Betro Pharmacy retires after 65 years

[ccfic caption-text format="plaintext"]

By Laura Drinan
Hometown Weekly Reporter

For 65 years, Walpole and the surrounding community’s residents could count on Betro Pharmacy for any of their retail healthcare needs. Owner Peter A. Betro and his staff’s personalized services made filling prescriptions, choosing insurance plans, and finding any medical equipment one may need a pleasant and hassle-free experience. “People knew they were safe here and we tried to make everything as easy as we could, said Betro. But now, as Betro heads for retirement and permanently closes the doors to the family-owned pharmacy, he directs his loyal patrons to Walpole’s other pharmacies, specifically downtown’s CVS Pharmacy.

Betro’s father first established Betro Pharmacy in 1952, after the World War II veteran utilized the GI Bill to study pharmacy at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy. He also went to the Fenway School of Optics. The business changed locations several times in downtown Walpole, but continuously offered the same personal service. Betro reminisces about the days when his father had a soda fountain at the store, making the store a congregating spot in downtown Walpole. “It was just magical, and it was a magical era in retail pharmacy, too,” recalled Betro, who worked in his father’s store since he was in junior high school.

“My father could see that healthcare was changing and thought business would be the best avenue to go down,” said Betro, as he recalled his years at Stonehill College before receiving his accounting degree. “I wasn’t meant for an office,” he said. It was then that Betro decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and go to Mass. College of Pharmacy. After his father prematurely passed away from cancer in 1982, Betro stepped in to keep the pharmacy under the family name. “My father loved Walpole and he was so happy to have spent his whole life here,” said Betro. “I was privileged to take over for the tradition my father had started in our hometown.”

Just as his father had, Betro learned he needed to adapt to the ever-changing needs of healthcare. Betro prides himself in his state-of-the-art equipment, like the Parata system, which robotically dispensed and bottled pills, creating a label for the bottle with the information as well. But even with the most advanced technology, Betro emphasized the importance of his staff. “It’s not a one man operation,” he said, attributing most of the pharmacy’s success to his wonderful and hardworking employees.

Even with the establishment of CVS Pharmacy just 500 feet away in the 80s, Betro continued to see his business succeed. His synergistic relationship with CVS allowed the two stores to always see to the patient’s needs because the two businesses would recommend each other if their inventory could not help the patient. Betro Pharmacy’s array of medical equipment frequently brought in customers from CVS.

The corporation approached Betro several times over the years, but Betro’s heart was still in pharmacy. Earlier this year, when CVS approached Betro again, the unknown and uncertainty of healthcare’s future made Betro consider his retirement. CVS’s professionalism and willingness to negotiate led Betro to his decision to retire and close Betro Pharmacy. One of the most important conditions to his retirement was that his staff would be considered in the negotiations, and CVS was more than willing to adopt Betro’s pharmacists and staff. “CVS just made the transition very easy,” Betro said, appreciating the corporation’s flexibility and respectability.

Betro thanks the Walpole police, fire department, and department of public works for all of their hard work in keeping his beloved hometown and his business safe over all the years. He also thanks all of his patrons for their loyalty and support throughout the years. He assures his friends and customers in Walpole that he will still be in town volunteering and keeping busy around town while enjoying his retirement.

“One of the best things about being a pharmacist in your home town has been being able to help people you’ve known your whole life,” said Betro. “I’m not going to miss the insurance baloney, but I’ll miss seeing all the people I’ve known for years.”