Come late June every year, London welcomes tennis lovers to the Wimbledon Championships for two weeks of grand-slam entertainment.
This year’s drama has been amped up by the AI line-calling mistakes that has irritated some of the world’s best tennis players.
But ensuring fans are set for a pain-free enjoyable day out is the small team running the pop-up pharmacy on the east side of No.1 Court.
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It’s the third-year luxury pharmacy John Bell & Croyden have been the “service provider” for the Wimbledon pharmacy.
It took over from Lloydspharmacy, who they used to be under the same group as before Bestway Healthcare bought John Bell & Croyden out in 2023.
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General manager and head of marketing Alexander Johnston tells C+D the Wimbleon pop-up pharmacy was “never profitable” for Lloyds because they “didn’t have any stores nearby with stock, so they ran it at a loss”.
“Lloyds came to us and said it wasn’t working for them, so they asked if we’d like to take it over. We were thrilled because Wimbledon has a rich history, as does the John Bell & Croyden brands. We felt there was a real connection there.”
Sunshine
The set up can begin as early as late May for John Bell & Croyden to access the site and redress the space ready for the championships, and any large amount of stock can be delivered to a nearby warehouse off-site ahead of opening.
Johnston said there is always one pharmacist and one retail staff member at the pop-up pharmacy, with a popular roster for shifts throughout the 8am – 8pm hours it’s open for every day of the championships.
The premises itself is no bigger than a single garage compared to the spacious location it has at 50-54 Wigmore Street in central London.
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“There’s a small space behind the counter where we can keep a few bits and pieces, but we have to ship stock in every day to keep the shelf stock because there’s nowhere for us to maintain any large amounts of products,” he says.
The stock at the Wimbledon site is mostly selected for what is needed for a very hot day out, including sun cream, water mist, rehydration salts, and healthy snacks like granola bars.
“For our operations manager, this is the two weeks where his mind is blown. He’s watching the weather like a hawk to make sure we’ve got the right levels of sunscreen.
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“The sunscreen sales for week one of the championships were insane because people turn up thinking they’ll be able to get out the shade, but you’re outside basically all day.
“It’s a learning curve in terms of what we supply. It’s a stressful two weeks for the team, but who else gets to do it?!”
VIPs
Other popular items stocked up include blister plasters, pain medication like Ibuprofen, lip balm and Calpol.
But members of staff can be rallying back and forth in taxis or on the tube to deliver any medications requested from its London store to Wimbledon.
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And it’s not just over-the-counter medications that are requested, as it can fill emergency prescriptions from its central London store and deliver it across to Wimbledon when needed.
Johnston said the pop-up pharmacy sells around 500 products every day, and last year’s wetter weather meant they sold more medication than expected.
It works with the medical team on-site as well as St Johns Ambulance to support any guests who feel unwell during their visit, but the pop-up pharmacy also offers some special deliveries for players, staff and VIPs.
“The pharmacist can dispense medications for players and staff. They have an open purchase order with us, so anything they need we supply as quickly as possible.
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“Anything players need can go directly to the players suite. Often, it’s sun cream, sometimes it’s moisturisers and skincare. It’s very bespoke.
“We will deliver to a box or a VIP via the Wimbledon concierge service.”
Despite the high-profile clientele, Johnston insists it’s something the John Bell & Croyden staff are used to from their celebrity customer interactions at their central London store.
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But it’s the experience of the behind-the-scenes operations the staff gets to see which makes the two weeks at Wimbledon extra special, such as seeing how the groundskeepers treat the courts with grass seed ahead of the day’s matches.
Johnston said: “The staff who go from John Bell & Croyden love going. It’s a great honour to be a part of a British institution.”
