High Street chain announces 1,300 branches could close for good in huge blow
Lloyds Pharmacy announced 1,300 branches could close for good in huge blow
Mike Egerton
A leading pharmacy has warned all 1,300 of its chemist branches are at risk of closure in another huge blow for Britain’s high streets.
The owner of Lloyds Pharmacy has said its private owner has launched a strategic review into its store base across the UK.
As a result of this process, all of its pharmacies could be closed, a source told The Sun.
A staple of high streets across the country, pharmacies are an essential service for communities, but many have faced closures in recent years.
237 Lloyds Pharmacy stores based in Sainsbury's supermarkets will close by the end of the year
Owen Humphreys
The closure of 237 Lloyds Pharmacy stores has already been confirmed, with these being operations based within Sainsbury’s supermarkets, by the end of the year.
Speaking of the decision, Lloyds Pharmacy’s chief executive officer, Kevin Birch, said: “This decision has not been an easy one and we understand that our patients and customers may have questions about how the change will affect them.
“We would like to thank them for their continued support and assure them that we are committed to providing a smooth transition over the coming months.
“I am very grateful to all our colleagues for their dedication to our patients, customers and communities.”
The owner of Lloyds Pharmacy has said its private owner has launched a strategic review into its store base across the UK.
Alwyn Ladell
The decision came seven years after Lloyds Pharmacy first snapped up the pharmacies from the retailer for £125million.
The pharmacy currently employs 17,000 staff across the business, providing 150 million prescriptions a year.
It comes less than a year after Lloyds Pharmacy was sold to Aurelius for £477million.
In 2022, Lloyds were forced to shut 76 stores.
The owner of Lloyds Pharmacy has said its private owner has launched a strategic review into its store base across the UK.
Elliot Brown
In a statement, a spokesperson told the newspaper: “LloydsPharmacy regularly reviews its pharmacy estate to ensure it is operating sustainably and any decision to sell stores is taken in the interests of patients, colleagues and the business.
“At all times, patient safety remains our top priority ensuring that our customers and patients are always able to access vital prescriptions, health advice, products and services.”
Figures show that around 10 per cent of pharmacies in the UK are operated by Lloyds Pharmacy.
As a result of the NHS’s pharmacy contract not keeping up with inflation, the pharmacy industry has lost an estimated £1.6billion in the last ten years.
The high street continues to suffer further store closures
Andrew Matthews
Pharmacies claim this has led to massive cuts to funding and causing mass closures.
Speaking following Lloyds Pharmacy’s decision to shut its stores within Sainsbury’s, Nigel Swift, deputy managing director at pharmacy group Phoenix UK, said: “Since the start of the pharmacy contract there has been a massive cut in real-term funding resulting in hundreds of closures.
“This has to be a wake-up call for government.”
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