Collaboration between pharmacies and doctors is a truly undervalued resource in the world of pharmacy. In my opinion, I see it as one of the greatest opportunities.
Am I right to say that both professions exist for the same purpose and that is to improve the health of the local community? They see the same patients and both businesses have premises in the same local communities. It seems like a logical commercial advantage for both businesses to interact more closely together.
As an owner of a business one of the skills you need is the ability to identify what you’re good at and what you’re not.
Being honest with yourself and being smart about how you use your time and money is a constant decision making process. One of the most important lessons I've had over the last few years is understanding what I'm good at and what I'm not. The things I wasn’t good at, I let go and got other people to do them.
I have spoken to many pharmacy owners, and one common thing that surprises me is not many can answer the question “Where are you going to be in 3 years time?”.
There are not many pharmacy businesses that have a well defined vision, goals and dreams. As you may have heard me say before, “aiming at nothing and hitting it with surprising accuracy”. To be honest it is not surprising at all. But considering the size of the investment in these businesses, and the size of the debt some are carrying, I find it strange there is a lack of vision in the future of community pharmacies.
Previous blogs we have talked about the issues you need to contend with when buying a pharmacy (So You Want to Buy a Pharmacy? and Pharmacy Partnerships – What you need to Know). For most young pharmacist’s keen on ownership, the most common and likely affordable entry point is buying a share of the pharmacy they work in.
