It’s gone. If you’ve driven down Calabasas Road recently hoping to swing into the Rite Aid at The Commons to grab a prescription or a last-minute birthday card, you already know the vibe has shifted. The storefront that anchored one end of the city's premier shopping destination for years is a shell of its former self.
People are confused. Honestly, it’s understandable. For a long time, that specific Rite Aid Calabasas CA location felt untouchable, tucked right between high-end boutiques and the kind of swanky eateries where you might spot a Kardashian grabbing a salad. It wasn't just a drugstore; it was a local fixture. But in the world of corporate restructuring and Chapter 11 filings, even the most "Calabasas" locations aren't safe.
The Reality of the Rite Aid Calabasas CA Closure
Let's get into the weeds of why this matters. Rite Aid Corporation filed for bankruptcy protection in late 2023, and the ripples hit Southern California hard. While many stores across Los Angeles stayed open, the Calabasas location at 4710 Commons Way was marked for the chopping block early in the process.
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Why? It wasn't because people weren't shopping there. If you ever tried to find a parking spot near that end of The Commons on a Saturday, you know foot traffic wasn't the issue. The reality is much more boring and bureaucratic. Rite Aid has been drowning in debt, largely fueled by massive legal settlements related to opioid prescriptions and fierce competition from CVS and Walgreens. When a company is $4 billion in the hole, they start looking at leases. Calabasas real estate isn't exactly cheap.
The lease at The Commons was likely a monster. By closing under-performing or high-overhead stores, Rite Aid hoped to trim the fat. Unfortunately for us, the "fat" included our neighborhood pharmacy.
Where the Prescriptions Went
The biggest headache for locals wasn't losing the Thrifty Ice Cream—though, let's be real, that hurt—it was the sudden migration of medical records. When the Rite Aid Calabasas CA doors finally locked, the pharmacy files didn't just vanish into thin air.
Typically, in these buyout scenarios, a nearby competitor buys the "file buy." In the case of the Calabasas closure, many of those prescriptions were funneled toward the Walgreens or CVS locations further down the road. If you were a regular at the Commons location, you likely received a generic-looking letter in the mail that looked like junk but was actually your notification that your heart meds were now sitting three miles away.
The "Calabasas Tax" and Retail Shifts
Retail in 91302 is a weird beast. You have a population with high disposable income, but you also have astronomical commercial rents. When you look at the Rite Aid Calabasas CA situation, you’re looking at a micro-example of a national trend. Big-box pharmacies are shrinking. They can’t compete with Amazon Pharmacy on price, and they can’t compete with boutique wellness shops on "experience."
Think about the neighbors. The Commons is owned by Caruso, the same guy who built The Grove. He doesn't want "meh" tenants. He wants "wow" tenants. A struggling legacy drugstore with fluorescent lighting and peeling linoleum doesn't exactly fit the 2026 aesthetic of a luxury outdoor mall.
It’s a bit of a bummer. Sometimes you just want a bag of Cheetos and a flu shot without having to walk past a storefront selling $400 sneakers.
Why This Specific Spot Stayed Quiet
You might wonder why there wasn't a bigger public outcry. Calabasas is a town of influencers and moguls, right? Well, the truth is that the demographic that shops at The Commons had already started moving away from traditional retail pharmacies.
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Delivery apps changed the game. Services like Capsule or even DoorDash's pharmacy partnerships made the physical trip to Rite Aid Calabasas CA less of a necessity. For the elderly population in the nearby gated communities, the closure was a genuine blow, but for the younger, tech-savvy crowd, it was barely a blip on the radar until they needed a physical store and realized it was empty.
What’s Replacing It?
This is the question everyone asks at the Sagebrush Cantina or over coffee at Lovi’s. The space at 4710 Commons Way is prime real estate. Rumors have swirled about everything from a high-end fitness studio to a tech showroom.
What we do know is that Caruso’s team is selective. They aren't going to put another discount drugstore there. Expect something that leans into the "lifestyle" category. We’re talking about the kind of place where you spend $20 on a green juice, not $5 on a gallon of milk.
Checking the Alternatives
If you’re still searching for that Rite Aid Calabasas CA experience—specifically that Thrifty Ice Cream fix—you’re going to have to drive.
- Rite Aid in Agoura Hills: Still kicking, for now. It’s about a 10-minute jump up the 101.
- CVS on Mulholland: This is the go-to for most of the South-of-the-Boulevard crowd now. It’s crowded, the parking lot is a nightmare, but it’s consistent.
- Courtyard Pharmacy: If you want to avoid the corporate nightmare altogether, this independent spot on Ventura Blvd is where the "locals in the know" go.
The Impact on Local Employment
We often forget that when a store like Rite Aid Calabasas CA closes, it isn't just a loss of a store; it’s a loss of jobs. Some of the pharmacists and techs had been there for a decade. While some were offered transfers to other locations, the commute to a Rite Aid in the deep Valley or out toward Ventura isn't feasible for everyone.
It’s a reminder that even in an affluent bubble like Calabasas, the economy is fragile. Corporate decisions made in a boardroom in Pennsylvania have direct consequences on the people stocking shelves on Commons Way.
Understanding the Bankruptcy Context
To really grasp why this store died, you have to look at the "Opioid Cliff." Rite Aid reached a settlement in principle to pay up to $3.45 billion over several years. That’s a lot of toothpaste sales. They also had to deal with the rise of "shrink"—a polite corporate term for shoplifting—which has plagued drugstores across California.
While the Calabasas location was likely lower-risk for theft compared to a store in downtown LA, the corporate-wide losses meant they couldn't afford to subsidize any store that wasn't hitting massive profit margins.
Actionable Steps for Calabasas Residents
If you’re still feeling the fallout from the Rite Aid Calabasas CA closure, don't just wait for the mail. Here is how you handle your business:
- Audit Your Auto-Refills: Check your apps. If you had prescriptions at the Commons location, they may have been transferred to a location that isn't convenient for you. Call your doctor and have them send new scripts to a pharmacy of your choice, not the one Rite Aid picked for you.
- Go Independent: If you're tired of the corporate musical chairs, look into local independent pharmacies. They often offer better service and won't suddenly disappear because of a bankruptcy filing in another state.
- Check Your Rewards Points: If you had a "Wellness+ Card" or Rite Aid rewards, those points are often tied to your phone number. Use them at the Agoura or Woodland Hills locations before the company goes through another round of closures.
- Support The New Tenant: When the new business finally moves into The Commons space, give them a chance. It’s easy to be salty about losing a staple, but a vibrant, occupied storefront is better for the local economy than a boarded-up "For Lease" sign.
The closure of Rite Aid Calabasas CA is a sign of the times. It’s the end of an era for a specific kind of suburban convenience, replaced by a more curated, expensive, and digital-first reality. It sucks to lose the convenience, but the city is already moving on. Keep an eye on the local permits—the next big thing for that space is already in the works.