Pairing aesthetics and pharmacy

A pharmacy in downtown Kelowna, B.C., is offering patients aesthetic services along with their prescriptions. Kiwi Pharmacy & Wellness, which opened in June 2022, looks more like an upscale spa than a pharmacy. In additional to regular prescriptions services, travel health and specialty compounding, the space features an integrated aesthetics clinic with three treatment rooms. With a physician on site two days a week, the clinic offers botox injections, fillers and medical-grade skin care. “I saw the potential in tying pharmacy and skincare together,” says pharmacist Chris Kemppainen, who co-owns Kiwi with his partner Justin Dovale. “We supply our own botox and provide it to other businesses.” In fact, Kiwi aspires to be the number one botox provider in Kelowna. Having been a pharmacy manager and franchisee, Kemppainen had plenty of corporate experience, as well as connections in the cosmetics space, prior to launching Kiwi. “When word got out about what I was trying to create, I was approached by Sarah Miller (now Kiwi’s store manager) who had a connection with one of the physicians in town who is an experienced injector for Botox and wanted to join us two days a week.” As pharmacy margins continue to erode, Kemppainen says having an integrated model like Kiwi’s that incorporates a physician/clinic makes good business sense and provides opportunities for new pharmacy patients. Although he admits that the aesthetics side of the business is still gaining traction, Kemppainen hopes to expand these services to full-time and eventually add another physician on-site. “This is a turn-key office space that comes with trained support staff,” he says. “We’ve already had other people approach us about working here.” In the meantime, as the sole pharmacist with several assistants, Kemppainen says compounding services along with COVID-19 and flu shots are keeping everyone busy. The fact he’s beside three other naturopaths offering aesthetics services doesn’t faze him other. “We work really well together and I carry a number of high-end supplements recommended by the naturopaths.” In addition to supplements, Kiwi also offers several medical-grade skincare lines and giftware items from local vendors. “This business is entirely locally owned and we wanted our space to reflect that,” says Kemppainen. Read: Innovator profile: Tech-savvy health care

Pairing aesthetics and pharmacy

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