Shelly’s Pharmacy on 10 North Pole Road, Kensington, was acquired by Ali Mansour, who owns a group of other pharmacies in North London and the Home Counties. 

The standard hours pharmacy, which was sold for the first time in over 30 years, was opened in 1981 by Shailesh Thakrar and dispenses an average of 8,000 items per month, according to Christie & Co.

Former owner Mr Thakrar incorporated Shelly’s Pharmacy into My Pharmacy Limited in 2000, where he sits as director.

Christie & Co medical director Jack Chard, who handled the sale, said: “Due to Shelly’s strong item numbers and turnover, the pharmacy received multiple bids over the asking price - something we have now become accustomed to with high-performing London pharmacies.”

He described the deal between Mr Thakrar and Mr Mansour as “smooth and efficient”.

Shelly’s Pharmacy was sold for an undisclosed amount.

Mr Chard told C+D: “In London, we’re seeing strong demand for these types of pharmacies due to their favourable mix of income from NHS items, over the counter income, and both NHS and private services. 

“Pharmacies with the level of turnover like what we see at Shelly’s are quite a rare find as well, so we typically get a lot of interest from a range of buyer groups - first-time buyers, independents, and small independent multiples – which makes for a competitive marketplace.”

In October, Christie & Co warned that the pharmacy market “faces several headwinds” following the pandemic, saying that contractors’ rising overheads and the exodus of pharmacists into primary care networks (PCNs) could create a “challenging trading environment in the short term”.

Meanwhile, the broker announced earlier this month that a consortium of first-time buyers has snapped up two community pharmacies on Cumbria’s west coast for an undisclosed price.