Walgreens Looks to Enhance Supplier Diversity Through Upcoming Virtual Summit

January 24, 2022 at 08:00 AM EST

The national retail pharmacy invites diverse vendors to pitch their products at its April Supplier Diversity Summit, seeks to broaden product offerings in local communities

Walgreens announced today that it will hold a Supplier Diversity Summit during the ECRM Supplier Diversity Week, a virtual showcase for diverse businesses and entrepreneurs to share their retail offerings. The virtual event, taking place April 5-8, provides diverse vendors the opportunity to connect with the Walgreens merchandising team, share their products, and receive feedback with the ultimate goal of being stocked on Walgreens shelves in their local areas.

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The virtual event, taking place April 5-8, provides diverse vendors the opportunity to connect with the Walgreens merchandising team, share their products, and receive feedback with the ultimate goal of being stocked on Walgreens shelves in their local areas. (Photo: Business Wire)

During the virtual summit, Walgreens will work to increase sourcing from suppliers that are at least 51 percent owned, operated, and managed by individuals who are disadvantaged, disabled, military veterans, LGBTQ+, minorities, and/or women.

“As a leading partner in reimagining local healthcare and wellbeing for all, ensuring that we create equitable opportunities for diverse suppliers to drive economic impact in the communities we serve is imperative,” said Carlos W. Cubia, senior vice president and global chief diversity officer at WBA. “This year’s summit will connect us with diverse suppliers that will ensure we remain relevant to our customers and communities with products that meet their unique needs. We look forward to a successful event.”

The summit will focus on products across grocery and household, beauty and personal care, health and wellness, and general merchandise, among other categories. Vendors can find additional information about the virtual event and apply to join here.

The Supplier Diversity Summit aims to bring diverse businesses from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, to evaluate opportunities to build more locally relevant and diverse product offerings for Walgreens customers and deeper collaboration with new suppliers for the future.

All sourcing and product submissions will be made through RangeMe, the industry-standard online product discovery and sourcing platform. ECRM will qualify suppliers, create curated meeting schedules, and facilitate face-to-face virtual meetings with Walgreens buyers so that suppliers can introduce new and innovative products into the marketplace. All meetings will be conducted through ECRM’s industry leading virtual meeting platform, ECRM Connect, plus, ECRM’s dedicated support team will help ensure that buyer and seller connections are executed seamlessly.

About Walgreens

Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) is included in the United States segment of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (Nasdaq: WBA), an integrated pharmacy, healthcare and retail leader serving millions of customers and patients every day, with a 170-year heritage of caring for communities. As America’s most loved pharmacy, health and beauty company, Walgreens purpose is to champion the health and well-being of every community in America. Operating nearly 9,000 retail locations across America, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, Walgreens is proud to be a neighborhood health destination serving approximately 9 million customers each day. Walgreens pharmacists play a critical role in the U.S. healthcare system by providing a wide range of pharmacy and healthcare services. To best meet the needs of customers and patients, Walgreens offers a true omnichannel experience, with fully integrated physical and digital platforms, supported by the latest technology to deliver high-quality products and services in local communities nationwide.