CVS lite

Small and pokey CVS in Glastonbury, CT from none other than Mike Mozart

 CVS/pharmacy have been struggling to regain relevance, much like their two main competitors. They've launched a new tactic by launching a dozen new locations that are just pharmacies and not much else. In CNY, they haven't had the best history and are sporadic in the region. In contrast, there have been stores without pharmacies (even Rite Aid had one in downtown Syracuse a block from a regular store [ex-Woolworth/now-DGX] and CVS/sans pharmacy [ex-kmart] in the old days). What CVS could do is have these truncated pharmacies in certain spots. One would be on SU Hill, where they have one last non-Rx location, which stuns newcomers to the area, who would have to go to Target or Manlius if they wish to have their scripts stay with CVS. Walgreens turned a former bank at Moyers Corners in Baldwinsville into a smaller store instead of converting the old Fays turned Rite Aid to cut costs, which is now Planet Fitness, so maybe CVS could do the same thing, and there'd even be a drive-thru at the ready that can be converted for pharmacy use. These mini-pharmacies could open where there isn't one nearby, which would help seniors and others without transport since the mail and even Amazon aren't always reliable. On Syracuses near west side, CVS briefly took over an indie, which was small by current standards for a regular store, yet Walgreens closed a few blocks away, leaving another local place to fill the vacuum. On the east side, Fays Cornerdrug were in the Madison Irving medical building at the foot of the hill, which I think had a pharmacy and just a few things, yet we covered them earlier already, since they also bought out mom and pop stores, mostly in small towns.
 They say less is more, and it'll be a little more challenging to come up with austere express locations for CVS since I tried for the usual, but events of the past several years have made growth difficult. They just can't be near Target or other pharmacy chains, of course. Maybe this could work. Just think smaller.

Syracuse (east side) - former Marine Midland/Key Bank; E Adams St

Syracuse (downtown) - former Sibleys/RKO Keith; S Salina St

Syracuse (north side) - Destiny USA; one of various hallway vacancies

Syracuse (south side) - former Acme/Carls/Fays/Dollar Tree; Turnpike Centre; NY 173 & 80

Canastota - former Family Dollar; NY 5 & 13 and CR 25 (since they won't open a full-fledged store in the former Rite Aid/Walgreens across the street)

Liverpool - former Café 407; Tulip St (no pharmacy in village since indie on CR 57 closed in the '90s)

Auburn - Fingerlakes Mall; NY 5 & US 20 (past location, with or without pharmacy)

deWitt - former Party City (part); Marshalls Homegoods Plaza; NY 5 (full-fledged store was in Shoppingtown until late '70s when replaced by Fays)

Westvale - former Tops/P&C (part); Westvale Plaza; NY 5 (Target up W Genesee St in Fairmount, yet no pharmacy in plaza since Fays closed in 1997 and store became Family Dollar)

Brewerton - US 11 (vacant property listed on Facebook Marketplace)

Mattydale - former Eckerd/Rite Aid/Walgreens; US 11 & Malden Rd (even though it could be a full-sized store; this part of town has been weak in retail in recent years, but more on that another day)