for all of mass retailing in the first two decades of the 21st century. For openers, let’s agree that the formal name of NACDS has lost much of its relevance in the past 20 years — for several reasons, foremost of which is that the association no longer exclusively represents chain drug retailing in America. Rather, since Anderson’s arrival, NACDS has welcomed, even embraced, such grocery juggernauts as Kroger, H-E-B and Publix, along with countless others, including such general merchandise powerhouses as Walmart and Costco. These names have not only added gloss to NACDS, they’ve expanded the roster of supplier companies whose attendance at the organization’s myriad annual events has become more critical than ever.
However … while the presence of these non-drug retailers has Simonized NACDS for many supplier companies, it has concurrently reduced the importance of health care for suppliers. For obvious reasons, foremost among them being the fact that food and general merchandise retailers offer far more than health care merchandise and services as part of their merchandise mix. Given these two transitional events, both retailer and supplier NACDS members have begun to question some of the events on the NACDS annual calendar of activities. Having begun this soul searching, the event the association’s membership most urgently focuses on is perhaps the misnamed Total Store Expo, that midsummer gathering that, increasingly and ironically, draws the health care segment.
Briefly, and perhaps inadequately, these three seismic changes collectively describe what NACDS once was and what it has become. Let’s make one thing clear: On paper, NACDS is stronger today than it has ever been — especially when one adds the growing power, leverage and significance of America’s regional drug chains, which collectively are fast replacing the country’s long-acknowledged national drug chains as their industry’s leaders. That, then, is today’s reality. If it remains true today that, as Thomas Hardy wrote, “in the ill-judged execution of the well-judged plan of things, the call seldom produces the comer,” then the next step on NACDS’ road to continued relevance becomes apparent: The time has come for the association’s very capable board of directors to assemble with one critical mission — to determine what comes after what comes next — and position the association to meet and greet its future destiny.
