Lindsay & Gilmour are one of the oldest pharmacies in Scotland and have been NPA members for nearly half a century.
Originally established by Robert Lindsay in 1826 it has been trading from the same site, in Elm Row, Edinburgh ever since.

Today there are over 31 Lindsay & Gilmour pharmacies spread across East and Central Scotland, the Borders and Fife, which offer a full range of pharmacy services.

Phil Galt, its Managing Director and Superintendent Pharmacist, joined the business in 2014 and says he feels proud of being part of a pioneering organisation.

Read more

Being known as the pharmacy that has been open every day for almost 70 years is a big reputation but the award winning Wicker Pharmacy staff take it in their stride.

The famous Sheffield pharmacy was established on 21 January 1952 and has been open every day ever since. The company was formed in 1951 (as Associated Chemists Ltd) to provide the people of Sheffield with an extended hours pharmacy service.

The pharmacy continues to be owned mostly by Sheffield pharmacists, but in 2012 ownership of part of the company was transferred to the staff via an employee ownership trust model.

Read more

England’s oldest pharmacy is steeped in history, having been an important part of the lives of the people of Burford, Oxfordshire, since 1734.

Originally a village public house, the building was leased as an apothecary providing locals with medicinal remedies.

Since then Reavley Chemist has matured through the centuries to establish itself as an important health care facility treasured by the local Cotswold community.

Ben says: “I wanted to give our family business a solid, recognised base…

Read more

When Shilpa Routledge wanted to open up her own pharmacy 33 years ago she had no idea how to go about it.

After qualifying in 1985 as a pharmacist, she went to work for Boots and did some locuming before being approached by a GP two years later, who asked her to open what is now Shil Pharmacy in Cwmbran, Wales.

“I thought yes, I want to do this but didn’t know how to go about it,” Shilpa recalls.

It was then that she was advised by a colleague to approach the NPA.

Read more

Mementos from a bygone era adorn the ‘unofficial museum’ of Dean & Smedley’s head office – items such as old pill machines and cork presses, Allenbury’s pastilles and Zam-Buk brand ointments – all a reminder of how much has changed over the years.

Arthur Alwyn Dean established the company in 1927 after purchasing an existing business in Horninglow Road in Burton on Trent. After the Second World War, the shop was taken over by his son John Dean.

John Dean married a pharmacist who had been his apprentice. She had subsequently owned a pharmacy in Derby, trading under her own name as “Joan Smedley”, and when they married, a Limited Company was created in 1946 under the name “Dean & Smedley Ltd”.

Read more

Now in its eighth decade, McCaughan Chemist has grown to become an integral part of its community.

Frank A McCaughan established the business in 1959 in the rural coastal town of Ballycastle. Over the years, the business has grown to accommodate two further pharmacies in the local area.

James McCaughan, his eldest son, joined the family business after qualifying as a pharmacist himself. He did his studies in Liverpool and after completing his pre reg year, he spent four years in Dublin working in a busy city centre community pharmacy. He returned to Ballycastle in 1996 to work with Frank.

Read more

Dave Pharmacy in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire was originally founded in 1930.

Ownership of the pharmacy changed hands a number of times before it was taken over by Westons, a small pharmacy chain.

The father of Nisha Dave, the current owner of the pharmacy, was doing his pre-reg with Westons in the 70s and eventually got a permanent job there and bought the pharmacy soon after.

When his daughter Nisha took over the reins, some of the locals were hesitant.

Read more

Chiman Patel left Uganda with his siblings in 1967 to escape persecution from its former military dictator Idi Amin. He came to UK knowing one day he would have his own pharmacy.

“I’ve wanted to own a pharmacy from a young age, even when I was in Uganda,” he says.

But “times were hard” says Chiman who was the eldest boy in the family and only 12 years old when he left Uganda. He vividly recalls the day he arrived in the UK.

“I remember arriving at Gatwick Airport and seeing lots of chimneys everywhere as we drove up to Bolton. My parents were already here so they came to pick us up. It was cold, damp and foggy.”

Read more

Streatham, South West London, has undergone a good deal of change in the last couple of decades but through it all, Copes Pharmacy has always been there, as a cornerstone of the local community.

“This was where all the innovation would happen; this would be where we’d test and demonstrate what pharmacy and pharmacists could do,” says Ashok Soni, owner of Copes Pharmacy.

Ashok qualified as a pharmacist in 1984 and soon after bought the pharmacy in Streatham in 1986. He has also acquired two other pharmacies but his day to day work revolves around his flagship store, Copes Pharmacy.

Read more

It was during 1979 in Uckfield, East Sussex, that the first Kamsons Pharmacy was opened. Over 40 years later, the company has now grown to 77 pharmacies and employs nearly 1000 people.

The family-owned chain was founded by Bipin and Bharat Chotai and their brother Piyoosh, who sadly died in January 2020. The family came to England from Uganda in the 1970s, to escape persecution from its dictator Idi Amin.

Their drive and determination to build a better life helped develop the values and ethos of Kamsons.

Read more