23 April 2018 - Deborah Wilkes
Phoenix is entering the Romanian market by acquiring pharmaceutical wholesaler Farmexim and its national pharmacy chain Help Net Farma.
The German wholesaler and retailer said Farmexim, which has 10 nationwide distribution centres, recorded sales of more than EUR400 million (USD485 million) in 2016.
Help Net Farma was one of the top five pharmacy chains in Romania, added Phoenix, with a network of around 220 pharmacies.
Oliver Windholz, chief executive officer of Phoenix, said the Romanian healthcare sector was "developing dynamically". He pointed out that Farmexim and Help Net Farma were significant players in the country.
The acquisition is subject to antitrust approvals.
More than 2,000 pharmacies
Phoenix operates more than 2,000 pharmacies under the Apotek 1, BENU and Rowlands Pharmacy brands.
The BENU chain has around 1,200 pharmacies in 10 countries, including the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Serbia, Slovakia, and Switzerland.
In addition to the 1,200 BENU pharmacies, Phoenix has more than 500 pharmacies in the UK through Rowlands Pharmacy and more than 330 pharmacies in Norway through Apotek 1.
Meanwhile, the wholesaling business of Phoenix operates in 26 countries.
Reporting its financial results for the nine months ended 30 October 2017, Phoenix said its total operating performance – comprising revenue and handled volume which cannot be recognised as revenue – was EUR23.4 billion. This represented a rise of 4.7% compared to the same period a year earlier. At constant currencies, the rise was 5.1%.
Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation (EBITDA) were EUR322 million.
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