Broadway Prescription Shop Celebrates 80 Years!

Few businesses in Cape Girardeau or elsewhere are able to celebrate an 80th birthday, but Broadway Prescription Shop at 710 Broadway kicks off its celebration this month--just feet away from the original location.

Cape native Homer George founded Broadway Prescription Shop in 1932 and eventually passed it onto his sons, Milton and Harry. Last year Lee Schlitt and Kevin Wood, both SEMO graduates, purchased the pharmacy and have seen a significant increase in customers. Even more impressive is the fact they have doubled sales in their first year of ownership.

The new owners credit much of their success to carrying on the commitment to excellence established by the George family. They have a very close relationship with former owner, Harry George, who has stated on more than one occasion he thinks of them as his sons. Schlitt adds, "As we celebrate our 80th year, we intend to remain committed to the reputation of integrity and excellent service to our customers and to the community established by the original owners. They have been a tremendous help to us, and we want to be true to their tradition of great customer service as we move into the future."

Schlitt and Wood are planning several events to celebrate the 80th birthday, including the official ribbon cutting on June 14 at 3:00 at the pharmacy. This ceremony will be combined with the 80th birthday celebration, which customers and the public are invited to attend. Broadway Prescription Shop will also host several events at area senior housing communities over the summer to take the birthday party to customers who may not be able to attend the on-site event. Videos of new and lifelong customers of the pharmacy are being created for the website along with 80th birthday signage for the storefront. Last August the owners hired a local artist to refurbish the 40-year old wood sign, the oldest wood sign in the city hanging in front of Cape's oldest pharmacy.

A new tag line, 'Personalized care for life,' demonstrates the owners' commitment to delivering old-fashioned personalized service based on the needs of each customer, rather than the current one-size-fits-all solution that many patients say they experience in health care. New services that support this include offering compounded prescriptions, which are created for each individual as needed. Pharmacist Kevin Wood recently attended advanced compounding training to further his education in creating specific, made-to-order prescriptions for humans as well as for pets.

Another customized benefit to patients is the Broadway Prescription Shop Personal Pack, a weekly dose of all medications a patient needs pressed into bubble packaging and labeled by day and time. Wood explains, "We have many patients who take numerous prescriptions, which can be confusing to them as well as to their care givers. This system eliminates wondering if you've taken your medication and allows patients to care for others and themselves better. We offer this service at no cost to our customers, just like our free delivery service. All someone needs to do is ask for it when they bring in their prescriptions. We can even package supplements in the Personal Pack."

While striving to maintain the dedicated care established decades ago, Wood and Schlitt have implemented systems and technology to propel the pharmacy into the future. Last fall a contest was held to name Otto D. Spencer, an automated machine that mechanically fills prescriptions. To prepare for the construction on Broadway the rear parking lot was refurbished, which now includes a greatly needed handicap accessible ramp leading into a side door. Schlitt explains, "Every day we strive to find new ways to increase the quality of life for our customers and be a partner in their personalized care for life. We are extremely grateful to our customers as we lead Broadway Prescription Shop into its eightieth year; we are excited about the future."