Yorkshire pharmacy chain rebrands after acquisition by hub-and-spoke company
An independent pharmacy chain that was recently snapped up by a hub-and-spoke company has announced plans to rebrand as Pharmacy+Health.
The 33-strong chain The Pharmacy Group is rebranding to Pharmacy+Health following its acquisition by HubRx, it announced last week (April 5).
HubRx, which claims to have developed the UK’s first automated hub-and-spoke facility for independent pharmacies, announced the deal last month (March 20).
Read more: Hub-and-spoke company buys chain of Yorkshire pharmacies
The rebranding “kicked off” with the launch of a new website, moving towards a “phased transformation plan” across Pharmacy+Health’s branches.
It forms part of a vision by CEO – former Pharmacy2U boss Daniel Lee – to "re-engineer" community pharmacy, the company said.
First to be rebranded will be Pharmacy+Health's branches in Leeds, York and Wakefield, which the company said will receive a “design overhaul to create a patient destination for on-demand clinical services”.
Pharmacy+Health said the chain will be “powered” by HubRx’s 40,000 square foot fully automated dispensing facility.
“Challenging” perceptions
Mr Lee said: “Our new Pharmacy+Health identity signals a significant shift in the direction we plan to take with the independent chain.
"We aim to challenge the perception of what a community pharmacy can and should offer, how it should look and how it operates. Re-engineering community pharmacy.”
He added that the hub-and-spoke model will “free up our pharmacists to provide a wide selection of on-demand clinical services that can be booked online” – including a “widely anticipated” Pharmacy First service.
Read more: Hub-and-spoke company registers ‘significant interest’ after DH consultation
Pharmacy+Health’s managing director Jason Lestner said the company has an “ambition” to place an independent prescriber in each of its branches.
“The technology that underpins our business will allow our highly trained team to offer their patients the care that they need, when they need it,” he added.
Mr Lee added: “I’ve spent the last two decades pioneering change within pharmacy. I started my career in community pharmacy and I want to see it thrive once again.”
