Columbia Discount Drugs opened its doors in 1977 and has been providing the community with medicine at low prices ever since.
Owner and pharmacist Darren Higgs previously was a pharmacist for a hospital for 12 years before becoming a full-time pharmacist at Columbia Discount Drugs and purchasing the business a year later from its previous owner May 30, 2014.
“He was ready to retire, and I looked at it as an investment either as my retirement or possibly passing it down to my son,” he said.
With nine employees, including five full-time, Columbia Discount Drugs is a full-service, locally owned pharmacy capable of helping customers with their every need. It even has a specialized market that is one-of-a-kind for more than 50 miles.
“We fill prescriptions, have over-the-counter medications, provide flu vaccines and other immunizations and just got started this year with bee supplies,” Higgs said. “I’m a hobbyist beekeeper on the side. The closest place around here locally that had supplies was in Taylorsville, so I started stocking supplies for the guys who do beekeeping. We have a little bit of cologne and do balloons.”
Higgs started out in computer sciences at Hinds Community College, but one fateful day changed his path.
“They had a job shadow program there. I went one day to a job shadow with a pharmacist at Methodist Rehab in Jackson and got interested in it,” he said. “I was pretty good in chemistry and liked the sciences, so I changed my track and went into pre-pharmacy.”
While there are several local pharmacies in Columbia, Higgs said he believes Columbia Discount Drugs stands out for several reasons.
“Of the independent pharmacies, I think I’m the only one who provides immunizations. Then our staff tries to always be friendly and open as we can be,” he said. “We try to create a friendly atmosphere, and we do allow charge accounts for our customers who have been with us for a while. We also do delivery and service a couple of nursing homes.”
Higgs said that running a small, local business allows him to get to know his customers and build a lasting trust.
“I know them, their kids and their family. My customer base is small enough that I know 90 to 95 percent of them on a personal level,” he said. “That helps you when you’re talking about their drug therapy or other issues. It’s kind of like talking to a friend rather than a patient. It’s a more personalized service. That’s one of the benefits of owning your own business and running a small business.”
Higgs added an addition to the building after he purchased the store, which included Columbia Discount Drugs’ drive through. He has also implemented technology to make refilling prescriptions easier for customers.
“We have an app with our pharmacy system that helps customers. Our prescription bottles have a barcode on them that people can scan in the app, and it sends the refill to the queue in our computers,” he said. “There’s also an online version of that app that has a little more teeth to it. You can view your prescription profile and refill from there too.”
Columbia Discount Drugs is open from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Saturday. It can be reached by phone at (601) 736-1514.
Pictured Above: Columbia Discount Drugs owner Darren Higgs is joined by employees, from left, Kim Carter, Cindy Herrin, Carol Williamson and Sandy Weatherford. | Photo by Joshua Campbell
