Whatever Happened To The Beloved LaVerdiere’s Drug Stores in New England?

At one time, there were 70 locations in New England, and today there are none. Whatever Happened to LaVerdiere's Super Drug Store?

The Legacy of LaVerdiere's Super Drug Stores

LaVerdiere's Super Drug Stores was based in Waterville, Maine.

According to Wikipedia, Laverdiere's had its peak when they were operating more than 70 stores in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. They were a pharmacy, but they weren't like any other pharmacy in town.

Laverdiere's sold general items, toys, Halloween costumes, and Christmas decorations along with fishing gear. Where are you going to find that in a modern-day pharmacy?

Action Family Arcade

In the 1980s, the video game craze began. We're not talking about home consoles like we have today. These were actual arcades that had the newest games that were all played using tokens. At the time, it was a new thing, but it's very common today.

If I remember correctly, you got tokens for $1. That's five plays for just a buck!

I dumped most of my tokens into the Star Wars video game at LaVerdiere's in South Paris in 1983. For its time, it was pretty epic, and I couldn't get enough of it. LaVerdiere's also happened to be right across from Oxford Hills High School, so guess where everyone went after school.

Whatever Happened to LaVerdiere's Super Drug Stores?

Like a lot of chain stores in New England, LaVerdiere's was bought by Rite Aid in 1993 and converted all LaVerdiere's stores to Rite Aid. No fishing gear, not-so-great costumes, and no arcade. Rite Aid recently closed all its stores throughout the country after filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy for a second time in May of 2025. The remaining stores were bought by CVS and Walgreens. There's always a bigger fish.

Even though LaVerdiere's is long gone, people still have fond memories of this locally owned pharmacy that was in just about every town in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. I miss them.

Now, excuse me while I go play Star Wars on my smartphone.