New owners, same faces: How one consolidator maintains continuity of care and retains staff after owners exit

At a time when pharmacies and other businesses across the country are struggling to find and retain staff, the owners at Care Pharmacies are in the enviable position of boasting a 94% employee retention rate. “The great resignation has hit pharmacy as hard as everybody else,” said Ali Reyhany, a pharmacist and CEO of Toronto-based Care Pharmacies, a national network of independent pharmacies with stores that are majority-owned and controlled by licensed pharmacists. “What we’ve found is that when you give people respect, autonomy and the right incentives, they’ll find plenty of reasons to stay.” Since its launch in 2016, Care Pharmacies has grown from a two-store operation to a portfolio of more than 70 pharmacies employing about 700 workers in seven provinces. The company has grown through an acquisition strategy that offers independent pharmacists a way to exit their businesses while ensuring continuity of care in their communities and protecting the livelihoods of their staff. Read: Lorraine's Pharmacy: The bittersweetness of selling the family business Given that about 80% of Care Pharmacies acquisitions are in rural areas, where they’re often the only pharmacy in the community and staff are usually longstanding employees who are well trusted by patients, this commitment to preserving the business founders’ legacy has been key to the company’s success, said Reyhany. “We like to think of ourselves as Canada’s rural and suburban pharmacy consolidator of choice,” he said. “We have a deep track record and a lot of our growth has been by word of mouth because owners know that when they sell their pharmacy to us, they’re leaving their staff and community in good hands.” As a starting point, Care Pharmacies offers senior-level staff stock options in the business to turn them from employees to equity owners. After they’ve built up to a certain level of tenure, they can choose to maintain their equity within their store or roll out their options to get a bigger piece of the business. Read: A tale of two countries: Staffing shortages squeezing pharmacy here and south of the border This approach helps ensure continuity of service, said Reyhany. With the owners retiring, it’s important to retain a team with faces that are familiar to patients. Giving pharmacy managers stock options has, so far, been a successful tactic in Care Pharmacy’s retention strategy. There are also financial incentives for non-vested employees. In the last two years, the company has raised wages by almost 10% and handed out bonuses. But while money talks, it’s not the only reason why people stay after their workplace has been sold to Care Pharmacies, said Reyhany. The company maintains a respectful distance that allows each store in its network to operate with a high degree of autonomy. Care Pharmacies also brings in innovations—such as robotics and central packaging—that small-town pharmacies would usually not be able to afford, said Reyhany. Through Care Pharmacies’ sister company, Vancouver-based Mednow Inc., stores in certain communities are able to offer virtual pharmacy services such as same-day delivery of prescription medications. Read: Robotics and automation give Mednow a competitive edge in digital pharmacy “What we don’t do is go into a pharmacy with a cookie-cutter formula that says you need to reduce staff and you need to cut back in these areas,” he said. “Instead we invest in people and innovation. We bring in corporate benefits—such as cost efficiencies from shared services and the ability to roll out new services very quickly—while retaining the ‘ma and pa’ vibe of the store, which is really important because we’re acquiring stores that have been serving their communities for 30, 40 years or even longer.” As more pharmacy owners retire in the coming years, consolidation will continue to redefine the landscape of the country’s pharmacy industry, said Reyhany. But what will remain unchanged is Canadians’ desire for healthcare from a trusted provider in their community. “People count on independent pharmacists to look after them—we really saw that during the pandemic,” said Reyhany. “We’re here to ensure independent pharmacists continue to thrive long after their owners have retired.” Read: What's your exit strategy? How to tell when it's time to shut your pharmacy's doors

New owners, same faces: How one consolidator maintains continuity of care and retains staff after owners exit

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