Nice article in the R-J about Rotary member...

Plantsville Pharmacy has had success despite emergence of chains
By Rachel K. Raczka, Record-Journal staff
 
SOUTHINGTON — In the age of the chain pharmacy, it is a true rarity. Plantsville Pharmacy, appro­priately situated among the vil­lage’s many antique shops, is marking its 60th year of contin­uous ownership by the same family. Pharmacist James Potrepka calls it “a quiet celebration.” The store, previously named Hallahan’s Pharmacy, was pur­chased by siblings Frank, Bernadine and Chester Potrep­ka Sr. in April 1946 and re­named Plantsville Pharmacy. “It’s an icon. When you men­tion Plantsville you think of the pharmacy. It has been the one place everyone gathers around,” said Art Secondo, president of the Greater Southington Chamber of Com­merce. The building has functioned as a pharmacy under different names since the 1800s. Today, Plantsville Pharmacy is run by cousins and pharma­cists Chester and James Potrep­ka, both of Southington.

“It’s an unofficial historic landmark,” said Chester Potrepka, who began working for his father in 1980, after graduating from the University of Connecticut Pharmacy School in 1977. Creaky wooden floors and antique light fixtures are the first things one notices setting foot in the pharmacy. The racks of candy have handwritten price tags. Shelves of medica­tions and rustic wooden filing cabinets with phone numbers written on aging Post-it notes line the backroom, in obvious contrast to the atmosphere of the CVS or Walgreens up the road. “The fixtures may look an­tique, but we have up-to-date computer filing systems,” Chester Potrepka said. The pharmacy uses a QS­1 Pharmacy System that continu­ously updates itself.
 
“We’re very satisfied,” James Potrepka said of the computer system. The store’s timework ap­pearance, however, is deliber­ate. “It’s a village atmosphere and historically pharmacies have always looked like this,” he said. James Potrepka also graduat­ed from UConn Pharmacy School in 1970 and abandoned his original plans to be a veteri­narian to work in the family business. “I am very happy with my decision,” he said.


Competing with chain phar­macies that offer services such as drive-through prescription pickup and 24-hour service does not intimidate Plantsville Pharmacy. “What’s kept it here is the loyalty of the customers,” Chester Potrepka said. “We’re a hometown business, basically run by your neighbors.” Secondo said the reason for its longevity is the personalized service that only a family­owned pharmacy provides. Customers also like the idea of patronizing the same establish­ment where their parents shopped. “While many things in the world have changed, chain pharmacies have come and gone in the town, but Plantsville Pharmacy is still there,” he said.

Both pharmacists said they would not consider another job with a commercial pharmacy. “I enjoy working with the community. I love this commu­nity and I love the people in this town,” James Potrepka said. “Customers feel safer getting something from someone who cares,” said Chester Potrepka’s daughter, Jessica Potrepka, 20, a clerk at the pharmacy. “They get to know the pharmacists and form a bond.”

rraczka@record-journal.com 203.235.1661