New CVS App Lets Customers Unlock Cabinets to Pick Up Products

Customers at some CVS stores will no longer have to push a button and wait for a clerk to unlock one of those glass cabinets to get the products they want to buy. A new app will allow them to open the cabinets themselves, the company said on Tuesday.

That feature of the new CVS Health app has been available in three stores in New York City as part of a pilot program that began in August, said Tara Burke, a CVS Health spokeswoman. She said there are plans to roll out the “smart locks” at approximately 10 stores on the West Coast early this year.

The announcement appeared to be part of an acknowledgment by CVS and other drugstore chains that placing inventory under lock and key to deter retail theft has irked customers, who resent having to wait for assistance.

The CVS pilot program “is an example of how we’re applying technology as possible solutions to a common customer complaint,” Ms. Burke said. “Customers like the convenience of being able to open the cases and not having to wait for a CVS colleague to help if one isn’t immediately available.”

Tim Wentworth, the chief executive of Walgreens Boots Alliance, which operates Walgreens and Duane Reade stores in the United States, said in an earnings call with investors on Jan. 10 that efforts to combat “shrink” — inventory that was bought but cannot be sold, primarily because of shoplifting — “does impact how sales work through the store because when you lock things up, for example, you don’t sell as many of them.”

Ms. Burke said in an email that CVS used “a variety of different measures to deter or prevent theft, and locking a product is a measure of last resort.”

Sluggish growth and shifts in consumer behavior, including online shopping and decreased foot traffic at stores, have prompted CVS, Walgreens and other retail outlets to adapt, including by expanding the brands they carry, taking anti-theft measures and addressing concerns about staffing levels and safety.

CVS said on its website that its new app would act as a digital landing spot for personal health care, with features that include organizing medical appointments and vaccinations, paying for prescription refills with a bar code, and searching for products using an artificial intelligence-powered function.

The app’s unlocking function is available to registered loyalty members. They must be logged in to the app and on the store’s Wi-Fi network with Bluetooth enabled to gain access to the secured merchandise.

CVS has broad influence in the health care system in the United States. It has about 300,000 employees, more than 9,000 retail stores and thousands of physicians, pharmacists and nurses on staff. Aetna, its insurance arm, which it acquired in 2018, has nearly 40 million policyholders and other customers.

Brittain Ladd, a strategy and supply chain consultant, said that offering the broad umbrella of functions included with the new CVS app is a direction that other pharmacies, service companies and retailers have taken.

“It truly does become a pharmacist in your pocket,” Mr. Ladd said.

The app’s enhancements signify an attempt to address customer complaints, such as long wait times and the inability to take a product from a shelf, but they could also change the customer experience, he said. CVS and Walgreens “have really gone wild in terms of putting Plexiglas all throughout their stores,” he said. “When you lock up your products you lock out your customers.”

Brick-and-mortar stores, which are also facing competition from online pharmacies and retailers like Amazon, have been aware for years that they need to come up with ways to keep customers coming through their doors.

“We know keeping products locked up can be inconvenient,” Ms. Burke said. “But it’s important that we ensure products are in stock and available for customers who need them.”

Tilak Mandadi, executive vice president of ventures at CVS Health and its chief digital, data, analytics and technology officer, said in the statement on Tuesday that the new app “will make it easier for our customers to access and manage their health and care.”

Ms. Burke said New York was selected as the location for the pilot program because of its proximity to the teams who were testing the locks at cases in the city. So far, she said, the feedback from customers has been positive.