Blue Pharmacy
When Bill was approached by a chain to sell his store for a very good price, it galvanized him to finally take action on what he’d been thinking about for several years. After 33 years of running his own pharmacy in the rural community in which he had been born and grown up, he still wanted to work in the pharmacy but he didn’t want all of the responsibility of the store.
He couldn’t see selling to a chain, even though the offer price was more attractive than what he would have imagined. The thought of having his long-time customers getting their prescriptions filled and counseling done at a chain didn’t sit well with him. His customers tended to be low income, many of them farmers and factory workers.
In a passing conversation with a colleague, Bill mentioned his desire to pass on the sole proprietorship of his store to another independent owner. The colleague happened to know a young pharmacist, two years out of pharmacy school, who was working in a chain in the next state but was ready to move into independent ownership. The colleague made the connection between Bill and Amber, the young chain pharmacist.
Bill and Amber met and were able to structure the sale of the pharmacy, albeit at a significantly lower price than the chain offered. Bill felt so strongly about keeping the pharmacy independent that he was willing to forego the extra money. Amber was able to raise 20% of the cost as a down payment through a bank loan and personal funds. Bill provided a promissory note for 80% of the cost at prime +1% (adjusted annually) for 15 years. Bill has remained very active in the pharmacy, working 25 hours a week. He has become a mentor to Amber and both realize that they are thriving in this arrangement.
