By Jodi Schwan

Lewis Drug will replace its 27-year-old Southgate store at 41st Street and Minnesota Avenue with a new store a few blocks north that is being developed as what CEO Mark Griffin calls “our next-generation store.”

The 25,000-square-foot store will be smaller than Southgate, which is 40,000 square feet, and slightly smaller than the newest Sioux Falls store at 69th Street and Louise Avenue.

Griffin said the design will enhance what guests have said they enjoy about the 69th and Louise store.

“They like the layout. They like the merchandise selection and the speed of shopping,” he said. “And we’re going to try and bring that to a higher level.”

Lewis Drug will build a new store at 37th Street and Minnesota Avenue on the lot occupied by the Billion Kia dealership.

The new store will sit on the current Billion Kia lot at 37^th and Minnesota. Billion owns the property where Southgate is located.

“The Kia business will move next to where our used-car business is,” Billion general manager Chad Radel said. “We’re doing remodeling on that now. As soon as Lewis starts building on the Kia location, the Kia location will move. It will be way bigger. As far as the Lewis building, it’s still up in the air what will be done with it. It’s a year and a half away, maybe even two. It’s still to be determined.”

Lewis Drug at 37th and Minnesota will include a drive-up pharmacy. Rending by RSArchitects.

The new Lewis store will focus on making “the shopping experience as efficient as possible,” Griffin said, with a drive-up pharmacy and easy access off Minnesota Avenue and 37th Street.

“We’re designing this store with total convenience and efficiency,” he said. “I think we’ve enhanced what we’ve done already and are catering to a new marketplace.”

The project will move fast. Construction will start in the next month, and the plan is to open in November. It’s the first of potentially several projects for Lewis in Sioux Falls. A new west-side store near 41st Street and Ellis Road is expected to be built and open next year. Plans for a downtown store are still being considered, Griffin said.

“We continue to study it and are in discussions,” he said. “We haven’t made a firm commitment yet.”

Lewis Drug and 41st Street and Minnesota Avenue is moving.

The chain is celebrating its 75th anniversary year. Founded in Sioux Falls, it has grown to 52 stores in three states.

The reinvention of Southgate is a symbol of how the company has evolved throughout its history, Griffin said.

“None of our success would be possible without generations of Lewis team members,” he said. “We’re proud to celebrate 75 years, and we have to reinvent ourselves every few years because of market adjustments and customer needs and wants. I think we’ve done a pretty good job doing that, otherwise our diamond anniversary would not have happened.”