Business Age: Two months

Owners: Carlos Zimmerman, Pharm. D. and Andrew Gray R.Ph., co-owners

Location: 501 E. Second Ave., at the corner of Glenn Milner and East Second Ave. across from Central Plaza

Telephone: 706-622-2063

Employees: Two

Hours: Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Email address: rome-communityrx@Yahoo.com

Carlos Zimmerman, Pharm. D. and Andrew Gray R.Ph., co-owners of Rome Community Pharmacy, are answering the questions for today's Small Business Snapshot.

What is the primary purpose of your business? Rome Community Pharmacy is here to provide personal care to every patient. We want all patients to experience the family atmosphere we have become known for in the short time we have been open. Pharmacists are a great asset to the community and we want our patients to trust their health and the health of their family with their personal care pharmacist here at Rome Community Pharmacy.

What is your business background? Andrew Gray has been a pharmacist for 15 years and Carlos Zimmerman has been a pharmacist for 16 years, both with knowledge and expertise in hospital and community retail pharmacy.

Why did you start in this particular business? We started necause we want to make a visible impact in the community and also make a difference in the lives of the people in the community. That is why we named our pharmacy business, Rome Community Pharmacy, because this is everyone's pharmacy. We want to focus on caring for our patients with friendly and courteous service with a smile while building quality lasting healthy relationships.

What makes your business unique? Our business is unique because we keep the focus on the patient needs and concerns by delivering quality healthcare and treating everyone like family. We want everyone to know you don't have to leave Rome to find prescription savings and knowledgeable pharmacists who care.

Rome Community Pharmacy also offers a prescription savings plan for all patients and free delivery as well as over the counter household dollar items and dollar greeting cards. We are unique because of our specialized knowledge in cholesterol management, diabetes care, and are certified immunizers. We also have a very diverse pharmacy servicing assisted living facilities, hospices, and nursing homes.

What do you enjoy most about your chosen profession? We both are very passionate about our chosen profession and it is very fulfilling making an impact in people lives by helping patients achieve goals of improving their health. We consider Rome Community Pharmacy the guardian of health and safety for all our patients.

What has been the biggest challenge to overcome as a small business owner? Getting the word out to let people know we are now open and can offer everything the big chains can but with faster, friendlier, superior service.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers? Rothe Community Pharmacy is a full service pharmacy offering quality pharmaceutical products with courteous, professional, personal service.

We also offer a prescription savings plan for patients with or without insurance where patients can get a 30-day or a 90-day prescription for a lower cost than some insurance copays.

Rome Community Pharmacy also accepts all major insurance plans, including Express Scripts.