Health-care logistics firm McKesson Canada has made a bid to buy Uniprix Inc., Quebec’s second-largest chain of retail drugstores.
Financial details of the offer announced today were not disclosed. Under the deal, McKesson would acquire Uniprix’s shares and member-pharmacists would remain owners of their pharmacies.
The deal continues the recent growth in Quebec by McKesson Canada’s U.S. parent, McKesson Corp., a San Francisco-based pharmacy products distributor. Last summer it bought another Quebec chain.
“McKesson Canada is enthusiastic about the prospect of this transaction, which will strengthen our long-standing business relationship with the Uniprix Group for the distribution of pharmaceutical products, over-the-counter medications, and consumer products,” McKesson president Domenic Pilla said in a statement.
“We believe that if our offer is supported by the shareholders and approved by the regulatory bodies it will benefit the Uniprix Group’s independent member-pharmacists through enhanced product and service offerings to customers, while bringing increased financial flexibility to the banners and sustaining its network of independent pharmacy owners.”
Uniprix owns and operates the Uniprix, Unipharm and Uniclinique banners, with a network of about 400 outlets and has annual sales of about $1.6 billion.
Uniprix president and chief executive Francois Castonguay said the long business relationship between the two companies that goes back about three decades makes the transaction “a natural partnership.”
Last summer, McKesson Canada bought Groupe PharmEssor Inc., owner of the Proxim and ProxiMeds drug store brands, with about 270 independently owned outlets in Quebec.
McKesson Canada has long distributed pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter medications and consumer products to Uniprix. The company also distributes Uniprix’s private labels, notably Option Plus, while Uniprix runs McKesson’s Clinique Sante brand.
The deal requires Competition Bureau approval and the majority consent of privately held Uniprix’s shareholders.
