Organic pharmacy, Elephant Pharm closed all their stores in the San Francisco Bay Area on 2/3/09. Below is a letter sent to mailing list subscribers.

February 3, 2009

It is with a heavy heart that we bring you this news:

Elephant Pharm, which has served over 1 million customers in four Bay Area markets, has closed indefinitely.

As a small business, we’ve been hurt by the terrible turn the economy has taken and the tightening of the credit market.

It’s been a very special six years since we started this drugstore revolution, and we certainly couldn’t have made it as far as we did without you—our customers. We hope that you will continue your pursuit of a good, long life, well lived.

Please check our website, www.elephantpharm.com for further details.

To have your prescription filled, or re-filled, please contact your doctor.

We deeply regret any inconvenience this may cause you.

In good health,
The Pharm Team

I had one in my neighborhood. Although I didn’t like going there because I felt they were too overpriced for my needs, it was a nice store. They were a great asset to the community and gave free talks, yoga classes, and etc.

With the economy in the toilet, people are less inclined to pay the “organic/green tax”. We have been accustomed to pay more for organic goods. $30 for an organic shirt or $5 for organic coffee would’ve been doable for our peace of mind over a year ago. People who are struggling will not care if their stuff is organic or fair trade. Made by a kid in China? No problem, just as long as it keeps more money in my pocket for my family.

Green business need to adapt to the weak economy or end up like Elephant Pharm. Adapting doesn’t mean automatically lowering prices and possibly degrading your brand and margin. If you truly have a remarkable product, you need to get people to understand why it’s worth buying it. Why should people pay your “Green tax”?