If You Shop at CVS, Prepare for This "Innovative" Change at Multiple Stores

CVS has recently made waves for policy changes and closures.

CVS has earned some not-so-positive attention recently through different policies, like no longer filling prescriptions from certain telehealth pharmacies, and some significant store closures across the country.

Just this month, both CVS and Walgreens adjusted their coronavirus policies, announcing that they would no longer be providing free COVID testing to all customers. CVS will only conduct no-cost COVID testing at certain retail locations where "limited appointments are available for patients who qualify." Patients will be asked to choose a reason for testing when scheduling an appointment, helping CVS to determine "systems and risk of exposure."

Now, another announcement is generating better publicity by providing customers with something new.

CVS is rolling out a new skin care-focused store format.

If you're always looking for the next thing in skin care, you'll be excited to learn that CVS is taking a big step forward. According to a July 7 press release, the company is piloting a new skin care and beauty format called Skin Care Center in select retail stores. This new format introduces "prestige brands to mass beauty retail" and provides a personalized experience for shoppers, CVS said.

The shop-in-shop centers are developed to provide you with the tools you need, introducing cosmetic brands like Wander Beauty, Blume, and Volition Beauty, as well as mass-market brands like Cerave, LaRoche-Posay, and Vichy, which are "dermatologist tested and recommended," CVS said.

"We're making a move to provide new health-focused, innovative offerings with our Skin Care Center, and elevated in-store experience designed to help customers navigate personal skin health solutions," Andrea Harrison, vice president of merchandising, beauty, and personal care at CVS Health said in the press release, noting that the company is introducing Skin Care Center following the success of the BeautyIRL store format. The interactive format was introduced in 2018 to help customers discover new brands and trends, according to a 2019 CVS press release.

This experience is available at certain CVS locations right now.

You may be itching to try out new brands and explore Skin Care Center, but CVS confirmed that the experience is only available in certain areas. The shop-in-shop concept is being tested out in CVS Pharmacy locations in New York, New York; Woodland Hills, California; and Walnut Creek, California.

The retailer didn't include the addresses for the stores in the press release, nor did it confirm if there are additional Skin Care Center locations in the works.

Here's what these sites offer.

In addition to introducing more prestige brands, Skin Care Center will also offer an on-site diagnostic tool that can help pinpoint your skin's needs, and which products would be the most effective. Shoppers can ask for guidance from CVS Beauty Consultants, who are trained in diagnostics by L'Oreal experts, and snag sample offerings and in-store testing experiences. When they're ready to check out, shoppers will access in-fixture purchasing using mobile point-of-sale systems.

Signage throughout these store-in-store locations is designed to help customers identify different skin care issues, including step-by-step processes for skin care routines, options for melanin-rich skin, and "ingredient-based solutions" to treat different skin concerns.

"We have a proven ability to influence the industry and we'll continue to expand that impact through customized experiences and purpose-led commitments that inspire trust, discovery, self-expression and confidence in our customers," Harrison said.