Oak Park has gained its third independent pharmacy, a newcomer joining two long-time businesses that have survived the competition from big chain pharmacies.
Pharmacist Vishali Patel, the daughter of two independent pharmacy owners in California, recently opened Custom Care at 7007 North Ave.
“People are starting to realize we’re here and come in. They’re excited to hear about a new pharmacy opening instead of shutting down,” Patel said.
More Top Picks Others Excel
During her studies, Patel did a rotation in Chicago and fell in love with the city, she said. After she became licensed, she worked briefly at a Walgreens in Cicero. She didn’t think it offered the same experience she was used to seeing in the pharmacies her parents owned.
“I’d get dropped off (to one of the pharmacies) after school and I grew up seeing that customer interactions,” Patel said.
She opened her own pharmacy in hopes of providing that personal service.
Custom Care offers free local delivery or overnight mail and veterinary medicine. Custom Care is also a compounding pharmacy, which means Patel can help a patient who was, for instance, given a pill prescription, and prefers it in a liquid form or she can give a customized dosage.
Kenneth Bertini, who bought Segreti Pharmacy on Roosevelt Road in 1985 after working there since high school, said an independent pharmacy can offer personalized service that not all the chains will.
“Insurance makes the prices (of medication) about the same. Chains have more parking. Chains are open longer hours,” Bertini said. But some people stick to the independent pharmacist for the service.
“You like the owner to say, ‘Hi, how are you?'” Bertini said.
Over the years, he said, he has had to “reinvent” Segreti, which is also a compounding pharmacy. For instance, almost all his staff members speak English and Spanish because of the large Latino population in neighboring Berwyn. He also began carrying more maternity supplies.
Custom Care doesn’t have a big retail component. There are a few over-the-counter medications, diabetic supplies and a variety of compression socks and stockings. Patel said she might expand what she sells based on neighborhood demand.
To introduce herself to the neighborhood, Patel will hold a health fair at the pharmacy from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday. It will include free blood glucose and cholesterol screenings and blood pressure checks and she said several physicians from Rush and Loyola medical centers will be on hand to answer basic questions.
Both Bertini of Segreti and Tom Rains, who owns Sear’s Pharmacy on Madison Street, both said they wish Patel well. In 1988, Rains bought Sear’s, which has been in business since the 1960s. There was a time that Oak Park boasted a number of independent pharmacies but with the closing of Peterson’s this summer, the town was down to two.
“I wish her good luck,” Rains said.
Twitter @triblocal