Arash Kohan is a pharmacist who hopes to bring a new pharmacy to Coronado after Rite Aid closed earlier this year.
“When you sign up to become a pharmacist, your ultimate goal is to help people,” said Kohan. “There’s a great deal of satisfaction when you do and you see the gratitude in return. On the flip side, whenever you realize that the customers that you’ve had for so many years are having a hard time with their care that they were used to, it kind of gives you a sense of urgency to come back and help out.”
In mid October, Arash Kohan walks through a set of glass doors covered in brown paper and navigates around cardboard boxes arranged inside a vacant retail space.
Kohan heads to a desk area beside the back wall where a sink is being installed.
“Right now we’re working on getting the sink set up because one of the requirements of the Board of Pharmacy is a hand-washing station,” says Kohan, who spent the last 15 years as a pharmacist at Rite Aid in Coronado.
Earlier this year, when Coronado’s Rite Aid announced it was closing, members of the pharmacy team brainstormed on how to open a new store in town, an idea that has garnered community support.
From now to the end of the year, Kohan is working to transform the storefront at 928 Orange Ave. into Crown Coast Pharmacy. This address is different from the former Rite Aid location, previously at 836 Orange Ave.
Kohan said he has had to renegotiate the lease after a business partner had to step back due to personal, unforeseen reasons. Securing a physical location kickstarted the entire process which is now pending license approvals.
Kohan calls the new enterprise an independent, locally owned pharmacy dedicated to restoring convenient access and personalized service. There is currently a GoFundMe page dedicated to bringing this venture to life.
And at Crown Coast Pharmacy, Kohan aims to provide patient care while still fostering community connection to familiar faces and families in Coronado.
“Everybody was caught off guard with Rite Aid closing,” added Kohan. “This is a business but I really just, as a pharmacist, want to jump in and do my part to help out with getting things back to normal in the community.”
Pharmacy gains support
The Rite Aid in Coronado closed its doors on Aug. 24 after Rite Aid Corporation filed bankruptcy in May that led to a series of sales and pharmacy services transition agreements for over 1,000 chain locations.
The pharmacy department at the Coronado location had ceased operations on July 30, leaving the city with Walgreens and Sharp Coronado Community Pharmacy and Travel Clinic.
According to Kohan, the pharmacy team he was a part of at Rite Aid tried fairly well to stay on the island as a whole.
After the pharmacy closed, Kohan set up a GoFundMe page asking for the community’s support.
“We have the vision, the business plan and a location,” says the fundraising page. “To secure the lease and begin renovations, licensing, and setup, we need your help to take the next step.”
The fundraiser has raised over 30% of a $40,000 goal, according to the page, to help cover early-stage setup and operating expenses.
“For the community to open up their wallets and donate, it’s just a different experience altogether,” said Kohan about the support he’s received. “It makes you motivated that, ‘Yes, I’m doing the right thing. It is going to work out.’”
Work in progress
In October, Kohan awaits a response from the state about a pharmacy license and from the city about facility improvements and compliance.
“Both those need to be checked off before I can operate,” he said, projecting a December opening. “It feels like everybody’s trying to push me towards the finish line … I mean if it was up to me, tomorrow, but it’s a process to get things up and running.”
“I’m doing some per diem work on the side until this picks up,” said Kohan. “Whenever I have free time I’m in here trying to make sure that things are moving in the right direction.”
Kohan said that beyond the community, he has the support of his family and his prior pharmacy team, most of whom are willing to join him at Crown Coast Pharmacy.
“I think once I get the green light, the setup portion won’t take long,” said Kohan.
Kohan, who was born in Iran and raised in La Mesa, received a bachelor of science degree in biology from San Diego State University. After undergrad, he worked several years with a local pharmaceutical company.
“I didn’t see myself doing that long term,” said Kohan, who later attended pharmacy school at Wingate University in North Carolina.
Kohan said he jumped on the opportunity to work in Coronado when there was an opening for a pharmacy manager at the former Rite Aid store.
“Connecting with the community, that just made it even more enjoyable and more rich of an experience.”
Today, this connection is top of mind for Kohan who said experiencing Coronado has taught him that being part of the community is equally important.
“There’s been times that it feels like things are going to fall apart, but somehow some unknown force pushes me back together and pushes me forward,” added Kohan.
