The retail giant CVS Caremark has announced plans late Monday to purchase local drug store chain Navarro Discount Pharmacy.
It’s an effort by CVS to tap into the rapidly expanding Hispanic market.
The Rhode Island-based company did not disclose financial details of the deal. Miami Herald business reporter Hannah Sampson says despite the acquisition, the familiar chain will not disappear.
“CVS says that they are going to keep Navarro stores open under the same brand. It has loyalty from Hispanic consumers,” she said. “And they say that they plan to keep the same product mix and hopefully learn from their counterparts at Navarro, how to effectively merchandise and market to that community.”
In total there are 33 Navarro stores, all in South Florida.
The Navarro family started the chain in Havana in 1940 and moved it to Little Havana in 1961. A Hispanic-led investment group purchased the majority stake in Navarro in 2007. It is the country’s largest Hispanic-owned drug store chain.
