Neil Alan has been the owner of Pelton’s drugstore and home health care center on Main Street since 1999. Recently, Pelton’s made the news when it announced its decision to sell the store to Brooks Pharmacy.
KATHARINE HALL: How long have you worked at Pelton’s?
NEIL ALAN: My family has owned Pelton’s for 75 years. It was purchased from Charles Pelton in 1928. And then my father purchased it from his father in 1972. This building that we’re in now was built in 1977. Then we expanded to multiple locations. And in 1999 my parents were killed in a car crash, and my brother and I took ownership of the company at that point.
KH: And there are other locations for Peltons?
NA: There are. The other locations for Pelton’s are in Middletown, Wethersfield, and East Hartford.
KH: How do you see the relationship between Pelton’s and the Middletown community? Especially now, in light of the fact that you’ve recently sold it.
NA: Pelton’s has been part of the community since 1800. My family has made it a commitment to the citizens of Middletown as well as all of the neighborhoods that we are in. And we are going to continue that relationship. Pelton’s home health care will continue to be at 100 Main Street here in Middletown and co-locate with Brooks. [Our] family that has made this commitment to Middletown, and Middletown has made that commitment back, continues to be involved, and we’re not going anywhere.
KH: So it is just the pharmacy and the main part of the store that’s been sold?
NA: That’s exactly what’s happened.
KH: How did Pelton’s home health care get started?
NA: Pelton’s home health care grew out of the pharmacy as people needed hospital beds and wheelchairs at home. We were able to provide that as part of our pharmacy services. As the demand continued to grow we created a new division of Pelton’s that allowed us to concentrate on just those customers. And that’s the part of Pelton’s that’s going to continue.
KH: Will the name stay the same?
NA: It will. It will say Brooks on the front of the building sort of in a marquee setting. It will continue to say Pelton’s home health care, and Pelton’s will be identified inside the store. And all the same customer service and tradition that has been a part of Pelton’s will continue.
KH: How did the relationship with Brooks originally start?
NA: All of the chains contact independent pharmacies on a regular basis. Brooks and CVS and Stop & Shop, all of these pharmacies grow by acquisition. They consume other pharmacies. So they have people who call independent pharmacies and see if they are interested in selling. Those calls have continued for 20 years and each time we’ve said no, that we’re not interested. Market conditions and our own situation changed that answer and we now had to say yes.
KH: Are you concerned that this will change the relationship with the community? Are people excited or concerned? I know it made the front page of the Middletown Press…
NA: People are fearful of any change. I think Brooks is going to become a member of this community. This is not a giant national chain that devours stores and they become one and the same. This is a regional chain that is family owned and operated. That tradition is going to continue. The ownership of Brooks is a father and two sons based in Canada. They are publicly traded in Canada but they retain controlling stock in the company.
KH: And you are still going to have your office here? Are you still going to be involved with the home healthcare?
NA: I am. Very much so. The administrative offices will be moving. We don’t know where yet. In the next six months the administrative offices are going to move to a larger space. We have many offices of administrative kind of tasks and to make those operations better we are moving them under one roof.
KH: How many people would you say you supply home health care services to?
[after looking it up…]
NA: In Middletown, over 300,000 people last year. That’s people coming through the door.
KH: This was a while ago, but the photo in the Middletown Press recently showed the automatic dispensing machine, or robot. When did that go in? Is it common to most pharmacies? How did Pelton’s end up with a robot machine?
NA: Pharmacy automation is becoming more common in today’s pharmacies. It’s primarily about pharmacists being able to interact with the customers. These are highly education health professionals that can help people with their medication. By taking those tasks of counting pills away from these people, that gives them more time to spend with the customer. It is less likely that they will be interrupted in the process of providing medication. It was a customer related decision. And Brooks is a highly automated company and they are going to continue the automation we’ve started here in Middletown.
KH: When did that go in?
NA: 2002.
KH: And how much does a dispenser machine cost?
NA: I would say well over $100,000.
KH: In terms of relationships with Wesleyan, a lot of students come down here. How have you developed a relationship with the school?
NA: All along with the conversation with Brooks, it involved the employees of Pelton’s. We wanted, and Brooks wanted, the employees to remain the same. The customers and the communities that we serve expect certain health professionals to be on the other side of the counter and that commitment is going to continue. So the faces that you see today and have come to trust will continue under Brooks.
KH: You live in Middletown area then?
NA: I don’t live in the Middletown area. When my parents were killed, I was in another business. I had my own career and my own life. And I hadn’t planned to be in business in Middletown. So I commute every day, about 45 minutes.
KH: What were you doing before you became head of a pharmacy?
NA: I was an engineer, trained as an electrical engineer.
KH: What was your brother doing when you both took ownership?
NA: He was in high school. This was only two weeks before his high school graduation. He finished high school and went to school in Boston. He now runs his own photo studio.
KH: When is the final changeover going to take place?
NA: Brooks is going to be operating the store here in Middletown on May 4.
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