How did a neighborhood drugstore, founded in 1901 and measuring just 50 feet by 20 feet, become the pharmacy all others are measured by and one of the most respected American corporations?

Charles R. Walgreen, Sr took a job at Horton’s Drugstore in Dixon, Il because an accident left him unable to take part in sports when he was 16. 

After working in several drugstores, he grew increasingly knowledgeable - and increasingly dissatisfied with what he saw as old-fashioned, complacent methods of running a drugstore.

Walgreen saw a clear way to differentiate back in the late 1800’s: “...the most dramatic change Walgreen instituted was a level of service and personal attention unequaled by virtually any other pharmacy in Chicago.”

Today Walgreens has over 13,000 locations across the U.S., Europe, and Latin American with over 325,000 team members. 

Recently, Walgreens has formalized their Customer Experience Management efforts and Danielle Wipperfurth, CCXP, Director of Customer Experience at the storied retailer joins me for a fascinating discussion on The Delighted Customers Podcast.

She shares some practical tips and stories including:

• The same as Coke vs. Pepsi? How does Walgreens think of their brand differently from CVS and other competitors
• The evolution of CX at Walgreens
• The Power of in-store visits
• Idea Testing 
• Preparing for a health clinic from a CX perspective

Meet Danielle

Danielle Wipperfurth serves as Director of Customer Experience at Walgreens. Her background includes leadership roles across sectors and internationally in organizations as diverse as an incubator for social impact startups, a creative agency serving the White House, and a luxury outdoor kitchen company.

 

Danielle’s expertise includes healthcare customer experience, the relationship between employee and customer experience, and the power of aligning experience with your brand promise. She is deeply committed to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, serving on the Diversity Advancement Committee for the Customer Experience Professionals Association (CXPA).

 

Danielle earned her MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and her bachelor’s degree from Davidson College. In 2020, she was recognized as an inaugural Emerging Leader in Customer Experience by the CXPA, and now invests in the next generation of CX leaders as Chair of the program.

 

You can reach her at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniellewipperfurth/.

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