Image Heights Pharmacy: A Snapshot of Jackson Heights
By Kayla Nia and Taylor Delgado
Michael Grinman, the owner of Image Heights Pharmacy, shares some insight about his life, business and struggles to keep his pharmacy going against competition.
JACKSON HEIGHTS — A colorful mural of animals stands next to the Image Heights Pharmacy on 37th Ave and 76th street. Each animal has religious significance that represents various traditions from around the world. There is an elephant from India with Buddhist symbols drawn on it, a fox from Latin America and many other creatures that “help represent the current ethnicities who live in the area,” the artist, Annabelle Popa, wrote on her website.
For Michael Grinman, 35, the owner of the pharmacy, the mural represents the diversity of Jackson Heights, with its variety of immigrants, cultures and backgrounds. “Jackson Heights, I think, is the most diverse neighborhood in America,” he said. At the Image Heights Pharmacy, cultures intertwine, friendly meets competitive, and the difficulties are worth the great pleasure of helping others.
Mr. Grinman spoke on Tuesday to two students from the School of the New York Times about his life, his career, his struggles, his journey to the United States and his love of Jackson Heights.
Mr. Grinman lives on Long Island, but is an immigrant himself. At age 5, he and his family moved to New York from Perm City in Russia to avoid persecution as a Jewish family. “Our parents were looking for a better life for us, and the United States is a land of opportunities,” he said. Since establishing his pharmacy in 2009, he has made many relationships with people in the community. Even as Mr. Grinman was answering questions, passersby said hello and called him by his first name. “This pharmacy is like a barbershop. People come here to talk, hang out and spread rumors,” Mr. Grinman said with a chuckle.
Mr. Grinman bought out the location, originally a luggage store, in 2009 after attending pharmacy school for six years. “Opening required a lot of money, which was hard. We also had to higher staff and get stock,” he said.
Money was a challenge to keep up with in the beginning, but now the pharmacy’s biggest challenge are the insurance companies creating obstacles and trying to run the independent companies out of business. Mr. Grinman explained that big corporations are trying to put small independent pharmacies out of business, resulting in a rise of unemployment. It’s even more of a challenge when longtime customers are encouraged to receive their prescriptions from stores like CVS, leaving Mr. Grinman to see customers less often.
Nevertheless, Mr. Grinman knew he wanted to be a pharmacist from early on in high school, so his determination won’t waver as his store is up and running. Mr. Grinman addressed a few of his techniques in the pharmaceutical and business world. The best advice he has ever gotten is that success is “all about location, location, location.” Mr. Grinman added that the pharmacy is also adjacent to a bus stop and train station, which attracts lots of attention from new customers.
New customers especially love the access and variety of products when venturing off into Little India, Little Columbia and any other area of Jackson Heights. “What sets you apart is when you have unique products and, I think, we have a lot of unique products,” he said. Special products on Mr. Grinman’s shelves include imported ethnic products that bring a sense of home to many Jackson Heights residents. Additionally, Mr. Grinman’s store has a way of getting products specialized to his customers’ needs. He not only takes requests for products from customers, which he said “makes customers feel closer to home,” but he also said he can deliver them on the same day.
While everything Mr. Grinman does is beneficial to the attraction of his store, his intentions are authentic and speak to his real character. While observing the pharmacy before the interview, a man walked in and got advice from Mr. Grinman about a letter that he got from his bank. Mr. Grinman also translated the letter from English to Bengali, which he has picked up while working with people from Bangladesh.
“As a pharmacist, I have a great deal of satisfaction in helping people,” Mr. Grinman said. To him, pharmacies are “not just about giving medication.” And while any business wants to make money, “it’s about giving back to people,” he said. “That’s a higher form of pleasure.”
