Those huge chain drug stores are great one-stop shops for running errands because they have so many different types of merchandise under one roof. Nowadays, it seems like there’s one every other block, but when I moved to WeHo in 1971, the current Santa Monica/La Cienega CVS was still a bowling alley and the go-to chain store in my ‘hood was the Thrifty Drugs on the corner of Sunset and Fairfax.
Sure, I worked for Schwab’s down the street but it was smaller and more expensive so Thrifty was my regular stop for toiletries and other miscellaneous goodies. Whatever you were looking for, there was one big reason to drop by Thrifty – the ice cream. Against the back wall, there was a tempting selection of flavors that changed with the seasons, and best of all, it was super cheap.
The Thrifty Drug Store chain was started back in 1929 by the Borun brothers, when what they dubbed the “poor man’s ice cream” was going for just five cents per scoop – and you can’t stop at just one. Over the next few decades, Thrifty expanded into the largest drug store chain on the West Coast.
Dr. Raymond Borun, whose father and uncle founded Thrifty Drug Stores, told Los Angeles magazine how they kept the price of their ice cream so low. “They did their own manufacturing and made a lot of different flavors. They had a plant in West Hollywood and eventually moved the operation to El Monte. It was very high quality and they were very proud to get awards at the L.A. County Fair. The price was quite low so we didn’t make a lot of money off it, but it got people in the store to buy other things.”
Alas, Thrifty Drug Stores went out of business in 1996 and was purchased by Rite Aid for $1.4 billion, including the ice cream. 50 flavors of the iconic treat are now sold in 500 Rite Aid stores for the still-reasonable $1.99 per scoop. You can also take your favorites home in pint and 48-ounce cartons.
It’s probably just as well that I don’t spend as much time at that particular store as I used to because there are too many temptations besides the ice cream. I enter the store and head for the pharmacy when I see a KeyMe kiosk just inside the door. Do I need more keys? Oh look, there’s a sale on Revlon in cosmetics and I can always use another lipstick. On the way back to the pharmacy I pass the clearance aisle, which is especially tempting post-holidays like Christmas and Labor Day.
I know that the store has been a Rite Aid for almost 30 years but I still have the urge to call it Thrifty – especially when I see the ice cream counter. Rocky Road is still my favorite.
cute article
Must join in. Loved the Thrifty 5¢ cones. I would walk there after ditching my Sunday School Classes (not a “bad jew” bad parents. Didn’t put me into Hebrew and it got to the time when ONLY Hebrew would be spoken. Got a lifetime of “all that money we spent on Sunday School and you didn’t learn Hebrew. I just did as I was told and went where directed, even spike with the span of Satan, my deceased father now, I don’t know what they are talking about. It’s all in Hebrew and nobody taught me. He responded with “go… Read more »
I was already grown-up when I was introduced to those addictive Thrifty comes but I remember going into the store to pick up a couple of items and standing hypnotized by the dizzying choice of ice cream flavors.
I remember the 5 cent scoops at the store on Canon drive in Beverly Hills. As a kid I remember our wonderful housekeeper saying “I’ve been trading at Thrifty’s for 50 years”. Nice article!
Me too, we used to have all of our Kodak Instamatic film developed there. Good memories indeed. Great article