The Paper Cutter

Fay's Inc.

File:Fay's Drug Logo.png
Trade name	Fay's Drug
Formerly	Fay's Drug Company, Inc.
Company type	Public
Traded as	Template:NYSE was
Industry	Retail, Drug store
Founded	1958 (1958) in Fairmount, New York
Founders	Template:Ublist
Defunct	Template:End date and age
Fate	Merged into Eckerd (currently Rite Aid)
Headquarters	Syracuse, New York
Number of locations	272 (1996)
Products	Beauty items, pharmaceuticals, snacks, beer, photo processing, movies, food, and household goods.
Subsidiaries	Template:Ublist

Fay's Drug was a pharmacy retail chain established in 1958 in Fairmount, New York. Alongside its primary operations, the company also managed Wheels Discount Auto Supply and The Paper Cutter divisions.

At its zenith, Fay's operated more than 300 outlets across New York and Northeast Pennsylvania. The chain held the leading market position in cities such as Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and Albany.

Founding

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A Fay's branded matchbook from the 1970s

The inaugural Fay's Drug Store opened in 1958 in Fairmount, New York, founded by Henry A. Panasci Jr. together with his father Henry Panasci Sr. The store’s name honors Faye Panasci, wife of Henry Jr., with the spelling intentionally altered by omitting the final 'e' to reduce signage expenses.

Fay's experienced consistent expansion throughout Central New York. The company was formally incorporated as Fay's Drugs Company, Inc. on October 20, 1966. Their main office was established in Syracuse, New York, with most operational activities centered in Liverpool, New York.

Public company development

Going public in 1969 marked a significant milestone for the firm, and by 1971 it had entered the Rochester market. In 1979, Fay's expanded its presence in Rochester by acquiring the Key Drug chain and rebranding those stores under the Fay's banner. That same year saw further growth into North and South Carolina through the acquisition of Mann and Crafts drugstore chains. However, rising supplier expenses impacted profitability adversely. Consequently, by April 1981 Fay's divested its 31 stores located in those southern states to Rite Aid. This transaction reduced the chain to approximately 80 stores primarily within upstate New York plus one location in Pennsylvania. In 1982, Fay's implemented a computerized pharmacy management system. The company's stock was initially traded on the American Stock Exchange before transferring to the New York Stock Exchange in December of that year.

In 1991, Fay's expanded further by purchasing Victory Markets’ 48-store Carls Drugs chain. Carls Drugs had been founded by Carl Panasci, who was related as brother and uncle to the founders of Fay’s Drugs. Early in 1993, the company sold ten underperforming stores located in Pennsylvania to Melville Corporation while acquiring a CVS outlet in upstate New York. That same year marked the passing of Henry Panasci Sr. at age 95. At this point, Fay’s operated a total of 245 drugstores across New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont along with 31 Wheels Discount Auto Supply locations and 25 Paper Cutter stores within New York. In July 1994, Fay’s further broadened its footprint by acquiring Peterson drug store chain consisting of twelve stores based in Western New York.

Diversification initiatives

During the mid-1980s, Fay's pursued diversification by launching Wheels Discount Auto Supply and Paper Cutter retail outlets. Nevertheless, these ventures were relatively short-lived. By the mid-1990s, Fay's Drugs opted to divest its non-core business units.

In April 1993, the company shuttered nine underperforming Paper Cutter stores. Later, in December 1995, it sold its Wheels Discount Auto Supply chain—comprising 82 locations across New York and Pennsylvania—to Western Auto Supply, a Sears subsidiary, for $37 million (approximately $Template:Format price adjusted for inflation).

The following year, in 1996, Fay's divested the remaining 29 Paper Cutter stores to Party Experience Inc., a Long Island-based party and holiday supplies retailer. These outlets were rebranded under the Party Experience banner in 1997.

Acquisition by JCPenney

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Classic logo

In 1996, JCPenney acquired Fay's Drugs for $285 million in stock. Stores located in New York retained the Fay's branding, while those outside the state were rebranded as Thrift Drug locations. By 1997, JCPenney consolidated its pharmaceutical operations by merging Fay's into Eckerd Corporation.

Several original Fay's Drugs sites that remained open—many later converted to stand-alone Eckerd stores and subsequently to Rite Aid and Walgreens—continued to feature the distinctive Fay's pharmacy layout and aisle configurations that influenced drugstore design across the country.

In 2023, Rite Aid, Eckerd’s successor, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy amid ongoing opioid litigation and declining revenues. Despite divestment by its parent company in 2007, The Jean Coutu Group (PJC) USA, Inc. remained an active subsidiary in name only under Rite Aid. This status was reflected in Rite Aid’s October 2023 Chapter 11 filings alongside Eckerd Corporation.

On May 5, 2025, Rite Aid initiated Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings for a second time within two years, reporting assets and liabilities ranging between $1 billion and $10 billion. As part of this restructuring process, Rite Aid plans to liquidate all assets—including those related to Eckerd and Fay's Drug—to address financial pressures such as mounting debt, heightened competition, and inflationary challenges.

External links

• University at Buffalo to Confer Posthumous Degree on Henry A. Panasci
• The Panasci Legacy
• Wheels Discount Auto Supply, Inc. Acquisition by Western Auto (Sears)
• Paper Cutter - Hard Lines - Corporate ProfileTemplate:Fix/category