CVS stores closing in San Francisco; part of national downsizing

SAN FRANCISCO - If you're looking to buy a hairbrush or pick up a prescription in San Francisco in person, it might become a little more challenging. 

That's because CVS Pharmacy will close six of its 21 San Francisco stores in January, a company spokesperson told The San Francisco Chronicle on Monday.

The San Francisco stores to close are at 581 Market St., 731 Market St., 2025 Van Ness Ave., 351 California St., 500 Pine St. and 400 Sutter St. The closures will begin with 731 Market, closing on Jan. 7, and will be staggered through the closure of 400 Sutter St., on Jan. 22.

CVS first announced these closures in mid-November as part of a national downsizing. In all, CVS said they'd be closing 900 stores across the country in order to reduce its count by 10%. The closings are to occur at a rate of 300 per year for three years.

In a statement, CVS said that all prescriptions will be transferred to a store no farther than three-quarters of a mile from the existing store, the Chronicle reported. All CVS employees will be offered comparable jobs at these existing stores, said Monica Prinzing, communications consultant for CVS.

Earlier this year, Walgreens announced it would be closing San Francisco stores, blaming "rampant theft" as the reason. 

But the Chronicle crunched data released by the San Francisco Police Department, showing that theory does not support Walgreens' explanation. 

But the timing of Walgreens’ decision led some to wonder whether a $140 billion company was using an unsubstantiated narrative to obscure other possible factors in its decision, such as being oversaturated in The City and not earning enough revenue.