Locum Pharmacist acquires 30-hour Moorside Pharmacy

The new owner plans to run Moorside Pharmacy on a hands-on basis and introduce additional services for the benefit of the local community

 A community pharmacy in Consett, County Durham, North East England, has been sold to a locum pharmacist after the previous owner decided to put it on the market following 29 years of ownership.

Specialist business property adviser, Christie & Co, recently announced the sale of Moorside Pharmacy, a 30-hour community pharmacy that dispenses an average of 3,200 NHS items per month.

Located 1.5 miles west of Consett, the pharmacy shares a building with a small GP surgery in Moorside.

Rachel Hurst, who has owned it since 1995, brought it to the market to downsize her operations and focus on her busier pharmacies – one in Consett and two in Crook, County Durham, according to the broker.

Following a confidential sales process, locum pharmacist Monju Miah has acquired the pharmacy. He plans to manage it hands-on and introduce additional services that will benefit the local population, the broker stated.

Craig Dickson, Director at Christie Finance, said: “Monju had been looking for a pharmacy for some time and views Moorside as an ideal opportunity to increase item numbers and services going forward.”

“Monju is hugely experienced in the pharmacy sector. He will be very much hands-on within the pharmacy and is looking forward to forging closer links with the local community.”

Karl Clezy, Director – Pharmacy at Christie & Co, said that Moorside Pharmacy mainly attracted interest from first-time buyers as “it was priced at the more affordable end of the scale and presented an ideal opportunity for someone looking for more of a lifestyle business as it is only open 30 hours per week.”

Karl is of the opinion that, despite its limited trading hours, the pharmacy will thrive as a business due to its advantageous location inside the surgery building.