‘Not a perfume centre’: Shoppers challenge Fort St. John pharmacy for entrance through scent section

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — Clientele are challenging a Fort St. John pharmacy for forcing its customers through its perfume section, with the smells causing problems for those with sensitivities.

A former heavy duty mechanic for three decades, Greg Edwards and his wife have supported the local Shoppers Drug Mart in downtown Fort St. John for years.

“I like the fact that they’re open late,” said Edwards. “I do like the fact that they’re able to carry a lot of medications.”

One in particular, rituximab, is exclusively shipped to the pharmacy for Edwards from Vancouver. 

Edwards is a sufferer of antisynthetase syndrome. The rare autoimmune disease affects his immune system, causing inflammation throughout his body, including his muscles, his joints and even his lungs.

Edwards takes three different medications to alleviate his symptoms, going to Shoppers Drug Mart for prescription refills.

However, he has problems walking through the entranceway of the pharmacy, where the stock of colognes and perfume scents is prominent in the store’s cosmetic section.

He describes going through the entranceway as “breathing acid.” He’s even gone so far as to walk in through the exit doors to avoid taking the scent of the fragrances full on.

“[It] is called interstitial lung disease,” said Edwards. “My lung capacity initially dropped down to about less than 50 per cent. Now I’m just about 70 per cent with the drugs that they’ve been able to treat me with.

“When you go in the doors, they want you to go through there first and then into the store. I can’t do that. In my mind, it’s Shoppers Drug Mart, not shoppers perfume centre.”

Edwards said the shop’s layout once had glass sections in the entranceway, masking some of the smell, but those have since been replaced due to renovations at the store.

While Edwards has gone through the exit doors to avoid the scents, he said several employees have told him he isn’t allowed to do that.

Edwards claims he has brought his condition directly to the attention of store management several times, to no avail. 

Shoppers Drug Mart did not respond when contacted by Energeticcity.ca.

Undeterred, Edwards took his frustration to social media, where a post asked for advice on how to switch pharmacy orders to different businesses in the area.

Other Facebook users agreed with the overpowering smell of fragrances in the business being an issue.

“It’s overpowering to me. I don’t even have allergies,” said Facebook user Tracey LePage to Energeticcity.ca. “I definitely feel bad for people who do have scent allergies.

“It’s the only Shoppers Drug Mart that I have ever been in that forces customers to walk through the strongly scented perfume area. Other locations have normal entrances that don’t overpower a person with hundreds of different scents.”

As for now, Edwards says he will search for another pharmacy in town to get his prescriptions.