Chemist Direct
≈ 2 min read
Names in other languages
- EnglishChemist Direct
- FrançaisChemist Direct
- mulChemist Direct
Article bodies are English and are not machine-translated. A name in another language is not a translation of the article.
Chemist Direct is a UK-based company providing medical products and services in addition to beauty products online.
Chemist Direct is a UK-based company providing medical products and services in addition to beauty products online.
History
20071–2013: Founded in 2007 by Mitesh and Krishna Soma in Birmingham, the company attracted early investment—including around £3 million from Atomico—in 2009. In 2011, Stuart Rowe was appointed CEO, and by 2013 the company raised approximately $10 million from Atomico, Lepe Partners, and DMG Media to support rapid growth in online prescription, health advice, and pet medicines. 2016: Merger with Pharmacy2U In July 2016, Chemist Direct merged with NHS repeat-prescription-focused Pharmacy2U in a deal worth over £40 million. The combined business claimed a customer base of 1.5 million and capacity to dispense up to 1 million prescription items per month. Mark Livingstone became CEO and Pharmacy2U founder Daniel Lee became COO. 2016-2020: Post-merger evolution The merged entity scaled NHS repeat dispensing and clinician-led services. By May 2019, Pharmacy2U—now inclusive of Chemist Direct offerings—was dispensing over 500,000 medication items per month with more than 350,000 EPS-affiliated patients. Revenue rose from £25.8 m in 2017 to £43.2 m in 2018, despite posting losses around £16 m–£20 m. Chemist Direct continued to sell under its trade name. 2020-2023: Expansion In 2023, Pharmacy2U acquired LloydsDirect, integrating it under a unified brand and combining strengths in digital prescription fulfillment and clinical care.
Merger
In July 2016, it announced a merger with Pharmacy2U.
References
Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1359484601 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.