23 Cvs Statistics, Facts & Trends (your Full Guide)

CVS has been around since 1866 when it was started as a pharmacy. During its history, CVS has undergone several changes, including a sale of its retail business in 2001 and its purchase of the Rite Aid Pharmacy chain in 2007. Today, it is the second-largest retail pharmacy chain in the U.S. and the largest pharmacy chain in the New England states.

People know CVS for being the nation’s largest pharmacy chain and they think it was founded by a guy named Frank C. Shaughnessy. It was founded in 1872 by Frank Chouteau Jr, a French-Canadian immigrant. Chouteau started the company in a log cabin in St Louis, Missouri. In 1872 he sold the pharmacy and in 1873 partnered with John C. Davis, a pharmacist, to open the first chain of pharmacies. They were called the American Pharmacy.

23 CVS Statistics, Facts & Trends In 2022

1. CVS Was Founded In 1963 In Lowell, Massachusetts.

It was founded in 1963 by Ralph Hoagland and Sidney Goldstein. It was originally a store that sold health and beauty products.

2. CVS Was First Called The Customer Value Store

The original name of the company was founded by George Beall and was originally called the Customer Value Store.

This is the shortened and simplified name of this fast-food restaurant.

3. CVS Grew Out Of Its Home State Very Quickly!

It was quite an experience in 1968. Their first store was in a parking lot in West Sacramento, California. It was located inside a parking lot in downtown Sacramento.

At the beginning of the 1970s, CVS expanded to New England with 100 operating stores in total.

4. The First CVS With A Pharmacy Opened In 1967

The first CVS store was opened in West Chester, Pennsylvania in 1967. The pharmacy department was established in the pharmacy of this store.

This was the business’s first expansion into the mass market in an attempt to dominate the drugstore market as well as expanding their market into the suburbs.

5. CVS Produced The First Refillable Plastic Bottle

CVS invested in America’s first refillable plastic bottle for shampoo when the company realized the environmental issues associated with wasting shampoo.

The customers who brought in their empty shampoo bottles got a discount of 10 cents off for every refill that they received.

6. CVS Pledges To Decrease Emissions By 2031

The pharmacy giant plans to cut back on single-use plastic through a partnership with a consortium of pharmacy chains including CVS.

The company has made plans to reduce waste to make the recycling process more efficient.

7. CVS.com Receives Millions Of Visits Each Year

The number of visits to this site shows that it’s an important site for customers and that they spend a lot of time on it.

It seems that the overall number of consumers shopping online increased due to the launch of e-commerce platforms and the availability of apps on smartphones.

While the overall population of all of these countries is smaller than that of America, they also get visits from the United States.

8. CVS Started A Drug Waste Disposal Initiative To Reduce Toxic Ocean Waste

A 2005 study showed that using drugs to help the environment was very successful.

The United States used the Endangered Species Act to force Canada to comply with the Clean Water Act by banning the shipment of diluted bitumen and heavy crude oil in tankers.

9. But CVS Did Not Dispose Of The Drugs Properly Causing A $800,000 Payout

In 2013 a Connecticut man got compensated for what happened to him by CVS.

The Connecticut Agency for Natural Resources and Environmental Control investigated CVS Caremark Corp and found that CVS Caremark Corp failed to properly identify, manage, and dispose of hazardous materials.

10. CVS Reached The Midwest in 1972

CVS purchased 84 Clinton Drug and Discount Stores and started to sell prescription drugs and groceries. CVS was going to have pharmacies across the United States.

CVS also acquired Revco, which meant that CVS had a huge chain of drugstores across large parts of the Midwest.

11. By 1974, CVS Reached Sales Of $100 million!

It was no surprise that in 1974, CVS had reached $100 million in sales.

CVS was at this point still one of the fastest growing retail chains in the United States.

They managed this in a number of ways. They bought smaller drug chains (such as these), and they also made sure that these small drug chains reached a larger customer base so that they could profit from the larger customer base (such as with these discount and drug stores).

12. CVS Ranked 15th In The Largest Pharmacy Chains In The US In 1980

CVS Caremark was able to reach level 15 in 1980 due to its 408 stores all over the country!

13. By 1985, CVS Sales Reached $1 Billion!

CVS reached the one billion dollar mark as they continue to grow their stores and their amount of pharmaceutical care they provide.

14. An Undercover Investigation Found That CVS Made 62 Prescription Errors Between 2002 And 2005

An undercover investigation confirmed that there were 62 errors or quality problems going back to 2002.

Due to this, CVS paid a number of compensation claims alongside a promise to spend more on staff training and pharmacy business dealings.

However, they do not accept requests for new prescriptions.

15. CVS Paid Out Almost $1 million Due to Allegations Of Selling Expired Products

The company settled out of court in 2009. The company settled, and the products were all over-the-counter drugs, infant formula, and dairy products.

16. CVS Executives Were Accused Of Bribing A State Senator

A state senator accepted $1,000 a month plus perks to support CVS, the biggest retail drug store chain in the country, because CVS paid his mortgage!

A lawyer representing David Vlasov during the trial stated that the CVS executives were acquitted because of the lack of evidence against them.

17. By 2018, CVS Pharmacy Were Serving 5 Million Customers Every Day

The growth and success of the company is due to its unique focus on providing the customer every choice they need in one convenient location. CVS is also a staple in American retail and the health experience.

The current number is expected to surpass the original number.

18. In 2006, CVS Partnered With Caremark To Make CVS Caremark Corporation

The pharmacy partnership was signed on October 8, 1999, as a contract for sale of the pharmacy business between Caremark and CVS Pharmacies.

The parties entered into a purchase agreement wherein Caremark agreed to sell and CVS to purchase the pharmacy business.

CVS Corporation did not have the intention to make profits over a $100 billion in a year. But they made $75 billion in revenue demonstrating the success of the partnership.

19. CVS Stopped Selling Cigarettes And Tobacco In Stores To Enhance Their Health And Pharmacy Brand

It’s been more than 8 years since CVS stopped offering tobacco items, and after receiving numerous public requests, they officially stopped in 2018!

The CEO of CVS made a statement saying that they will ban tobacco sales in their stores because it will reflect the brand’s message.

20. CVS Shut Down Underperforming CVS Stores In Various Locations

CVS announced that in 2019 it would be closing 46 “underperforming stores” in the U.S. They also went on to close down another 22 in 2020.

22. CVS Generates Over $200 Billion in Revenue

CVS has been experiencing a large increase in revenue in recent years, and the year of 2018 was no exception. In 2018, they reported over $194.5 billion in revenue.

It’s interesting that as CVS continues to grow through acquisitions, the number of locations has declined. You might think there would be more CVS stores as the brand expands, but it’s still a small number relative to other retailers like Walgreens.

23. 85% Of The US Population Live Within 10 Miles Of A CVS Store

CVS is probably the largest health and beauty chain in the United States. This makes it very efficient marketer of store locations.

To figure out more about CVS, you might also find it helpful to read up their competitive advantages, what makes CVS so expensive, and why CVS is so hard to get into.

Conclusion

CVS is always striving to improve, whether it’s changing the way it delivers health care to the public, working to make the stores more customer-friendly, or providing convenient delivery services to its customers.

CVS has always been well known, for its quality products, great service, and unbeatable prices.
CVS remains a store that can be counted on, and is familiar to everyone.
CVS has a great service and stores that are truly convenient for today’s busy lifestyles.