ALTHOUGH written histories as early as the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24) recorded the existence of drugstores in China, the old days of customers standing in line by the counter are numbered now that the first international franchise medicine shop has opened its doors in Shanghai.

　　The new-style drugstore opened in the Luwan District last Saturday. It's called "Medicine Shoppe - Nep-Star" and is more like a small convenience store.

　　Lines of OTC drugs are displayed in the open shelves from baby lotions to anti-cold drugs so customers feel free to get more information about their drugs before they make decisions to buy. The drugstore has even set up a Kodak film centre.

　　But all the prescribed drugs are put far from the counter so that customers have to consult the pharmacist to buy drugs. The most attractive service provided by the drugstore is that the use of prescribed drugs are recorded in the store's database.

　　Following the opening of the Luwan drugstore, another four outlets of the "Medicine Shoppe - Nep-Star" chain of drugstores have also begun operating in the city as franchised drugstores.

　　The US-based Medicine Shoppe is the world's largest chain with 1,300 franchised outlets in more than eight countries. In 2002, the Shenzhen based Nep-Star Drugstore Co Ltd linked up with Medicine Shoppe to set up Medicine Shoppe China, Inc, and began with a model franchised drugstore in Shenzhen.

　　Albert Chang, general manager of Medicine Shoppe China, Inc said: "The special outlook and the open inner displays, together with professional service will attract more customers."

　　Chang also said the franchise approach would have great impact on local drug retail market.

　　However, a top official with a local drugstore chain, who asked to remain anonymous, said that the franchise approach wouldn't disturb the local drug retailing market and seemed to have not much of an advantage over more traditional drugstores.

　　But industry observers say that domestic drugstores will face more intense competition from international giants because China promised to allow foreign traders to run drug retail and wholesale business operations since this year as part of the country's accession to the World Trade Organization.

　　As the public has become more aware of health issues, the retail drugstore sector in China is now developing rapidly.

　　According to national statistics, more than 260 companies have been approved by the State Drug Administration to operate as chain stores within one year after the promulgation of Chain Drugstores Regulations. In Shanghai, a number of large-scale chain drugstores, such as "Huashi Chain Drugstore", have been set up.

　　Chang also said that Medicine Shoppe would soon expand to other major cities in South-east China with Shanghai as the base.