Chemist Warehouse is looking to set up shop in New Zealand

Friday, 14 July 2017

Pharmacy giant Chemist Warehouse may be moving into Auckland.

Australian pharmacy giant Chemist Warehouse is looking to open in New Zealand, according to industry sources.

It is understood the retailer is looking for properties in St Lukes, Auckland.

Pharmacy Guild of New Zealand general manager Nicole Rickman said she had heard Chemist Warehouse was planning to open in New Zealand but did not want to comment further.

'At this stage we do not have any specific information about their plans, so feel it would be premature to comment until we know more,' she said.

Pharmacy Today's Facebook page also speculated about the retailer entering New Zealand.

'There are rumours flying around that Australian discount pharmacy Chemist Warehouse is heading to New Zealand,' it said in a Facebook post.

Chemist Warehouse is the sixth largest retailer in Australia with an annual turnover of A$4.4 billion (NZ$4.7bn) in 2016, and the biggest online pharmacy retailer in Australia.

First Retail Group manager Chris Wilkinson said Chemist Warehouse's bulk buying business model would appeal to shoppers looking for value.

'It should be easy for them to bring a wholesale market to New Zealand.'

Green Cross Health owns Life Pharmacy and Unichem in New Zealand, which had about a 50 per cent share of the pharmacy market.

But Countdown supermarkets had recently started offering a broader pharmacy range and had an in-house chemist.

'Countdown's pharmacy aisles have been quite successful. It's given them a unique selling proposition and depth of connection in communities that shoppers respect,' Wilkinson said.

'Pharmacies in New Zealand will need to develop community positioning and work hard to reinforce that position with a much stronger interface between staff and consumers.'

Chemist Warehouse and Green Cross Health have been approached for comment.