Walgreens' EV Chargers: Rx for ‘Range Anxiety’

Ubiquity is one of the main attributes of the modern pharmacy chain. Every time a snippet of desirable urban or suburban or even small-town commercial real estate has cropped up in the US over the last couple of decades, it seems as if a Walgreens or Rite Aid or CVS has been there to snap it up.

Now, Walgreens is pursuing a fascinating strategy for leveraging its “everywhereness” in a big way that could have major implications not only for its brand but also for the future of all-electric vehicles in the United States.

The Chicago-based drugstore giant has pledged to install EV-charging stations at 800 of its stores around the country by the end of the year.

According to its announcement, major markets expected to add NRG Energy's eVgo-branded chargers include Boston, Denver, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. Select locations in Florida, New Jersey, Oregon, Tennessee and Washington will also receive eVgo Network charging stations. Installation begins later this month.

The move would give Walgreens about 40% of all public EV-charging stations in the United States, the company estimates. It also would give Walgreens a significant new branding opportunity.

For EV owners and advocates, this announcement is a huge boost. Americans have a bunch of continuing misgivings about the “future of the automobile” that the federal government keeps promoting, including the high prices of Nissan Leaf and even the extended-range-hybrid Chevrolet Volt so far. But the biggest reservation may be so-called “range anxiety” – the concern that you could run out of juice in your limited-range EV, with nowhere close to recharge, and end up stuck on the side of the road.

Walgreens is trying to turn “range anxiety” into what it calls “range confidence” by assuring that its stores, at least, will offer EV chargers near major highways, on suburban thoroughfares and even in neighborhoods across the country.

With EV charging stations and commitments to build more are taking shape in a relatively patchwork manner at shopping malls, parks, office buildings and elsewhere around the United States, Walgreens’ move could help the EV infrastructure reach a critical mass more quickly, especially if other nationwide retail chains and others make me-too moves.

Cleverly, too, Walgreens’ stations will offer a couple of charging options, including a powerful, 10-minute quick charge that just about coincides with how long average drug-store patrons take to complete their purchases.

No telling how Walgreens will be able to utilize its bold investment in the future of EVs as a testament to its forward thinking as a brand. But whatever it is, they’re way ahead of everyone else.