Warehouse-style pharmacies pressure neighborhood drugstores

“At the first-floor entrance of the new wing of Yongsan Etland, one of Korea’s largest electronics marketplaces, stands Medikingdom Pharmacy, a warehouse-style pharmacy that opened in February. Occupying one of the building’s prime retail spots, the store spans 1,178 square meters — roughly 24 times the size of a typical neighborhood pharmacy, which average about 50 square meters. More striking than its size is the way the pharmacy sells medicine. Dozens of display shelves, each measuring 2.5 meters wide and 2 meters tall, were lined with over-the-counter drugs organized by category, including vitamins, pain relief, cold medicine, ointments and fever reducers. Inside, about 50 customers roamed the aisles, pushing small shopping carts and picking up medicines like they might grab instant noodles or fresh vegetables at a big box store. The products themselves looked more like items at a supermarket than medicines at a neighborhood pharmacy. Jang, 27, said he visited MediKingdom Pharmacy after seeing a post about it on social media. “I bought antiseptic mouthwash, which I usually fe

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