Come Join Me for the Grand Opening of the San Francisco Walgreens Flagship Location! #SFWAG

I was invited to the opening of the Walgreens store opening by Collective Bias®.  I was compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias ™ and Walgreens #CBias #SocialFabric  All Opinions are my own.

I love San Francisco and enjoy shopping at Walgreens, so when I was invited to the San Francisco Walgreens Flagship Store Grand Opening, I immediately said yes!  I have never been to a Walgreens like this before and enjoyed every minute I was there.  In fact, I had to pull myself away from my favorite part of the store – the Look Boutique!

The Walgreens “Flagship” style stores are designed to complement the communities where they exist by supporting the vision of becoming “My Walgreens” for everyone in America, the first choice for health and daily living.  Walgreens core purpose is to help people get, stay and live well.  Walgreens is thrilled to serve Downtown San Francisco with a retail health and daily living destination similar to other flagship locations in Boston, D.C., Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Las Vegas and Puerto Rico.  The Walgreens flagship stores are unlike any drugstore you’ve seen before, and it provides a differentiated experience from what you would normally expect.

The San Francisco “Flagship” Store is located on 134 Powell St. (on the Corner of Powell and O’Farrell).  If you are taking a taxi in the city, you will want to know the exact address because there are several Walgreens locations within the San Francisco city limits.  This Walgreens is approximately 18,000 square feet and has approximately 20 aisles.  The hours of operation for the Front of the store is from 7:00 a.m. to midnight (seven days a week) and the Pharmacy from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. (Monday through Friday), 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. (Saturday) and 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. (Sunday).  There are approximately 90 employees in the store.

The Look Boutique is my favorite part of the new San Francisco Walgreens Flagship Store and I spent a LOT of time browsing the aisles and the different products!  The Look Boutique Beauty Department features dozens of prestige and niche cosmetic, skincare and hair care brands not typically found in drugstores.  As part of it, Britain’s leading skincare brand, No7, created by Boots, is available.  No7 is well known for its internationally acclaimed range of anti-aging beauty serums, all independently scientifically tested.

Specially-trained beauty advisors are also on hand to offer guidance finding the best solutions for individual needs.  Expert BROW shaping and grooming services are available at the Ramy Eyebrow Bar.  Ramy himself tweezed my eyebrows and used this awesome Brow Wand, which I ended up purchasing before I left!

You’ll find hundreds of fresh food items including produce and high-quality, on-the-go meal options such as wraps, sandwiches and salads made fresh daily.  A Coca-Cola Freestyle Machine dispenses 130 varieties of Coca Cola fountain drinks. Plus there are several flavors of self-serve frozen yogurt accompanied by an enticing toppings bar.  An Upmarket Cafe offering a barista preparing fresh brewed premium coffee and espressos.  Local, freshly baked goods also are available.  Plus, a juice and smoothie bar featuring fresh fruits and vegetables are included in distinct recipes.  In this Walgreens, you’ll also find a robust selection of beer, wine and spirits and quality products appropriate to celebrate special occasions.

One of my favorite aisles is the Ghirardelli section!  A replica display of Ghirardelli Square that will pay homage to Ghirardelli’s local history and will offer one of the largest selections of Ghirardelli premium chocolates and gift selections in the San Francisco area.  It’s amazing how many chocolate varieties there are!

Of course, one of the best parts of attending Press Events is meeting individuals in real life that you only know online!  In this case, I had the opportunity to meet Brandi Jeter of Collective Bias, Annette McCormick of Collective Bias, Jay Berg of Collective Bias, and a group of amazing bloggers!  For more pictures of my store experience, be sure to check out my Google+ Album!