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Independent pharmacist succeeds in first year and is looking to expand Date published: 4/10/2008
BY PAMELA GOULD Dan Singh has defied the odds and succeeded in making a living his first year as an independent pharmacist. The entrepreneur is so encouraged that he's now exploring where to expand in the Fredericksburg region. Fellow independent pharmacist Stephen May, owner of Goolrick's Pharmacy in downtown Fredericksburg, attributes his colleague's success to research and their shared approach. Both men focus on customer service and provide two other things uncommon in the field: delivery and individual compounding, or filling prescriptions for customized drugs. May has run Goolrick's, a Fredericksburg landmark since 1867, for nearly two decades but said trade journals are rife with startups that fail their first year. He credited his friend with a good game plan. "Dan was smart," May said. "He counseled with a lot of people before he went in up there." Singh, who was born in New Jersey to parents who emigrated from India, has been in the pharmacy business about 14 years. He worked for an independent before becoming district manager for a major chain. In March 2007 he struck out on his own, establishing Dan's Wellness Pharmacy beside North Stafford's main and heavily traveled corridor of Garrisonville Road. Unlike chain drug stores, Singh's pharmacy doesn't try to be a general-purpose store. He focuses strictly on health-care products geared toward making people well and keeping them well. In addition to prescription drugs, the store offers herbal remedies, natural supplements, traditional over-the-counter medicines, first-aid products, medical supplies including walkers and braces for ankles, knees and wrists, and a small selection of gluten-free and wheat-free foods. People who stop in appreciate the personal service he provides, but the biggest challenge has been educating the community. "I think a lot of people still do not know I'm here," Singh said last week. "I think some people also don't think I'm a full-service pharmacy, or that I take all insurance plans--but I do and I am." Jennifer Colliver of Aquia Harbour came into Dan's Wellness Pharmacy last week after spending the previous night caring for a sick daughter. With a Florida trip in the offing, she wanted to ward off the symptoms she'd begun to feel herself. She asked Singh his suggestions for natural and herbal remedies to help her immune system, and went with his suggestion. "I'll see if it works," she said.
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