100-hour community pharmacy in Luton sold to first-time buyer siblings
Specialist business property adviser, Christie & Co, has announced the sale of Blenheim Pharmacy in Luton, Bedfordshire. Funding for the buyers was sourced through Christie Finance.
Blenheim Pharmacy is a 100-hour community pharmacy dispensing upwards of 11,000 items per month, with a total income in excess of £1.5 million.
The pharmacy was previously owned by Prab Channa of Castle Shaw Ltd who recently purchased Priory Pharmacy in Kent through Christie & Co and decided to sell Blenheim Pharmacy to fully relocate to the area.
The business has been acquired by first-time buyers, brother and sister Pharmacists, Rohola and Mitra Azimi, who live locally to the business.
Carl Steer, director – Medical at Christie & Co, who handled the sale, comments, “Sales of 100-hour pharmacies across the UK for the past two to three years have been sparse. Quite often, to attract interest, the business needs to be established, profitable and valued at the correct level. Blenheim ticked all of these boxes and, despite the obstacle of a short lease, having a client who was pro-active and organised made the process much smoother. It was not an easy deal but, when seller, agent and advisors work as a team, it only had one outcome; a successful completion.”
Dave Ward, senior director at Christie Finance, who secured funding for the buyers, comments, “Due to the length of the lease and Blenheim Pharmacy having a 100-hour licence, the funding for this deal was a little more complicated than usual. We were, however, able to present a sufficiently strong case to our lending contacts, enabling us to find a competitive deal for Rohola and Mitra.
“Lenders have appreciated the re-emergence of pharmacies during the pandemic as playing an integral role within local communities. They are cautious, though, of the ability for businesses to continue to provide essential services once this peak has subsided. It is essential, therefore, to demonstrate that the underlying business is rock solid and that owners are not just relying on COVID-related income.”
Blenheim Pharmacy was sold for an undisclosed price.
