For pharmacist-turned-entrepreneur Shuaib Muhammad, who is also active in the charity sector, it has been a constant endeavour to look for opportunities and different ways to engage with people and make his Biddulph Pharmacy in Biddulph, Stoke-on-Trent, more accessible to the community.
The winner of the 2025 Pharmacy Business Enterprise Award, in association with Cencora, said: “I think it’s probably that side of the skill set that I brought into pharmacy.”
He firmly believes that one method or solution does not work for everyone.
When community pharmacies were brought in by the NHS to administer flu vaccinations to two- and three-year-old children, Muhammad felt that making it a talking point within local communities would help increase uptake.
He thought the best place to get the conversation started was the school playground, where parents also gather.
Muhammad decided to organise a children’s colouring competition centred on flu vaccination to raise awareness.
“I thought if we could spark competition among the children of that age and even older, it would get that conversation started.”
Muhammad felt this was also a way of giving back to the community. The competition winners received Amazon vouchers.
The children who participated felt involved, as their posters were displayed at Biddulph Pharmacy for a couple of months, while the winners’ posters were displayed digitally.
“So, everyone was quite happy, and it improved vaccine uptake.”
Choosing pharmacy as a career
Asked why he chose pharmacy as a career, Muhammad said: “I always wanted a career where I could help people, and sciences always interested me. It was always quite fascinating to see how the body functioned and how different medicines worked.”
From his school days, Muhammad aspired to pursue a career of this nature, and he went on to study pharmacy at Aston University in Birmingham.
Fresh out of university, he began working as a locum to make ends meet. However, he was not satisfied.
“You go and interact with patients, but there wasn’t that satisfaction when you know you may be there for only a couple of weeks.”
He then started taking more regular shifts at particular pharmacies. Muhammad was also keen to gain first-hand experience of different types of pharmacy practice.
He worked in prison pharmacy for about three years, as he was curious to find out what it was like to work in that environment.
However, Muhammad realised that he was more comfortable working in community pharmacies.
He felt that in community pharmacy, he could make decisions that would have a direct impact on people.
Muhammad also found that he did not want to work for someone else for the rest of his life.
“I wanted that bit of independence. I am someone who would put in a lot of effort and then want to see the reward.”
He explains that he currently runs his pharmacy in partnership.
“I first started working here in 2013 as a locum and then I was a manager here, so we built up the business.”
When he began working at the pharmacy, it was dispensing around 5,000 items a month. That figure has now risen to more than 17,000.
“I know the community and I want to have maximum impact on the patients we serve, as well as for myself. If I am going to put in that effort, I want to see its benefits.”
Although Muhammad is based in Birmingham, he spends three to four days a week in Biddulph.
“It’s a small and close-knit town. They’ve got their own mayor and a town crier.”
He has been actively involved in ensuring that healthcare is more accessible to patients.
Leek taxi initiative
One day, Muhammad came across a patient from the neighbouring town of Leek. The patient told him that there were no pharmacies open on Sundays.
Muhammad got in touch with someone involved in volunteering in Leek, who told him that people had to travel at least 10 miles to reach the nearest pharmacy on Sundays.
He conveyed to the volunteer his keenness to be part of any initiative that could help Leek residents. The volunteer subsequently got in touch with the taxi company Leek Link Taxis.
The company not only agreed to help, but was also willing to cover the cost of running three shuttle services from Leek to Biddulph Pharmacy on Sundays.
The taxi service ran for a several months in 2025, although demand eventually dwindled as people began using their own transport.
However, Muhammad said the initiative had put his pharmacy in a “very positive light”, as it had been part of the initiative alongside other organisations.
Other services
Biddulph Pharmacy has also introduced an ear-wax microsuction service. Muhammad said local residents used to visit a nearby hearing centre, which closed down last year.
Residents subsequently began approaching Biddulph Pharmacy for the service, and Muhammad said the uptake had been good.
The pharmacy also has a travel clinic and a weight-loss clinic. It offers a stop-smoking service funded by the local council, as well as NHS Health Checks for patients aged between 40 and 75.
Although many neighbouring pharmacies offer the same services, Muhammad said his pharmacy remains open until late at night, seven days a week.
Some people are keen to undergo a health check, but their work commitments prevent them from doing so during conventional hours. They can instead visit Biddulph Pharmacy on a Saturday or Sunday evening and have the check carried out.
Muhammad said he will also be undertaking training in cryotherapy – the removal of warts, skin tags and moles – and plans to offer the service at his pharmacy.
“People have to travel about seven or eight miles to get it done. It’s a private service, but this is something that we plan to do,” he said.
Shuaib Muhammad receiving the 2025 Pharamcy Business Enterprise Award. Pharmacy Business
Managing his team
Muhammad manages a 14-member team, with some employees working part-time. As Biddulph Pharmacy remains open for 85 hours a week, the team includes full-time staff such as qualified dispensers and qualified counter assistants. It also employs students, including pharmacy students, to cover the evening hours.
Muhammad said the team members get on well and are encouraged to get involved in activities beyond pharmacy.
They are planning to organise a 10-kilometre run to raise money for charity, and Muhammad is encouraging all employees to take part.
Biddulph Pharmacy also organises social get-togethers for employees.
“The whole team comes, and as a company, we pay for this. They go bowling, followed by a meal.”
Muhammad believes that if the team is happy, its members will be enthusiastic about fulfilling the company’s objectives.
“If you keep everyone happy, they’ll also have the same energy as you in trying to push the different services and trying to achieve the same outcomes.”
Muhammad believes that if you want to convince team members about a new technology, you first need to be convinced yourself.
You then need to communicate its benefits effectively to persuade employees to buy into it.
“If they haven’t bought into it, it’ll never be heartfelt, and it will show.”
Medicine shortages
Muhammad said medicine shortages have made “patients lose their patience”.
He said that, to reduce tension, pharmacy teams need to show empathy towards patients.
“They may not be as patient as they previously would be, but a lot of the time, we have to show empathy,” he said.
Muhammad said stock availability at his pharmacy is much better than at his competitors, and that people also have the same impression.
“So when they come to us and find that we don’t have it in stock as well, they realise there must be an issue,” he said.
He acknowledged, however, that the pharmacy does sometimes encounter aggressive patients, particularly when they cannot get a brand they have previously used.
Biddulph Pharmacy tries to source those brands for such patients, but Muhammad admits that this is sometimes not possible because of shortages.
In such cases, they either provide a smaller supply or contact the doctors and ask them to suggest an alternative medication.
As Muhammad is also a prescriber and undertakes some ad hoc shifts at the doctor’s surgery, he has developed a good rapport with local doctors.
Proud moments
Muhammad said pharmacists do not always receive recognition for their work, with a good Google review often being the most visible form of appreciation.
However, he recalled that in 2019 he had contemplated leaving community pharmacy to work at a doctor’s surgery.
When people found out he was leaving, they brought him gifts and spoke about how he had helped them over the years. He was deeply moved by the heartwarming gestures.
He subsequently changed his mind and decided to stay.
Muhammad also cherishes winning the Pharmacy Business award.
“I am not saying this because I’m talking to you.”
He said winning an award at that level, in front of many major players in the industry, was a very proud moment.
“To come from a remote place in North Staffordshire and be handed an award, in association with Cencora Alliance Healthcare, in Central London was a very prestigious event for us.”
