Lloydspharmacy to rebrand as new trial stores launched

Parent company Celesio today revealed a three-pronged strategy as part of its European Pharmacy Network plans.

Celesio said the retailer, which has restructured this year, will shorten its brand name to Lloyds to create a standardised brand for Celesio pharmacies across Europe. The Lloyds Pharmacy colours have changed from light blue to a grey bckground and green lettering.

The health retailer said it wanted the name to be synonymous with informed medical advice and strong knowledge of its products.

In addition, the retailer is trialling a new store concept in Bicester and Bromsgrove. The stores opened last week and are designed to put customer care at the centre of its proposition featuring Health Bars, offering higher quality products, consultation rooms and new touch screen technology, Celesio said.

Celesio will trial more stores in Europe next year and if successful, the concept will be rolled out to its 2,200 European pharmacies. 

Celesio management board member Stephan Borchert said: “We will strengthen the pharmacy as a multi-functional pharmaceutical service and retail concept.”

The plans come as its trial Lloydspharmacy Health Villages in reail parks at Brent Cross and Thurrock are set to close after a year of trading, Retail Week understands.

Celesio UK managin director Mark James said the concept, which brought together health services such as dentists and opticians from a series of brands, was situated at the wrong locations and didn’t generate enough footfall.

But he said they had taken the strengths of the health villages and put them into the new pilot stores.

“You will see a lot of elements used in the villages pulled out and used in the new format stores, such as the skin offer,” he added.

In the new stores Celesio has focused the initial pharmacy visit customers make down to either skin or pain, as the retailers’ research shows these are the main reasons most people visit their pharmacy. As a result, the consultation rooms will have new technology including skin scanners and digital pain assessors. 

Celesio has also improved its stock management systems to ensure a better supply of drugs to its customers, which is expected to help cut costs. 

The company is also aiming to tap into the independent pharmacies, of which there are many within Europe, by offering them the chance to work together and use some of the services provided in Celesio’s pharmacies. 

Borchert said: “The membership secures important competitive advantages for independent, owner-managed pharmacies compared to drugstores and supermarkets in terms of services, consultancy and performance. They will gain access to innovation and at the same time to the economic advantages of a large network.”

The company is enacting a “One Celesio” strategy, which aims to integrate the wholesale – under its sister company All About Health - and retail divisions. The move led to 120 redundancies at head office earlier this year.