In Business

Follow this topic

Bookmark

Record learning outcomes

An increasing number of pharmacy contractors in Scotland are helping first-time buyers by providing “a significant proportion of the deposit” needed to secure funding, according to the broker Christie and Co.

In its pharmacy market insight for 2026, published on Monday, its director-pharmacy Karl Clezy said buyers normally repay the investor “after three to five years of ownership”.

“This model proved effective during 2023 and 2024, when investors helped younger buyers acquire LloydsPharmacy branches,” Clezy said.

“We are now in the process of agreeing on several deals where investors are assisting first-time buyers in taking their first step onto the ownership ladder.”

He said Christie and Co has “a range of independent pharmacies on the market” but insisted there are no corporate pharmacy branches for sale in Scotland. 

The broker said it has independents on the market in “two island locations on the Isle of Mull and the Isle of Bute”. However, Clezy said Christie and Co was “experiencing a shortage of stock coming to market relative to buyer demand”.

He added: “Many owners aimed to sell before 1 April 2026 to avoid the increase in business asset disposal relief, which rose from 14 per cent to 18 per cent on 6 April 2026.”

Insisting “buyer appetite remains strong in Scotland”, Clezy said Christie and Co has sold or agreed deals on several independents in Aberdeen city, Aberdeenshire, Angus, and Moray in the last six months.

“Demand is particularly strong in the main towns and cities across the Central Belt, as well as in the Aberdeen and Inverness areas,” he said.