Bestway's Co-op purchase confirms 'importance and value' of sector
Independent contractors congratulate Bestway on the "surprise" deal while IPF chief executive Claire Ward says she is looking forward to seeing how the family-run group can inspire the sector
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EXCLUSIVE The sector has welcomed the £620 million sale of the Co-operative Group's pharmacies to the family-owned Bestway Group as a positive move. "We look forward to seeing how an independent family-run business can inspire the rest of the independent pharmacy sector to develop," Ms Ward told C+D. The Pastophor partnership of independent contractors, which had also approached the Co-operative Group to buy its pharmacies, congratulated Bestway on the "surprise" deal.
"This bid confirms the importance and value of the pharmacy sector and the prospects for growth. We look forward to engaging with Bestway and welcoming them into community pharmacy," said Pastophor managing partner David Vanns.
C+D readers were also cautiously optimistic about the deal. Community pharmacist Rajive Patel said the announcement of the deal last week (July 18) sounded like "good news".
"A family-run company could mean more family values spreading through the pharmacy chain: better work conditions, better incentives, better training," he posted on the C+D website.
Community pharmacist Clive Hodgson said "only time will tell" if Co-operative pharmacists would be better off under the new ownership.
"However, their lot will probably be much better than if some faceless private equity group had taken over," he said.
A Co-operative pharmacist posting as ‘How High?' said the deal had already improved the "very low" morale at the multiple.
"Time will tell if the doomsayers have it right, but after months of cutbacks and embarrassment things are feeling a little lighter on the shop floor. I haven't always agreed with what [the Co-operative] has done, but I feel [managing director] John Nuttall has actually got a pretty good deal," they said.
With the addition of the Co-operative pharmacies, Bestway will have an annual turnover of approximately £3.4 billion and a global workforce of more than 32,600 people, with more than 11,900 employees in the UK.
This week, business analysts told C+D that the sale to Bestway was proof of the healthy state of the pharmacy market.
Read C+D's guide to Bestway.
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