Think of a pharmacy where there is virtually no limit on the number of products available to customers. Then think about a pharmacy that can solve all of its ordering and inventory headaches with a few clicks of the mouse.

AmeriSource executives say VIP helps to level the competitive playing field by allowing pharmacies to expand their front-end product assortment on an almost unlimited basis and to do so with no additional inventory investment. They point out that products ordered by customers on the new Web site (www.vip.amerisource.com) are paid for by credit card well before delivery by the wholesaler to the pharmacy. Reusable Leg Bags, Alpine Reusable Latex Leg Bag, Urocare, Invacare, Urological Collection Devices, Medical supply

And iEcho, they say, allows pharmacies to check their stock positions, product availability and back order status instantaneously, without having to download a whole bundle of data onto desktop PCs before getting the information they want.

The 21-year company veteran is high on AmeriSource's prospects in both forms of e-commerce. "One of the nice things about VIP is that we are able to open our entire OTC line to the consumer, so that square footage in the pharmacy makes no difference now," he observed.

And iEcho, he said, "is designed to provide the immediate information that the pharmacy frequently had to pick up from phone calls to customer service." With iEcho, he added, "we don't have to send information to update what is on their desktop. We have the information. It's all there for immediate access."

Web-surfing consumers are already able to log on to the new VIP site, which is easy to shop and rich in product array. Like other successful e-retailer operations, the site makes it simple to order a shopping basketful of OTC and other front-end products securely. VIP also offers links to healthcare information sites like The New England Journal of Medicine and the National Institute of Health's PubMed. Reusable Leg Bags, Alpine Reusable Latex Leg Bag, Urocare, Invacare, Urological Collection Devices, Medical supply

In addition, by clicking on the site's "Symptom-Seek" button, a consumer can list his or her symptoms and have VIP suggest the OTC products that might provide relief.

Consumers can order products using a menu of 32 product categories ranging from antacids/laxatives to wound care. A click on one of the categories will bring up an array of subcategories, and a click on one of those will open up a full panoply of products arranged alphabetically with brief descriptions and prices; most products are shown in color.

"Consumers have a catalog of 14,000 front-end items available," said Birchfiel, "and they can select in every size imaginable. If they need something in a huge size, or some weird size, they can order the product, and it will be delivered the next day to their local pharmacy. That means even the smaller pharmacies can compete with the large chains" in terms of product assortment.

Birchfiel added that the customer then has the option of picking up the order at the pharmacy or having it delivered, say, with a refill prescription that was ordered at the same time on the VIP Web site. "We have a refill button," said Birchfiel. "We can give the pharmacist options on how we transfer that information. We can e-mail it or fax it. If a pharmacist sees a refill come in at 11 a.m. and also sees three OTC products ordered by the same customer, he can fulfill the order immediately and have it delivered within a couple of hours. If it's a product he has on the shelf, he simply puts it into the bag with the refill and delivers it the same day. This increases his turnover."

The e-commence executive lists three main reasons why a pharmacist will want to offer VIP as a value-added service to customers.

"No. 1 is Web presence," he says. "Pharmacies see their competitors have a shop-online feature, so a Web site presence is No. 1. It's peer pressure."

Inventory expansion is No. 2. "Pharmacies are able to open up their inventory to 14,000 SKUs," he said, "and the product is already sold when it comes in the back door. Pharmacies don't have to pay for the inventory at all. The cash flow is great." Pharmacies can also customize their own Internet pricing. Most pharmacies have chosen to reduce online prices for competitive reasons and because the cash flow and lack of inventory investment more than makes up for any profit loss.

The third reason for signing up, he says, is that "we are driving the consumer through the pharmacy to get those products, rather than through a central mail facility like the pure Internet pharmacies that compete with the local guy."

AmeriSource offers three different options to pharmacies considering VIP. "One is the basic turnkey," Birchfiel explained. Under that arrangement, all the VIP Web site has is the pharmacy's name. If a consumer accesses the site and keys in the pharmacy name, all online product purchases will be delivered to the pharmacy for pickup by the customer or for home delivery. Consumers who don't know the name of their local pharmacy can type in a Zip code, which brings up the names and locations of VIP pharmacies in their area.

A second level of involvement, said Birchfiel, is available to the retail pharmacy that currently has a Web site. "We can put the VIP engine into his site. He keeps his banner and all the stuff he has right now, but when his customer hits the shop-online button, we are the engine behind that," Birchfiel said.

At the highest level, a pharmacy can have its own customized Web site designed by AmeriSource, and then linked to the VIP site via the "shop online" button.

An initial one-time signup cost varies according to the pharmacy's level of involvement, but the basic monthly fee is the same for every customer: $99. For those who select the highest option, there are additional design fees that vary according to the intricacy of the site. But compared to what other design firms charge, Birchfiel said, "it's really a bargain."

AmeriSource is also helping pharmacies to promote the new service to their customers. "We have fliers and ceiling hangers, and all sorts of promotional material, which is part of what they get for their signup fee," Birchfiel pointed out.

For pharmacies that already use their computers for B2B activity, iEcho represents a new level of e-commerce involvement. AmeriSource unveiled a predecessor B2B system, called Echo, in 1991. "This is the system that customers, both retail and hospital, use on a daily basis to place their orders and keep their historical data," Birchfiel noted.