CVS brings transparency to Georgetown

Retail

CVS brings transparency to Georgetown

by Topher Mathews • June 18, 2010 12:16 pm

A few weeks ago, Phillip Kennicott wrote a nice piece in the Washington Post about the death of the shop window in Washington. The thrust of the piece was that more and more, stores are blocking up their front windows in order to increase their shelf space.

Around town, nobody seems to be more of a purveyor of these blocked windows than CVS. And so it's a pleasant surprise that CVS has recently made huge changes to the front of their two Georgetown stores to open up their respective shop windows.

Above is a photo of the M St. CVS. You can see that with the introduction of the self-check out kiosks, the store has removed the front counter. This enabled them to clear out the whole front window. Just compare it to what it used to look like:

A lot better, don't you think? (Although turning it back into the Biograph would be an even better step).

They brought similar changes to the Wisconsin Ave. CVS as well. Here it is before:

And here's what it looks like now:

In short: Thank you, CVS, for bringing a little more transparency to Georgetown.

Cross-posted at Georgetown Metropolitan.

13 comments

Tags: blank walls, DC, Georgetown, retail

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Topher Mathews has lived in the DC area since 1999. He created the Georgetown Metropolitan in 2008 to report on news and events for the neighborhood and to advocate for changes that will enhance its urban form and function. A native of Wilton, CT, he lives with his wife and new daughter in Georgetown.

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Ive never understood the logic behind chain pharmacy stores blocking their windows. Unless theyre in a neighborhood where drive by shootings happen every day, how is blocking the window good for business?

by J on Jun 18, 2010 11:59 am

They made a similar change to the store on 14th near NY Ave. However, I'm not sure being able to see the self-serve check out machines is a huge upgrade. Would be better if you could see merchandise.

by Josh S on Jun 18, 2010 12:08 pm

They're doing this with the remodel of their store on the 1400 block of P St. as well! I think it looks great!

by David T on Jun 18, 2010 12:10 pm

The CVS by Eastern Market Metro station has also gone to unblocking the views through their shop windows. I have mixed feelings about this, as in recent years what they blocked their windows with were old photos of the neighborhood, some of them quite wonderful. I especially liked a circa-1890 view down Pennsylvania from the Capitol dome, showing Eastern Market with quite a few open fields nearby.

by davidj on Jun 18, 2010 12:10 pm

I read this same post in Georgetown Metropolitan just a few days ago.

by Lou on Jun 18, 2010 12:23 pm

Topher runs Georgetown Metropolitan. But I just realized I forgot to include the "cross-posted" link at the bottom. Added.

by David Alpert on Jun 18, 2010 12:25 pm

Ah..thanks for the info. Thought I was in a time warp for a few moments there.

by Lou on Jun 18, 2010 12:26 pm

@davidj -- Nothing stopping them from framing and suspending those same pictures in the window!

That said, I suspect pharmacies block out their windows, because their interiors tend to be some of the most depressing places on the planet. I've never been in the Georgetown or Wisc. Ave CVSes, but they do look a bit nicer than average from the pictures.

I suspect that one of these companies could capture the market by making modest improvements to its store interiors, pricing, and staff. (The Rite Aid on H St has got to be one of the most expensive places to shop that I've ever seen. $12 for a pack of Tylenol!)

by andrew on Jun 18, 2010 12:42 pm

This has been one of my biggest pet peeves lately. The newly redesigned Safeway on Columbia Road did a decent job of providing a bit of transparency in their windows, as now you can see shoppers in line when you walk by.

The new CVS next door gets a big F for their shallow red walls with decorative plus signs hanging from the ceiling blocking any interesting view of the inside of the store.

I'm surprised that DC Office of Planning or DCRA doesn't have some codes in place that require windows to be unobstructed.

by michael on Jun 18, 2010 12:49 pm

And by contrast the new Georgetown/Glover Park Safeway is one story above the street and you can't see anything inside the store. And the ground floor retail we are getting in that development is a cellular store, and nail salon and a pet supply store. Whoopee.

by Lou on Jun 18, 2010 1:53 pm

Ugh, this makes me so mad. Up here in Rhode Island, where CVS is headquartered, we are fighting CVS' plans to build a suburban style, set back from the street with parking, double drive through lane CVS in an historic urban village in Cranston (a town bordering Providence).

CVS is insisting on plopping down their typical dreck dry-vit box. Meanwhile, in DC, they are doing this.

You can read my rant against CVS here, if you are interested:
http://www.gcpvd.org/2010/06/04/cvs-in-edgewood-update/

by Jef Nickerson on Jun 18, 2010 2:11 pm

CVS also gets some points for being much more transparent with their new Massachusetts, H, and 4 NW location than with the shuttered H and 7 NW location. The building tapers to a Flatiron-style point, and from the sidewalk near that point, one can see the store's entire food selection through the wrap-around windows.

by tom veil on Jun 18, 2010 4:59 pm

This is a great trend that I hope to see continue. Some years ago I remember convenience stores started unblocking their windows for a different reason. Armed robbers were taking advantage of the fact that nobody could see what was going on inside from the street.

by Matthias on Jun 21, 2010 2:05 pm