In 2023, about one independent pharmacy was closed every day and this year for the National Community Pharmacists Association for this year is expected.
A family business that has been the cornerstone of a San Francisco community for more than 100 years, will close the store on Tuesday.
Jerry Tonelli, the owner of Central Drug Store in the Excelsior District, posted on Facebook last month that he retired after he was happy as the neighborhood pharmacist for 50 years. The last day after the historic run of the store was planned for July 15, according to the post.
The Tonelli family has been serving the community since taking over the company in 1965. However, the roots of the establishment in the area run much deeper, dating from the early 1900s.
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“We are a small but powerful pharmacy. And we are proud to say that we have transferred Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid and Mail Order Services. I am pleased to say that this is my choice and I am leaving on my own conditions,” said Tonelli in the notification on the Facebook page of the store. “It’s time for all of us to start a new phase in our lives and to spend more time with our families.”
The family continued to say that the drugstore would not exist if they had not been with the family after they had taken over the company.
Pharmacist and central owner Jerry Tonelli stands for a portrait between the aisles of Central Drug Store in San Francisco, California on 25 June 2025. (Jessica Christian / San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images / Getty Images)
The announcement was received with an outpouring of support from customers who have expressed how important the company had been for the community.
“I can’t tell you how many lives you have influenced,” said a customer.
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Another said: “I can’t put into words what a central drug with blessing, Jerry and the Tonelli family have been with me and my family for more than 50 years.”
A customer placed: “I was so sad to hear that after all those years of your hard work and dedication to all your customers, there will be no other pharmacist or drugstore like yours.”
For the Tonelli family, the pharmacy was more than just a company. His parents met in the store, Tonelli told CBS.
The outside of the central drugstore in San Francisco, California on 25 June 2025. (Jessica Christian / San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images) / Getty Images)
Tonelli took over the company in thirty after his father died. His mother, however, worked in the store until she was 96 years old, according to the outlet.
Independent pharmacists struggle with a large number of financial and operational pressure, which many blame for pharmacy benefits managers. PBMs act as intermediaries between insurers, manufacturers of medicines and pharmacies, negotiating prices for medicines and reimbursements. PBMs are often bound by larger retail chains.
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Vintage pharmacy loads along the walls of Central Drug Store in San Francisco, California, Wednesday 25 June 2025. (Jessica Christian / San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images) / Getty Images)
Tonelli made his store clear without the pressure of the Pharmacy Kolossen and that he withdrew to his ‘own conditions’. But although Tonelli’s things could survive the tumultuous environment in the industry, he is still afraid that other independent pharmacies will continue to be challenged by companies.
“The city began to let Walgreens come into the city, and what happened then was that they usually opened next to the independent openings, and eventually had to close the independent,” Tonelli told CBS.
