Co-op moves back into pharmaceuticals market

The Co-op is moving back into the healthcare market with the acquisition of Dimec, a healthcare technology start-up, which has developed a digital solution for repeat prescriptions.

The co-founders of Dimec will work with the Co-op team, and a number of new jobs will be created in digital, operational and clinical roles. These will be located in Manchester and the Co-op’s distribution centre at Lea Green in Merseyside.

The Co-op sold its previous pharmacy business to Bestway in 2014.

This acquisition will enable The Co-op to compete in the £10.5 billion pharmacy market, where over 1.1 billion prescriptions are written annually in England. Some 29 million people in the UK receive a regular repeat prescription and this number is forecast to grow significantly in the years ahead.

Tim Davies, director of Co-op Ventures, said: “The acquisition of Dimec allows us to accelerate the development of our healthcare proposition, and provides the technology required to ensure customers can interact with their NHS GP more conveniently.”