‘A lot of sadness.’ Historic Tampa Bay area pharmacy closes after 130 years

An East Bradenton staple is shutting down after more than 130 years in business.

Robert Pelot, the owner of Pelot’s Rexall Pharmacy, said it’s been in his family since one of his great-grandfathers moved to the area from Indiana in the late 1800s. The longstanding business closed its doors Wednesday.

The pharmacy moved to the Davis Building, at the corner of Manatee Avenue East and Ninth Street East in downtown Bradenton, in 1934.

“He started the pharmacy down at the center of the city of Manatee,” Pelot said.

The city of Manatee was the first area to be settled in Manatee County. Extending from the east side of First Street to the Braden River, the city stood for just over 100 years before merging with the City of Bradenton in 1943.

“We’ve been here in Manatee and Bradenton for many years, and I guess it’s just time,” Pelot, who cited age as one of the factors in closing, told the Bradenton Herald.

The pharmacy was originally named Manatee Drug Company. When the business was passed to the family’s next generation, it was renamed Pelot’s Pharmacy, and it got its final name when Pelot’s father added the word “Rexall” after returning from World War II and taking over the business, according to Pelot.

“This has been my whole life, and I started working here when I was 7 years old,” Pelot said. “My dad had me down here working, and I’ve been here ever since.”

Pelot bought the business from his parents in 1972 and took over operations. He says the decision to close the generational family business makes him feel “a lot of regret, a lot of sadness.”

“I regret that I can’t keep going, but I’ll be 79 in a little bit, and I just didn’t think I could go any further,” Pelot said.

Three of Pelot’s daughters worked at the business as pharmacy technicians. One of them, Erin Daniels, says that she always loved working at the family pharmacy.

“I’m sad that it’s closing,” Daniels said. “It means a lot to me, and I’m going to miss it.”

Pelot says he plans to devote his retirement to spending time with his wife, five children, nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

He said he has always been “married to the store,” and the store’s closing will allow Pelot to spend more quality time with his family.

Pelot says he has gained a lot from running this business, and that he has “met so many people and had so many experiences.”

“I just want to thank all of my customers and the whole community for everything that they’ve given me and all the friendships…” Pelot said. “I just enjoyed it 100%.”