Walgreens Celebrates Re-opening of Two Joplin, Mo. Stores Just 90 Days after Devastating Tornado

DEERFIELD, Ill., Aug. 22, 2011 - Walgreens (NYSE:WAG) (NASDAQ:WAG) today celebrates the re-opening of two Joplin, Mo. stores just 90 days after one was severely damaged and the other demolished by a tornado that swept through the city on May 22. The drugstores are the first major retailers in the area to re-open since the storm.

The location at Range Line Road and 20^th Street was completely rebuilt from the foundation up at a pace faster than any other store in the company’s 110-year history.

“As the city’s largest provider of pharmacy, health and wellness services and daily living needs, we were driven to restore full service to these communities as quickly as possible,” said district manager Ryan Kruger. “This was truly a herculean effort by everyone involved. We are especially appreciative to city officials for streamlining the permitting process, to our materials suppliers for the breakneck speed in which materials arrived at the site and to countless others for offering their support and resources in completing this coordinated rebuilding project in record time.”

The reconstruction of the Walgreens store ? only a year old when the storm hit ? was also aided by the use of its original building plans. Typically a store of this size takes the company roughly six months to complete. The extensive repairs to the location at Main and 20th streets were also completed at a swift pace, with the store’s interior being gutted to the studs and entirely renewed. Walgreens has provided pharmacy services from trailers in the parking lots of both stores since days after the tornado.

Today, Walgreens will mark the re-openings with ceremonial ribbon-cuttings at both locations at 4 p.m., kicking off a host of community activities through 8 p.m. The events will include music, free food and giveaways, kids’ crafts and face painting, free blood pressure, blood glucose and bone density checks and free diabetes consultations from local physicians.

“We couldn’t be prouder to be at the forefront of the rebuilding efforts in Joplin,” said Kruger. “The tremendous progress of the recovery is a testament to the spirit and resolve of the people here. The community has come together in an incredible way, and the benefits will be felt long after the area is back on its feet.”

About Walgreens

Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) is the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2010 sales of $67 billion. The company operates 7,742 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Each day, Walgreens provides nearly 6 million customers the most convenient, multichannel access to consumer goods and services and trusted, cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services and advice in communities across America. Walgreens scope of pharmacy services includes retail, specialty, infusion, medical facility and mail service, along with respiratory services. These services improve health outcomes and lower costs for payers including employers, managed care organizations, health systems, pharmacy benefit managers and the public sector. Take Care Health Systems is a Walgreens subsidiary that is the largest and most comprehensive manager of worksite health and wellness centers and in-store convenient care clinics, with more than 700 locations throughout the country.

Walgreens
Tiffani Washington, 847-315-2925
http://news.walgreens.com