Pharmacy Market Insight 2025: Midlands
In this blog post, Carl Steer (Director – Pharmacy, Christie & Co) shares an overview of the pharmacy market in the Midlands.
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2024 was a landmark year for both independent pharmacy transactions and corporate disposals, with Christie & Co continuing to act for a range of high-profile national and regional operators, and it proved to be the most successful year on record for our pharmacy team since it was established 13 years ago.
MARKET OVERVIEW
As we progress through the third quarter of 2025, the market continues to demonstrate robust performance, particularly for sellers of high-quality, profitable pharmacies across the Midlands.
Contrary to common perception, the supply of pharmacies coming to market in 2025 has remained limited. This may be partly due to the speed at which sales are being agreed - often within eight weeks - which contributes to a persistent shortage of available opportunities for an active and motivated pool of buyers.
BUYER ACTIVITY
Buyer appetite remains strong for pharmacies dispensing between 5,000 and 20,000 items per month, particularly among first-time buyers and acquisitive small-to-medium size groups (3-20 sites). Larger pharmacies dispensing circa 20,000 plus items are also attracting significant interest from established operators seeking to enhance EBITDA across their portfolios.
We continue to see divestment activity, primarily involving lower-volume pharmacies from medium-to-large group operators; these pharmacies are particularly popular with first-time buyers and regional multiple operators. We expect this to continue as groups refine their portfolios to retain only those assets delivering consistent profitability. Many of these sales are achieving values at or very near to advertised guide prices.
While Leicestershire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, and Warwickshire remain key hotspots, demand is widespread throughout both the West and East Midlands. Pharmacies located in villages and smaller towns are drawing particular attention due to reduced local competition.
Sale timelines remain consistent, with most transactions - whether structured as asset or share sales - completing within six to eight months.
If you’d like to know more about the Midlands pharmacy market, or for a confidential chat about your business, contact Carl Steer: carl.steer@christie.com / +44 7917 475 229