Bestway Group subsidiary Well Pharmacy has acquired family-owned pharmaceutical wholesaler Lexon UK Holdings and Asurex Limited.
The company has five depots in Redditch, Leeds, Durham, East Kilbride and Dublin and a network of community pharmacies across the Midlands, Northwest, and Northeast of England.
Lexon has been in operation for over 25 years and operates primarily as a pharmaceutical wholesaler serving 3,000 retail pharmacy customers across the UK and Eire from five sites. The business also operates 42 community pharmacies (currently trading as Knights Pharmacy) and is also a specialist developer and manufacturer of generic pharmaceuticals and is a data and solutions provider to pharmacy.
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Choudrey, Bestway Group chief financial officer, said: “Through this acquisition we seek to augment our growth momentum and bring in even greater benefits to both community pharmacies and patients. Well Pharmacy had been searching for a target to expand its footprint and complement its growth trajectory and we are confident that Lexon fits this criterion.”
Seb Hobbs, chief executive of Well Pharmacy, said: “We’re delighted to be welcoming the 1,200 strong team at Lexon and Asurex to Well and the broader Bestway family, and are excited at the chance to grow our business to support even more customers and patients than ever before. We know that Lexon share our ethos as a values-orientated family business and that by bringing together our expertise we will be able to grow all aspects of our business by building on each other’s strengths. These are incredibly challenging times for community pharmacy, so we’re really pleased to be able to have an opportunity to show our commitment to the sector, now and into the future.”
Anup Sodha, who remains managing director at Lexon, said: “Colleagues should look forward to a bright future, with the added security of being part of a larger group with the investment, opportunities and benefits that will provide. Both businesses, being independent and family-owned, share similar cultural values and have the common goal of providing exceptional service and value to pharmacy, our patients and our supply chain.”
