16-strong pharmacy group in the North of England successfully sold to Allcures Plc
Specialist business property adviser, Christie & Co, has announced the sale of a group of 16 pharmacies in North of England on behalf of The Hub Pharmacy.
Established in 2015 via a management buyout of MedicX Pharmacy Ltd, with funding support from Bridges Fund Management, The Hub Pharmacy Ltd has delivered on its vision to create a Northern-based pharmacy chain providing patient-centred pharmaceutical care in a community setting via a range of specialist, high-quality, professional services delivered by expert teams. Operating in local communities, the estate represents a portfolio of accessible ‘Hub’ pharmacies for patients to access easily.
Starting from a core of nine pharmacies, the group has grown through a combination of single and group acquisitions to its current portfolio size, with pharmacies located in clusters across Warrington, Halifax, Rochdale, and Greater Manchester. All either sit within health centres or are close to GP surgeries and offer significant potential for growth.
The pharmacies perform strongly, with over 60 per cent of the estate achieving dispensing volumes significantly ahead of the industry average in England.
Following an open marketing sales process, the pharmacies have been sold to Essex-based Allcures plc, a 32-strong pharmacy group operating across the south of England.
Financial director at The Hub Pharmacy, Andrew Butterworth, comments, “We are pleased to have completed the sale to Allcures plc, a group that shares the same vision and ethos we have built over the last seven years. Both David Atkinson and I look forward to working with the Allcures team in continuing the development of the business.”
A spokesperson for Allcures plc comments, “We are delighted to have acquired The Hub Pharmacy Limited, delivering on our strategy to develop our service offering into the north of England. The Hub Pharmacy has a strong reputation for delivering a quality service across all of its settings, something we are keen not only to continue but enhance in the years to come. We look forward to welcoming the Hub team into the Allcures family.”
Tony Evans, head of pharmacy at Christie & Co who handled the sale, comments, “We are pleased to have acted on behalf of the Hub Pharmacy Limited in the sale to Allcures plc. Such is the reputation and quality of the group, following a short marketing campaign significant interest was generated across the estate at an individual, sub-group, and group basis. The ultimate sale to Allcures, along with the wider interest the disposal generated, further underpins the appetite for good quality pharmacy assets in the market, something that has continued throughout 2022.”
The pharmacies were sold for an undisclosed price.
