CVS Pharmacy

Figure 1: Exterior of CVS in Mount Carmel, PA

Many people would think that working at a retail store is the easiest job out there, but little do they know, all of the behind the scenes activities that go on to keep the store running. CVS Pharmacy is one popular retail store that is found all over the country. It is very interesting to talk to people about what it is like to work in retail and to learn new things that a customer may wonder or never think about while shopping. This store gives incoming customer a friendly feel throughout the whole shopping experience. With all of their hard work and commitment to their job, Judy and Mare are two workers that give the customers a personalized experience that makes them want to keep coming back to this store.

Figure 2: Extra care center

 

Nestled in the most popular area of Mount Carmel, PA on West 3rd and Birch Street is CVS Pharmacy, which is next to the local grocery store, Boyer's Food Markets. Across from CVS is the Silverbowl football field and coal hills and behind the store are houses and the high school. When entering the store, the first thing that customers see is the red extra care card coupon center (see figure 2). The customers scan their extra care cards each week to get their weekly coupons. Once inside the store, the sounds are of customers chatting and mellow music playing in the speakers. The store is very bright with many lights lining the ceiling with the hidden security cameras all around. The 17 aisles are nicely spaced around the store from left to right and front to back. The store is full of color there are big signs hanging from the ceilings, including the "get your flu shot today" sign. Three white end caps line the front of the store with promotional weekly items, so they are the first things that the customers see when entering the store. Bright yellow signs with a red strip at the bottom and with black letters are on each item that is on sale every week, and there are big signs for the items on the end caps. These brightly colored advertisements and sale signs around the store provide customers with ways to help them save money.

 

Figure 3: The Pharmacy drop off area

There always seems to be a crowd in the store, because the pharmacy is keeps the customers coming in and shopping around while they wait for their prescriptions. As it is said in the name, "CVS Pharmacy," the pharmacy is a big part of the overall store. Mount Carmel is a very busy store when it comes to the amount of prescriptions filled each day. The pharmacy area is very welcoming with blue cushiony waiting chairs on the right and the pictures of the pharmacist and pharmacy manager prestigiously lining the wall (Figure 3). "One Pharmacy call," rings constantly throughout the store when there is an incoming phone call. Chit chat and the sound of counting pills are common sounds one hears in this area. Customers typically walk around the store and browse the item selection while waiting for prescriptions or before picking them up, which allows the customers to interact with both the front store and pharmacy employees for a complete CVS pharmacy experience.  

Figure 4

When approaching the checkout counter full of varieties of candy bars, bubble gum, and mints and the popular magazines, such as People and US Weekly, there are two ladies cheerfully waiting on customers (Figure 5). One of the workers at the counter, Judy, asked a customer that arrived at the counter, "Do you have your CVS extracare card or the phone number it is under?" and the woman replied with delight, "Yes I do!" and Judy smiled and scanned the card. She ended the transaction saying with a grin, "Have a great day, and see you again!" Judy is a tall, thin woman that has strawberry blonde hair with glasses and wears a blue shirt with red CVS pharmacy embroidery, tan khaki pants and a nametag that has "Judy, Shift Supervisor" written boldly on it. She is the type of coworker that is always joking around with everyone and is known by all of the customers. Judy has been a long time employee of the company and was recognized for her customer service by receiving employee of the year in 2015. It was an honor for her to receive this award and she went to a nice dinner in Pittsburgh, PA with other CVS employees and bosses and also received a plaque. Standing next to her was a shorter woman named, MaryAnn. MaryAnn, or as her coworkers call her, Mare, has long brown hair in a ponytail with dark blonde highlights. She wears the signature blue CVS shirt with the red embroidery and black pants with a nametag that has "MaryAnn, Shift Supervisor" written in black lettering. They make such a good team together, Judy is always laughing and Mare is always smiling and talking to the customers. These ladies are the first people customers see when they enter the store and they are a goofy bunch to get to know. They both have done all job tasks that a cashier and supervisor would do at CVS and collectively, they have been working with the company for 13 years. The mission of CVS is to help people on their path to better health and these front store workers help accomplish this mission, along with the pharmacy team in the back of the store. "This is a fun, stressful and a job that is very demanding of personal time, but they have a decent boss and coworkers that make them motivated to do a good job." Along with staying motivated in the workplace, they have something called Myimpact, which is completed with online customer surveys. Questions are asked about their past visit and they score the questions from 0-5, if a worker gets all 5's on their surveys, then they get rewarded with points that will accumulate until they want to redeem them for gift cards and other prizes.





"Team work is the best policy, it's how you get things done efficiently." - Judy


Figure 5: Front store checkout

A day in the life of a CVS front store worker involves many tasks that differ depending on the job title, cashier/shift supervisor/manager. The day starts off with one of them counting the drawers, deposit, and paperwork. They use something called a price gun to do cycle counts and quick picks that help manage what items are out on the shelves and in the backroom of the store. In between all of this they also ring out customers and ask if customers need help finding anything. While filling a shelf, the sound of the bell rang at the counter and Judy ran up to wait on the customer. They are responsible for keeping the front store clean, working out overstock products from the backroom and checking for outdated products. All of these tasks are completed while keeping their focus on customer service.

Figure 6

 

With talking to a few customers, the reasons why they come into the store were all the same. "I have been coming to this store for many years, I love seeing the smiling faces of the people that work here, they are always asking if I need help finding anything when I am just wandering around." "I love the good deals and using all my extra bucks and coupons to save a lot of money every time I shop here." They love the deals, especially the coupons and the extra bucks program. The extra bucks program is when some products are bought in the store, "CVS money" prints out on the receipts that can be used on the next purchase. For example, last week there was a deal where after spending $30.00 on toilet paper and paper towel products, the customer would received $10.00 extra bucks that are then good for one month from the day they were received. People seem to take advantage of the program and enjoy coming in and buying stuff with their extra bucks (Figure 6).





There are always going to be bad customer experiences and good customer experiences no matter what store someone works in. "When reminiscing about customer experiences, I always try to remember the good and brush on the bad, Mare explained with enthusiasm. "It's always nice for customers to tell you how much they appreciate what you do for them. It makes me feel accomplished in doing a good job for the company. One time, an older lady needed help taking groceries out to her car, because she had a walker and had trouble getting around. About a week later, she sent a thank you card to Judy and I for always helping her when she comes to the store. She even sent us Christmas cards," said MaryAnn with a big smile on her face. "Positive customer interactions leave a lasting impact on my views of this workplace and I always look forward to interacting with the customers each day I come to work," said Judy with joy. Customers are fully part of businesses and the impressions that workers leave them with will hopefully keep them coming back to the business.

CVS Pharmacy is just one of the many businesses found in the country that no one ever really thinks about what goes on behind the scenes to keep the company up and running. CVS Pharmacy would not continue to prosper without the success of their high customer service and customer loyalty. Judy and MaryAnn are just two workers that are part of this corporation and all of their hard work and dedication keep customers leaving happy and returning to the store time after time.