Although the sale of Bober's is no surprise, it is yet another independent store to be forced out of business by a national chain. The same thing has happened elsewhere on Grand Avenue (and everywhere in the US), most notably, and regrettably, to the Hungry Mind/Ruminator bookstore.

The demise of an independent business is not simply the loss of a place to buy things. It is the loss of personalized, informed and caring service, almost universally absent in chain stores. It is the loss of the independent spirit, hard work and support of community projects characteristic of most small business owners. It is sad.

Bober on Grand sells to CVS

BY LAURA YUEN
Pioneer Press

The owner of Bober Pharmacy & Gift, a store fastened to St. Paul's trendy Grand Avenue for more than 40 years, has decided to sell the shop to the CVS national drugstore chain.

For an undisclosed sum, business owner Ron Johnson will hand over all of the store's customer records and pharmaceuticals, sell the building and promise to shutter the shop in time for CVS' scheduled opening across the street, Johnson said Wednesday.

In fact, Bober will close Jan. 28, one day before the new store opens, he said.

Community members for months had predicted such an outcome, though they had rooted for the popular Bober to stay open to help preserve the balance in favor of independent businesses along the changing avenue. To many observers, CVS' decision to move directly across the street from Johnson's shop symbolized the brazen encroachment of so-called "formula businesses" on the signature street.

"If they take just half of our business, they put us out of business," Johnson said, referring to the small margins on which the store operates. "If they cut that down, there's no way we could possibly make a profit."

The time to leave might be right, said Johnson, who has seen his property's taxes triple over the past five years. The owner of four additional drugstores in Minnesota would not disclose the amount CVS agreed to pay, other than to say that the price was "more than fair."

"They're not trying to put us out of business and say, 'Tough luck, we're here and we're going to kill you,' " said Johnson, who bought the store from its previous owner in the early 1980s, when the renaissance of Grand Avenue still was relatively new.

To counter the proliferation of formula businesses, the neighborhood's Summit Hill Association drew up a plan that sought to limit chain businesses on Grand Avenue. The Planning Commission approved a modified plan that toned down the language targeting formula businesses.

Instead of restricting types of businesses, the commission advocated taking on a "more supportive role" for small businesses, said city planner Yang Zhang. The City Council could review the new plan and hold a public hearing on the issue as early as next month. In September, the City Council passed a yearlong building moratorium in response to neighborhood concern over massive projects on Grand.

As part of the agreement with Bober, CVS will interview all of the store's 35 employees to fill the new positions across the street, Johnson said. Company officials also told Johnson, at his urging, that they would continue Bober's tradition of delivering medications to its clients.

"We said, 'If you're going to take over the business, you should do it the way we did,' " Johnson said.

A spokesman for Rhode Island-based CVS could not be reached Wednesday afternoon. The new store will sit on the first floor of the new Oxford Hill Condominiums building.