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Last Update: Wednesday September 18, 2019

Meet the family behind Navarro Pharmacies in Florida

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2:44 | Play Now |  They left Cuba with nothing when Castro took over and today their pharmacies are the most productive in the USA.

Miami: In this city, a destination for new Spanish-speaking Americans, finding somebody who understands you, knows and feels your pain, is a seismic relief. With a profound empathy, this family's business is committed to service and to solving very big problems for their customers.

As a result, this family's business is one of the most profitable per square foot of any retail store in the USA.

So many new medicines are announced every day, it is almost impossible for anyone to keep up. But, their customers,  new Americans with a limited command of English and our elders who are taking multiple medicines, have special challenges.

This Navarro family has always been committed to serving their customers. Eighteen-hour days, seven-days-a-week -- whatever it took to get the job done and keep their customers in good health -- these people have done it.  In the process, they have created a first-class business.

Opened in the United States in 1961, the two sons became pharmacists; and today, with 600+ employees, they have become the most productive pharmacy per square foot in the USA.  When we taped this story there were 12 locations generating $160 million in annual sales. They are a force for good that is helping to reshape Miami as a world-class community.

A classic family business, three generations of compassionate people are involved at every level of the operations.

Develop Core Beliefs

 2:44 | Play Now | Many people within business make references to their religious beliefs. Yet, business, science, and religion generally operate independent of each other. It is rare to find people who align all three.

Do A Lot With A Little

2:23 | Play Now | In 1940, operating out of a single pharmacy in Havana, Cuba, Jose Navarro, Sr. taught his sons the true meaning of customer service. People don't get sick just during banker's hours, and Navarro worked long into the night to ensure that his customers' prescriptions were filled promptly.

Pour Your Earnings Into The Future

1:52 | Play Now | Marcel Navarro told us that Navarro Pharmacy moved from a 38,000 square foot warehouse to a 97,000 square foot warehouse in 1997.  This allows them to offer more competitive prices as they can stock larger quantities of their private label products.

Be Part of the Market You Serve

1:34 | Play Now | Another way to say this is, "Speak your customer's language."   The Navarros are Cuban and they all speak Spanish. All of the employees speak Spanish and they serve communities in Miami which is 50% Latin. Here are Jose and Gloria Navarro in their first location decades ago!

Hire People Who Want To Move Up

1:27 | Play Now | In the early years, most of Navarro Pharmacy's employees were family members. But their success in growing their business soon made that impossible.

Inspect What You Expect

2:15 | Play Now | Navarro Pharmacy is big now. There's a corporate office and it would be easy for the owners to sit at their desks and look at reports generated by the company's sophisticated software. However, Luis Navarro visits stores everyday and on this day he lets Hattie tag along.

Change To Meet Demand

1:59 | Play Now | Consumer spending habits change constantly. One of the biggest challenges a retailer faces is determining what products to offer. This is as much of an art as a science. Through it all, Gloria Navarro keeps the stores staffed and the staff happy.

Increase Profit Margins With Private Labels

1:29 | Play Now | Navarro Pharmacy stocks approximately 3,000 items with their own brand. In many cases, the private label brand is the #1 seller in the product line.

Enroll The Next Generation In The School of Hard Knocks

1:51 | Play Now | In the US, 80% to 90% of businesses are considered to be family owned. Only 30% will survive to the 2nd generation, 12% to the 3rd and just 3% to the 4th. The reason it is so important that family-owned companies succeed is that they create 78% of all jobs in this country.

Put Others Ahead Of Yourself

1:16 | Play Now | Hattie learned at Navarro that customer service starts with deep respect for other people. From their customers and their employees, the overwhelming sentiment we heard from all the Navarro's was that people, not inventory, are what matter to them.

Be A Team Player

1:54 | Play Now | Family businesses work because of what we can't see. In the case of the Navarro's, it's heart.

Use Technology To Dazzle Customers

1:32 | Play Now | Embrace technology for the sake of the customer. No matter what business you're in, technology has had or could have an impact on it.

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