About Us

Our Story

In August of 1932, a young man, one year out of the UW College of Pharmacy, took a chance and bought a defunct drug store in Amery, Wisconsin where he set up business as Chet Johnson Drugs with just $40.00 in cash to begin operations. Two years later, he married his high school sweetheart, Ellie, and together they raised two sons and adopted two daughters.

In the early years, Chet bought a new ice cream freezer from McKesson Drug Company (then, as now, the major wholesaler for the store). This purchase kept the store going, with 5-cent malts and 23-cent quarts of ice cream—a real treat in the ‘30s. In the early ‘40s, Chet grew the store with a 20-foot addition; in 1957 he purchased the building next door and expanded further. While pouring long, hard hours into the operation of his community's pharmacy and family's livelihood, Chet also became one of the biggest promoters in Amery. He had many (often crazy) promotions at the store: free ice cream cones, nickel coffee with free refills, and contests for kids to win prizes. While these were technically a marketing tool for the business, they also served as a way to draw folks to the city—Chet was a firm believer that Amery had been good to him, and he would do what he could to return the favor.

All of Chet and Ellie’s children grew up working in the store as soon as they became old enough to stock shelves and sweep floors. David and Bruce both chose to go into pharmacy and, after graduating from South Dakota State College of Pharmacy, came back home to Amery work for their dad. In 1970, Chet and Ellie sold the store to “the boys,” as they became known, so that they might spend some months away in the winters to relax and enjoy life. A year later, the boys bought the building next door and once again, like their parents, physically grew the business. During this expansion, the soda fountain, which had been part of the store since the ‘30s, was removed; real ice cream seemed to be on the way out as the quicker drive-thru places were becoming more popular. But nickel coffee remained an everyday draw, and the store continued to be a gathering place for neighborhood news and gossip. David eventually had four kids and Bruce two, all of whom grew up, as they had, working in the store. Randy Olson, a local fellow who'd also worked at Chet’s as a teen, returned to Amery as a University of Minnesota Pharmacy graduate, eventually serving as the drug store's third pharmacist. The value of community instilled in the Johnson brothers as children remained as the business grew, and all of Chet's pharmacists have been active in community organizations throughout the years.

Some years later in 1990, Bruce’s son Matt graduated from the South Dakota State University College of Pharmacy and returned home to work for the boys. Like his father and uncle had done thirty years before, he took a leap and purchased the store from them in 2000. At the same time, he and his wife, Julie—also an SDSU Pharmacy grad—opened an outpatient clinic pharmacy in the Amery Regional Medical Center. In 2004, another remodeling project was underway when Matt gutted the building next door and put in a new soda fountain. Once again, folks began enjoying old-fashioned ice cream treats. The new ice cream and coffee shop adjoined the store and was named Ellie’s—a tribute to Matt’s grandma. Nickel coffee is still available along with cookies, gourmet coffee, espresso drinks, bakery items, smoothies, and many flavors of ice cream. A complete remodel of the store was also done, giving Chet's a fresh new face. Today, Matt’s sister, Sarah, serves as the business manager of Chet’s, and the pharmacy and Ellie's together remain a family-run business. 

What started as a risk during the Great Depression has turned into a third-generation family treasure, solid with tradition.

We're honored to be keeping it alive.