Receivers and administrators have been appointed for 54 Infinity pharmacies, including ones operating under the Priceline banner. (Source: Getty/Realcommercial.com.au)
Retail giant Wesfarmers has made the “unavoidable” decision to place dozens of pharmacies into voluntary administration, including some operating under the Priceline banner. Receivers and administrators have been appointed for 54 pharmacies operated by the Infinity Pharmacy Group.
KPMG Australia’s George Georges, David Hardy, Gayle Dickerson and Will Colwell were today appointed as receivers of the 54 pharmacy stores, which include Infinity and Priceline-branded stores. The stores will continue to operate as normal, while receivers undertake an assessment of the business.
In a statement provided to Yahoo Finance, Hardy said the pharmacies provided “essential goods and services to communities across Australia which is why we will be focused on ensuring they continue to trade with minimal disruption to customers”.
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There are no current job losses from the administration and receivership, with all current employees retained and paid normally through the process.
“As well as stabilising the operations of these pharmacies, we will be commencing an orderly sale process in the new year,” Hardy said.
“We will be working with all stakeholders, including pharmacists, employees, suppliers, and customers, to maximise the outcome for all parties.”
The 54 impacted stores include Priceline and Infinity branded stores. (Source: Realcommercial.com.au)
Wesfarmers Health chief customer officer Richard Pearson wrote an open letter to Priceline franchise partners on Wednesday, confirming it had appointed KPMG as receivers and Teneo as voluntary administrators for the 54 Infinity pharmacies.
Pearson labelled it a “difficult situation which has unfortunately become unavoidable”.
“As many of you are aware, we have worked tirelessly with the Infinity Pharmacy Group (Infinity) over many years to support them to trade through significant financial challenges,” Pearson said in the email seen by Yahoo Finance.
“Despite these efforts, Infinity’s failure to meet their financial obligations over a prolonged period, as well as their worsening debt position, has placed them in an untenable situation, threatening their ability to continue trading.”
Infinity Pharmacy Group describes itself as Australia’s “leading pharmacy network”, with the majority of its pharmacies under the Priceline banner.
Wesfarmers Health has owned the Priceline chain since 2022.
A spokesperson for the Pharmacy Guild of Australia said the decision meant a “significant number” of community pharmacies would enter administration.
“Our concern is first and foremost for the patients who rely on these pharmacies as primary health care hubs, and for the dedicated team members whose livelihoods are now uncertain,” a spokesperson said.
“This development underscores that community pharmacies, like all small businesses, are not immune to the financial challenges of spiralling energy costs and burdensome tax rates and compliance costs.”
The Pharmacy Guild added that 60-day dispensing had reduced prescription volumes and had a “lasting impact on the community pharmacy operating model”, with total script volume down 1.3 per cent this financial year.
“This is a sad day for community pharmacy, but unfortunately not unexpected,” the spokesperson said.
KPMG will advise which stores are impacted in the coming hours.
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