What’s going in the former Ace Hardware at the old Wichita Mall?

The sixth Wichita Dandurand Drugstore is going to open in March.

This one is going in part of the former Ace Hardware at 4183 E. Harry.

Dandurand has a sister pharmacy, Hart Pharmacy, that’s been in the medical office building at 1515 S. Clifton.

Owner Mike Dandurand said as primary care providers have left the building for their own spaces, he and Jason Schmitz, director of operations, decided they needed to do the same.

So they’re moving Hart Pharmacy to 2,000 square feet of the former Ace space and rebranding it Dandurand Drugstore.

There’s still about 11,000 square feet left to lease in the former Ace.

The new Dandurand will have a merchandise mix that’s more similar to other Dandurand stores than what Hart Pharmacy had.

“Now that we’re in a traditional retail space as opposed to a medical office space, we wanted to expand our offerings,” Schmitz said.

Dandurand said that includes boutique items such as candles, cards and specialty gift items “that hopefully you’re not going to find anywhere else.”

His wife, Lu Ann, and daughter-in-law, Jackie, do the purchasing for the items, which have proven to be popular draws for the stores through the years.

Hart Pharmacy will remain open in its space until March 4, and the new store will open March 7.

“It’s going to be a soft opening,” Dandurand said. “A lot of the front-end things on the boutique side, gift side, clothing side, etc., the supply chain is pretty dodgy. Initially, it may seem like, ‘Hey, where’s all the stuff?’ ”

This location will be the first Dandurand with a drive-through.

“It’s just a convenience we want to offer our customers,” Schmitz said.

He said it will be especially nice to have it in a pandemic. All Dandurands have always offered curbside pickup, too.

Like the boutique merchandise, the awning for the drive-through is on back order.

Schmitz said another pharmacy that had been in that area has closed, so “there’s definitely a space for (an) independent pharmacy, and we look to fill that.”

“We’re excited to be visible and to service south Wichita.”

Dandurand said he also likes the visibility the new store will have compared to the existing Hart Pharmacy.

“If you didn’t know we were there, you didn’t know we were there.”

He said the new space “will seem more welcoming.”

Dandurand thinks “people will go in there to see what’s there.”

Schmitz said he likes that the store is part of the revitalization of the former Wichita Mall, where WSU Tech and a library branch are also located.

“It makes you feel like part of the community.”

Dandurand said he can’t say if this will be the final new Dandurand Drugstore to open in the market.

“Who knows? It has to be the right opportunity and a good opportunity.”