Windham Township resident Jake Sweet has always been a big proponent of independent businesses. A year-and-a-half since he and his business partner, Daniel Jones, opened Elite Pharmacy in Youngstown, they are continuing to grow their business, announcing that they have purchased the Garrettsville Family Pharmacy and will take ownership on Oct. 31.
“It’s definitely most exciting,” Sweet told The Weekly Villager. “It is our second location and it is nice to be able to grow. Dan and I worked really hard and the rest of our teams works very hard to make people feel like they are a part of our family. To come back and take care of the folks that gave me so much throughout my life is truly a great feeling.”
Sweet and Jones will take over for current owner Paul Marva, who owned the Garrettsville Family Pharmacy for 30 years, but he will still have a role in the business, working there three days a week.
Having grown up in Windham Township, Sweet knew of the Garrettsville Family Pharmacy but became more acquainted with the store when he interned there while he was still studying for his Doctor of Pharmacy.
According to Sweet, he was originally interested in becoming a doctor but once he learned how much the work balance interfered with having a personal life, he decided to go a different route.
“Pharmacists are the most successful health care providers,” he added. “You do not need an appointment; you can always get someone on the phone and can walk into the store, so we are the front line because sometimes people cannot get appointments with their primary care doctors especially in the Garrettsville area.”
While he was in the final months of studying for his degree, Sweet and his business partner Jones, whom he had known for 10 years, opened up their first Elite Pharmacy store in Canfield.
Sweet acknowledged that although he was not a fully licensed pharmacist, he and Jones could still own a pharmacy and run the business operations but could not work there by himself until he graduated.
He added what he most loved about being an independent business owner was the interactions with the community on a daily basis.
“When you come into our pharmacy, you are talking to corporate,” he said. “There is no calling 15 different people to get somebody in charge, you walk in the door and you are talking to the owner most of the time. That is something that always interested me and we get to practice pharmacy the way we think is best for our patients.”
One thing that Elite Pharmacy has excelled at since opening in Canfield is compounding a drug to its most basic form.
The process requires a drug being broken down into its most basic powder and be recreated into cream, capsules, liquids, chew treats and even lollipops.
“We can do so much which gives us another tool in our toolbox so we do a ton of animal medicine out here,” Sweet said. “We made a prescription for a duck. Where else are you going to get that? That has been nice in learning how to run a business.”
Sweet maintained a close relationship with Marva even after his store in Youngstown opened and when Marva indicated he was ready to take a step back, Sweet said he was more than willing to jump at the opportunity.
The Garrettsville Family Pharmacy will be renamed the Elite Pharmacy but Sweet emphasized the plan is to still maintain the essence of what made the store such a beloved part of the community for 30 years.
In addition to a few technological upgrades, the Pharmacy will also offer free delivery for patients who are unable or are too busy with work to come and pick up their medications.
Although now owning two stores, Sweet indicated that he and Jones have no plans to slow down.
“We plan on keeping independent pharmacies alive by acquiring these small pharmacies and making sure they stay independent,” he said. “I think people want that. They want to move away from that big box store stuff and want to come back home and deal with hometown people.”
