Stone Pharmacy in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, was sold to existing operator Livesey Healthcare Ltd, which owns another pharmacy in East Lancashire, Christie & Co said on Friday (June 2).

The new owners had previously locumed at Stone Pharmacy and “recognise that, with a hands-on approach to service, they can grow patient numbers and expand the service offering,” according to the broker.

Read more: ‘Impressive’ Lincolnshire pharmacy sold after ‘just three weeks’ on the market

The 100-hour community pharmacy was owned by “experienced operators” Khuram Akhtar and Mohammed Ali, trading as MEDS2U Ltd, for the last seven years, it said.

But they decided to sell the business to concentrate on “other ventures both inside and out of community pharmacy,” Mr Akhtar said.

Read more: Pharmacy buyer registrations ‘rocketed by colossal 202%’ in 2023, broker reveals

The high-volume pharmacy dispenses “an average of 22,000 items per month” according to Christie & Co, and is run under full management with a locum pharmacist. 

 

It adjoins Garland House surgery in the South Yorkshire village of Darfield, which is around six miles east of Barnsley and around 14 miles north of Sheffield, it said.

 

Sold at a “premium” price

 

 

The “well established” pharmacy was sold for an undisclosed price following a confidential sales process, Christie & Co said.

 

But director of pharmacy at the broker, Jon Booth, who handled the sale, said that the business was “sold for a premium price considering its status at the time as a 100-hours pharmacy contract”.

 

Read more: What do recent regulatory changes mean for 100-hour community pharmacies?

 

“This was down to its very high volume of items underpinning the success of the contract but also, from the point of view of a new hands-on operator, it offered plenty of growth with the provision of new services,” he added.

 

Mr Booth said that the broker expects “the market for former 100-hours contracts will gain further momentum” thanks to the “recent announcement of changes to the 100-hours contract”.

 

 

A “fantastic enterprise”

 

Stone Pharmacy has been a “fantastic enterprise for many years for us [and] with limited competition and a position central to the local community, we have always enjoyed the support of the nearby population,” former owner Mr Akhtar said. 

He added that he and his business partner are “pleased” that the business is now “in the hands of experienced operators who can build on that foundation with the expansion of new services” and wished the new owners and the pharmacy team “the greatest of success”.

Read more: High-volume Kent coast pharmacy with ‘loyal customers’ sold to London operator

Director at Livesey Healthcare Mohammed Balal said that the company is “looking forward to this new challenge and to serving the community of Darfield”.

 

“Stone Pharmacy offers me and my fellow directors a solid platform to grow the business further thanks to the hard work of the previous owners,” he added.

 

It comes as a high-volume community pharmacy in Lincolnshire has been sold after only three weeks on the market.

 

This followed broker Hutchings’ annual report, which revealed that the number of pharmacy buyer registrations “rocketed by a colossal 202%” in the first quarter of 2023.